“No. I’m walking.” I adjusted the strap of my backpack, hitching it higher on my shoulder.
“I’ll drive you.”
“Won’t your brother be upset?” I mentally cringed.
He was offering to drive me home, and I was being snarky. What was wrong with me?
He flinched as if I’d said something that was repulsive. “Why would Jax care if I drive you home?”
“Because he doesn’t like me.”
I’d never cared before if anyone liked me or not, but I wanted his brother to like me. It was important for reasons I couldn’t fully comprehend, almost as if Jax not liking me meant Trent might decide he didn’t like me, either.
Trent pushed off the locker. “Jax doesn’t like anyone. Besides, he left already. So, can I drive you home?”
I tried to calm my racing heart, but no amount of deep breaths helped. Being alone with him, even if only for a few minutes, was exciting. But how would I explain to Aunt Beth that I’d gotten a ride home from a guy I barely knew? She wouldn’t be pleased. And would Abby get into trouble for leaving me here, even though I’d told her to? I didn’t want to cause any trouble.
“That’s really not necessary, but thanks,” I said.
I headed for the side door and pushed my way outside. It was cloudy and windy, and I cursed Abby for rushing me out of the house this morning. I hadn’t had time to grab a sweater, and I was going to be an ice cube when I got home.
“It’s the least I can do. Consider it repayment for what you did today.” He grinned.
As charming as that smile was, I wasn’t going to be swayed by it. I didn’t want Trent’s attention because he thought he owed me. I wanted his attention because he liked me.
Whoa. I barely knew this guy. Why did I care if he liked me? Better yet, why did I want him to like me?
Forcing the confusing thoughts from my mind, I said, “I took the fall with Mr. Patterson because it was the right thing to do, not because I was hoping to get something from you. So, no, I don’t need you to give me a ride home as some sort of repayment. You don’t owe me anything, okay? We’re even.” I took a deep breath. “Besides, you showed up for detention anyway, so I really didn’t do anything.”
He hesitated for a moment. “Okay. What if I want to drive you home?”
“You want to drive me home?” No way I’d heard him correctly.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
That earned me a genuine laugh. Nothing made me feel as warm as his laughter did. Well, nothing since Mom had died. Hearing Trent, being near him, it was oddly comforting in a way I hadn’t felt in months.
The day my mother fell into a coma was the day my world fell out from under me. Trent’s presence was like the world was slowly being rebuilt beneath me. And I couldn’t begin to explain how or why a guy I barely knew had such a strong impact on me.
“Look, we have a history project to do. We can talk about it on the way home,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. “It’s just a ride, Chloe.”
The way he said my name sent shivers up my spine. I couldn’t deny him. “Okay.”
We walked in silence toward his truck. It was an older, white Chevy pickup that desperately needed to visit a car wash. When we got there, he opened the door for me. I hadn’t realized guys did that anymore.
I climbed in and buckled my seatbelt as he went around and slid in behind the steering wheel. The interior was worn and faded, but it was clean. A pine-tree air freshener hung from the rearview mirror, filling the cab with a forest smell.
“Besides, Adirondack Street isn’t out of my way,” he said as he started the engine and pulled out of the student parking lot.
Stunned, I paused for a moment. “You know where I live?”
He nodded.
That knowledge probably should’ve freaked me out, but it didn’t. In fact, I found it strangely flattering. Being in this town was seriously messing with my mind.
“How do you know?” I asked.
“I overheard Abby talking in the hallway earlier. She mentioned it.”
I narrowed my eyes. That didn’t make much sense, but I wasn’t about to call him a liar, either. For someone who was new to town, he knew an awful lot about it and its residents. I shifted so I could face him.
He was staring out the windshield, lost in concentration, seemingly oblivious to me. His cheeks and forehead were red, like he’d spent too much time outside and had gotten sunburnt. But that wasn’t possible.
We’d literally walked from the school to his truck. No one burned that quickly, especially with the cloud cover today.
I leaned closer to get a better look. Everything about his face was perfectly proportionate, and his profile was striking. Inferiority flamed inside of me, and realization smacked me hard. It was no wonder he could tune me out and act like I didn’t exist. He was so far out of my league, and he knew it, and I was the naïve, pathetic girl who didn’t quite get it until it was too late.
I leaned back in the seat and crossed my arms.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing.”
Finally, Trent looked at me, and my breath caught. There was something in his expression, or maybe it was the way the sun filtered into the cab of his truck, but I swore his eyes were sparkling and changing shades of blue right in front of me. It was breathtaking and confusing all at the same time.
I blinked repeatedly, convinced I was seeing things.
“Why do you keep staring at me like that?” he asked.
“Uh, I don’t…” I shook my head, but I couldn’t get rid of the image of his eyes shifting from one shade of blue to another. It had to be an illusion, a trick of the sunlight. That was the only explanation that made any sense. “Sorry,” I said.
“Okay then.” He gave me an odd look, put on his sunglasses, and refocused his attention on driving.
“Why do you always wear those?”
“My eyes are sensitive to sunlight.”
“Oh.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek, contemplating his answer. “Then, why were you wearing them in Mr. Patterson’s class today?”
“I like to wear them, okay? They make me look cool.”
Like he needed any help in that department. “Then why didn’t you just say that in the first place?”
He sighed, the sound a mix between annoyance and something… darker. “What’s your obsession with my sunglasses?”
I took a deep breath and considered my next question carefully. Clearly, Trent wasn’t the chatty type, and it bugged me how he continued to answer my questions with a question of his own. I used to do that, too, when I was trying to lie to Mom. She always saw right through it, and I’d get into so much trouble. My mom was the master of picking up on when anyone was lying.
“Why don’t you have any friends?” I wanted to slap myself as soon as the words left my mouth.
Could I have asked a dumber question? Of course, he didn’t have any friends—he just moved here. Then again, so had I, but I was lucky enough to have found Ellie.
He laughed. “What makes you think I don’t have any friends?”
“I never see you with anyone but your brother.”
“You’ve been here two days, Chloe. That doesn’t make you an expert on my social life.”
“No, I guess it doesn’t.”
I’d never had anyone say so much without saying anything at all. He was so frustrating, like a puzzle that was missing several important pieces. I slouched in the seat. Right about now, I’d take Ellie’s nonsensical ramblings over this conversation.
“Besides, I’m new around here, too, remember? I simply haven’t had time to make any friends.” He sliced a look in my direction, but his expression was unreadable. “Except for you. You’re my friend, aren’t you?”
“Am I?”
The only time he was ever friendly toward me was when we were alone or in World History class. That wasn’t how friends treated each other.
“I’m
sorry,” he said after several moments of tense silence.
“For what?” I asked, waiting for an answer that was another question, but this time, he ignored me.
Trent wouldn’t win any accolades for his conversational skills. I’d never met anyone like him before. All the guys I knew back in Florida couldn’t seem to stop talking about one thing or another, usually sports or partying or cars.
He slowed to a stop for an accident that had traffic backed up. He made a noise that sounded like a low, throaty growl. Then he did a U-turn and headed back the way we’d just come.
“We’ll have to go the long way,” he said.
How did he know an alternate route? It was on the tip of my tongue to ask when he spoke first. “Who was Abby with?”
“What?”
“Last night when I found you on the side of the road. You said Abby was meeting some boy. Who was she with?”
“Why do you care who Abby was with?” I could play his little question-for-question game, too.
Until a disturbing thought crashed into my mind. Was Trent asking about Abby because he liked her?
“Marc Johnson.” Saying his name had bile rising in the back of my throat.
“Hmm.”
“Why do you care?” I asked again.
“I was just curious.”
“Why?” I pressed.
In my limited experience, a guy didn’t ask about a girl without a reason. Oh, God! Is that why he was being so nice to me? So he could get closer to Abby? My stomach churned. Well, if he thought he could use me like that, he had another thing coming.
“Does it matter?” he asked.
I took a deep breath, my teeth clenched. And we were back to answering questions with questions. I’d had enough.
“I’ll tell you what…” He pulled into my driveway. “You answer one of my questions honestly, and I’ll do the same. Deal?”
He killed the engine and rested his arms on the steering wheel. But he didn’t look at me. And he didn’t take those stupid sunglasses off even though we were parked in the shade.
“Deal.” I didn’t give him the chance to go first. “Why did you show up at detention today?” I could have asked him a million other questions, but that one popped into my mind first.
“Because it was the right thing to do.”
I waited for more of an explanation. He remained silent. And so did I. It may have been the right thing to do, but was that the only reason? Part of me knew there was more to it.
“What happened in the hallway today, Chloe? You were shaking when I found you.” He finally turned to look at me, and his lips were set in a firm line. Concern pulled at his brows.
Of all the questions he could have asked, he had to ask that one. He was going to think I was crazy—well, crazier than he probably already thought I was.
“I’m not sure I can explain it.” My voice trembled slightly.
“Try. Please.”
“I got lost.” I bit on my bottom lip and averted my gaze. “There was fog in the hall. It was thick and smelled really bad.”
“Is that all?” he asked slowly, almost cautiously, like he was afraid his question would upset me.
I shrugged. “Right before that, I passed Marc in the hallway. He mumbled something that sounded like ‘get lost,’ but I’m not sure.” He’s going to think I’m nuts. “It was just a weird coincidence.”
“A coincidence.” His disbelief was evident in his tone.
“It’s probably stress and lack of sleep,” I said.
I fidgeted with the zipper on my backpack. Discomfort spread through me. I didn’t know what had happened in the hall today, but I knew it hadn’t been stress.
“Thank you,” he said.
I jerked my head up. “Thank you?” I told him a crazy story, and he thanked me? “That’s all you have to say?”
“You should probably stay away from Marc,” he said after a moment. He removed his sunglasses and tossed them onto the dashboard.
“Yeah, I’ll work on that.” Sarcasm dripped from my tone.
It was a mistake to tell him the truth. He was more than likely making fun of me in his mind, or worse, thinking about the things he’d say to his brother when he got home.
I got out of his truck and slammed the door harder than necessary.
He met me around on the passenger’s side. “Hey, I didn’t mean to upset you.” He shoved his hands into his pockets.
“You didn’t.”
My master plan to storm off and leave him staring after me was thwarted by the fact I’d inadvertently shut one of the straps in the truck door. I was violently and involuntarily jerked backward. I lost my balance.
His arms were quick to wrap around my waist and pull me toward him. Our faces were inches apart, just like in the hallway earlier. I stared into his eyes, my heart thundering in my ears. His touch was firm and assured.
“Easy there,” he said, his enticingly sweet breath tickling my lips.
He tucked some stray strands of hair behind my ear and then lightly dragged his fingers along my jaw and across my chin. My eyes fluttered closed in anticipation of a kiss that never came.
With one hand, he reached behind me and opened the door, freeing the strap. Then, as fast as he’d caught me, he released me.
My entire body slumped at the loss of contact. I cleared my throat. “Thanks.”
He took a step back. “Sure.”
Moments ago, I was eager to get away from him, but after I’d felt his hands on me, I didn’t want him to leave. Ever. Yet, it seemed as though he couldn’t care less that I was around, and he didn’t show any signs of being bothered about the up-close-and-personal moment we’d just shared.
“Um, would you like to come inside?” I asked.
Trent tilted his head. “For what?”
“A drink? Or we could work on our history paper.”
“You want to work on our history paper?”
I threw my hands in the air in exasperation. “Do you always have to respond with a question of your own? You do know that’s rude, don’t you? Or didn’t anyone ever bother to teach you any manners?”
Trent faked a cough and averted his gaze. He was laughing!
“What’s so funny?” I asked, my patience at an all-time low.
“Nothing, it’s just… You ask so many questions.”
I had to refrain from stomping my foot like a spoiled child, but I didn’t stop from scoffing at him. “Goodbye, Trent. Thanks for the ride home.”
I turned and stormed toward the house. I asked too many questions? He asked just as many, and I wasn’t laughing at him because of it.
“Chloe?”
I stopped and turned back toward him. “Trent?”
“Would it be all right if I drove you to school Monday morning?”
“You want to drive me to school?”
The only reason he’d driven me home today was because he felt guilty about the whole detention thing.
“Is that a problem?” he asked.
I closed my eyes and sighed. I suppose I’d have to get used to having conversations that were nothing but unanswered questions. It could be interesting. It had certainly kept me entertained today, in addition to annoying the crap out of me.
“No, it’s not a problem.” I shifted on my feet. “But what’re you hoping to get out of giving me another ride?”
His mouth twitched and then curled into his signature smile. “More questions.” Then he got back into his truck and drove off.
CHAPTER SEVEN:
Research
SMILING, I WENT INSIDE, AND ABBY ambushed me. She darted away from the front window and stood in front of me.
“Was that Trent Halstead?” she asked in a high-pitched tone.
“Yes.”
“Oh my God. Chloe! How…? What…? Give me all the details.” She grabbed my hand and dragged me upstairs, straight into her room.
“Weren’t you going to a movie with Rachel?”
Abby shrugged.
“She had to go home. We’re going to hang out this weekend, though. She’ll probably come here, so the three of us can have a sleepover. Mom already agreed to it.”
“Oh.” I tried not to frown at the idea. I did not want to spend the weekend with Rachel, and I was pretty sure she felt the same way.
Abby’s face fell at my utter lack of excitement, and a pang of regret landed hard in my gut. I didn’t want to upset her. Her disappointment was short lived, though.
“A bunch of us are going to the falls tomorrow. You should totally come.” She snatched her cell phone and tapped away at the screen before glancing up, brows raised, waiting for me to answer.
I assumed Marc and Rachel would be there, too, and for that reason alone, I wanted to say no. But if I didn’t hang out with Abby and her friends, what would I do? Spend the weekend alone in my room doing homework? Or worse, hang out with Aunt Beth and Uncle Dean? Abby’s plan was the lesser of two evils.
I gave her a lame “cool,” which seemed to appease her.
“Okay, so tell me all about Trent. How did you end up riding home with him?” She squealed again, and I cringed against the sound.
“There’s not really anything to tell. He saw you leave and offered to drive me home. End of story.” I shrugged. “Maybe we can go to that movie after dinner?” I asked, hoping to distract her from her interrogation.
“Rachel told me she tried to talk to Trent today, and he completely ignored her. Acted like she wasn’t even there.”
I bit back a smile. That sounded like Trent.
“Seriously, Chloe, this is a big deal. He likes you,” she stated.
I rolled my eyes. “He’s just a friend. And we’re partners for a history project. Look, I’ve got a lot of homework to do. We’ll talk about this later. Promise.”
“You’re going to spend Friday night doing homework?”
I stared at her. Hadn’t I asked her to go to a movie, and she’d ignored me? When she didn’t say anything else, I said, “Yes, I’m going to do homework. I’m behind.”
“Right. Of course.” She flashed an apologetic smile. “I’m going to hold you to your promise, though. I want to know everything you and Trent talked about, and I want to know what that hug was all about, too.” Abby giggled.
Eternal Curse: (The Cursed Series, Book 1) Page 5