by Cassie Mae
But it’s not like I want him to know either.
I smile to make up for my short answer at him and grapple at the door handle. I watch him from the sidewalk as he drives away, and as soon as he’s around the corner, I dash across the street to Nut World.
Peggy and Mary are at the counter, and they both give me beaming smiles as the door clings with the large bell on the handle.
“I told you she’d come around,” Pegs says, smacking Mary on the arm, but getting her overly large boob instead. “Get her the new employee packet.”
“Wait!” I say before they get too far into their own conversation again and I’m suddenly selling cookies with their nuts. “I’m just here to see Adam.”
Mary smacks Peggy this time. “I told you.” She points over her shoulder. “Go on back. Our head squirrel is just clocking out.”
“Thank you.” I rush past them and into the back, passing Aletha singing in the kitchen. There’s a door on the right that says EMPLOYEE BREAKROOM, and I gently push it open a crack.
Adam’s lounged out on a brown floral printed couch, squirrel-covered feet kicked up on one of the arms. He’s reading something called The Insiders, having a hard time at the moment turning the page with his furry hand. The squirrel head is sitting on the floor next to him, and when he finally gets the page turned, he absentmindedly pokes at the eyeballs on his costume with his free hand.
I hesitate a second before pushing the door all the way in. I just want to watch him read. His eyebrows furrow, raise, alternate, and sometimes he mouths the words. My phone won’t hold many pictures, which is a shame, so I mentally snap one so I can keep it with me for when he graduates.
I sneak into the room, and he drops the paperback, eyebrows rising under his glasses.
“Oh shoot, am I late?” he asks, struggling to sit up in his hefty costume.
“No,” I laugh as I help him up. The fur on his costume tickles my cheek as his face gets closer to mine. Something zaps through my stomach, and I feel my neck fill with blush. What the hell?
“Um…” My voice stutters. I quickly stand straight to distance myself. “I-I thought… you know, maybe we could do the library instead. If you can. I mean… it’s right across the street, so yeah.”
“My dad wants me home tonight, actually,” he says like I’m totally not a rambling fool. “You can use my laptop though.”
I sigh like it bugs me, when it really doesn’t, I’m just feeling this funky buzzed crap going through my toes, and I want it out.
He rolls his eyes and shoves his book in my hands. “Let me get out of this thing.”
Laughs rumble through my throat as he wiggles out of the bulky costume, knocking me in the face with the large furry tail. He’s got a light green T-shirt on underneath that kind of hugs his chest, and well… looks pretty freaking good on him.
“You should wear that more often,” I let my mouth fly.
“Oh yeah. Because being five foot six with red hair and glasses isn’t enough.” He smirks as he tosses the squirrel costume over his shoulder. “I’ll just put on this thing so I can sit at the cool table.”
I slap his paperback into his chest. “I was talking about that shirt, smartass.”
His forehead wrinkles like I’m some crazy loon, and I tug him out the door before my mouth goes off about how his jeans look good on him too. Because they do.
He lets me listen to my music on the way to his house. Jay never turns on his radio, I just realized. Or it’s on, but it’s on really low volume. Maybe that’s why it’s so freaking awkward around him when we’re not kissing.
Did I really just think that?
“You’re pissed at me, aren’t you?”
“Huh? What?”
Adam taps the steering wheel as he makes a right. “About the job.”
Holy brain fart. “I actually forgot about it already. But thanks for the reminder. I am pissed.”
“I still think you should take it.”
“I’m not taking your job, Adam.”
“It’s half a job.”
“You still need it.”
“You need it more.”
I cross my arms and twist in the seat to face him. “Knock. It. Off. I’ll find a job without taking yours. Stop pitying me.”
He snorts. “Fine. But it’s there if you ever need it.”
“I know.” I face forward again. “And thanks.”
His lips quirk a little at the corner as he nods. He pulls into his driveway a few seconds later, and I help him lug that bigass costume up to his room.
“Before we get into it… warning you now… my dad has a date tonight.”
“Okay…”
“She’s coming here for dinner.”
“Then why the heck does he want you home?”
His face runs red as he fires up his PC. “He wants me to officially meet her, I guess.”
I hold back a laugh. “I’m up for speed studying.”
His eyes connect with mine for a brief second, then he drops his head, keeping his hands on the keyboard. “Please don’t make me do this alone.”
“Are you roping me into dinner with your dad and his internet girlfriend?”
“We’re having omelets.”
“For dinner…”
“It’s the only thing my dad can make.”
Oh, I know. “Is he going to make the Brea special?”
“If we have food coloring. And bacon.”
I tap my chin and drag out my answer. Of course I’ll stay. He’d do the same for me. But it’s fun to tease him when I can.
He pulls his glasses off and bats his eyes like he always does when he asks for a favor. Thing is, I’d probably agree faster with the glasses on.
A dramatic sigh flits from my mouth, and I push his glasses back on his face. “I suppose. Even though you don’t do anything for me.”
He drops his mouth in a “no-you-didn’t” way and tips the rolly chair back. My stomach whirls for a slight second, and when I regain my balance, Adam’s laughing, so I tackle him to the floor. Once I have him pinned, I can’t help but notice the strong scent of roasted almonds on his shirt.
“Don’t make me use my mad skills,” he threatens, pushing up with his hips, trying to wiggle out of my grasp. I set a knee on his arm and push back.
“Give up, old man.” Not once has Adam had the upper hand when we wrestle… which hasn’t happened in a long time, I realize. Suddenly my palms feel sweaty.
He relaxes under me, and I flash him a grin. Before I can claim victory, though, he swipes a leg out. I fall flat against him, then he rolls and pins my arms down, trapping my legs with his.
“You were saying?”
Giggles barrel through me as I push against his grasp, but he doesn’t budge. Not even a little. I try sliding out, but that doesn’t work either. My brow furrows and my body shakes with shocked laughter as I let my gaze run over his arms. Tendons flex, veins protrude, his hair even looks like it’s standing on end.
Arm hair. He has arm hair. There’s a part of my brain that says “of course he has arm hair, you idiot.” But that’s not it. There’s something about Adam’s arms looking extremely manly that sucks my laughter away. It fuzzes my brain. I don’t know what to do now but lie here and wait for him to get off me.
But I kinda hope he stays.
My eyes meet his, and his smile is there, but he’s not laughing either. His fingers loosen, and for some dumb reason my hips move up.
“What’s a prokaryotic cell?” he says.
“Huh?”
He raises his eyebrow, doesn’t move, doesn’t talk. I try to think then realize I don’t have to. I know the answer.
“Um, a simple cell?”
“Give an example.”
Simple cells. Simple cells. They don’t have a nucleus… what was it that Mr. Brock said last lesson?
“Bacteria?”
His palms slip a little on my wrists. “You sure?”
Pretty sure. Bacteria… no nucleus.
“Yes?”
He tilts his head. “Brea.”
“Yes,” I say with a firm nod even though he totally has me second guessing myself.
“Yes.” He smiles and instead of sliding back, he flops next to me on the floor. The gap between us leaves my body shivering. My mind races, my skin tingles, and I have to get a grip on myself because he’s saying something.
“Sorry what?” I ask.
He fixes his glasses and stares at the ceiling. “Name three accessory organs.”
Chapter 15
Who cares what the root of a word is anyway?
Mr. Silver drops the entire egg carton on the floor, shaking a storm as he bustles around the kitchen. A slew of swears tumbles from his lips, and I have to force back my laughter. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the man drop an effer.
“Dad, relax,” Adam says, pulling out another carton of eggs. The entire fridge is stocked from top to bottom shelf with omelet necessities. Looks like Mr. Silver over-prepared again.
The doorbell rings, and Adam’s dad’s face goes completely ghost white as he straightens his tie. But his fingers can’t get a grip on it. I chuckle as I bat his hands out of the way and tighten and smooth it all for him. He gives me a grateful—and sort of nauseous looking—grin before bolting to the front door.
Adam mouths a “thank you” and starts melting butter in the pan on the stove.
A sweet, womanly voice filters into the kitchen. Adam’s face mimics his dad’s as he keeps his eyes trained on the butter. I reach out and squeeze his hand.
“Uh,” Mr. Silver stutters. Both mine and Adam’s gaze move to the short, black-haired woman with a wide smile. She’s wearing jeans and a t-shirt, completely casual and awesome… and totally unlike the security uniform she usually wears because is that…?
“Ms. Gibbons?” Adam says, and she lets out a strong laugh.
“Terri,” she says, and Adam’s mouth won’t close as he reaches out to shake her hand. She moves to me next and a light clicks on behind her eyes. “Oh! You’re Levi’s sister.”
“You know Brea?” Mr. Silver asks, and I’m thinking he’s the only one here who doesn’t see the connection.
“Her brother is my son’s best man.”
Mr. Silver connects the dots from Zak Gibbons all the way to me, pointing his finger at all of us, when Terri smiles and pulls his arm down.
“Can I help with anything?” she asks. Mr. Silver quickly shakes his head.
“Just tell me what you want in your omelet.” He grins wide and opens the fridge, gesturing to all the different fillings he bought. Terri laughs and lightly pinches his upper arm.
“Someone’s prepared.”
“Always,” I say, then kick Adam’s shoe. “I think it runs in the family.”
After Terri tells Mr. Silver everything she wants in her omelet, we’re forced to sit at the bar and watch Mr. Silver and Adam wow us with their cooking skills. Adam drops three eggs trying to juggle them. Mr. Silver slices his knuckles with the cheese grater. They run into each other about twenty times just maneuvering around the kitchen. And Terri and I have a great laugh watching them fumble all over themselves, and she makes jokes about how her stomach may eat itself.
We finally get to the table, my cheeks already sore from smiling so much. I’m a lot like Terri, I think. She talks about how birthday wishes always come true, and how she took down a guy who was stealing a pair of jeans when she was on duty, and the biggest thing… how it took her forever to find the job she has because it took her so long to pass the tests. I’m so enthralled by her I don’t even notice Adam’s lack of enthusiasm until he accidentally bumps me under the table.
I lightly tap him with my foot. “You okay?” I mouth. He nods, but his lips are pursed.
“So, Adam,” Terri says, bringing her cherry red omelet to her lips. When she saw Adam dripping food coloring in mine, she begged to have hers look the same. “Your dad said you’re pretty tech savvy.”
He shrugs and picks at his food. “I’m okay, I guess. Depends on the program.”
“Well, Zak and Levi were working on a light show for the wedding.” She pauses to share a look with Mr. Silver. They both laugh with their eyes, and I think it’s pretty awesome they have that sort of connection already. But Adam shifts in his chair, so I give him an encouraging smile.
“They couldn’t quite get it to work,” Terri continues. “I thought maybe you might have some ideas?”
Adam leans forward, completely ignoring his food now. “Isn’t Zak really good with that stuff?”
“He is… depending on the program.” Her eyes twinkle as she puts another bite to her mouth. “But he works well in a team too.”
Adam’s mouth relaxes. I decide to stroke his ego.
“And you know Levi will be absolutely no help.” I take a bite of my red-colored omelet. “I bet you could get it running two seconds after looking at the thing.”
Adam shakes his head at me, but he’s smiling as his gaze flicks to Terri. “Yeah, I guess I could take a look.”
“Great. I’ll let him know.”
The rest of the dinner conversation is swamped by Terri and me as we talk about classic horror movies. Add another thing onto the list of things we have in common. We help clean up, even though Mr. Silver doesn’t want us to. And when they sneak a kiss by the sink, I pull Adam into the hallway and ask if he’s okay.
“Yeah.”
I give him a look, because he’s so not being honest.
He smiles a real smile this time. “I’m okay, Brea. Just… weirded out I guess.”
“She’s really nice, you know. Could’ve been a total disaster.”
“Yeah. I know.” He runs a hand over his head. “I don’t know why I feel like this. She is nice. She’s funny, and she’s almost the total opposite of my dad, which I think is good for him. Like, I get it. But I still… shit. I shouldn’t feel…”
“You can feel however you want.” I slug him in the upper arm. “But you have to be nicer, or she’s going to think you don’t like her, then she’ll tell your dad, and he’ll ask you, and then it’ll be this big huge drama you don’t want to deal with, right?”
He chuckles. “Right.”
“And you know, I have a lot in common with Terri. So if you don’t like her, I’m going to get a complex.”
He throws an arm around me, and we go back to help clean. I wasn’t sure if he’d listen, but he’s a lot more vocal the rest of the night. Even returns Terri’s hug when she gets ready to leave.
Mr. Silver leads her to the porch, and peeks from behind the door, giving a hopeful look at his son. Adam’s lips tilt slightly, and he nods like it’s okay. And Mr. Silver lets out a breath of air like he’s been waiting for that response all night and shuts the door.
Adam’s smile falls, and he starts clicking the pen hooked on his right pocket.
“Come on,” I say, pulling on one of his belt loops. He trips a little as I tug him out back to our place in the yard. When it’s cold, we camp out in Adam’s room, but on warm nights like this, we always sit in the overgrown grass, and I make wishes on stars. They aren’t as effective as birthday candles though.
The crisp air feels good after being in the steamed kitchen, and I sink to the grass and stretch out on my stomach.
“Ready for a hypothetical conversation?” I ask, picking a dandelion from the ground. Adam lies down next to me on his back. I stick a yellow petal on his nose. “Zoe is marrying Zak—”
“That’s not hypothetical.”
I ignore his attitude since tonight wasn’t super easy for him.
“Then Levi marries Sierra.”
He turns his head, the petal falling from his face. “And what? My dad marries Ms. Gibbons?”
I nod. “So like, you would be step-brothers with Zak, and in turn, step slash in-law with Zoe, then another step-in-law with Sierra, then another step-in-law with Levi… then me.” I give him a grin and flip on my back too. “So, we’re practically related in thi
s hypothetical situation.”
His lips look like they really don’t want to smile at that, but they do anyway. He stares back up at the sky and starts ripping the grass out by our hips. “You better show up to all our family reunions.”
“If you bring red velvet cake.”
“Topped with red M&Ms.”
“And strawberry frosting,” we say at the same time. His smile turns into full out laughter, and I find myself scooting closer to him. The night air rushes over me, and I have the inexplicable urge to move Adam’s arm, use it as a pillow, and fold into his side. But I stay put. I have a boyfriend, and maybe cuddling is not okay. Especially since that image sends a flurry of fireflies in my stomach, and I start thinking about what it was like to kiss Adam.
I scoot back to my original position.
“Thanks for staying,” he says, breaking into my thoughts.
“Yep,” I squeak, then quickly shoot out another topic to take my mind off how freaking close he is. He’s always close. This should not be any different. “So, you’re going to be my date for the wedding, right?”
“Huh?”
“Terri asked you and your dad to go to the wedding. I’m being forced into it, too. By both Sierra and Levi.” I knock his elbow with mine. Friendly-like. “Save me from absolute boredom and be my date.”
He gulps, scratches his head, and picks at the grass again. “Aren’t you going to ask Jay?”
“No,” I tell him honestly. “Jay doesn’t know anybody there. And I kinda want to be with a friend so we can make fun of our other friends in their Star Wars getups.”
“I thought it was just me you guys were avoiding.” He yanks up more grass. “Sierra and Jolie haven’t hung out with you and Jay either?”
“No.” Is that weird? “He’s not really… I don’t know. We’re just not friends yet, I guess.”
“You and Jay…?” His eyebrows knit together. “Or everyone and Jay?”
“Both?”
Adam’s mouth pops open slightly. He keeps staring at me like I have a zit on my face or something. I know that look. It’s the look he gets when he has an opinion about something that’s going to piss me off.
I sigh, and cock my head a little. “What?”