I looked up at her and winked.
Then again, Aira might just be the one thing that would knock me off my feet.
Chapter 15
Aira
I stared at the clock and counted down the hours until Wes would show up on the deck and I would sneak out and meet him. We never left the deck. We never talked about too much in life. Other than the normal crap happening inside the old stone walls of HCH. And, yes, I had gotten used to calling it that. More than that, I had totally gotten used to the way he kissed me goodnight. He left me lingering for so much more, my mind racing to make that somehow happen.
Everywhere I went, Wes was there.
Every class I left, he was standing in the hall, making sure I was okay.
When I left the building, he was always on the railing.
Sometimes he talked to me, sometimes he didn’t.
But he never failed to show up at night to see me.
And kiss me.
My face was hot as I thought about it.
“Excuse me, can I get some help?”
I turned my head and saw Ryland standing on the other side of the counter.
He pulled his sunglasses down his nose and looked at me.
“You look delicious today, Aira.”
“And you make me want to throw up,” I said. “How about that?”
“The hate only makes it… harder…”
Ryland wiggled his eyebrows.
“What do you want?”
Ryland leaned forward. “What could I have out of the glass case to get your panties on my bedroom floor?”
“Yeah, right,” I said.
“I don’t mean that literally,” Ryland said. “I’m not interested in you today.”
“Oh?”
Ryland turned his head and there was a girl sitting at a table. She looked prim and proper with her knees together in a light yellow dress. Her pretty blonde hair done up with thick, tight braids.
She looked at Ryland and waved.
He blew her a kiss.
Her high cheekbones turned pinkish.
“How cute,” I said. “I should give her something for free for the regret about to come.”
“Speaking of coming,” Ryland said as he looked at me again.
“Don’t be gross. Just tell me what you want.”
“Whoa,” he said. “Not in front of my other girl there, Aira. I mean, I like to play and all, but not like that. Unless you’re both into that. I can share. I can watch.”
“You can also use your right hand,” I said.
“I’d rather yours.”
“Hey, Julia, can you help me out here?” I called out.
Ryland curled his lip. “You know, you can try and hide behind them all you want, but even they know who really runs this town.”
“And what does that mean?”
“He hasn’t told you anything, has he?”
“Who is he?”
Ryland laughed. “You’re too pretty for your own good, Aira. But at least I tried to help you.”
“Help? How?”
He put his hand to mine. “You get too close to Weslee and you could end up hurt. And not just your heart.”
I pulled my hand away and wanted to slap him.
“What do you need, Aira?” Julia asked as she wiped her hands on her apron.
“I feel sick to my stomach.”
“Uh… get away from the food,” Julia said.
“Yeah,” I said. “I better get away from what’s making me sick.”
I backed up and Ryland kept his eyes on me.
“I have no reason to lie to you,” he said. “You’re just passing through, Aira.”
I lifted my middle finger on my right hand and walked to the back.
I grabbed my phone to text Wes.
But I didn’t.
I’d wait.
Until tonight.
When he showed up to kiss me.
I paced the kitchen, heart racing, the idea of sleeping so far from my mind. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I went out to the back deck and stood there staring out to the ocean. I wasn’t happy with myself that Ryland popped into my mind, but there he was. Coming into See B’s was one thing, I couldn’t stop him from doing that. But the fact that he was doing so with another girl, just to flaunt it at me. And because he had been stringing Mika along for so long too. He had her convinced that they were going to end up together. It was actually a little sad.
Then again, I was the one standing there, waiting for Wes. I was just as sad then. Because I had no idea who Wes really was. What his actual intentions were. Or the fact that he didn’t know why I was back in Hidden. Kailey was the only one I told.
I heard a grunting sound and saw Wes’s hands at the bottom of the deck.
I raced to the railing and looked over to see Wes hanging there.
“Hey, darling,” he called out.
“This is how you get up here?”
“Yeah.”
“There’s a set of steps on the other side,” I said, almost laughing.
“I know. I wanted to be quiet.”
“How is this quiet?” I asked.
Wes moved with precision, doing a pull up and then grabbed at the railing, still pulling himself up. Okay, it was pretty sexy to watch. His arms and muscles working to keep him from falling down to the beach. And he made it look so effortless. In a matter of seconds, he pulled himself up to the deck and then jumped over the railing with ease.
His hands quickly cupped my face as he drove his body against mine.
He let out a growling sound that made my knees bend as I couldn’t find air.
“Missed you,” he whispered.
“You just saw me a few hours ago.”
“That was a long few hours. How are you doing? How are you feeling?”
I swallowed hard.
There wasn’t a night he didn’t bring up my secret.
The truth was I hadn’t thought about it since Wes started kissing me. Which was maybe pathetic to admit, but it was a fact. Everything had been left in my bag and it didn’t cross my mind. I would go to bed at night with my stomach full of butterflies and worry, which was a much better thing to feel versus anger.
“I’m good, Wes,” I said. “I promise. I’m good.”
His thumbs slid along my cheeks. “You know, you can tell me anything. I mean that.”
“Yeah? You the same. You still haven’t said much about yourself. Or why everyone thinks you’re such a bad person.”
Wes grinned. “People can think what they want. I don’t really care. If you stick around here long enough, you’ll see the bigger picture.”
“You can’t just tell me?”
“Nothing to tell.”
“What about your cousins? The shop? Jett? You? Pop?”
“What about? I didn’t come here to talk, darling.”
I took a dangerous chance and touched the bottom of his shirt. My fingertips moved under his shirt and were helped to nothing but hard, rippling skin and muscle. My fingertips climbed his ab muscles like a ladder and I then put my hands flat to his chest.
“Maybe I want to talk,” I said, my mouth dry as sand.
“Doesn’t feel that way,” Wes said.
“Someone was in the bakery today,” I whispered.
Wes’s lip curled. “Yeah? What did that someone have to say?”
“The usual,” I said. “He really hates you.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
“What did he do to you? Or did you do something to him?”
Wes took a breath and shook his head. “It’s all opposite, darling. Just remember that. You see my ride. You see his ride. You see my look. You see his look. You see his family. You see my family. That’s all.”
“It’s more than just that, Wes. Anyone can see it. You two want to hurt each other. Maybe even kill each other.”
“Yeah. That’s right. And if you go anywhere near him you’ll get sucked into his games and his life and that’
s when people get used and hurt.”
I laughed. Not playfully or happily. “That’s what he said about you.”
Wes stepped back.
My hands were forced to travel back down his body.
“I don’t want to talk about that someone,” he said.
“Can we talk about Charlotte and Flynn?” I asked. “How does that work?”
“I can describe it for you, Aira, but you’d be grossed out.”
“What makes you think that would gross me out?” I asked.
Now I was being playful.
Wes closed in on me again. He towered over me, his chest and shoulders flexed tight. “Don’t make me get worked up here, Aira.”
“Over what?”
“Over every guy that has had you before me. They took a piece of my promise and dream.”
“Is that so? So you think I…”
Wes lifted an eyebrow.
Shoot.
“I mean, you’re one to talk,” I said. “Do I even want to know how many girls you had under the bleachers?”
“Not my style, darling. Girls love to go for a ride. If you understand what that means.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks. Elsewhere too.
Wes touched my wrists and I gasped. His hands slid to mine and our fingers interlocked tight.
“Aira, you’ve never…”
“Shhh,” I whispered. “I’m not talking about this.”
“I am,” Wes said. “I have even more of a reason to protect you now.”
“Is that so?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“I’m sure a lot of guys would love to be in a position to have you first,” he said.
“Does that make you jealous?”
“Do you really want me to answer that, Aira?”
His eyes and face told the story. I’d never seen that look on Wes’s face before. A dangerous kind of anger. Yet I was the one melting into it. Seeing trouble but not avoiding it.
Wes lowered his mouth down to mine.
It was our normal kiss, at least for a second or two.
Wes made a move and pressed his body into mine, turning me enough so he could walk me back to the railing of the deck. With each step, there was another kiss. My steps were stuttering and I felt like I was going to fall. His hands were tight to my hands, not letting me go.
When I was against the railing, he was against me.
I shivered and kissed him back as hard as he kissed me.
“This is where you make my head and heart explode, Aira,” he whispered.
“Oh?”
“You were supposed to be the first for everything,” he said. “Someone stole our first kiss. And more. But if there’s one first waiting for me, I want it.”
I looked into his eyes.
I would have… right there…
Wes stepped back and released his hold on my right hand. But not my left hand. Instead, he lifted my left and cupped it with both his hands before kissing it.
When he let me go, he took out a cigarette and lit it. He climbed over the railing and stood there, looking like the worst possible decision I could ever make in my life.
“Goodnight, darling,” he said.
I opened my mouth to say goodnight back but Wes jumped.
He left me lingering with the taste of his kisses and the smell of his smoke.
I went to the door and went inside where it was air conditioned. But I knew that wasn’t going to cool me off at all.
I made it three steps before the kitchen light turned on.
Julia stood there, looking pissed off. “We should talk.”
Julia crossed her arms.
I had never seen her look mad or annoyed before. At least not at me.
“Do I even have to ask?”
“Ask what?” I replied.
“You are out there getting close to him.”
“Him? You know who that is?”
“Everyone knows who that is.”
“What does that mean?” I asked. “Everyone keeps telling me…”
“And you don’t feel the need to listen?”
“Maybe I like to make decisions for myself.”
Julia sighed. “Aira…”
“You realize I know who Weslee is, right? I grew up next to him? We were in kindergarten together. Right up until I had to leave here we knew each other.”
“You say it that way. You knew him. Meaning what? He was mean to you? He picked on you?”
“Not like that,” I said. “It was boy and girl stuff. I think he liked me.”
“Oh, there’s a great start to a relationship. Boy treats girl like crap because he likes her.”
Now my face twisted into anger. “Do you have something to say here?”
“Actually, I do. What are you doing?”
“What am I doing? I’m trying to fit in. Trying to figure this out.”
“And you go right into the fire?”
“What fire? Wes has been helping me.”
“Wes? You call him Wes now?”
I laughed. I touched my forehead. “This is crazy. I’m dreaming.”
“I thought I was dreaming when I looked outside and saw you pinned against the railing…”
“Ohgod, stop,” I said. I shut my eyes. “Please. Just stop.”
“Look at it from my point of view, Aira. You wanted to come here. And I agreed with it. You’re here for how long? You’re getting into fights. And then I see you-”
“It wasn’t Wes’s fault for that,” I said. “That guy at the bakery today. Ryland. He’s the one who is trouble. And he and Wes hate each other. Right now, Wes is the only person who makes me feel comfortable.”
“What about your friends?”
“Yeah. Kailey is great. But Wes…”
“Is a boy,” Julia said. She hung her head. “Do I need to go over the rules or talk about the birds and the bees?”
“Seriously? Do people still call it that?”
Julia titled her head. “Are you saying I’m old?”
“I’m saying that right now I’m trying to feel comfortable and happy.”
“And Weslee does that for you?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted.
“You just like kissing him.”
“I’m not talking about this.”
Julia laughed. “Does he know about the fire?”
“Actually, he doesn’t. Okay? I’ll tell him when I’m ready.” I opened my eyes wide for Julia to see. “Because I can make my own decisions when I’m ready to do something.”
“Aira, please, just don’t get into trouble while you’re here. This is supposed to be a safe place for you while all that other stuff gets figured out. I still think you should talk to someone. About everything.”
“If I tell you I’ll think about it, will you let me go to bed?”
“Only after I move my bed in front of the back door so I can keep an eye on things.”
I laughed. “Julia…”
“Aira…,” she said back in a cocky voice. “Don’t make me put you on the schedule full time at the bakery. I will.”
“You’ve never had a crush before?” I teased.
“That’s the problem, Aira. I’ve had a crush before. And I know what it did to me. Have a good night. Keep your tongue to yourself.”
I cringed at the comment.
Julia walked away, turning off the kitchen light.
I stood there alone in the dark, like before.
I licked my lips and tasted Wes’s lips.
I knew he was trouble. I knew where a crush could end up.
But Wes was the only one who made all the pain go away.
Chapter 16
Wes
Ma was asleep on the couch so I carefully left the house and went down to check on Cherry. And Noelle.
As I took my helmet off outside the small one story house, the front door opened and out came Noelle. She was in a long blue hoodie and it looked like she had nothing on but that.
She didn’t notice me at first with her earbuds in, her eyes shut, her head dancing to whatever song that was playing just for her.
When she finally saw me, she hurried to pull the earbuds out.
“Hey, Wes,” she said.
I looked at her eyes.
They looked clear.
That was a good thing.
“You dressed under that or what?” I asked her.
“Come find out,” she said.
I raised my left eyebrow. “Seriously.”
Noelle sighed. “You’re such an ass.”
She lifted the bottom of the hoodie up, showing me she had clothes on under it.
“Want to see anything else?” she offered.
I walked up the porch steps. “I’m good.”
I stopped next to her, me facing the house as she faced the street.
“Wanna hear?” she asked as she offered me an earbud.
I stuck the thing into my ear and heard some kind of weird ass sound. Heavy thuds and noises that weren’t normal instruments. The voice of the girl singing was so echoed you couldn’t hear a word.
I pulled the earbud out and shook my head. “That’s crap.”
“You’re crap,” Noelle said right back.
“Play something with a guitar or something. Damn.”
“Go away, Wes. You came to check on me, right? Look. I’m not drunk. I’m sober. I’m listening to music and I’m going to write some stuff down.”
“Why don’t you go by the house later and see Ma? She’s always asking about you.”
Noelle eyed me.
The years went back with her.
She nodded.
I knew she wouldn’t go over there, but whatever.
Inside, Cherry was shuffling through the kitchen, carrying a plate of food. It looked like a damn gourmet sandwich.
“That for me?” I asked.
She screamed and turned, flinging the plate at me.
I don’t know how I did it but I managed to catch the plate without a piece of food hitting the floor.
“You ass!” Cherry cried out in her aged voice.
“You cursed at me,” I said.
“You’re not a kid anymore.”
I laughed. “Sorry about that. Just wanted to check on that cough of yours. See how you’re feeling.”
“Are you a doctor now?”
“Maybe,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.
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