She scratched his back and told him about her evening last night. Her story involved a lot of exercising, doing homework late into the night, but there was no mention of her mom.
“There you are!” Kendra exploded into their space—her shirt tighter than ever. He was worried that maybe she didn’t own a mirror so she could tell if the clothes fit properly or not before walking out the door. “That idiot cousin of mine thinks you’re taking her to the homecoming dance, but I already told her you’re taken.”
“I am. I’m going with Mari,” he said.
Why was Kendra even here? She didn’t have ASC this period, her cousin Tara did, and that rotten-fruit girl was nowhere to be found in this moment.
Mari tugged on the ends of his hair, then gripped the back of his neck.
Wow. Shivers exploded down his spine, making him wiggle some.
“I’m not going to the dance. I’m not gonna be in town,” Mari replied.
“Good. Go with me,” Kendra told him.
“I think that would be a bad choice.” Adam melted further into Mari.
Kendra held out her hands, showing him the lack of fake nails and scratchy rings.
“You still don’t really like me,” he said and hugged Mari tighter.
She stroked patterns of numbers on his back with her short fingernails. It was a message for him, and his insides were erupting with warmth and goodness.
“Is this cow telling you that? Because everybody knows she lies. I like you, Adam—so much I turned Rory down when he asked me to the dance.” Kendra glared at Mari.
“You can undo it. Tell him you were only joking, and you wanted to see what he did,” Mari suggested.
Kendra flipped her off and made a mean, ugly face.
“You should go now,” Adam told her in a gruff tone. “Ditching your class is bad, so it’s a good idea to head that way before you get in trouble for being super late.”
“Why should I go? So she can keep manipulating you and making you believe she’s the woman for you?” Kendra’s eyes roamed up and down their fused bodies. Her mouth tightened into a hard line, and her left eye twitched.
“Don’t you have some hand-job to attend to? I’m sure your customers are waiting for you, if not in person, then on Facebook, at the very least,” Mari said.
Kendra gave a little screech of fury and left so fast, her nauseating perfume was left behind to permeate the air and saturate the inside of his nose. It was like his nose-hairs were burning their surroundings, throwing a riot against that girl.
Adam buried his face in Mari’s shirt to replace that smell with something good. “She really doesn’t like me,” he said, muffled by her clothing.
“She doesn’t like anybody but herself. It’s a deficiency she was born with and runs in her family.” Mari rested her chin on his head and placed a small kiss on his crown.
“Like vitamin K?”
She sniffed and barked a laugh. “Yeah, exactly vitamin K—for Kendra.”
He looked up at her, beaming all the while. “I like you.”
“I like you, too,” she said with a humorous hint of a chuckle.
“More than anybody,” he added.
She ran her fingers over his forehead and pushed his bangs back. “There’s no end to your goodness, is there?”
“No.” He paused and pursed his lips a little, hoping she’d kiss him. “And I like to share it with you.”
“That’s pissing it away. Spend it somewhere it can do some real damage.” She ran her fingers through his hair, starting at his forehead.
“I’m not supposed to cause damage.” He frowned.
“There you go—being all perfect like an angel again.”
The teacher stepped into the room, ambling around right away, looking for any student that needed assistance.
Mari let him continue to cling to her, but she took her hands and stilled them on his back as her attention went to her homework she was working on.
A few times the teacher gave them puzzled looks, but Adam was fine with it as long as he could keep holding her like this.
He probably looked like a marsupial baby, hiding away on his mama’s body, but he liked it here.
The smell was as good as the softness and warmth.
Each time she breathed, he felt it deep down in his loins, making the soreness excruciating.
It stirred him, and as soon as class was over, he did something rash.
“If you’ll excuse me.” He jumped out of his seat.
“Oh, you’ve got somewhere to go?” she asked.
“The restroom. I need to . . . I need to um . . .”
She smiled, stood up and patted his shoulder, then squeezed it. “It’s fine. I’ll see you in the next class.”
He rocketed out of that room and headed straight for the first stall he could find with a working lock.
His pants were down. This time, he was going to work out this soreness before he was in her presence again.
Enough of this!
This ache had gone too far, and he no longer cared what came out of his penis when he stroked it all the way past the soreness, because it was good. Like her. And she’d like him no matter what. He could feel it.
Chapter 8
Mari bit her lip so hard it was probably about to break skin. Where was he? He was never late, and class had been going on for more than fifteen minutes.
She raised her hand and was excused by the teacher to go to the ladies’ room.
Mari stopped abruptly when she saw a glowing Adam in the hallway, talking to Tara.
That skank was touching him, and Mari recognized that type of look on his face.
It was the same one guys wore after fucking someone’s brains out.
Had the two of them just stepped out of the bathroom? They were hovering in front of the door.
Adam wore a lazy grin, his hair was royally mussed and his clothes rumpled around his midsection.
Mari sank against the wall. Well, what did she expect? He wanted Mari, and she’d said no.
Besides that, he was the most gorgeous man on two legs in this entire state.
And you’re hideously fat . . .
She snuck back into the classroom and tossed her bag onto his seat. Her next move was to pull out her spiral notebook and pretend to take notes as she doodled pictures of a gory death where Tara was burned at the stake.
Five minutes later, Adam stepped into the classroom with a late slip and tromped over to her side.
“Hi,” he said, removing her bag off his chair.
“Mmnn,” she hummed in response. She set her arms on her desk, crossed them in front of her and settled her head on top of them. The teacher went on and on, and she closed her eyes, once more imagining how she could force-feed Tara her cousin Kendra’s fake nails that had been removed. It might be fun to watch her choke and gag before she strangled the slut herself.
Adam patted her back like she usually did for him. The more he touched her, the stiffer she got.
The silence between them spoke volumes of how hurt and pissed she actually was.
He was oblivious, playing with her hair, saying a few things here and there.
The rest of their classes continued on like that.
It wasn’t until the end of the day that he reminded her of what she had kind of promised him.
“So, tomorrow’s Friday. You said we would get some Mediterranean food, but I’d like to go without Sam and Zach. You know, like a date . . .” His boyish, cherubic grin made her stomach drop.
“I was just saying that to help you get out of pizza and beer with Kendra. It’s fine if we skip it. I’m sure Tara and Kendra would still take you out and feed you whatever you want. Soda’d probably be on the menu, too.” She smiled, and it felt like chewing sand—gritty and dirty.
“I don’t wanna be with people that don’t like me. I wanna be with you.” He grabbed her hand. “She tried to touch me in the hallway before I came here to class. I didn’t like it. After she did
it a few times, I told her no.” He looked at Mari with a questioning gaze. “Will you eat with me Friday? I want to . . . With you.”
She gently took her hand back, trying to regroup after her own misunderstanding of the events she saw. “I . . . Do you really want to go? Eating with me’s a chore.” A hint of a smile was pulling at the corners of her lips. Her whole chest began to warm, thinking he might actually want to be with her more than the other thin, beautiful girls throwing themselves at him.
“I eat lunch with you every day, and it’s the best part of my day,” he replied.
The tension that had made her spine feel like it had a rod in its place broke, because she took a breath and her whole body lurched toward him. “It is?” He wasn’t with Tara like that, so stop moping. Only you would think of something that low and repulsive. He’s got morals, unlike you . . .
“Yep.” He sparkled with enthusiasm, and those white, straight teeth were asking her to bite him to make sure he was real.
“Okay. We’ll go get something to eat, then I’ll drop you off at the game.”
He shook his head. “I’m gonna drive. I’ve got my car back now, and you’re going to join me at the game. I want you there.”
“No, I—”
“I’ve got some money. I’ll pay. And all you have to do is be with me.” He waved goodbye and left.
She wondered if she’d ever figure out how to navigate her way with him.
Sometimes it seemed damned near impossible.
Fuck—why did she like that so much?
* * *
Friday had her tense as ever. She wished the day would end already.
Adam coasted about as if he had wings. It was infectious, or would be if she wasn’t full of boulders in her gut, crashing together.
A date? She didn’t do dates, and here she was.
She waited for him out in the parking lot, stood next to her Jeep and chain smoked to calm herself down.
He’d have to ignore the horrid scent. At least she had stopped smoking before school so she could smell good for him during their classes together. That was the best she could do.
Her hands shook as she took another drag.
Why did he even want to be around her?
Adam coasted out into the parking lot with a smug-looking Kendra walking next to him, albeit giving him a generous berth.
Mari rolled her eyes. Would that stupid girl ever get over Rory? This was no longer ridiculous—it was borderline psychotic. And using Adam to annoy Mari wasn’t going to get Kendra anywhere.
That girl needed to quit listening to Rory. He was a terrible liar, and she was gullible. God, they made a pair.
And Tara was spiteful for no other reason than she probably found it fun.
A threesome might do all of those idiots some good.
Kendra spotted Mari, grimaced, exchanged a few hushed words with Adam, smiled at him in the phoniest way imaginable and then left him.
“I’m starving,” he said when he reached Mari. “But I’ll try not overfill my stomach. I have to stop doing that or I’m gonna stop fitting into my pants.” He tugged on the waistband of his jeans.
She chuckled. If he had an ounce of fat on him anywhere, she’d never know it. His whole body was lean and muscular.
“Did you want to try Mediterranean, or would you rather have Mexican?” She preferred the former because it was easier to avoid the foods she missed like tacos and tamales. She was hooked on those not so long ago. She didn’t even mind the frozen kinds. They were all yummy.
He had told her at lunch once before, though, he’d never had Mediterranean. Was this going to be a disaster?
“I want to eat whatever you like, and I’m happy to try something new.” He took her hand and brought her over to her car door. “I think you should drive after all since I’m a little worried and jittery.” His hand shook when he unlocked her door, opened it for her and let her in.
“Sure, I can drive, but are you okay? Should we cancel?”
His eyes went wide, and he took a step back. “It’ll be fine. I won’t be nervous once we start eating,” he said with a slight smile. “We’re going no matter what.”
She smiled so big her cheeks were practically glued to her brows. “Why are you nervous?” Why are you? You’re the one that was chain smoking and shaking worse than him.
“I’ve never been on a real date before.” His eyes were a soft ocean blue—inviting.
She exhaled and brushed the back of her fingers on his hand resting on the door. “Me either—so that means we’re equal here. No expectations. We’ll eat, talk like we always do and then head back here for some god-awful football game.”
“God doesn’t think football’s awful.” He smirked.
“Are you learning to crack jokes and tease me?” She swallowed. He had her mouth watering already—so damn cute.
“Maybe . . .” His smile turned shy, and he ducked his head.
“Good start. I may have to write that joke down. Very clever,” she said.
He looked up real fast, smiled brighter and then shut the door.
She watched in fascination as he zoomed around the front of the Jeep, leaning toward her at all times like a string was connecting them. Had he always done that and she never noticed before?
He heaved open the passenger’s door, slipped in, and before he was even seated, had her hand in his.
“You’ll help me figure out what to order, right?” He shut his door and managed to buckle his seatbelt one-handed.
“If that’s what you want.”
He blinked. “Should I want something else other than you?”
She chuckled. “I have no idea, Adam. This is all about you—not me. If it weren’t for you, I’d be at home right now scrounging together some lettuce for a pitiful salad.”
“Well, I don’t know what I’ll want to eat, but I think it doesn’t matter because you’ll be with me.” He gazed out the window as if waiting for her to figure things out and take them somewhere.
She shook her head and grinned. Adam, Adam, Adam . . . Always with something heartwarming to say.
She started the car and drove them to one of her new favorite spots to eat. It was a little more pricey than some of the others she frequented, but they had this amazing creamy tomato soup they made with no sugar in it.
As soon as she parked, he jumped out of the car, slammed his door shut and rocketed over to her side. He opened her door, helped her out and kissed her cheek.
“You smell like a lot of smoke,” he said.
“Oh, I . . . Uh, sorry.” She hunched her shoulders and sniffed at her shirt. She positively reeked.
“I think you should probably quit.”
She sighed. “I know I should, but I need it like you need your numbers.”
“They’re both bad,” he said, his eyes filled with torment. “Even if they trick us sometimes because they feel good.”
“They have their uses too, though. And until I can figure out something to replace the cigarettes so I’m relaxed, they have to stay in my life.” She shrugged an apology. Ugh, that sounded whiny and pathetic, but it was the truth.
“You could replace them with me. I’m learning to do that with you and my numbers, and I never want to trade them back. You’re much better than any number ever was,” he said, beaming.
She reached up and cupped his jaw off to one side. “I wish I was as smart as you so I could figure out how to do that.”
“I don’t make you happy?” His eyes dropped.
She firmed her hold on his jaw and lifted his head to encourage him to look her in the eye. He cooperated. “Never think that, because that would be the biggest lie ever. And I never said that. I only said I don’t know how to relax without smoking.”
His eyes lit up. “I know! I could massage you whenever you’re tense. You do that for me sometimes during class, and it helps me so much!”
She took a deep breath, and her chest rounded as it slowly expelled the excess air out.
“I’ll think about it . . .”
“You will?”
She started walking toward the restaurant. He startled, lunged forward and caught up quickly with those long strides of his.
“You’re gonna do it for me, right? Because I’m really right about this one. I know I am. Cigarettes are unhealthy, and you like to put healthy food in your body. You hate sugar and—”
She turned her head in his direction. “I never said I hate sugar, but it’s necessary for me to avoid it.”
“I’m supposed to do that too, but I guess I have a hard time saying no to it.”
“It may be a vice for you, but I’m addicted to cigarettes. It’s not the same thing.” She squeezed his hand, and when they got to the door, he opened it for her.
“I know what an addiction is,” he said once they were inside.
“And how would you know about that?” Her left eyebrow rose, and she pursed her lips.
“Because I know you.”
“Yeah, I get it. I’m a walking case of a person addicted to substances and all sorts of junk she doesn’t need to be involved wi—”
“No, no.” He waved his hand. “I mean I’m addicted to you. Zach says I am, because I only talk about you, I count down the minutes ‘til I’ll see you again and I’m edgy when you’re gone.”
A tidal wave of putrid guilt engulfed her. She was going to be leaving in the near future for an entire week to be with her dad, and she still hadn’t told Adam about it. Her stomach squeezed, and her neck was stiff.
“Addictions are a bad thing. What can we do to wean you off me?” She pointed to the hostess so he’d understand she had to attend to this for a moment.
“Two please, and we want a window seat with as much natural lighting as possible,” he said, stepping forward.
The hostess looked him up and down and smiled at what she saw.
“And away from the kitchen if at all possible,” Mari added.
The hostess gave Mari a wrinkled brow like she couldn’t possibly be with this guy.
Mari shook her head slightly and pushed her lips together so she could keep from telling off this moron.
Once seated, the waitress was there almost right away, taking their drink orders.
Harkham's Case (Harkam's #1) Page 11