by Weil, J. L.
Lord help her, she wanted to throw everything she worked hard for to the wind. She was going to be obsessed with a boy if she wasn’t careful. “Sure. Can I meet you somewhere? My parents are strict–” Strict was an understatement.
“You don’t have to say anymore. I got it. Why don’t you just come to my house? I’m sure Lex would love to meet you,” he added, giving her a drool-worthy grin, hoping to seal the deal. He wasn’t letting her slip through his fingers.
“Okay,” she replied a little breathy and leaned on her chin.
“Good. Then it’s a date.”
“It’s a date,” she agreed, beaming.
Someone pinch her.
~*~
After school she went straight to the dance studio. Changing into her leotard, she was going over her lesson planned for today, a group of five and six year olds. They were so energetic like little packages of pop rocks.
Stretching out her muscles in front of the mirror, she studied her reflection. Her strawberry hair was pulled back, and wisps fell on her face. She thought her eyes were too big, her skin too pale, and she was too curvy for a dancer.
She sighed. What teenage girl didn’t wish they could change something about themselves? Emma was no different.
Lost in self-pity she was startled by a movement from the corner of her eye. Looking up, she was shocked when Travis’s dimpled grin smiled back at her. Turning around, he stood leaning on the ballet barre at the back of the room.
She hadn’t even seen him come in. One minute he was just there.
“I hope you don’t mind that I came by.”
She shook her head and grinned foolishly at him. “No, I’m glad you did. Are you here for a lesson, ‘cuz you’re in luck. I’m teaching today.”
Pushing off the bar, he walked toward her never losing eye contact. His blood was purring at the sight of her in skintight black. There wasn’t a spot of her left that he couldn’t envision and was itching to get his hands on. For a dancer she was still curved in the right places. Maybe not as much as the skankbait Sierra, who was forever throwing herself at Chase. Em was beautiful. And his.
The second he thought it, he knew it was true.
“Hmm, tempting,” he murmured.
The way he said the words, had her lighting on fire.
He flicked the end of her nose bringing their bodies close. “Would it be alright if I just watched?”
She sucked in a sharp breath. There was hardly anything between them, but his clothes. Her leotard left her feeling exposed and naked. And those eyes caressed her from head-to-toe thoroughly. Her cheeks tinged pink, and her balance was off.
“If you don’t mind a room full of giddy little girls,” she cautioned.
“Are you kidding? You forget I have a little sister. And you look great,” he said, placing a hand on either side of her hips, distracting her brainless with that marvelously male body.
She felt like satin under his hands, and his blood heated. The urge to nibble on her skin, on her lips was overwhelming. He was sunk.
A cute little giggle brought them swiftly back to reality. Jumping out of his grasp, it looked like her students had started to arrive. She gave him a cheeky smile. “If you say so.”
“I’ll just hide out in the back corner. No one will even see me,” he assured, falling back into the shadows.
And he was right, except she knew he was there and occasionally caught glimpses of a golden glow. It was something she noticed more and more when she was around him. There was something odd about Travis.
When the class ended, she found he leaning up against the building outside, his hands tucked casually into his pockets. The wind blew his sandy hair, carrying his sexy scent. She had been worried he had already left.
“Hey you’re still here.” She sounded winded.
“You are amazing,” he said sincerely, and he meant every word, even though he already knew it. This hadn’t been the first time he had seen her dance.
Pushing off the brick, he walked her to the parking lot. Dusk was rolling in, darkening the evening sky. A light mist had fallen, now freezing with the dropping temperatures. It might be getting cooler outside, but Emma was like a furnace, she welcomed the cool spray on her flushed cheeks.
Would there always be this heightened tension between them? It made her want to be utterly reckless. Like now, she wanted to throw herself in his arms. She was sure this wasn’t a normal reaction even for hormone crazed teenagers. If so, hers were going bonkers.
“Be careful. The roads are slick,” he warned right before he shut the door. His voice was like velvet brushing over her highly sensitive skin.
Chapter 6
Purring the little engine to life, she waved at Travis and backed out of the space. Her stomach was still flip-flopping, and she missed him immediately.
Her car zipped along the road, until she got to the more unpopulated areas where few used the road. The sucky thing about living in the middle of nowhere, the roads were never plowed or salted.
And he wasn’t kidding. Her little Eclipse was all over the road. Keeping her speed under ten miles an hour, she trudge her way down the long, deserted country road. The towering treetops canopied overhead making a long dark tunnel. Giving the Eclipse a little more gas, she suddenly felt a rush to get home.
There was something out there giving her the creeps. That feeling of being followed was strong on her neck. Glancing in the rearview mirror, she checked to see if she was being tailed. Nothing but blackness. No other headlights joined hers on the street, and she convinced herself she was being silly. And paranoid. Why would anyone be stalking her?
Dividing her attention back to keeping her car on the road, she gripped the wheel tightly. She didn’t see the animal until it was practically kissing the hood of her car. Or she thought it was animal. From the quick glimpse she was able to get before everything turned chaotic, it looked like a mangled dog with the most hideous eyes. It was really the eyes that had stuck with her, a searing red which flamed through the pitch black night.
Slamming on her brakes instinctually, the tread of the tires couldn’t grip the slippery road. She knew she was in a shitload of trouble. The brakes locked, and her little car spun out of control. Headlights blurred wildly, shinning on the blacktop in roller coaster speeds. Closing her eyes, she held the steering wheel like it was her lifeline. Her head was spinning with the car.
It felt like a lifetime before her car finally came to a screeching stop. She found herself staring down the other lane into oncoming traffic, well if there had been any. Thanking her lucky stars that this road was like a ghost town, her muscles were taunt.
Holy shit that had been close. Too close.
Inhaling long deep breaths she tried to steady her ferociously pounding heart, it hammered in her ears. She was pretty sure that her car hadn’t hit anything, including the seriously wacked dog.
The hound had literally dropped out of the sky. It didn’t make any sense. Her hands shook and chills ran through her blood. Cranking the heat, she waited a few moments trying to warm up.
Just when she thought she had the nerve to start driving again, a growl erupted outside the car, and a shiver racked over her body. That didn’t sound like a very friendly growl to say the least. Hitting the lock button on the car, she jumped out of her seat as four enormous paws pounced on the hood. Her scream tore from her throat, echoing over the small interior of her car. Those blood red eyes stared at her through the windshield, barring its snarling jaws.
Snapping razor fangs dripped with goo, she was paralyzed with fear. This wasn’t like any dog she had ever seen. There was evil in its eyes. Pure evil.
Finally she realized she needed to get the hell out of dodge, Emma threw the car into drive and stomped on the gas. The Eclipse lurched forward, hurling her into the seat. Trying to keep control, she watched as the hound rolled over the car landing on its feet and sprinted off into the night.
She didn’t slow down, she didn’t look to see
where he’d gone, and she didn’t stop the car until she was safely parked in her driveway. Emma bolted from the car like her butt was on fire and ran all the way up the brick path, slamming the front door behind her. Flicking the deadbolt, she ran a hand through her messy hair. After a deep breath, she twisted around and all but smacked into her mom who was watching her with a strange glint in her eyes.
“Are you okay honey? You look like you’ve seen a ghost?” her mom asked at the sight of her pale and shaken face.
No shit. Not a ghost, unless dogs come back from the grave. Now that she had a moment to think about it, there had been a zombie look to it.
“Yeah, fine.” She let a nervous laugh. “The roads are just spooky with this weather.” She plastered on a smile, teeth and all. It probably looked as fake as it felt.
Her mom had a dishtowel thrown over her shoulder as she studied her. Being under her mothers scrutiny was making her antsy.
Emma continued to ramble. “What’s for dinner? It smells great and I am starved.” A total lie. Her stomach felt like it would vomit at the first sight of food. Forget trying to shovel it down her throat.
Her mom pursed her lips. “Chili. I thought we needed something to warm us up.”
Dinner was uneventful thank God, but Emma was unusually quiet. She didn’t think she tricked anyone with her forced cheer. Excusing herself early, she was unable to keep the pretense of being okay. In truth, she was utterly spazzing inside.
God she was acting like a freak-a-zoid.
Behind the security of her bedroom door, she looked around the room. There wasn’t much of her in it. She was almost afraid to make this room hers, you never knew when her dad might just up and move the family. Again.
Flopping on the bed, she turned on the little bedside lamp needing the soft glow to chase the shadows from the room. Every time she closed her eyes, two burning lava eyes haunted her thoughts. The image was stuck behind her lids. More than anything she wanted to hear Travis’s voice. She didn’t know how, but she knew he would be able to chase away the daunting images etched in her head.
Looking at the bright lights of her clock, she wondered if it was too late to call. She reached for her phone letting her fingers dance over the keys as she debated with herself.
Emma bit her lip. Maybe he had his phone off and it would go to voicemail? No harm done, except she would still be freaked out. She didn’t want to disturb his sleep, though she was sure he wouldn’t be angry. The internal struggled continued even as her fingers dialed his number, and before she could second guess the decision, the phone was ringing in her ear.
Holding her breath, she waited and almost hung-up. Twice. Then she heard his voice and was washed in warmth and relief.
“Emma, what’s wrong?” he asked, sounding like he was ready to run to her rescue.
Now that she had him on the phone, she didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called so late,” she rambled.
“I wasn’t sleeping, and I’m glad you called. Tell me what happened.”
“I needed to hear your voice,” she admitted.
“I like the sound of that,” he murmured, causing her cheeks to flush.
“And I couldn’t sleep.” She wasn’t sure what she should tell him, but she wanted to spill her guts. For reasons she didn’t understand she had been unwilling to tell her mom. Maybe because she barely believed herself. Why would anyone else? It was like a horrible nightmare. “The strangest thing happened to me tonight. You’ll probably think I’m crazy.”
He seriously doubted it. “Nothing you can say could ever make me think that, nothing,” he vowed.
Seriously. He was the one with all the deep dark secrets here. Her problems were apples compared to his. He heard her take a breath and snuggle into the covers.
Fine, she thought. Here goes nothing.
“Remember when you told me to be careful? Well, I wasn’t careful enough it turns out. You were right. The roads were so slick and then out of thin air, a dog appeared.”
“Dog?” he echoed, feeling his blood chill.
Hellhound.
“I know its nuts. I lost control of the car trying not to hit it. When I finally stopped the thing jumped on my car, and I swear it was going to break the windshield.”
Christ. It was like his worst fears coming to life.
She hasn’t even spent a week with him and already he had put her in harm. The guilt he felt was monumental and he knew he was going to have to do whatever it took to keep her from getting hurt, including not seeing her again. Just thinking it stole the air from his lungs, and his chest felt like it was caving in. How was he going to keep his distance?
Tomorrow.
Tonight she needed him, and he needed her.
“But you are not hurt? It didn’t harm you?” he asked, fear clouding his voice. It took everything inside him not to rush to her house and see for himself.
“No, I’m fine. I just can’t seem to stop seeing it replay in my head,” she reluctantly admitted.
“Well, that is a problem. Let’s get your mind off it. I’m sure we can think of something.” There was a seductive quality to his voice, deep and smooth. “Tell me about your favorite place you’ve lived.”
She smiled into the phone expecting something more explicit. This was what she had been searching for when she thought of Travis. He didn’t judge, he didn’t make her feel batshit crazy and already she was more relaxed.
“Spring Valley is by far the best,” she replied, lying on her back smiling.
“Why is that?” he asked, surprised that this small town was her answer. She must have been to places far more exciting than here.
“Because it is where I met you.” She could picture him grinning brilliantly, feeling pretty dang good about himself.
Damn. She was making this impossibly hard. How was he supposed to keep his distance when she was making him want more? His heart swelled. “I could say the same about you. This sleepy town was a bore until you showed up.”
Oooh slick. He had all the right answers. “I bet you say that to all the girls.”
Travis propped on his elbow. If she only knew the things he had done. He wasn’t proud. Somehow she made he want to be better. “None of those girls mattered.”
Could she help it if her heart melted? She wasn’t made of glass. “You just know all the right things to say.”
“Only to you,” he whispered. He could hear the sleepiness in her voice.
She lost track of time as they talked about nothing really. Yawning, Emma knew she was on the verge of dozing off with the sound of his voice following her. There couldn’t be a more perfect slumber as far as she was concerned. This was probably the closest she was going to get to sleeping with Travis while living under her parent’s roof.
Utterly depressing.
He listened to her even breathing, knowing that she had fallen asleep. Closing his eyes, he let the sound lull over him. Each passing hour his heart cracked more and more. He wasn’t sure he had the strength to stay away. But could he keep her safe?
Chapter 7
What a SOB. She never thought she would be saying that about Travis. But he had deliberately ignored her. Before school she saw him rush through the parking lot, and then during study hall he hadn’t looked her way once. She could see the tension in his body as he sat staring at the podium. The vein in his neck throbbed under her stare willing him to acknowledge her.
But what hurt the most was after class.
She had grown accustom to him walking her to gym. Today he scrambled from his seat before she even had a chance to gather her belongings. He had been the first one through the door, which was quite a feat since they both sat in the middle of the auditorium.
Sinking dismally back into the plush seat, she watched his blurring figure round the corner of the door. Their eyes connected for just a nanosecond, and her heart battered in her chest.
What the hell had happened?
Last night she had fal
len asleep with the phone pressed to her ear. It had left a nice ring around her face when she looked in the mirror this morning, but it brought a smile to her face. Apparently, Travis didn’t experience the same effects. Maybe she had snored too loud or mumbled in her sleep.
Numbly walking down the halls to the girl’s locker room Emma wished she was the kind of girl that skipped classes. More than anything she wanted to be elsewhere, licking her wounded pride and heartache.
The whistle blow loud and long in the gymnasium as Ms. Jenssen called for attention.
Ugh. This was insane.
They were split up into teams, one boy and one girl for their unit on badminton. Emma found herself paired up with a very foreboding and intense boy named Craig. She had seen him periodically in class and had the good sense stayed as far away as possible. He gave her the heebie jeebies.
Leering at her he said, “Looks like we’re stuck together.”
She swallowed hard and fought the urge to run. Stuck was precisely how she felt. His beefy form dwarfed her.
“This should be fun.” His eyes racked over her leisurely like she was a piece of meat he wanted to bite.
She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Reaching for a racket, Emma seriously thought about going to the nurse’s office. Anything to escape this asshole’s wandering eyes. Maybe she should rethink her stance on being a girl who ditched. Once or twice couldn’t possible hurt her transcript for college.
“Let’s just play,” she ordered, sounding a lot bolder than she felt.
He didn’t buy it. She was shaking in her sneakers, and he loved it. “I could play with you for hours.”
She gagged inside her mouth. It was hard to believe that guys like him got off instilling fear in girls. It was in his eyes, the degrading regard he had for women.
Trying to forget about the sneering Craig, she concentrated on trying to hit the little birdy. The damn thing spent more time getting stuck in her racket than it did going over the net.