Part 10 (1/2)

”Ah, you know, we all get a little crazy sometimes.

Anyway, tonight is about what's right.” I find the red velvet box in my pocket.

”I knew this was you as soon as I saw it. Happy Valentine's Day. I love you, Cara.” So much it hurts.

I Wait For Her To tell me she loves me, too.

She doesn't, but she does open the box, and when she sees the heart-shaped diamond pendant inside, she gasps.

Oh, Sean. It's beautiful, but you shouldn't have spent so much.... I mean, I love it, but...

But? I don't like the sound of ”but.” I take the necklace from her hands. ”Turn around.”

I wrap the chain gently around her neck, fumbling the clasp like a dork. ”This isn't even close to what I'd give you if I could.”

Cara lifts onto her tiptoes, looks deep into my eyes.

Thank you. And now she kisses me like I want to be kissed. So why does my body refuse to respond?

Andre

To Be Kissed Like they do in movies- glossy lips parting in bold invitation, hungry mouths meeting, igniting the blistering pa.s.sion most can only dream of. To be kissed like they do in books, some exotic setting beguiling two ordinary people, bewitching them with its subtle perfumes until, stranger inextricably linked to stranger, their lives are forever changed.

I am only kissed like this in dreams.

Academically The Zephyr Academy is a fine school.

Great, engaging teachers. All advanced placement cla.s.ses, no more than twelve students to a cla.s.sroom.

You can't ask for a better environment if you want to learn the things you need to get into an Ivy League college. (I gave up on that idea years ago, though I kept that decision to myself until I absolutely had to confess it.) As far as a thriving social scene goes, though... uh, there isn't one.

Oh, there are a couple of campus romances happening. But face it, two hundred sixteen kids, grades seven through twelve, most of them much more focused on academics than dating, the odds of hooking up with someone special here are slim.

Probably why so many Zephyr students actually get into their chosen colleges. Easy to focus on your work.

That's not to say that there aren't any cute girls here.

There are a few, and yeah, I've had some casual s.e.x with one or two. (Okay, maybe three.) But mostly I go looking elsewhere. Never expected to find someone in my mom's office, waiting for her sister to get out of a pre-op counseling session. Jenna is a one- of-a-kind piece of... art. Kind of stuck on herself, but who isn't? And yeah, I'm a couple of years older. Something to keep in mind.

Still, I Don't Plan To marry her. Don't even know about getting in deep.

Mostly, I like how we look together.

Okay, and I like the way she smells.

And the way she feels when she rubs up against me, purring.

Hmm. I guess I like her. We've only gone out a couple of times.

Tonight will be the third. I'm picking her up at four thirty. Reno, Friday night, if you want a decent restaurant, you get there early or wait for hours.

Almost time to go, I notice Dad is home.

I can hear his poor excuse for music leaking out from behind his office door. I should probably say h.e.l.lo. We don't see much of each other lately. Two knocks. ”Hey, Dad. What's up?”

He pulls his eyes away from his computer.

Doing some research.

He gives me a once-over. You going out?

Like I always dress in a b.u.t.ton-up s.h.i.+rt and leather jacket. But I say, ”Yeah. Going to dinner and a game.”

Now he looks at me as if he's seeing a complete stranger.

Really? You have a girlfriend or what?

Or what. ”She's not really my girlfriend.

We've been out a few times. But it's not anything serious.”

Why must he take such an interest in my uninteresting life?

Oh yeah. Control. Tell me about her.

I shrug. Give a brief description, omitting the age difference thing. Mention she goes to Galena.

He absorbs the information. Blinks twice.

Finally comments, Blond, huh? Which means, ”So she's white?”

”Yes, Dad, she's white. But don't worry.

Like I said, it's not serious.

Not even close. We're just friends.”