“It’s not often I get ordered out of a girl’s bed.” He grinned down at me, his plump lips looking completely kissable.
“That’s because you’re not attracted to good girls.”
“Is that what you are, Chelsey? A good girl?”
“Yes,” I rasped.
“There’s not even a tiny bit of something bad in you?”
“No,” I answered.
“That’s too bad.” He tsked. “Would you like something bad in you? I’d be happy to oblige.”
I swallowed hard. “I’m not going to fall into your trap, Blaine.”
He smiled, and then pushed away from the door holding his hands up in surrender. He tilted his head slightly and looked up at me from beneath his dark lashes. His unruly hair fell across his eyes making him look every bit the bad boy he was. I nearly became a puddle of mush when his smile turned into a scorching grin.
“I surrender, Miss Ford.”
I rolled my eyes, but my body flushed from the inside out. “What are you doing here, Blaine?”
He shrugged, and everything but my question seemed to catch his attention as his eyes took in my bedroom.
“You said you wanted to start on our project as soon as possible.”
“And you thought I meant at midnight?”
He walked over to the only bookcase in my room and pulled a book from the stuffed shelf. “I thought that was code.” He looked over at me, cocking an eyebrow.
“Code? I don’t do code.”
“Oh yeah. I forgot. You’re a good girl.”
I glared. “When I said as soon as possible, I meant at school, during the day.”
He flipped through the pages of the book in his hands. “You mean when people are around so you don’t have to be alone with me?”
I ignored his question. “Or in the library where there are plenty of textbooks around.”
“Speaking of books, have you read all these?”
His hand swept up and down the five shelf bookcase.
“Yes.”
He whistled.
“Impressive.” He closed the book in his hands. “The Edge of Darkness,” he read aloud, looking over the cover in his hands. “What’s this about?”
“It’s a romance,” I answered, walking over to him. “You wouldn’t like it.”
I tried to take the book from his hand, but he held on tight.
“How do you know what I would or wouldn’t like?” He gave the book a tug and I followed, my thighs brushing against his.
“You don’t seem like the romantic type.”
“How would you know? We’ve been on one date.”
I frowned, failing to see the point of his argument. “And that one date ended with us being arrested.”
“Some would find that romantic.” He shrugged.
I bit down on the inside of my cheek, hoping to keep my smile hidden. “I guess so.”
“Uh oh, Little Doe,” he whispered.
“What?”
“Your bad girl side is showing a little bit. You better tuck that back in before someone sees it.”
This time I couldn’t hold back my smile.
“I never said I found it romantic,” I pointed out.
“Then what do you find romantic?” he asked.
“My books. They’re all the romance I need.”
“Because you don’t have time for real life romance?”
“Exactly.”
He pursed his lips together and nodded like he understood exactly what I meant. When he started flipping through the pages again, I frowned.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m learning,” he said. He stopped on a page and began to skim it.
“Learning what?”
“The kind of romance you like.”
I went to grab the book again, but he moved it out of my grasp.
“Blaine, give me my book.” I sounded like a child, but I didn’t care. I did not want him reading my books and finding out the things I liked to read about.”
“Well, well, well,” he said with a huge smile. “My little doe likes sexy, romance novels.”
I wanted to die, and I actually thought I was going to get my wish when I felt my entire body burn in embarrassment.
“Can I have my book now?”
“Not yet.” And then he was reading out loud. “‘I bit her bottom lip gently and she gasped before wilting into my touch.’” In between the words he memorized, his eyes would find mine. “‘I pulled on her bottom lip, sucking on it softly, and her fingers gripped my shirt tightly. I ran the tip of my tongue across the seam of her lips and they opened willingly.’”
He closed the book with a thump and then handed it back to me. I put it back in its place. Turning away from him, I wondered how I was ever going to be able to look him in the face again.
“I never would’ve thought it,” he said.
“What?” I asked, without turning around.
“That they wrote stuff like that in books.”
“That’s funny considering the type of reading material guys like you like to read.” I felt my face getting hotter.
Why did I have to go there?
“You mean porn?” he asked. “Not really my thing.”
I turned around, knowing I couldn’t avoid him forever.
“What type of books do you like to read?”
“I’m not really a reader. I’m more of a car guy.” He shrugged, running his fingers along the bindings of the books on my shelf.
Walking back to the bookshelf, I picked up the same book he read out of and pushed it into his chest.
“You should try reading some time.”
“For you, my sweet Chelsey, I will.”
I swallowed hard past the lump his words created.
“So, Columbia, huh?”
He looked around my room, taking in my covered walls.
“What was your first guess?”
We both laughed.
“Looks like you have everything all figured out.”
“Pretty much. Don’t you?”
“Nah, but I’m working on that part.”
He was moving toward the window then, and I suddenly felt dread that he was leaving.
“Are you leaving?” I blurted before I could stop myself.
He smiled like he knew what I was thinking. “Yeah. I figure you good girl types need all the beauty sleep you can get.”
I rolled my eyes. “We’ll meet tomorrow in the library after lunch? I have a free period.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
And just as suddenly as he appeared, he was gone, taking any chance of a peaceful night’s sleep with him.
12
BLAINE
I DON’T KNOW WHAT MADE ME sneak into Chelsey’s window. One minute I was in bed, lying there thinking about her, and then the next I was standing in front of her house like a crazy stalker.
She looked so sweet all half-asleep in her pink boxer shorts and white tank. It took everything in me not to lay her down in her bed and take advantage of her. Every time I pulled her body to mine I could feel she wasn’t wearing a bra. It was enough to make a sane man crazy.
Leaving her and going home was hard. Shit, I was hard. I hadn’t been with another girl since my date with Chelsey. It wasn’t for lack of girls, it was that none of them did it for me. All the things that turned me on before didn’t do it for me anymore.
Only her. She did it for me.
The following day, I met Chelsey in the library after lunch as promised. It was the first time in a long time that I spent an entire day in school, but I didn’t tell her that.
We busted ass on our project all week. I used the time to learn all I could about Chelsey Ford. I made sure to spread out my questions so I didn’t make it overly obvious about my interest in her.
On Thursday, when I walked into the library, I found Chelsey in the back at the same table we worked at all week, but this time she wasn’t alone.
My spine stiffen
ed, and I felt a bolt of adrenaline fly through my veins at a dangerous speed. My heart rate picked up and the urge to punch something moved through me.
I recognized the jock who was looming over where Chelsey sat. Josh Porter was the mayor’s kid. He was another rich piece of shit with a bad attitude and an expensive wardrobe, but the truth was the ladies loved him. He probably got as much ass as I did.
He blocked Chelsey with his wide, linebacker shoulders, forcing me to move to the side just to be able to see her sweet face. She was smiling, and it sickened me that her smile was for Josh and not me.
I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, so I moved behind the tall bookcases so I could get closer without being noticed. I hid behind an endcap, my back against the smooth wood surface, and listened to their conversation.
“Is it because of that other guy?” Josh asked, and I wondered what that meant.
“You mean Blaine?”
“Is that his name?” Josh snorted. “Blaine.”
The way he said my name made me want to put my fist through his face. The fucker.
“It’s cute that you’re pretending not to know his name,” Chelsey teased.
I wanted to grin at her words, but I couldn’t tell if she was flirting or not. Turning, I held onto the sides of the bookcase, and peeked one eye around the corner. She looked so small next to Josh’s large frame. She was always beautiful to me, but something about the way she was looking up at him made her even prettier.
I wanted to rip his face off. I hated her attention being on him. She was mine. She just didn’t know it yet. I’d make it very clear to Josh later when I ripped his balls from his body.
“Look who’s got jokes.” Josh tugged on a piece of her hair and I could see Chelsey’s blush from where I stood.
My blood began to boil. The urge to go over and kick the living shit out of Josh was taking over. I wanted to beat him bloody and throw Chelsey over my shoulder like a fucking caveman.
Mine.
“Blaine’s just my friend.”
“Good to know, but if not him, then why won’t you go out with me?”
Are you fucking kidding me?
I moved, ready to interrupt their conversation and pull Chelsey from the library, but I stopped. I didn’t want to look like a jealous fucker.
“Things are crazy in my life right now. I don’t really have time for boys. The whole reason I have to do this extra credit project is because I let myself get too distracted.”
Josh continued to push. “All the more reason to have a little fun. Come on, I promise not to be too much of a distraction for you.”
His conniving grin made me feel sick to my stomach. I knew exactly what he was working toward. Josh and I weren’t all that different. I knew a panty chaser when I saw one, but it would be over my dead body if he touched her.
My teeth grinded together. I feared I might crack my molars with the force of my jaw, but still, I stayed in my place and watched from afar as some asshole tried to steal my girl.
She chewed on the inside of her lip, making me yearn to suck it and soothe where she nibbled. And then realization set it. She was actually considering going out with the piece of shit.
She sighed sweetly and looked up at him when her decision was made.
“One date.”
Her words were a blow to my chest. I leaned over and gasped when the breath was knocked from my body.
No.
I wouldn’t allow it.
Chelsey was not going out with him. It wasn’t going to happen. Ever.
He grinned like he’d just won the fucking female lottery… and he had. Chelsey was the grand prize. My grand prize. Not his.
“That’s all I’m asking for.” He leaned away from her and ran a single finger down her bare arm. I wanted to rip his finger from his hand. “I’ll get you the details later.”
“Okay.” She blushed again, making me want to scream in annoyance.
He slid from the table, tucked a piece of hair behind Chelsey’s ear, and then he was gone. I turned around, pressing into the bookcase again and dug the heels of my palms into my eyes.
All I could think about was chasing after Josh and breaking every bone in his body, starting with his fingers. I know I didn’t have any claim on Chelsey, not technically, but I’d stupidly thought there was something good between us. It was obvious now that I was the only one who felt that way, and it pissed me the fuck off.
I moved through the library quickly, knocking over books in my desperation to get the hell out of there—to get the hell away from Chelsey Ford and her sweet ways. I was done letting her mind fuck me. I thought I knew what I was doing when it came to her, but apparently not. I was fucking clueless, and I was fucking done.
**********
I DON’T KNOW WHAT POSSESSED ME to stay in school for the rest of the day, but it was a bad fucking mistake. I was a complete dick to anyone and everyone who mistakenly stepped in my path. Teacher or student, it didn’t matter who the hell they were, I was sure to let them know they picked the wrong damn day.
When the final bell rang, I was out of the classroom before the halls even filled with students. I managed to get halfway toward the door before they began to spill out of the doors in a rush to get home.
Sheep.
They were a herd of Khaki-covered sheep who did exactly what their rich mommy and daddies wanted them to do. I’d never been more proud to be black—tarnished by my bad neighborhood and the druggies that dealt around me. Fuck the sheep. Fuck every last one of them, including Chelsey Ford.
I pushed and shoved my way through, in a rush to be away from anything that reminded me of her. I was almost to the door and free of the oppressive place called high school, when I felt her grab my sleeve
I’d managed to avoid her the entire day, but of course she’d seek me out before I could escape. I expected her to find me earlier when I’d obviously blew her off during lunch, but instead she’d hugged her books tighter to her chest and turned away, cutting into my heart with that look of hurt on her face.
“Blaine?” she asked for my attention, pulling on my arm.
I tugged my arm roughly from her grasp and muttered my harsh words at her. “Leave me the fuck alone, Chelsey.”
I left her standing on the other side of the school doors, stunned. I took the steps two at a time, forcing myself to ignore her, but then she was right on my heels.
“What the hell is your problem?” she spat, stepping in front of me and forcing me to stop or run into her.
Stopping, I pinched the bridge of my nose trying to calm the anger within. Just looking into her big, brown eyes burned.
“For starters, you and your inability to get a fucking clue.” I tried to side-step her, but she was in my path again. “Really?”
“What’s wrong?” she asked again.
“I think I already covered that part.”
“Don’t give me that bullshit, Blaine!” she roared.
The students who were walking past us slowed and gave us weird looks.
It was cloudy outside and the wind swirled around us, making Chelsey hug herself and move her hands up and down her arms.
“What’s wrong?” she repeated firmly.
“Honestly, Chelsey, I’m having a bad fucking day and you’re not making it any better.”
Actually, I was having a good day until I overheard her conversation with Josh. But I couldn’t tell her that. I didn’t want her to know I was a jealous freak. She didn’t need to know how I really felt about her. It was bad enough I felt like a total loser. I didn’t need her thinking it, too.
She flinched when I spoke to her, and again I had to force myself to ignore the hurt in her eyes.
“I don’t understand you, Blaine,” she whispered. “I thought… I thought we were—” She stopped as she searched her mind for the right words.
“You thought what?” I asked, annoyed. “What did you think, Chelsey? Come on. Tell me. Did you think we were an actual we? Tha
t there was something between us?”
“You know what? I’m done.” She threw her hands up. “When you decide to grow up, call me. Until then you can go straight to hell.”
She bumped into my shoulder as she walked past me, nearly running to get away from me. I wanted to run after her, but I knew chasing after her was like chasing after the sun. She was impossible to catch and when I got too close, she burned me.
13
CHELSEY
I HADN’T EXPECTED BLAINE TO SHOW up to Mr. Liam’s class at our agreed time at all, much less with his part of our project finished. Especially after he was being such an asshole the day before.
I stayed up far too late and drank way too much coffee trying to finish his half of the project, but tears and a massive headache claimed what was left of my concentration.
I was prepared to accept my failing grade when I got there, but when I walked in, Blaine was there staring back at me with a devious smirk. He was anything but my knight in shining armor. And even though he showed up, I still wanted to slap his beautiful face.
I hate him.
No, the tiny voice in my head corrected. You want to hate him.
I was still in the dark when it came to Blaine’s sudden three hundred and sixty degree change, but by that point I was done dealing with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Mr. Liam said he’d have our grades on Monday, which meant there wasn’t much of anything I could do but wait. I hated waiting and the unknown. I hated to think one simple project could affect my GPA so greatly. After all the hard work I’d put into my grades, a stupid D because of a stupid guy was changing things.
I wished Mr. Liam a good weekend, and left the classroom without a single word to Blaine. His eyes burned a hole in my back as I left the room.
I spent the next few periods in zombie mode, blaming my lack of participation on my lack of sleep. I was on autopilot with auto responses to the questions and conversations around me.
When final period came around, I couldn’t remember anything that led up to that point. I’d dazed through the day without a care for what the teachers were teaching or the answers I was putting on my papers. Again, it was all Blaine’s fault.
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