Cursed In Love (The Adams' Witch Book 2) (14 page)

He stood. With him so close beside me, my head hit just above his shoulders and I had to look up to see his eyes. I wished I hadn’t because they immediately drew me in. He brought his hand up slowly, almost testing the waters as he went, and brushed my cheek with the pads of his fingers. I shivered when he made contact. He inched closer, so close I could feel his breath on my lips. He bent ever so slightly and our lips touched.

Knowing Travis, if I had to guess what kind of kisser he would be, I would’ve lost before now. He was sweet and gentle. In my head, he would ravage me with his lips and leave me gasping. In my head, he’d pin me against a wall and the basest of animal instincts would prevail.

In real life, my heart melted with each soft stroke of his lips, each feathery light touch of his hands on my back. He consumed me and I wanted more. I leaned into him and I felt his surprise as if he didn’t think I’d kiss him back. Or that I’d enjoy it. Or, God knew what else because I sure as hell didn’t know. He recovered after a few moments and touched his lips briefly to mine before pulling away.

My lips buzzed, and I immediately brought my hand up to brush them. I’d never felt anything like that before. Maybe it was surprise at Travis’s kiss being so different than I would’ve thought. Was I a terrible judge of character? I always thought I was pretty good, but this threw me for a loop.

When I finally met Travis’s gaze, I saw him in a whole new light. His confidence seemed like an act. His face was an open book, one that I could read with less confusion. Sure, he knew he was good looking, but he wanted something more. I’d always pegged him for the type to play with girls hearts. To take his time sampling all the different kinds, but from the look on his face, he wanted nothing to do with that now. He stared at me as if I were the only thing he ever wanted to taste.

His throat worked. “That’s so you don’t forget me when all those young punks are around at the party.”

His sarcastic smile tried to show on his face, but I reached out and touched his cheek and it stopped. I still didn’t know what to say. I’d never wished more than I did right now that I had a way with words and could tell someone exactly what I was feeling, but it was obvious it wouldn’t start today. Maybe that was because other than the fact that I knew I liked kissing Travis and there was certainly no way I would stop him if it ever happened again, I still wasn’t sure about him.

This Travis, the one who just kissed me, seemed like a stranger. Or maybe I was just the one that liked to put people in boxes and didn’t look hard enough to find out what they were truly about. I’d had Drake on a pedestal for a long time and then found out he couldn’t have cared for me as much as he said he did. And Travis, I’d had him pegged as a player from the beginning even though he’d given me no reason to think that. There were never any other girls around. As far as I knew, he never hung out with anyone but me or his sister. Where was there even room for another girl when we were always together and always trying to figure out what had happened to Courtney and the other Naturals?

I took a deep breath. I could tell the longer I stayed silent, the more nervous energy came from Travis. I needed to say something. And now. I went for honesty. “I didn’t expect that,” I said.

His lips turned up. “Neither did I, really. I just knew I didn’t want to not see you before you left so I drove over here. Then when I saw you, I…”

I raised an eyebrow. “Couldn’t help yourself?”

He let out a short laugh. “Something like that.”

“Well, it was…” Amazing. Terrifying. Eye-opening.

“Unexpected? You already said that.”

“It was…” I gulped. “Unexpected in a very good way.”

Lights from a car pulling into the driveway spilled into the window and played against the walls. Travis frowned. “I better go before my sister starts asking questions.”

“She’s probably already asking questions since your car is here.”

“She’ll be asking even more if she finds us in your room together alone.”

I couldn’t argue with that logic. We stood there awkwardly for a second. Since we’d taken it to the kissing level, were we supposed to kiss when he left now? Or when we saw each other? He waved and headed for the door. I caught him just before the door opened and kissed his cheek very close to his lips. “I won’t forget you tonight, Travis. And I probably won’t ever forget you again because of that kiss.”

I turned away, not wanting to see the look on his face and within a few moments, the door swung open and closed.

My heart contracted. I wished Jennie would just let her brother go to the stupid party with us. Or better yet, I wished Jennie would go to the party alone and I could hang out with Travis by myself.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Jennie didn’t bother coming in. As soon as my face turned from tomato red to yellow cantaloupe, I ran down the stairs, yelled a quick, “Be back later,” to Mom and hopped into my friend’s car. Sister of the guy I’d just kissed. And not just any kiss. I could feel my face flaming just from thinking about it.

I hooked my seat belt and stared straight ahead. I had no idea how long I sat there, but long enough for the inside of the car to get heavy with unsaid words. When I realized we hadn’t pulled out of the driveway yet, let alone put the car in drive, I sneaked a glance over at the driver’s seat. Jennie’s face was hard to read. I couldn’t tell if she was pissed or blasé. “I think my brother really likes you,” she said finally.

My throat started to close, but I yelled at myself. It wasn’t as if we were little kids and whispering about who was cute in class and who liked who. I nodded and pushed the part of myself that wanted to be frightened down. “I think he does too.”

“Do you like him?”

That was the questions, wasn’t it? “It’s clear there’s something there.” I tucked a curl of hair around my ear. “Would there be a problem if I did?”

She tilted her head, her gaze still locked with mine. “I don’t want to see or hear anything, but I suppose—I suppose that it would be fine.”

She turned back around, her full attention on driving now and we didn’t talk about Travis for the rest of the ride there. I understood her point. I didn’t really want to share the details of my kiss with her, either, but I would’ve liked to ask her about him. What was he really like and was he always as confident as he looked and acted. Those were just the first few questions that popped into my head that I strangled down. My relationship with Jennie had to be separate than my relationship—whatever that would turn out to be—with her brother.

“Where’s this party, anyway?” I asked as we made our way out of town.

“It’s at Mark Davidson’s house.”

Mark Davidson, from what I’d been told, was just about the hottest guy at Adams High. He was attractive of course, even I could give him that, but how busy I’d been lately, wrapped up in either Drake or Travis, people like Mark Davidson hadn’t even entered my mind. “Did you score an invite from him?”

“Not him, but his best friend Ty.”

Oh, Ty. Co-captain of the football team. Dark hair. Good looking. Pompous as her brother.

How did I not even know they talked? I was a terrible friend. It was no surprise to me he would like Jennie, if you got through all that witch stuff, which I imagined Ty had no idea about that.

“Nice,” I said. “You must be ecstatic.”

“He’s yummy, for sure. You know that’s why I didn’t want Travis around, right? I didn’t want him interfering in my night. I really could care less if you two wanted to hang out together.”

“Thanks, Jennie. And I imagine it would be hard to get close to any guy with a brother like Travis. I guess it’s kind of nice that I’ve never had to worry about that part of having a sibling.”

She rolled her eyes. “You don’t even know.”

The party was in full swing when we arrived at Mark’s. Ty, acting the complete opposite of the douchebag I thought he’d be, waltzed right up to Jennie as soon as we got there. He slid a sly hand around her waist and Jennie looked up at him smiling. It was the first time I’d seen her truly happy…ever. When Jennie and I hung out, we had bigger problems than cute boys and parties, so this was a breath of fresh air. Jennie looked so normal standing next to him, blushing at whatever he whispered in her ear.

Ty even waved to me and I gave him a small wave back. They walked toward the kitchen and I followed them. He got us both a red Solo cup filled with beer from a keg and we stood in front of the refrigerator talking. Well, I was trying to make myself invisible so as not to ruin Jennie’s night. She deserved this.

After about a half hour, the air inside the house became stifling, and I excused myself from Jennie and Ty and headed out the back door to a deck. Pulling out my phone, I noticed that I had a text waiting for me. It was from Travis. I smiled as I tapped his name.
No one better be hitting on you.

I set him a winky face. His response was almost immediate.
I don’t understand emoticons. Does that mean someone is hitting on you? Because I can be there in about ten minutes.

You don’t even know where we are.

Jennie told me. Do you think I’d let her leave without that info?

No one’s hitting on me. I’m out back sitting on the deck and texting you.

Is Jennie with you?

I hovered over the screen. If I said no, he might want to know what she was doing. If I said yes, it would seem rude that I would be texting Jennie’s brother right in front of her. I went for a broad statement and hoped that appeased him.
Yeah, she’s talking to a few friends. She’s having a good time.

Are you having a good time?

That was a loaded question if I ever saw one. If I said yes, he’d be upset. If I said no—well, I didn’t know.
I’d be having a better one if you were around.

His reply took longer than his others had and I’d put my phone down waiting for it and nursing my beer. Beer wasn’t really my thing, but that seemed like all Adams ever had to drink at their parties. I’d only been to two, but that was enough information to make a general statement. Finally, my phone buzzed.

I want to do that again sometime.

My stomach flopped. He had no idea how much I wanted to do that again, too. It sounded way more fun than sitting on a deck all by myself and texting him about it.

A loud crash came from the kitchen. I froze and then whipped open the back door and stepped inside. Jennie had her hand over her mouth and was laughing hysterically. Ty was also laughing at the pickles jar that had somehow wound up in pieces between them. Whole pickles were strewn everywhere all over the tile. A loud round of applause erupted from everyone around and Jennie’s face turned red.

Jennie caught my eye and laughed some more. “Ty dropped the jar of pickles.”

I smiled as she bent over to help pick it up when he stopped her. “I got some on your shoes. Why don’t you go to the bathroom and clean up?”

Jennie took the paper towel he offered her and walked in the direction Ty pointed. I crouched down and started to help Ty wipe up the pickle juice. An enormous baritone chuckled. “What the hell happened here?”

I looked up to find Mark Davidson staring down at us. Well, actually, he was staring at my ass. Ty picked up a pickle and threw it on a pile with others. “I’m a klutz. Nothing new.”

Before I could stop myself, I asked, “How does a klutz make their way to co-captain of the football team?”

Mark laughed a little too hard. No doubt he was fueled by the second-rate beer in the keg. He stared down at me and smiled a cocky smile. “And I always thought you were a shy thing,” he said.

I shrugged. “Not really shy. Just don’t have much to say most of the time, I guess.”

Not true, really. But I didn’t have anything to say that they’d want to hear. I’m sure they didn’t care about Drake, or Wiccans, or Naturals. Mark leaned against the island. “It’s cool you came. Did you come with the chick Ty’s got a crush on?”

“Fuck you, man,” Ty said. He shook his head and muttered something about his friend having a big mouth.

“It’s fine,” I said to him. It wasn’t as if I hadn’t already figured that out.

“I’m just trying to help,” Mark said, his reply drowning mine out.

“If you really wanted to help, you’d get your ass over here and help me mop up this pickle juice.”

Mark eyed the juice on the floor and then walked over to a hall closet. He brought out a mop and attempted to mop it up. He looked kind of ridiculous doing it. Ty must have agreed because he stopped what he was doing and took out his phone and tried to take a picture of him. Mark didn’t seem to mind, he posed for Ty’s picture and then both laughed when it popped up on the screen.

By the time we’d gotten the whole thing cleaned up, Jennie still hadn’t returned. Ty‘s neck craned, searching the living room. I touched his sleeve. “I’ll check the bathroom. Be right back.”

The door to the bathroom was closed. When I knocked, no one answered. I knocked louder but there still wasn’t an answer. This time, I knocked and opened it at the same time. I figured two times trying to be nice was enough, but the fact that she wasn’t answering nerved me out a little. The bathroom was small, just a half bath. She wasn’t there. I searched around the bottom floor of the house and couldn’t find her anywhere.

Returning to the kitchen, I caught Ty’s eye and waved him over. “Is there another bathroom somewhere? She’s not in this one.”

Ty told me he’d go check the upstairs, so I sat down on the arm of the couch and waited. Mark strode over and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “I really can’t believe you came. If I would’ve thought you were into this kind of thing, I would’ve invited you to all my parties.”

I didn’t want to be mean and tell him I really wasn’t into this kind of thing. Especially with a guy like Travis waiting for me. “I’m here for Jennie.”