Spiral (Spiral Series) (13 page)

I, on the other hand, would have sold my soul for the ability to melt into the ground.

He grinned, obviously enjoying my embarrassed reaction.

“Can you put a shirt on?” I hissed. “Please.”

“I don’t know,” he said wickedly. “Can I?”

“Yes,” I said. “You have two arms. And I assume you have a shirt. Somewhere. Obviously not on your back at the moment, where it should be.”

“Next important question. Right up there with World Peace and the state of the Chinese economy. Are you sure you want me to?”

I smothered a humiliated noise. Pierce, taking pity on me, turned around and disappeared into the house, leaving the door open for me to slip through if I dared.

I had come here to yell at him, and within seconds I had been reduced to a stuttering mess. Sweet. Not willing to give any more ground, I followed him inside.

“Just what did you think you were doing today?” I demanded as I followed him down a hallway. There was no sign of anyone else in the house, so I felt comfortable taking him to task immediately.

“When?” he asked over his slightly damp and very sexy shoulder.

“At school this afternoon,” I cried. “I just wanted to see what was wrong and you wouldn’t let me pass!”

“Oh, that,” he said casually, like it was nothing. “Just didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“I’ve been taking care of myself for eighteen years,” I muttered. “I don’t need your help not getting hurt.”

“Sure you don’t,” he said.

When he came to a halt, so did I. I crossed my arms over my chest and started again.

“You can’t just waltz around like you run the place, telling me what to do,” I pointed out. “You’re new in town, so you may not understand this, but there’s a way we do things that you have yet to be informed of.”

He gave me a bemused look. “Who’s going to inform me of them? You?”

I was breathless at his arrogance, but I still felt the blush on my cheeks. “I, um, no, I have things to do. WHY are you still shirtless?” I demanded, trying to change the subject so that I could stop hopelessly giving him the upper hand.

Pierce grinned at me. “Because you followed me into my bedroom and I didn’t think changing in front of you would help that blush.”

Freaking out, I looked around. I had been so lost in the argument that I had, in fact, followed him into his bedroom. Giving a squawk of humiliation, I darted out of the room. Once I was safely around the door I called out, “And be quick about it.” I heard Pierce’s chuckle and almost sank to the ground.

“Your room is empty,” I pointed out when he reappeared. I was relieved to see that he wore a white t-shirt and cargo shorts, his dank black hair still hanging almost into his silver eyes.

“I don’t really care about creature comforts,” he said, shrugging. “The rest of the house is nice. I’ll show you.”

I was so surprised by this offer that I let him show me around without protest.

He was right. It was nice. Comfortable furniture that looked like it was well used complemented dark wood floors. There was plenty of light coming in, and the colors were bright but not so bright as to be irritating.

Eventually we found ourselves in the kitchen, and Pierce started raiding the fridge. I had learned from my short stint of living with Andrew that guys were always hungry, so I sat on the counter, propped my chin in my hand, and watched Pierce throw a dizzying array of veggies, condiments, and meats onto two overworked slices of bread, turning down his offer to make me something too.

“The more I thought about it the more I wondered why you got in my way,” I commented as he finished his sandwich masterpiece.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he said. “Are you sure it was me?”

I glared at him. I could tell he was messing with me, so I said, “It was you. You remember.”

“Talking to you is memorable.” He said it in a way that sounded like he didn’t always believe it was a good thing.

“I just want to know why you didn’t want me to help her,” I said.

Pierce set his plate in front of the seat next to me and slid into it. I shifted so that I could keep looking at him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I just wanted to say hi to a friend. You’re the one who got all hostile.”

“We were in a dark room with hundreds of people panicking,” I said. “Calm wasn’t exactly on the menu.”

Pierce nodded, slowly. “I guess I should apologize, since you’re upset,” he said.

I could see very well that he wasn’t remotely sorry, but he went right on: “How about I make it up to you? Want to hang out? Let’s say Saturday. I have a friend who needs our help.”

Confused, I looked down. “What friend? You want to hang out?”

 Maxie would have said something cute at that, but I wasn’t that smooth.

“Mrs. Tiger needs some work done around the yard,” he said. “So don’t dress up.”

For a second I was so surprised I couldn’t find anything to say. He and Mrs. Tiger hadn’t seemed like strangers at the romance slam, but this sounded as though he knew her really well. But how could he, when he had just arrived in town?

“Sure, okay,” I said. “I love Mrs. Tiger and I’d be glad to help her. But how do you know her, anyhow?”

“I just do,” he said. “She was kind enough to welcome me to the romance slam, and I’d like to do her a favor in return.”

So, once again he deflected a direct question. I wondered if I’d ever get a straight answer out of him about anything.

And if it was yard work for Mrs. Tiger, did that mean it wasn’t a date? Or it was? Had the new hottie in school really just asked me to spend some time with him outside school? It didn’t sound like a date, but he wanted to hang out and he hadn’t said anything about Jill or Maxie coming too.

“Oh, and Natalie?” He always used my full name. He was the only one.

“Yeah?”

“Let’s leave Maxie and Jill at home.”

“You act like I take them everywhere, like my own personal stuffed bears.”

He grinned. “They’re like your bodyguards. Can’t get you alone for anything.”

“Have you been trying to get me alone?” I felt like butterflies were taking flight in my stomach, and at any moment they were going to start pouring out of my mouth and I would look like more of an idiot than I already did.

“I haven’t, but now I am.” He smiled.

 “So, here’s the thing. We have to make a decis
i
on. We have a MAJOR problem,” said Maxie.
It was later on Friday evening, and s
he was sprawled on my floor
because
her usual spot on my bed
was
covered with clothes. You could barely see my blue blanket through all the shirts.

“Decision about what?” I asked. I was sitting crossed-legged under the window, my legs stretched out on my carpet. Jill lounged in my desk chair.

“College majors? World peace? Just how we’re going to pay for all that school?” Jill asked.

“Um, no, what you
’
re going to wear tomorrow,” Maxie said, eyeing me. Tomorrow was
of course
Saturday
, t
he day Pierce had asked me to help him. I was nervous
about it, but Maxie was determined to make sure I was properly ready.

I buried my face in my hands. “I’m not sure I’m
more
worried that he cancels or more worried that he doesn’t,” I said in despair. “What was I doing agreeing to hang out with him anyway?”

“Um, you were getting a date with a hot guy,” said Maxie. “It’s something every girl aspires to
- a
fter they figure out how to pay off their college loans
,
”
s
he said with a grin to Jill.

“Aren’t there more important things than being hot?” I asked. Not that it hurts, I thought to myself;
but
I didn’
t want to encourage Maxie on that score.

“
Yes,” said Jill. “Like not having a guy at all. I support that.
They’re a
lways getting in the way. You have to take care of them like a puppy. Feed, water, rub their tummies. It’s ridiculous.”

“Hahaha,” said Maxie
,
rolling around on the floor and laughing. “That’s hilarious. Wrong, but hilarious.”

“You would think that after all the times guys have burned you
,
you
’d
be bitter,” sniffed Jill.

“I’m an optimist,” said Maxie. “It will work out
s
ooner or later. Hopefully sooner.”
Turning to me she asked,
“
Why a
re you
so
nervous?
You’ve known Mrs. Tiger forever. And anyhow, w
hy did Mrs. Tiger ask the two of you?”

I shrugged. “I
’
m not sure how she knows Pierce
, except that
I saw them standing next to each other at the romance slam. She
told him that
she gets to decide who she
’
s comfortable with
having mess
around with her stuff
,
and she decided she
’
s comfortable with Pierce and me.”

“So,
” said Jill,
“
no one can be mad. You HAVE to help Mrs. Tiger with yard work. I mean, seriously, when I think
y
ard work I think Nat Monroe.”

I felt another stab of worry. Jill had hit on exactly what had been bothering me. Why were Pierce and I the ones asked? Why was I making such a big deal of it? It didn’t matter. Tomorrow was Saturday
and
I would be spending
it
with Pierce.

“Stop tapping your leg,” said Andrew at the breakfast table. “What are you so jittery for
,
anyway?”

I stopped the tapping, but it was hard. He was right, I was nervous.

“Like, who gets up early to go clean?” he asked, disgruntled because he was awake early on a Saturday for baseball practice.

I took another bite of cereal. “She thought it would be better if we got
most
of the work done before it got too hot.”

“So, why so nervous?” he asked.

I shrugged, ducking my head to hide a blush.

“Ready?” Andrew asked after another few minutes. He had offered to give me a ride so I didn’t have to walk. I
wouldn’t have
mind
ed
walking, but I liked Andrew and it was nice of him to think of it.