Wanted (16 page)

“That lip is too soft and beautiful to be abused like that sweetheart.” I said as I smiled down at her. I was pretty sure I saw her whole body shake. A blush started to creep into her cheeks. Damn, it was one of the sexiest things I had ever seen.

“Right….um…so are you ready to go? I just need a bag or something to clean out my locker.”
Ellie
said as she lo
ok
ed around at everything but me.

“WOW…your room is so…….clean.”

“Why thank you sweetheart. I’m sure my mom would appreciate knowing that all those years of bitching at me to keep my room neat paid off.” I said
with a laugh
.

Ellie
let out a giggle and lo
ok
ed up me.

Jesus….the moment her eyes met mine I swear I forgot how to breathe. I leaned down towards her only to have her lo
ok
away and take a step back.

Shit.

“Um,
okay
well let’s find you a bag or something shall we?” I said as I moved passed her and headed down the hall to the kitchen. FUCK. I need to remember what Jeff said…..She needed time and here I was trying to fucking kiss her every chance I could. What the fuck was wrong with me? Christ….I need to think about something else…..football….no
pe
that won’t work….
fucking football gives me a hard on…..puppies……dogs….I
think I
would like to get a dog…..what kind of dog?
I wonder what kind of dogs
Ellie
likes.

Okay
…I will think of dogs every time I have the urge to kiss her.

Oh what the hell Gunner you are losing your
god
damn mind.

“
You sure seem lost in thought.”

I was now standing in the middle of the kitchen…just standing there thinking about fucking dogs. I shrugged m
y shoulders and started digging through the drawer where Jeff keeps all the extra bags.

“How big of
a bag do you need?”  Silence…….

”
Ellie
?”
I stood up and she was sta
nding there just staring at me.

“
Ellie
what’s wrong? Hey….can you tell me what is wrong sweetheart?” I squatted down so I could lo
ok
in her face. She seemed so lost…what I would not do to crawl in that brain and figure shit out for her.

“I….I don’t know what is wrong Gunner!!I just had this panic come over me! What if I can’t do this? What if I fail at this too? I me
an….
I’
m
soooo
not sure that I’
m ready to go to college, my mother keeps telling me….”
Ellie
turned and lo
ok
ed away the m
oment she mentioned her mother.

I placed my hands on her shoulders and turned her around to lo
ok
at me. Oh Jesus H. Christ she was crying. My heart just to
ok
a nose dive right into my stomach. I reached up and wiped
away
the tears that were streaming down her beautiful face. She gave me a weak smile.

“Oh god I’m so sorry. You must thing I’m a nut case….I’
m so sorry Gunner.” Then she just lost it. The sobs where taking over her whole body. I pulled her close to me and ran
my hand through her soft hair.

She smelt like Daisies again.
I felt my dick getting hard just from having her up against my body.

H
oly fuck…
….
what
am
I suppose to be thinking about again?

DOGS
!…..
Golden retrievers, L
abs….yellow, black or brown?
Big dog or little dog
, German Shorthair Pointer
??

“
Ellie
it’
s going to be
okay
sweetheart I promise you it will be
okay
. I know this is a
scary
time but you are smart and you can do anything you put your mind to. Please d
on’t let something your
mother tells you to ever let you doubt yoursel
f
. I know what it feels like to have someone tell you that all you will ever do is fail.” I said as I to
ok
a deep breath and buried my n
ose in her hair. My god….
daisies
….all I c
ould smell where
daisies
.

Ellie
lo
ok
ed up at me confused. “W
hat do you mean you know what it
feels like to have someone tell you all you will do is fail? Gunner you are amazi
ng! The most amazing person I’
ve ever met. I can’t….I can’t even believe anyone would think that about you.”

I just laughed and gave her shoulders a squeeze. “Come on Ells, let’s get this show on the road….we have a locker to clean ou
t and a coffee shop to hit up!”

I reached down and grabbed a couple plastic grocery bags.
Ellie
walked back into Jeff’s room and came out carrying her
overnight bag and her backpack.

“Here, let’s switch.” I said as I to
ok
her bags from her and gave
her the plastic bags.

“I got off pretty easy on this exchange!”
Ellie
said with a light laugh. Thank god…she was no longer upset.
Gesh
, how I would like to just knock some sense into that mother of hers
,
but from experience I knew it would do no good.

We headed out the door and made our way to my truck. I’m not sure why I was so excited to see her sitti
ng next to me in my truck. I’ve
had plenty of girls in my truck in the last three years but no girl was or would ever be like
Ellie
.

CHAPTER
ELEVEN

ELLIE
……….

The moment his fingers touched my face as he wipe
d away my tears I felt the electricity
zip through my whole body. His eyes showed so much worry in them that they made
my
stomach twist in knots. I know
he is just concerned because I’
m his best
friend’s
sister but…..

No…I couldn’
t let myself think that way. Then he dropped the bomb shell on me! Who was it he was talking about? Who said Gunner would fail? I just could not believe it…I mean. He was super smart from what Jefferson told me, smarter than Jefferson he said. He was an awesome football player. I had seen him play plenty of time
s
when Ari and I went to see Je
fferson play. He was super
fucking handsome. Yeah…no way this guy would ever w
ant to be with someone like me.

We headed out the door and started towards Gunner’s truck. He had a huge smile on his face which caused me to smile. What wa
s he so happy about? OHHH that’
s right…his truck is his “girl”. Jesus…why did I just feel jealous of
a
damn truck?

He walked to the passenger side of the truck and opened the back door
and put my bags in
. Then he opened the front door and
held my arm as he helped me in.

“Did you remember to get your pain pills Ells?” Gunner asked as he lo
ok
ed at my hand. It really felt a lot better today that was for sure. “Yep…to
ok
one this morning after breakfast and packed them in my bag
mom
.
”
I said as he lo
ok
ed me up and down. He threw his head back and laughed. God his laugh moved right through my body and made me ache between my legs. I ever so slightly squeezed my legs together to ease the throbbing. Just then he lo
ok
ed at me with that damn
cro
ok
ed
smile. He to
ok
his finger and tapped my nose.

“
You are so god
damn cute you know that?!”
He lo
ok
ed like he wanted to lean down and kiss me….YES
!.
....
Come on!!!….A little more….
more
…
.
just a little closer…..

“What’
s your favorite dog?” Gunner asked as he pulled bac
k and stood away from the door.

“Um
?”
What the fuck? That just came out of nowhere. Holy shit! Here I thought he was thinking of kissing me and he was thinking of
…….
dogs?

“Think about it!” He said
as he smiled and shut the door.

I watched him walk around the front of the truck and there went those hands threw that beautiful hair. I
’
m pretty sure he does that when he is nervous or upset. God it i
s one of the sexiest things I’
ve ever seen.
What is he nervous about?

Dogs?
I’m so c
onfused by this guy.

Gunner jumped in and lo
ok
ed over at me. Oh holy
shit….there was that beautiful
smile
and he was just staring at me.

“What is it? What’
s so funny?” I asked as I smiled back at him.

“
Nothin
’, you just lo
ok
damn good sitting in my truck
sweetheart
that’s all!”
Gunner said with a laugh.

“Oh
okay
!”

Gunner started the truck and I was
silently
praying Truck Yeah would not start up….please god….
pleasssseeeee
…….
Just then
Daughtry’s
“
Every time
You Turn Around
”
came screaming ov
er the speakers. OH thank god!!

“You like
Daughtry
I’m guessing from the smile on your face when it started!” Gunner said before he start
ed to back out of the driveway.

“Yes! I love them! Love this song too. But honestly…I was praying that Truck Yeah would not start up. I’m not sure what I would have do
ne to you had you started that song
.” I said as I lo
ok
ed over at him. He jammed on his brakes and just stared at
me
.

“Oh thank
FUCK
I’
m not the only one! Holy shit I want to
delete that song from Jeff’s iPod. I’
m SO sick of it.” Gunner said as he lo
ok
ed at me with the most serious lo
ok
on his face. I had to start laughing.

“I have thought the same thing! I swear every time he starts it I just want to haul off and hit him.” I lo
ok
ed down at my han
d that was a bit still swollen.

“Great minds think alike Ells!” Gunner said with a laugh as he backed out
and headed towards the school.

That was like
the third time Gunner has
called me Ells. Tons of people call me Ell or Ells. So why when he said it did I get butterflies in my stomach? The same way I di
d when he called me sweetheart.

“Chocolate lab.”
I said when the silence in the t
ruck was starting to get to me.

Gunner lo
ok
ed over at me with a confused lo
ok
on his face. “What?”

“You asked me what m
y favorite dog was. I think it’
s a chocolate lab. I have never had a dog but if I ever got one…..I would want a chocolate lab I think.” I said as I lo
ok
ed out the window, not sure why tears where starting to build in my eyes.

“Oh yeah, right the dog. You’
ve never had a dog? WOW…boy or girl?” Gunner asked as he turned into the high school parking lot.

“I think I would want a boy. Yep….someone to watch over me and protect me and love me like there was no tomorrow.” I said as I turned and lo
ok
ed at Gunner. He was just staring at me….again. He did that a lot. There
went the hand through the hair.

SHIT…why did that turn me on so damn much. I moved around in my seat to help with the ache.