Bloodspell (The Cruentus Curse, #1)(77)

"I'm not going. Gabriel."

Suddenly his face broke out in a wicked smile. "Sure you don't want to see me in my skivvies?" he asked. "Most girls would go to Cancun just for that, you know."

"Whatever, I've seen better," she said. Gabriel grinned and pouted like Ben Stiller in Zoolander.

"You know you want some of this blue steel," he said cockily, kissing his flexed arm. Shaking her head and embarrassed, she shot Gabriel a dismissive look.

"Stop it," she said. "I want no part of your blue ... steel." Collapsing in silent giggles, the tears leaked from her eyes and she grasped her stomach with both hands.

"Stop playing. You can't resist me and you know it."

"Resist this!" And she tossed a book at him. Watching the librarian walking over with a thunderous look on her face, Victoria hastily gathered her bag and coat, and fled. She heard Gabriel running behind her as he caught up with her on the top of the library steps. Victoria squealed as he lifted her into the air and like a lunatic raced down the rest of the stairs with her in his arms.

"Put me down!"

"You deserve punishment for leaving me back there with that demented librarian!" he said, spinning her around until she begged for mercy.

"Fine, fine, but put me down first." Gabriel deposited her into an ungainly heap on the snowy grass and collapsed next to her breathless. When she had recovered her breath, she started edging away, trying to make her escape.

"Oh no you don't," he said, his eyes mischievous, grabbing on to her arm as he started tickling her. "Say you'll go!"

"Stop it, Gabriel. I can't go ... stop!" She laughed uncontrollably as she felt for a handful of snow and stuck it down his neck. She bit her lips, her eyes alight as he sat back with a shocked look on his face. As she tried to scramble away, she felt him grab her leg and pull her back. She scrambled harder, giggling like a maniac. A few students sitting on a nearby bench watched the scene unfold.

Unprepared for the weight of him as he threw himself on top of her, the breath whooshed out of her in a surprised gurgle.

"Gerooff me!" she said, futilely trying to wiggle her way out from under him, the snow pressing wetly into the back of her neck. Gabriel shook his head and made a face, crossing his eyes and blowing out his cheeks, making her laugh again at his over-the-top silliness. As he stared into her flushed face, Victoria felt him start to move forward. Inches from her lips, he stopped as she stiffened, her eyes darting to the right.

Victoria froze as a dim shadow blocked the hazy light trying to pierce the overcast sky. Her eyes were wide, her laughter wedged in her throat. Gabriel turned to see who the distraction was, obviously annoyed that the moment had been interrupted. His dark eyes narrowed, registering who it was and then dismissed him as no one of importance as he continued to walk past with silent footsteps. But the moment had passed and Victoria rolled out quickly from under him, muttering something about getting to class and dusting the snow off her coat as she walked briskly in the opposite direction.

"What about Cancun?" he yelled.

She turned around, made a rude gesture with her fingers, and kept walking. She didn't miss Gabriel's cocky smile.

Victoria clutched her bag to her chest in complete shock. She hadn't seen Christian in weeks, and seeing him had been like a jolt to her system. Her heart was pounding as she remembered the freezing rage in his eyes as he'd walked by. He had barely slowed, but the minute his frigid silver eyes had met hers, it felt like time had stopped, the weight of his anger anchoring the two of them in an unmoving space. The unhidden pain in his eyes had floored her. Even though she'd ended it between them, she had never wanted to hurt him.

Christian? She waited several long minutes, but there was nothing. Please Christian, I'm sorry. Please talk to me. She waited, the silence echoing across the hollow chasm between their minds. Please ...

Not now, Victoria.

His mind was cold, empty and closed. Victoria wasn't naive, she'd known that Gabriel had been about to try to kiss her. She had been about to stop him when she'd sensed Christian, and instead of pushing Gabriel off as she had intended to, her entire body had been frozen into guilty immobility, making the situation look far worse than it actually was. A part of her argued that she'd done nothing wrong anyway—she and Christian were over, and what she did with anyone else was her business. But she couldn't help the guilt she felt, knowing that she had hurt him so much that he couldn't even bear to talk to her.

She went to class but could barely concentrate, and slipped out in the last ten minutes, running toward her car. Victoria floored it to Christian's house and made it there faster then she had ever driven, skidding to a stop at the top of the driveway.

The front door was unlocked as it always was and she went right in, letting her mind open in search of him. The house was empty. She opened her awareness and detected movement in the underground garage.

As she made her way there, her cell phone rang. The caller ID said it was Gabriel. She thought about ignoring it, but knew that he would keep calling her over the next hour like a stalker until she called him back. It would be easier to get rid of him if she answered. She clicked on the phone.

"Hi, Gabriel."

"Hey Tori, where are you? I waited for you after class and noticed your Mini was gone. So I swung by your place and you're not there ... where are you?" Victoria detected a slight edge in his voice but had no time to sugarcoat.