The Weight of Blood (71)

How’d I not notice these eyes before? It’s like she’s been hiding in plain sight all this time.

“Just me,” he breathed, cupping her cheek. “There’s no one else here but us.”

She swallowed and nodded in agreement.

He slid her hands up to his shoulders, freeing himself to grip her waist, pulling them closer. She shivered under his touch, skin goose fleshed.

“Oh, uh. Is this cool?” he asked, realizing he might have overdone it.

“Mm-hmm,” she squeaked. “That was in the movie too.”

“You’re shaking.”

“I’m nervous.”

“Me too,” he admitted.

“Really?” She frowned, raising an eyebrow. “Give me your hand.”

Kenny smirked, extending his arm. She wrapped her icy fingers around his wrist and blinked up in shock.

“Your pulse is racing.”

“Told you.”

“What are you nervous about?”

He shrugged innocently. “You.”

“Me?”

“Yes. I just . . . want to make sure you have a good time.”

“But why?” she asked, her question desperate and pleading.

He hesitated, not wanting to lie, afraid the truth would scare her. But under another starry sky, he wanted no secrets between them and knew it might be his last chance to come clean.

“I really want you to have a good time because I’ve been an ass—I mean, an a-hole all these years. You didn’t deserve to be treated the way you been by everyone.”

“Oh,” she coughed. “Well, it wasn’t your fault.”

He shook his head. “Yeah, but I just kinda stood by.”

Her lip trembled, eyes shooting down to the floor. “I . . . I understand why people think I’m weird. If I could’ve helped it . . . then maybe . . . things would’ve been different for me.”

“I think everything happened the way it was supposed to. I mean, if you weren’t ‘weird,’ I don’t know if we’d be here . . . like this.”

Her eyes softened. “Like this?”

He pulled her closer, resting his forehead against hers, and closed his eyes.

“Like this,” he repeated, words affirming everything they both knew to be true, that they couldn’t be without each other after the night was over.

Her breath hitched, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned against his chest and sighed. Her hair smelled of apples, and he placed his chin on top of her head, breathing in, relaxing, savoring the scent. She felt right in his hands. He knew they were being watched, knew everyone would tell Wendy, but he didn’t know he could feel the way he did, and he wasn’t willing to give it up. Not for anyone.

The music switched to an up-tempo song, and kids swarmed the dance floor. Maddy’s eyes widened.

“Guess you don’t like Pitbull, huh?” Kenny laughed, leading her away.

“Yo, Kenny!”

Kenny whipped around, positioning himself in front of Maddy, never letting go of her hand.

Chris and Charlotte emerged through the crowd and strolled up to them, grinning.

“Man, I’ve been looking for you all night,” Chris said. “Dude, looking fresh!”

“What’s up,” Kenny replied, his tone deadly, pulling Maddy closer to his back. He didn’t trust them. And he wouldn’t let anyone hurt her again.

Charlotte noted their interlaced fingers and grinned. “Hi, Kenny,” she said in that nasally teasing tone. “You look great! And Maddy, I love that dress.” Insincerity oozed off her tongue.

“Um, thanks,” Maddy mumbled, her voice tinged with fear. He hated it. Hated that she felt the need to shrink herself around his friends.

They terrorized her. They’ve been terrorizing her for years.

“Thought y’all were going to the white prom,” Kenny said, scanning the room. Who else was with them?

Charlotte gave him a rueful smile. “We are. But I was on the prom committee and I promised Wendy the night would go off without a hitch. You know, Wendy? Your girlfriend.”

Kenny could feel Maddy’s rapid heartbeat against his back like a second heart in his chest. He needed to get her away from them.

Chris swatted his shoulder. “Hey, man, loosen up!”

“What?” Kenny snapped.

“You got your game face on,” Chris laughed. “I’ve only seen that look on the field. What’s up? Something wrong?”

Kenny took stock—the adrenaline rushing through his veins, his balled-up fists, the tension in his legs. He was in the zone. But no one would dare mess with Maddy, not with him standing right there. And besides, Chris wasn’t like the others.

Kenny cleared his throat and tried to smile. “Naw, just . . . too much punch.”

Charlotte raised an eyebrow at Chris and smirked. “Soooo, we’re all thinking about stopping by Sal’s before heading to the Hilton. Wanna come? You could bring Maddy.”

“Umm . . .” Kenny glanced over his shoulder at Maddy, her wide eyes staring up at him, resembling a fragile doll, and he thought of what Kali had said. How people saw her as more delicate because of her complexion. He didn’t want to make that same mistake. No one had seen the fire behind her gentle demeanor like he had. She could hold her own if given the chance. But in that moment, he wanted nothing more than to just be alone . . . with her. He turned back to his friends.