he Resolution of Callie & Kayden (The Coincidence, #6)(15)

But six years later, on a warm, summer night, the girl discovered she wasn’t the only one being broken by bad, scary monsters. They were everywhere, destroying walls and people – destroying one guy in particular. He wasn’t just a guy, though, but the most beautiful and broken guy the girl had ever seen. She knew the moment she saw him she had to save him from the monster that stood before him with his fangs out …

‘Whatcha doing?’ Seth asks as he strolls into my room without knocking. He’s dressed head to toe in black with studs on his belt and an array of leather bands on his wrists. His boots are clunky, his jacket with buckles trendy.

I’m not even sure what he’s supposed to be. We just sort of wandered into this gothic store and started picking out articles of clothing that weren’t in the norm for us. ‘Because that’s what Halloween is supposed to be about, right?’ Seth had said and I’d agreed. We’d actually taken Violet, Luke’s girlfriend, to pick out her costume, although hers was a lot different from mine and honestly, the girl looked like she belonged in the store.

I glance up from my laptop. ‘Writing a nontraditional fairytale for my writing portfolio.’

He peers over my shoulder and reads a few sentences on the screen. ‘I have a feeling from the title that this happy introduction is going to go dark.’ He pauses, looking at me. ‘Are you writing a story about yourself?’

I shake my head and close the laptop, feeling self-conscious. ‘No, just writing about stuff I know.’

He raises his eyebrows in skepticism. ‘You know, you’re brave if you tell your story.’

I set the laptop on the nightstand. ‘But it’s not my story. It’s for a class assignment. Nothing more. Nothing less.’

‘Hmmm …’ He’s not buying it, but drops it anyway, which is good because his accusation is making me the slightest bit uncomfortable. ‘So you about ready for tonight?’

I nod as I cross the room and throw open the closet door. ‘Yeah, should I get dressed now, though? Or take the dress with me and change somewhere else?’ I grab the hanger with the dress on and step back into the room. ‘I’m not sure if I should wander around dressed like this.’

Seth rolls his eyes at me. ‘Oh, my darling Callie, it’s Halloween. You could walk around naked and people wouldn’t think too much of it.’

My cheeks start to heat. ‘Well, I’m not going to do that.’

‘Yeah, we can leave that to me.’ He waggles his eyebrows with a teasing glint in his eyes that makes me giggle.

‘Fine, I’ll put the dress on now.’ I step back into the closest and slip out of my pants and T-shirt. ‘So what’s Greyson dressed up as?’

‘His normal, adorable self,’ Seth answers.

‘He didn’t want to dress up?’ I slip the dress off the hanger and hesitate, deciding if I really want to wear this. Yeah, it’s just a dress, but it’s shorter than the few I’ve worn over the last few months. It’s gorgeous, though – dark blue with black lines decorated with studs that run vertically and horizontally in the chest area. To go with it, I have a pair of lacy knee-high stockings, black knee-high boots, and a velvet choker. When I bought it, I had this image of a gothic rocker chick, which is totally unlike the usual stuff I wear.

Deciding that I need to do this, I get dressed then twist my hair up, leaving a few stray waves out to frame my face. Even though my jacket doesn’t really go with it, I still grab it from the hanger, knowing I’m going to freeze to death without it.

‘Ta-da!’ I exclaim as I spring out of the closet with my hands up, striking a pose.

Seth is messing around with his phone, and when he glances up, his jaw drops. ‘Holy shit, you look hot.’

I instantly wrap my arms around myself. ‘Maybe I should change.’

Shaking his head, his eyes scroll up my attire. ‘No way. You are staying just like that.’ He waltzes up to me, reaching into his jacket pocket. ‘And I have two more things to add some detail to your hot ass.’

‘Seth,’ I hiss because his compliments are embarrassing me, ‘stop saying that.’

When he takes his hand out, he has two items in his palm – a tube of lipstick and eyeliner. ‘Well, you better get used to it because you’re going to hear it a lot tonight, especially from Kayden.’ He grins as he pats the desk chair. ‘Now sit down and put this stuff on.’

I take the lipstick, which is a dark red, and the kohl eyeliner. ‘Where did you get this stuff?’

He shrugs as he hands me my compact and then sits down on the bed. ‘I borrowed it from Violet.’

I click open the compact and set it on the desk. ‘Did you ask or just take it?’

‘I told her what it was for,’ he says, motioning at me to get a move on. ‘Now would you hurry your beautiful ass up? We’re going to be late.’

I lean over and begin to apply the liner. ‘Violet really didn’t mind that it was for me, then?’

‘No, it was the least she could do after you helped her with kickboxing and costume shopping today,’ he says as I apply the lipstick.

I rub my lips together as I put the cap on. ‘She doesn’t owe me anything, Seth. I was glad to help her.’

‘I know, but she didn’t mind. Besides, I think, even though she won’t admit it, she likes having friends.’