Bullet(14)

Brad stopped just millimeters away from my body, and my eyes stayed locked on his. The thudding in my chest hadn’t receded, and there was no way I was getting away. I drew in one deep breath through my slightly parted lips, then another. Neither of us said a word. And then I felt something inside decide that it would be okay. Honestly, I knew there was nothing between Ethan and me, just some stupid stalkerish emotion that made me feel like I loved him. And that’s when I decided I wanted to give in to whatever had gripped me, whatever it was inside me that was drawn to Brad. My breathing slowed just a little, and I noticed his head tilt down as though he was going to touch my lips with his. Yes. It was okay. Maybe.

No. I wasn’t ready for this. Not yet. I closed my eyes as though in slow motion and tilted my head to the side. That would be okay, right? But deep inside I knew it wouldn’t be, and I didn’t care. If he had been a vampire, I would have been offering my jugular to him. Still I didn’t care—he could have it.

I drew in another slow, deep breath, anticipating the touch of his lips. Instead, I felt his breath on my neck, and everything in my body tightened. First, my breath caught in my throat, and then every single muscle in my body clamped down, but where I felt it the most was in my feminine parts, a part of my body that I’d religiously avoided like the plague. But the sensation didn’t feel as sinful as I’d been led to believe. Oh, no. It was a foreign feeling, yes, but it was not unwelcome. On instinct, my hands moved to his neck, and I shoved my fingers into his thick, soft hair.

His breath on my neck was warm and delicious. He brought his lips to my ear, and they barely grazed the tender skin there. He said, “I know your heart belongs to Ethan, and as long as it does, nothing can happen between us. But I want you to know I’ll wait.”

I didn’t know what to say. There really wasn’t anything I could say that would make it okay. He had to know I was physically attracted to him, or why else would he even feel confident enough to make a move like that? It was in that moment that I realized how intuitive and worldly Brad was. He picked up on things that others usually just overlooked. He knew…he knew how I felt about him, about Ethan. How could he know that?

Either that or he was just drunk.

No…it wasn’t that he’d been drinking. He stepped back as I loosened my grip in his hair. His eyes stayed locked on mine as he just continued backing up, and then, as he got close to the doorway, he turned around and left the room.

I was breathless again. And I was even more confused than when I’d come in here.

* * *

Something had gone wrong in my absence, but I was too stupid to figure out what it was. All I knew is I had come back in the living room with the glass of cold water I’d supposedly wanted, and Ethan was ready to leave. The other guys told him we should stay, that it was still really early, the movie wasn’t over, there was still plenty of booze. But he wouldn’t listen. He was ready to leave. Brad hadn’t said and didn’t say a word.

Zane did, though. “Man, we could stay here all night. We could even crash on the floor. Brad’s mom won’t be home till morning, and she’ll be ready for bed when she gets here. Don’t bail now.”

“We’re leaving in the morning, Zane, so unless you have another ride back to school…”

Zane looked a little pissed but shrugged. “Fine. What time you comin’ by my house?”

“Ten. And if you’re smart, you’ll make sure you’re not hung over.”

Nick was already passed out on the floor. Zane said, “See you in the morning.”

Brad nodded at Ethan. “Take care, man. See you when you get back.”

It was subtle, but I saw Ethan’s jaw clench. He nodded. “Yeah.” Then he looked at me. “Let’s go.” I found my coat and purse on the bench by the front door where Brad had shown me to set them earlier. I told both Zane and Brad goodbye, and I couldn’t see any of the heat coming off Brad then as I had just minutes earlier. It was like a well-kept secret.

It was cold outside, so I zipped up my coat. When we got to his truck, he walked toward the driver’s side. I said, “Didn’t you want me to be your designated driver?”

He just opened the door. “I got this.”

I hadn’t seen how much he’d had to drink, but I was going to trust him. If his driving scared me, I’d ask him to stop and hope I could either find my way back to his house or Brad’s in the dark in this unfamiliar town.

Ethan was silent all the way back to his house. He drove okay, and I was grateful for that. I tried not to be upset, but I was growing tired of Ethan’s continual moodiness. He’d never seemed this out of sorts at school, but ever since he’d gotten home, he’d been a rollercoaster of emotions. I couldn’t keep up.

When we got to his house, he waited for me to get out of the truck before walking to the front door, but he didn’t say a word. I just followed him inside. There was a light on in the kitchen, and I could see two people sitting at the table, but I couldn’t make out more than that. I took off my coat and set it and my purse on the edge of the couch and continued following Ethan to the kitchen.

His mom and a man were sitting at the table. The man had black hair with a little gray. He looked a little older than Ethan’s mother. He was slightly overweight. I didn’t notice until he stood that he was tall. His blue eyes appraised me, and I could tell he was kind and gentle, just like Ethan’s mother.

“Hi, kids,” June said. “Why are you home so early? I wasn’t expecting you until much later.”

Ethan shrugged. “We’re leaving early tomorrow. Next week is finals week.”

June looked at the man across from her. “Jason, you’ve met Ethan. This is his friend, Valerie Quinn.”

“Nice to meet you, Valerie.”

I said, “You, too,” not knowing what else to say.

“C’mon, Val,” Ethan said. He walked out of the kitchen and toward the stairs. Why was he acting so strangely? Of course, he’d been doing nothing but act strange for the last twenty-four hours.

I said bye and hurried up the stairs to catch up. By the time I joined him in his room, he was already sitting on his bed taking his shoes off.

I sat next to him. “What’s wrong, Ethan?”

“Nothing.”

I took a deep breath. “Does it have anything to do with what you didn’t want to tell me earlier.”

His voice was cold, and he wouldn’t look at me. “No.”

“Don’t you want to talk about it?”

“No.” His jaw clenched. “Let’s just say I needed to leave Brad’s when I did, or Fully Automatic would already be disbanded.” He blinked a few times and turned on the bed. “Next weekend when I come back, it’ll all be cool.” I nodded but didn’t know what else to say, so I chose to say nothing. And in the back of my mind I wondered if he had seen Brad’s near kiss. Well, I guess I really didn’t wonder. His reaction and his words were confirmation. He grabbed a guitar pick off the nightstand and fingered it, still avoiding eye contact. “I guess I’ve been kind of pissy. Sorry. You come home with me, and I’m probably not showing you a good time. I, uh…after mom told me Jason was moving in here, I had to think things through. So I had to leave for a while.” He sighed and his voice was quieter, but he looked at me. I’d never seen Ethan looking that vulnerable. “She must love him a lot. She’s never asked a man to move in with her before. Jason’s an all right guy, but…I didn’t know if he’d treat her right.”

His eyes returned to the guitar pick. “My mom has been through hell. Let me just say this.” His eyes clouded with that never-ending look of hatred, the one I’d seen in his eyes way too many times before. “My father was a real son of a bitch. He treated my mom wrong. I don’t ever want her hurt again. So…after mom told me about Jason, I drove around town for about an hour, just thinking about the situation. And then, after I cooled down, I went to see Jason. I just talked to him. I wanted to see if he loved her. And I told him if he ever hurt her, he’d have to contend with me. He said he loved her more than anything. But I don’t know if I believe him. I mean…my mom’s the marrying kind. She’s said it herself. One time she told me she wouldn’t share herself with a man who wasn’t willing to marry her, and yet Jason doesn’t seem like he does. What gives?”

“Maybe he’s not emotionally ready for that kind of commitment yet, Ethan. Give him time.” Kind of like Ethan seemed to be too. He should be able to relate to that. But I didn’t say it. I felt a little uncomfortable, trying to give Ethan advice, and I had barely met Jason, but he seemed like a nice enough guy. I touched Ethan’s forearm with my hand.

It didn’t bother Ethan, but he didn’t really seem to notice either. “That’s what he hinted at. And I figure as long as mom’s happy, she can do what she wants. But if he ever hurts her…” His knuckles turned white, and his teeth clenched. Finally, he said, “He’ll have hell to pay.”