B0079G5GMK EBOK (5 page)

“Do you actually think that Adam will leave Clarissa alone, as he said, if you morons glue yourselves to her every second?”
snapped Blake,
and everything boyish disapp
eared from his face as if it had been
wiped. “Don't you get it? She will be in dange
r if you come to school,” he
challenged the others with his look
, his eyes gleaming
dangerously. “Adam will hardly keep his promise, but I can bet my life that if he feels that you are a threat to him, he will seduce Clarissa with all he has and I'm sure you do not want that. Every one of us
knows how that will end,” he
grunted.

“Well, thank you,”
said Clarissa
bitterly.

“Blake is right,”
I said. “Look at him. No offens
e, but I see no threat there and I'm sure neither will Adam. And that, my brothers, will make Blake very dangerous.”

Everyone stared at Blake. He
tru
ly looked like Clarissa's class
mate. He was so average with his lanky shoulders and narrow arms and he actually had a few pimples on his face. Even I was bemused.

“I don't think we have any other options or do some of you have opposing opinions?” I sighed and went next to Blake.

The males grouched silently, but they didn't dare say a word. They knew I was right, though they also knew this was Blake's shot at plotting himself close to Clarissa. But as they didn't have any better solution, they had to settle for this one.

“It's a deal then,”
confirmed David
.

The others nodded reluctantly and Blake smirked so triumphantly that I was not sure this was
the
right choice after all. Had we just let the fox into the hen house?

Clarissa

Clarissa ran into the class
room at exactly the same minute
the school bell
rang and announced the
start
of the class
. She quickly loosened her scarf and shook some last remnants of sleet from her coat. She lifted her eyes and searched for her friends amongst h
er other class chums. S
he dropped her backpack to the floor
in shock
. Her frostbitten cheeks blushed some more and she felt like she was going to choke. An illness in her stomach was about to spew her breakfast to the class
room
floor.

Brianna, one of her best friends,
was sitting
o
n Adam's table and nearly melting
in his arms. Adam seemed to be very interested in her generous neckline and didn't seem to notice that Clarissa had come to class. Well, he sure
hadn't wasted his time, she thought bitterly. She
rais
ed her hands to her neck and
gasped, stunned. So, this is what Adam had meant. She had to stand this every day until Adam got bored of this game and returned to Norway. She could stand this, no problem, but today this was too much. Today she would go back home and she would snuggle in her bed to mourn. She would mourn her loss of Adam and she would allow herself to roll in self pity, but tomorrow she would confront Adam with her head up and she would
n’t
care less what he did. Clarissa picked up her backpack and turned as if in
a
trance.

“Miss Stewart, please be
so kind as to
go to your place. In case you haven't noticed, this math class started three minutes ago,” said her teacher, Mrs. Kent
,
and looked at her strictly.

Clarissa couldn't answer. She just stood in the middle of the class and gasped. Adam glanced at her lazily and turned his gaze back to the treasures that were hidden under Brianna's shirt. Clarissa's gaze
was locked at
Adam and she felt so betrayed. She knew of course that Adam
was
hurt
ing
her on purpose, but she couldn't understand how he was capable of this kind of cruelty. It was only yesterday that she had felt his fingers on her body and his lips on hers and now he was groping one of her friends without a thought for Clarissa. So gross! Clarissa's stomach seemed to turn around again and she pressed her hand to her mouth. Luckily, Stella saw her emergency and saved her. She took Clarissa's hand and pulled her gently with her to the chairs that were at the back of the classroom.

“Don't look,” she
spluttered.

But Clarissa
couldn't help herself
. W
hen she looked again she saw Brianna sitting on her
own chair, but so close to Adam
that there was no room for a ruler or anything. Brianna sta
red at Adam, enchanted, but he
didn't seem to notice her. When Clarissa passed Adam, he looked straight at her glassy eyes and a slow, slanting smile expanded his face. Clarissa went pale as the driven snow and lurched.

“Bastard,” she snapped at Adam.

“Well thank you,” he replied overly polite.

“Don't mind him,”
whispered
Stella
and tweaked Clarissa to her seat. However, she scowled icily at Adam and Brianna, who had looped her way into Adam's arms.

“Adam has been busy all morning trying to tempt your friends and as you can see, some of us are weaker than others. Emilie nearly fainted when Adam asked her to show him the way to the boys' locker and well, you can see how he affects Brianna.”

“Stella,” Clarissa whispered in a quiet, shivering tone.

“Shh. She's a cow. We'll get through this.”

Clarissa sighed and
sank to her chair. She felt a warm hand touch
her shoulders and her mind seemed to melt with joy. She lifted her head, surprised, and looked behind her. “Blake.” “Himself. And check the last line on the left.” Clarissa turned her head and faced Fabio and Marcel who smirked at her. “But how?” Clarissa wonde
red in her mind. “I know. Your m
om is going to be pissed
off
,” Blake's laugh echoed in her head. “You have to concentrate and you have to do it mor
e than well. Adam knows by now that
he's not the only shape shifter male in the class and you probably want to keep him out of our silent conversations?” “You can bet on that!” Clarissa yelled. “I thought so. All you hav
e to do is think of any
thing else but him. It's actually a little disturbing to hear your mind screaming Adam's name while we're here, too,” Blake gave her
a
lame smile and continued. “It's only a matter of time before he can enter your mind as you're already so open to him, and when that happens he can lurk inside your deepest secrets.” “No! That can never happen! I don't want to think about him, not really, but I just can't stop myself, especially now when he's all over one of my best friends!” “We'll help, if you let us,” Blake's voice whispered mutely. “I will! Please, tell me what you want me to do.  I'll do anything to get rid of him!” “You don't need to do anything but keep us three in your mind
at all
time
s
.”

“Search your mind. Can you feel us?” Clar
issa felt
the three protective minds wiping
her thoughts. “Yes, I feel you but so what?” Clarissa touched her temple questioningly. “Nothing. Let us take care of the rest. We can block your mind from Adam. Now that you can separate our minds from Adam's you just make sure that you don't block us out when he attacks your
mind.” “If he attacks,” she
sniffed and stared murderously at Adam, whose hand
was gently fondling Brianna's thigh
. “Oh, he will attack. You can be sure of that. Now, concentrate and look happy. We'll handle the rest.”

Clarissa felt the moment when the men departed from her mind. Yet she could feel a light strand that connected her mind with theirs, and she knew they weren't really gone, but
had
only backed off a little so she could have peace in her mind. She lifted her head and stared directly at Adam with her bright green eyes until he had to look
back at her
. Adam's black eyes seemed surprised, but only for a short moment. He smiled at her insolently and kept his hands on Brianna's thigh. Clarissa gave him one of her rare brilliant smiles and let her eyes drop back to her math book.

She tried to pretend that her math book was the most interesting thing in the universe. Stella babbled continuously in her ear and she really had to concentrate so that her answers sounded at least somewhat sensible. Adam tried to attack her mind, but she could sense how Blake, Marcel and Fabio stopped each of his attacks. The whole hour seemed to flow like she was walking in a mist. When it finally ended, she had to collect all her willpower to pass Adam with her back straight and to glance at him, smiling sweetly.

Outside the class Stella grabbed one of her hands and Blake took
the
other. Stella looked at Blake with a look that asked “What the heck do you think you're doing?” But as Clarissa bore this strange young man and didn't mind his presence, she didn't say a word. Stella led them to the school cafe, where Marcel, Fabio and Caitlin joined them.

“What's going on?”
pressed Stella
.

Clarissa shrugged, but could
n't find the words to explain.

“Yesterday you swore you didn't care about Adam, then you come out of the toilet looking like a boiled crab. Today, you freaked out when you saw Adam with another gir
l. Explanations, please!” she
demanded.

When Clarissa couldn't answer, Marcel pushed Stella lightly. “Leave her alone.”

“And you are?” she
asked and jabbed Marcel with her screaming-green nail.

“Leave it, Stella,” Clarissa mumbled quietly. “I'll explain to you later, okay?”

Stella gave her a weird look, but didn't press anymore.
She had known Clarissa since
first grade and she knew her friend so well that she knew she would tell her everything when she was ready. She rolled her eyes at Marcel and lifted her nose a little higher. With her hips swaying more than usual, she piloted Clarissa to the food line and filled her plate full of food.

Clarissa had no idea what was on her plate, for all reasonable thoughts seemed to fade from her head at the very same moment Adam stepped into the cafe with Brianna and Emilie hanging on his arms.  “Go on. You'll get him confused and soon he will leave you alone,”
said Fabio's voice
in her mind. Clarissa smiled like a Christmas tree and concentrated on talking equally to all her friends. Once in a while she glanced at Adam just to look. His dark gaze didn't move from her for a second. She smiled at him so brightly that Fabio, who
was sitting
next to her, had to gasp. “Wow!” “Don't you think?”
thought Clarissa
, pleased, and hid the pain she felt in a tiny hole of her mind whenever she saw Emilie and Brianna touching Adam and Adam returning their touches.

The rest of the week went by almost with the same p
attern. The only difference was
that day by day Ad
am seemed more and more bored of
his toys
,
which made Brianna and Emilie try to hang on to him more desperately, if that were possible. Clarissa didn'
t care but kept smiling at Adam
when she felt like it. When she got bored she decided to give Adam something really hot to look at for a change.

Clarissa and Stella climbed the auditorium stairs in the sport
s
field next to the school
, where
Clarissa sta
rted to stretch her legs, posing
her small tight buttock at Adam. Stella looked at her in horror, but said nothing. Just as she began to stretch her glu
tes she
heard Adam moaning and cur
sing in pain in her mind and got scared. She
straightened herself and collected all her willpower so she could look at him teasingly. Adam seemed to be out of his mind. Brianna
was dangling
on
to
him like a leech, but Adam didn't even recognize her. Emilie was gone, so maybe she had had enough of this insignificant play or she had come to her senses.

Clarissa was terrified. If Adam could break into her mind this easily, she was in trouble. However, Blake and his entourage
were lounging
on the auditori
um benches, so close to her
that she didn't even have to scream. They would attack Ada
m if things got messy or if he tried to get closer to her. She
swayed her hair seductively and whispered to Stella with a voice that was mixed with panic
.
“To the toilets, now!”

Stella couldn't answer. She too had seen Adam's gaze full of lust and she was truly horrified. Blake, Fabio and Marcel stood up, but Clarissa gestured at them to stay and they fell back to the benches. Clarissa almost dragged Stella to the toilet and the
moment they got there, she
sank against the nearest wall.