Laney (7 page)

Chapter 10 - Stop Biting Yourself!

I woke in a panic Friday morning. I had overslept. I vaguely remembered Kiera waking me and telling me that she was leaving, that she was walking to school with Carter.
Yay for her
.

I jumped out of bed and rushed around, getting ready as quickly as possible.

I stumbled out the door, locking it behind me while struggling with my backpack that was refusing to stay on my shoulder. I hurried down the stairs to the parking area, rounded the corner, and smacked hard into Oliver, who was just coming up to the steps. He quickly reached for me, wrapping his arms around me as I bounced back off of him. He steadied me and held on a little longer than necessary. I didn’t mind.

“Are you okay?” he asked. He was wearing his sunglasses. I couldn’t see his eyes, but I could swear that I could still feel them on me.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said, through gasps. I had knocked the wind out of myself.

“You’re running late today.” It was a statement, not a question. “Did we keep the two of you up too late last night?’

“No.”
You didn’t keep us up late enough.
I felt myself flush at my own thoughts and noticed a hint of a smile pick at the corner of his mouth.

“Can I give you a ride? We
are
going to the same place and you know how eco-friendly I am.” That hint of a smile had turned into a mischievous little smirk. “We might as well carpool,” he finished.

“Sure.” Like I was going to turn down more time with him.

He led me to his car and, as we got closer, I noticed a silver ram’s head emblem at the nose of it, between two thick, matte-black stripes that ran up the hood. I hadn’t noticed those before. It was hard to notice anything else when Oliver was around.

Opening the car door for me, he took my backpack from my shoulder and set it behind the passenger seat. I got in and he closed the door after me. His car was huge compared to mine. The entire inside looked like top-of-the-line quality. Black and leather from top to bottom, lights and every gadget I imagined possible on the dash. It was spotlessly clean, too, unlike mine. I was surprised at how well I could see out the windows considering how dark they were from the outside.

He slid into the driver’s seat and started the car. The engine roared to life. It was loud and sounded very powerful, not at all eco-friendly.

“You know,” I began, “I imagine my car’s a little more earth-friendly, considering the sound of that engine.” I gave him a playful smile.

He shot me a breathtaking grin and revved the engine; he shifted into gear and we started out of the parking lot.

I’m not much of a car fan but something about the way that engine sounded excited me. “What kind of car is this?” I asked, as we started out onto University Boulevard.

“It’s an SRT Dodge Challenger.”

I nodded like I understood. I had no idea what the SRT stood for, but I could only guess it meant really fast and really expensive. Or maybe Sexy, Ripe, and Tempting.
Ugh! There I go again.
I squeezed my eyes shut, focusing on shutting up my inner perv.

“I really don’t know much about cars, but I love the classics,” he said and it helped me silence the pervert living in my head.

“What do you mean by ‘classic?’ This car looks brand new.”

“No, not this one; it’s a remake. My first car was ‘74 Challenger. I only had it a couple of years. When they came out with the new ones, I had to have one.” He was rubbing the steering wheel affectionately.

A couple of years? He didn’t look like he was even old enough to be driving that long. “How old are you?” I asked skeptically.

“Twenty-two. Why? Is that too old for you?” he said playfully, flashing me his amazing half-smile.

I smiled back, feeling warmth starting to sting my cheeks again. I tore my eyes away from him and stared out the window.
Hell no, he wasn’t too old for me!

“How old are you?” His voice was still playful, full of humor now.

I bit my bottom lip. I didn’t want him to think I was a baby or that I was too young for him. “I’ll be nineteen next month.”

“I see,” he responded, still playfully.

“Too young for you?” I asked, trying to make it sound like I was joking.

“Nope, just a number.” I glanced at him and his smile was lingering.

Sweet!

Class was the same as before, my attention wandering away from the lecture and inadvertently focusing on Oliver. Astronomy held my attention a little more than the rest; but, in English, I had no clue what was going on. I was sure Kiera could catch me up later.

I received a text from Kiera. Her next class was cancelled, so she would be meeting me by the tree. Man! Now I had to share my alone time with Oliver with her.

Oliver and I walked over to
our
tree. I giggled to myself at the thought of “our tree” and he looked at me quizzically. Had I giggled out loud?

We were sitting there quietly watching the squirrels run by, leaning against the tree, just close enough that my body was getting little waves of excitement running through it. I was munching on my grapes—grapes seemed safe; nothing got stuck in your teeth with grapes—and Oliver was sipping on his water bottle when Kiera showed up. She plopped down facing us and started jabbering immediately about the coming events of that night. I had been trying not to think about it because, when I did, I got a knot in my stomach and I had the strangest feeling running through me that I assumed was nerves. Then she brought up Ashton—Jackass Ashton—and I groaned.

“You guys don’t like him?” Oliver asked.
Perceptive boy, this one.

“He’s really arrogant and, honestly, not the brightest,” I offered.

“He has a thing for Laney.” Kiera seemed to be laying it all out there. I gave her the dirtiest look I could manage. She cringed away a little and gave me an “I’m sorry” smile. Oliver, on the other hand, sat up board-straight and was as still as a statue.
Very odd
.

I shot Kiera another dirty look, but she was focused, eyes wide, on silent Statue Boy next to me. I followed her stare. Blood was dribbling out the corner of his mouth.

“Oliver, you’re bleeding!” I exclaimed. I was rather surprised that he hadn’t noticed. “Does your water bottle have a sharp edge?” I joked, trying to be lighthearted. I didn’t think it was working. He was still totally motionless.

“No, it’s my teeth,” he said almost absently. He quickly returned back to himself—well, almost. His tone seemed a little off. “I bit my tongue,” he said, wiping the blood off with the back of his hand and onto his jeans. “Did I get it?” I wanted to lick it off him.
Holy crap! Where the hell did that come from? NASTY!

“Yes,” I responded, still disgusted with myself. His tone was really off. It was almost frightening, like when your parent—well, aunt, in my case—was mad at something you had done and you were just waiting for them to yell.

“You really should stop biting yourself,” I joked, hoping he’d be Oliver again.

“I only do it when I’m around you.” He shot me a quick smirk.

I did not expect that! My stomach gave a nervous drop and I managed to ask, “How’s your tongue?”

“What? Oh, fine. Fast healer.” He sounded withdrawn. “We were talking about this Ashton. I’d like to hear more.” He still didn’t seem like himself. It bothered me, so I just sat there quietly, watching.

Kiera didn’t seem to notice his change in tone or mood and started to fill him in.
Since when was she such a gossip?
“He’s rather, well…experienced with the ladies, if you know what I mean,” she said, way too casually for herself.
What is with her?

“Yeah, I get it!” he snapped. He wasn’t looking in my direction at all. It was almost like he was avoiding looking at me. He couldn’t be jealous, could he?
No, I’m reading way too much into this
.

“Laney put him out of commission for a while. She went out on a date with him last year; it was over really quick,” Kiera added. I didn’t think it was possible, but Oliver stiffened even more. “She kneed him in the…uh…boy parts,” she said, popping one of my grapes into her mouth.

He turned to me, his body relaxing.

“He deserved it,” I said, and he smiled at me with his beautiful smile again.
What the hell was that all about?

“What about you, Kiera?” he asked, his tone back to normal.
Did I just imagine all that?
“Have your eye on anyone?” I noticed his mischievous hint of a smirk had returned.

“Oh…umm…” Kiera blushed, looking down at her hands.

You threw me to the wolves. I can play this game, too.

“She likes Carter, but she’s always been too scared and shy to ask him out,” I offered. “She’s afraid of pushing the friends limit, having it go wrong, and losing him,” I finished. It was out there now and there was no going back. I felt a little bad.

Her head snapped up and I think she tried to give me a dirty look, but, if she did, she was not very good at it.

“Fear will prevent you from living your life,” Oliver told her in his silky, smooth voice. “And I’m pretty sure you won’t be rejected. He’s into you, too.”

It appeared as if something in Kiera’s mind clicked and she smiled, her eyes sparkling. “Really?” Her smile nearly spread from ear to ear. “He’s as cute as a button, you know.”

What the hell did she just say? “
Seriously, Kiera? A button? What an odd thing to say. Who says that kind of thing? Other than old people.”

Kiera’s cheeks flamed bright red against her pale skin, but her smile didn’t fade. Oliver chuckled.

“I mean, really, have you ever actually looked at a button and thought, ‘Damn, that is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen?’ I know I haven’t.” I was beginning to sound a little irate. “I’m sorry, but that was just lame.”

Oliver laughed while taking a drink and apparently bit himself again. Covering his mouth with his hand, he jumped up and headed off to clean up, I assumed.

We sat there in silence for a while and then Kiera asked, “He bites himself a lot, does he?”

“Third time I’ve noticed. Maybe he’s mental. You can’t be that gorgeous and not have a major flaw, right?” I was still feeling rather irritated.
Man, people were seriously starting to get on my nerves today. Must be nerves about tonight.

Kiera looked thoughtful and then asked, “You ever notice girls checking him out?”

I looked at her, surprised and still pretty annoyed. “What? No!” I snapped. I searched for Oliver. He was just coming out of one of the stone archways with his water bottle in one hand and the other hand shoved casually into his pocket. He seemed to look down while he walked. I glanced around. She was right. Girls were staring, actually stopping in their tracks and staring, whispering to one another. I felt a pang of jealousy.
How had I never noticed this? I must be totally oblivious when he’s nearby.

Kiera must have read my expression. “You have nothing to worry about, Laney. I see the way he looks at you. He doesn’t see anyone else.” I wished I knew if that was true.

As he sat down beside me, he started talking “I just saw this guy dressed like he just stepped right out of the ‘80s,” he said with a little chuckle.

“Oh?” we said in unison and exchanged glances.

“Yeah, the pegged, acid-washed pants with a fluorescent pink and blue shirt.” He laughed again. “The ‘80s were a nightmare; I don’t know why anyone would want to relive them or hang onto any part of them.”

“You talk about it like you were there. You were only like, what, three?”

“Maybe, but I’m old enough to have seen enough movies to know,” he shot back with a teasing smile.

Our next two classes, biology and pre-calculus, were pointless. I had no idea what was going on in them and barely what they were anymore. It was a concern I didn’t want to deal with right then. The coming evening was weighing heavily enough on my mind.

After school, we quietly walked to his car and the ride home was just as quiet, with only an occasional breathtaking smile. We parted ways at my door with just a “See you tonight” from him. I felt sick and nervous. I wondered if he did, too.

Chapter 11 - Lunatic Stallion

Kiera and I had painted our toenails a pale pink while sitting on the couch with our feet propped up on the coffee table. I listened to her chat on and on about the possibilities the evening held. Once our toes were dry, we parted ways and headed into our own rooms to get ready. With a nervousness like I’d never felt before, I picked out a cute, frayed, short jean skirt that showed a lot of leg–and I had plenty to show off–a black, low-cut tank top with silver scrolls across the front, and a pair of black flip-flops with rhinestones.
Gotta love the shiny stuff—like a certain shiny smile of a certain beautiful boy.
I left my hair down, which I had been doing a lot lately, and applied a minimal amount of make-up. I wasn’t a big fan of the stuff, but you couldn’t go wrong with a little blush and mascara.

Kiera had curled her hair and it fell in large, soft ringlets just above her shoulders. She was wearing snug fitting, low-rise jeans, a turquoise halter that brought out her eyes and the size of her boobs
–
they were quite large for her tiny frame–and a pair of strappy silver sandals. She looked fantastic and it made me feel like I should change. I felt like an Amazon compared to her itty-bittyness. It wasn’t like I was that big; she was just so small. I had almost six inches and twenty pounds on her.

I was about to go change when she told me I looked hot.
I’m good–I would probably just make myself crazy trying to find something else to wear.

“I wish I had your body, Laney,” she said, looking me over again. “You’ve got curves in all the right places.” She winked at me.
Wow, someone’s full of confidence tonight
. I hoped some would rub off on me, because I was feeling really nervous
.

Kiera had invited our friend Zoey and she arrived about five minutes before the boys were due to pick us up. She had on an orange and yellow daisy-pattern sundress that hit just above her long, thin legs and it looked lovely against her dark brown skin. Her dark hair was big, wild, and everywhere. Her large, beautiful, pale jade eyes were framed by long, thick, painted lashes. She reminded me of someone that would have come from an exotic land, but she hadn’t. She was born and raised right here, and believe me, our little tree-filled town was far from exotic.

Kiera and Zoey had been friends for most of their lives, having gone through school together in the same grade and, most of the time, in the same class. I had known Zoey for about four years, since high school. She was extremely nice and outgoing, and she would do anything for a friend, but she could also be a little boisterous.

“So, Laney, tell me about this hot guy you’re into.” Oh, and did I mention blunt and straightforward? I shot Kiera a dirty look. She shrugged and smiled at me. “Well?” she encouraged me to get on with it. “Kiera tells me that you two are really into each other.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but closed it again. I was at a loss for words. I didn’t know what to tell her. I had no idea what we were.

Kiera jumped in since I wasn’t responding. “Think Hayden Christensen, but even better, with the most beautiful eyes, like you’ve never seen before.”

“What?” I exclaimed. “He does not…” I trailed off, thinking about it for a moment; I pulled up a mental image of the former, troubled Jedi. She was a little right. There were definitely a few similarities: the hair; his perfectly full, kissable lips; and their builds were similar. The eyes were totally off, and Oliver’s features were a little more defined, chiseled. One thing she was absolutely right about—Oliver was better, at least to me.

“Oooh. Nice!” Zoey winked at me. Why was everyone winking at me lately?

Carter knocked on the door right on time. It was just him, no Oliver, and my body sagged. I felt rejected. I just wanted to go to bed and cry. Carter was so distracted by Kiera that he probably wouldn’t have noticed if I didn’t join them. And I seriously considered it.

I locked the door behind us as the others headed down the stairs. I was contemplating going back inside and putting my hair up and my jammies on when Carter came bounding up the steps in his jeans and blue Sierra Nevada Summerfest Tee.

“Hey,” he said softly, like he knew I was upset.

I gave him a pitiful attempt at a smile in response.

He continued tenderly, “He said he’d meet us there.” He smiled his sweet smile at me, reaching for my hand. I took it and he led me down the stairs to the girls waiting below. By the time we reached the bottom, my excitement was beginning to return.
He said he’s coming; now let’s see if he shows.

We began walking downtown as night set in. It wasn’t far, just a few blocks from the college. We crossed University Boulevard, to a residential street that led us closer to our destination. As we were walking through the neighborhood’s tree-lined streets, we passed the Cat Lady house. No joke. There was this house that had at least ten cats in the front window staring out. Crazy! That’s a lot of cats and those were just the ones we saw. There were rumors that she had a lot more than that.

The others started whispering to each other about strange things they’d heard about her. That was when I noticed that the Cat Lady herself was in her front yard. It appeared she was doing yard work, in the dark, with only the street light illuminating her yard. She was wearing denim overalls with a flowered, long-sleeved shirt, big black rain boots, and a very wide-brimmed straw hat. She wore her hair in a long, braided grey ponytail down her back. She stopped and leaned on her rake, staring at us as we walked by. She made me feel uneasy, like she was staring deep into me. I kept her in my sight out of the corner of my eye and I felt like we couldn’t pass by her place quickly enough. She watched as we passed. I glanced back as we were about to turn the corner at the end of the street and she was gone. A chill ran through me. Something about her was really strange and unnerving.

We stopped to get a bite to eat before meeting the others, only one of whom I was looking forward to seeing. The conversation was flowing between my friends as I sat quietly picking at my cheeseburger and fries. The girls left the table and I took my chance.

“Why didn’t Oliver come now?” I asked Carter quietly, while Kiera and Zoey were getting soda refills.

“He said he had a couple of things to do and that he wasn’t big on fast food.” Carter gave me a reassuring smile as I shoved a couple of fries in my mouth.

The streets of downtown were full of life. People were scattered here and there along the brick sidewalks, busy with shopping, eating, and so on. We rounded the corner of the Lunatic Stallion and I immediately caught sight of Oliver. He was waiting outside, just beside the entrance that led upstairs to the bar, leaning casually against the wall. He looked gorgeous, as always. He was wearing jeans and a dark blue, fitted T-shirt with a faint tree design across one side that spread across his chest. It was snug across his upper arms and fit perfectly everywhere else. He smiled as we got closer; his eyes fixed on mine, and gracefully pushed himself away from the wall. Everyone said their “hellos.” I introduced Zoey and asked if he’d been waiting long. He hadn’t.

Zoey leaned into me. “Kiera wasn’t lying. Mmm, mmm.” It reminded me of a “yum, yum” sound. “He is drop dead gorgeous, maybe a little pale for my taste, but gorgeous, nonetheless.”

I felt a quick surge of heat run through me. Jealousy? How odd
.

As we started up the stairs to the club, I fell behind to walk with Oliver. He smiled his knee-weakening half smile as I reached him. He leaned into to my ear and I could feel his cool breath on my neck—it sent shivers down my spine.

“You look beautiful, as usual.” He pulled away and smiled faintly, his hands shoved into his pockets and his shoulders hunched a tiny bit.
Could he possibly be as nervous as I am?
I felt my cheeks warm and my heart rate pick up as I said “Thank you.”

He gestured for me to go first with a small nod and just a hint of a smile, so I did. He was at my side when we reached the top and stepped into the bar. The Lunatic Stallion was a bit on the country side. The floors were polished, golden hardwood, as was the bar on our left. A wide walkway separated the bar from the tables and chairs that sat at the edge of the dance floor to our right. It always surprised me that they hadn’t taken that last step and covered the floor in sawdust; I guess the fenced-off mechanical bull in the far left corner was enough. The lighting was dim, as were most bars in my experience, but I was able to see that Ashton and Avery had saved us a table. Actually, they were two tables pushed together, with chairs on one side that backed to the dance floor and a high-backed bench seat with its back to the bar, facing the dance floor. Ashton had already started drinking.
Great, adding alcohol to this jackass didn’t make him more pleasant or tolerable.

They stood as they saw our group coming toward the table. They were both blonde, blue-eyed, and tan. Ashton, in his expensive designer clothes, jeans and a grey, button-front shirt that he left unbuttoned, over a snug, black T-shirt, was about five-foot-ten and built like the football player he was—muscular. His salon-bleached hair was cut short and stuck straight up with so much gel in it you could poke an eye out. He wasn’t too bad on the eyes, but, like I said, a total arrogant ass, and that was putting it mildly. Plus, his arrogance made him ugly. His little sister, Avery, had waist length, straight, platinum-blonde hair with chunks of dark brown streaks running through it. She was thin and a couple inches shorter than me, with big boobs. I wouldn’t have been surprised if they were fake, along with her hair, which was shoulder-length when I saw her just a few weeks ago. They both had smug looks, their arrogance showing through. I really didn’t know why we hung out with them at all. If it had been up to me, we wouldn’t. They acted like they were better than everyone else; they were wrong.

Oliver and I stood back and watched while the others greeted each other. Then, over Zoey’s shoulder, Ashton focused on me. He came toward me and I cringed. I felt Oliver’s arm brush mine, as if he’d just stepped a little closer. As Ashton said “Hello,” he hugged me; I didn’t hug back.
The nerve of him!
He pulled back quickly from being rejected. I glanced at Oliver and saw something that looked like fire in his eyes. His jaw appeared to be clenched.

“Who’s your friend?” Ashton asked politely, nodding toward Oliver.

I hated talking to him, even if it was to introduce him to someone I had hopes of being with. I rolled my eyes at him. “This is Oliver. Oliver, Ashton.”

Oliver didn’t move as Ashton stuck his hand out in greeting.

“Nice to meet you,” Ashton said, his arrogant tone showing through, still waiting to shake Oliver’s hand.

Finally, Oliver reached out and grabbed Ashton’s hand, apparently a little too hard. Ashton winced and pulled free, giving Oliver a dirty look as he stalked back to the others. I couldn’t help smiling.

We started for the table and I saw Avery’s eyes light up at the sight of Oliver—she was most likely thinking “fresh meat.” She was a trashy little thing with a nasty reputation and the thought of even just her eyes on Oliver made me want to hurt her.

I slid into a spot at the end of the bench and Oliver slid in beside me. We’d chosen the opposite end from the bleached arrogance. “What would everyone like to drink? First round’s on me,” Carter said. “Beers for the guys and something frou-frou for the girls? Virgin, of course.” It just so happened that all the boys were twenty-one or older. Carter was newly twenty-one and buying alcohol was fresh and exciting to him. Ashton was twenty-two and his little sister had just turned twenty over the summer. Both Kiera and Zoey were twenty, and then there was me, the youngest, still only eighteen, but soon to be nineteen, on the day before Halloween. Since it was “Eighteen and Over Night,” anyone twenty-one or older was given a wristband at the door as they entered the club.

Ashton was making moves on Zoey and she was rolling her eyes and ignoring him as best she could when Carter returned, with the help of Kiera, carrying three Sierra Nevadas and four virgin strawberry daiquiris. He raised his beer bottle. “To our first week of school.” Everyone clinked their bottles and glasses. I felt lame doing it. Surviving one easy week of school seemed silly to celebrate. Oliver clinked his beer bottle to my glass and winked at me as he took a drink. I blushed and shied away with an uncontrollable smile.
Okay, so being here with him could be something worth celebrating.

I spent several songs out on the dance floor with the girls, dancing together playfully. The boys watched and I often caught Oliver’s eyes on me, always with just a hint of a smile. He seemed to be enjoying himself just people-watching.

We came back to the table for a breather. Sitting down, I noticed several empty beer bottles—the boys had been busy. I finally finished the last of my strawberry daiquiri and went to the bar for some water.

As I waited at the bar—did I mention that all the employees, including the bouncers, were wearing cowboy hats?—I looked back at my friends’ table. As I watched them, I noticed Oliver switch his full beer for an almost empty one.
What the…?
No one else seemed to notice.

After getting my water, I came back to the table and sat beside Oliver. I shot him a questioning look and, as he met my eyes, he raised an eyebrow at me.

“I saw that.” I leaned in so he would hear me over the loud music. I caught a whiff of his cologne, shampoo, or whatever it was. It smelled fantastic. It was exotic and musky, with something I couldn’t place. It was intoxicating; it made me lightheaded and it made my heart rate pick up and my skin warm. It made me ache for him.
Whoa!
I jerked back. I felt my face burn from the thoughts going through my mind.

“Saw what?” he said, leaning right back into me with that smile of his. His breath was cool and his scent made my head spin.

I pulled back further and gave me a curious look. My mind and my body were conflicted; one was screaming, “Jump him! Jump him now!” and the other was calmly saying, “Whoa, Nellie. Slow it down there, Little Missy.” Of course, my voice of reason chose to be a cowboy from an old Western this time, considering where were where. I tore my eyes away from him.