Save Me: a Stepbrother Romance (20 page)

“I know,” I said, staring into my mug of tea.

“Which is why you’re grounded.”

“What?”  My head snapped up.

“You heard me, Natalie Amelia,” she said, standing.  She turned on the sink and began scrubbing her now empty mug.  “You are not leaving this house.  And I’m taking your phone.”

“Mom!”

“No.  I still love you, Nat.  But I am sure as hell not going to allow my daughter to become the kind of person that hits people.  You need to learn to grow up.”

“Mom, I’ve got so much to do!  I’ve got to plan for Student Council, I’ve got to help set up for prom, I’ve got—”

“Your room, Nat.  Now.”

I stared at her.  This was not how I was expecting this conversation to go.   I slipped my phone into my pocket as I stood up.

“I saw that,” Mom said without turning around.

Ugh.  Mom vision.  It sees all.

I put my phone down on the kitchen table.

“Love you, honey,” Mom called as I stalked out.

***

It was nearly midnight, and I was still up.  Mom, in the midst of an existential crisis brought on by her perfect daughter getting suspended, had forgotten to confiscate my laptop.  I had been checking my email obsessively.  Part of it was my natural state of workaholicness, aching for something to do to distract me from the train wreck that was my life. 

But the other part was desperate for any kind of message from Cal.  I doubted he knew my email address…

But it couldn’t hurt to obsessively check my account twenty times a day.

After confirming that Cal hadn’t emailed me and I was still cut off from him, I closed the laptop and laid back on my bed. 

Suspended for a week.  No school, Mom slowly descending into madness, and Cal was no longer here to keep me sane.  I closed my eyes, trying to remember the taste of him.  How warm he would be if he were laying here with me.  The gorgeous sound of his deep voice, and what he would say to me if he was here.

It’s alright, Nat
, he would whisper, kissing my forehead. 
Just let me hold you, sweetheart.  I’ll protect you.

Or maybe:

Come here, sweetheart.  Come here and let me touch you.

Or:

For fuck’s sake, Natalie, are you deaf?

Wait, what?

I sat straight up.  My imagination was good, but it wasn’t nearly good enough to make his voice sound that realistic.  And it wasn’t good enough to make up the scrabbling noises that scratched against my wall and tapped against the windowsill.  My head turned to the window as the bushes below rustled.

My breath caught in my throat.

There was no way.

I waited for a moment.

“I know you heard me, Pink,” Cal’s voice said in a whisper-shout from outside my window.  “Now come on.  Open the window before I fall of the side of his goddamn house.”

I threw the sheets off and ran to the window. 

“Cal?” I whispered, pressing my nose against the glass.

Sure enough, there was Cal Gatlin.  Dangling off the side of my house, his fingers grasping at my second-story bedroom window and his foot just barely balancing on the siding.  He was still wearing his leather riding jacket, and I could see his bike parked behind the tall bushes around our driveway.  His face was blushed and covered in sweat as he scaled the wall of the house to get to me.  How he got up there, I’ll never know. 

All I knew was that I had never been happier.

“You are absolutely crazy,” I whispered, a massive smile crawling across my face. I threw up the window and grabbed at his hand.  He took it in his, his fingers clasping around mine so naturally that I was sure we were made to be together.

“I know, Pink.  Now let me in the house before I fall of this thing.  Are you
trying
to kill me?”

“You’re going to kill yourself,” I whispered, pulling him in the house.  That delicious natural Cal scent washed over me as I watched him brush himself off.  His boots were scuffed, he was covered in sweat and dirt, and his hands and arms were bruised and scraped from climbing my house.

He had never looked more gorgeous. 

“Yeah, well.  It’s worth it to see you again.”

He turned to me, looking into my eyes for the first time.  Oh God, he was real, wasn’t he?  I wasn’t imagining it.  He was real, he was Cal Gatlin, he was in my bedroom, and he was finally back home to me. 

I couldn’t stop myself.  I opened my arms and ran to him.

“Oof!” Cal cried as I knocked him over.  I wrapped my arms around him as we rolled into the floor, burying my face into his chest.  Tears began running down my face. 

“Oh God, Cal!  You’re back!  You came back!”

“Hush, sweetheart.  Your mom will hear.”

“Oh, Cal.” 

His arms wrapped around me, his fingers digging into the soft skin of my back.  His mouth found mine, and his tongue traced my lips again just like it always did.  “Oh sweetheart,” he whispered.  “I forgot how good you taste.”

“I thought I lost you, Cal,” I choked.

“Oh God, Nat.  Don’t cry.  You know I can’t stand to see you cry.” 

He wiped the tear stain trails from my cheeks and held my chin up for another kiss.  I took in a deep breath, inhaling his scent.  He smelled perfect.  He
was
perfect.  I knew I could never be separated from him now.  Before, I could survive.  It hurt to lose him, but I could survive.  But now?  After losing him and having him miraculously return to me?

It would have broken me.

“I promised I would come back for you, Natalie,” he whispered against my ear.  He kissed my temple.  “I don’t break promises.  Especially not ones I made to you.”

“I know, Cal.”  I buried my face into his neck.  “I know.”

We laid together on my bedroom floor, our chests rising and falling together.  The sound of Mom’s soft snores drifted through the walls, assuring us that we were safe for the moment.  Cal’s fingers combed through my blonde hair.

“How did you get away?” I whispered.

“He’s sleeping.  He doesn’t care what I do as long as it doesn’t cause trouble for him.  He doesn’t pay attention to me.  All I had to do was take the bike and go once I figured out where we were and how I could get to you, Nat.”

“But he’s going to realize that you’re gone.”

“Yes.”

“You don’t sound too worried about that.”

“Because I have a plan.”

His voice sounded dangerously sure of itself.  I glanced up at him with trepidation, my gaze searching his face.  He looked down at me coolly, not a single worry apparent in his expression.  Cocky Cal—I loved that.  But it was dangerous.

“Alright.  Fine.  What craziness have you gotten yourself into?  And does it break any major laws?”

“Nope.  Well, maybe.”

I groaned.  He smiled and kissed my forehead again.

“I’ve gotten a motel room downtown.  I know he’ll probably figure out that I’ve gone back to this town.  But honestly?  As long as I’m out of his hair, I doubt he’ll care.  I can lay low, Nat.  And I can take care of myself.  I told you.  I’m good at that.  And if it allows me to be near you?”

He kissed me.

“Well, I’ll do anything for that,” he whispered against my mouth.  He nuzzled my neck, making me moan.  “Quiet, sweetheart.  Quiet.  Your mom will hear us.”

“Take me with you.”

“What?”

Cal pulled back, still cupping my face.  His jaw had dropped, and his eyes were wide.  A smug part of my took pride in the fact that I was still able to shock Cal Gatlin.  He shook his head, running his fingers along my face as he cradled it.

“No.  You’ve got school, and—”

“I don’t.  I was suspended,” I said, beaming.

He was silent.

“Say something, please.  Did I give you a heart attack?”

“You? 
Suspended
?”

“You sound like my mom.”

“You’re Natalie Harlow.  You don’t get suspended.”

“Well, I did.  And Mom is used to me being a drama queen, so I doubt she’ll expect me to leave my room, which means she’ll never suspect I’m gone.  It’s perfect.”  I leaned forward and kissed him.  “Please.  Take me with you.  I need to be with you, Cal.  Being away from you….” 

My voice broke. 

“I can’t,” I whispered, unable to summon the strength to speak.  “Please, Cal, I can’t be away from you again.”

His fingers drifted from my cheek to the ear where his earring was still clipped.  I hadn’t taken it off since he left.

He nodded.

“You know I can never say no to you, Nat.”  He gave me a cheeky smile and kissed me again.  “So come on.  Let’s go.”

He took my hand, and we ran away from home.

Cal and I lied on the bed in his motel, holding each other’s bodies and looking into each other’s eyes.  By now, it was nearly three in the morning.  Mom would still be sleeping, not knowing that her daughter had escaped out her window with her criminal stepbrother.  James probably didn’t know that Cal was gone.  Or, more importantly, he probably didn’t care.

Cal kissed me.  “I love you, Nat.”

“You know I love you,” I said.

“How did you get suspended?” he asked me after a moment.  He straightened up on the bed and kicked away the half empty pizza box at the edge of it, the one we had ordered an hour ago.  His arm wrapped around my waist and brought me to sit up with him.  Our legs intertwined together.

“I hit someone.”

His eyes widened.  “You?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t believe it.”

“That someone was Nate.”

His eyes closed.  “Now I believe it.  But I wish I didn’t.”

“He deserved it.”

“I’m not arguing that, Nat.  What I’m worried about is the fact that you’re underestimating him.  He’s not stupid, Nat.  But he is crazy.  And crazy is dangerous.  Especially if you’re provoking him by attacking him in public.”