“I said,” he continues as he leans in a little closer to examine me further. “Did you—”

Before he is able to finish his sentence, Marlowe and Rory show up and each grabs him by an arm.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Rory says in a low tone to him.

The two brothers each put an arm around Kaleb’s shoulders as they walk him away from my locker. But not before Kaleb turns and calls back to me, loud enough for everyone in the hallway to hear.

“If I were the one to catch you in my bedroom, things would have ended very differently,” Kaleb shouts. He has just enough time to throw me a grin before turning back around with his brothers.

The buzz of conversation starts back up around me in the hallway, and I’m not sure if I heard it right or if I simply imagined it, but I think I hear Rory say something to Kaleb in a gruff voice.

“Don’t be a jackass,” Rory grumbles to him. “You know damn well that if it had been any other night, things would’ve been different.”

My head rushes. There’s no way I heard that right.

I’m left feeling unsure of how to move my arms and legs as I become aware of the eyes on me from all around. That little exchange didn’t go unnoticed.

Whispers break out between where I linger at my locker and the three boys have stopped at the end of the hall. They’re too far for me to overhear any more of their conversation, but they aren’t the only ones with my name on their lips now.

I open my locker back up to toss all of my books back inside except the one I need for my first class. I don’t feel like being burdened down with a lot to carry. It’s a habit I picked up once mom and I first went on the run. I only like to have what I absolutely need and can carry, just in case I need to make a break for it. I close my locker again—this time without finding anyone standing on the other side—and head to my first class.

I have to pass by the boys on my way there, and try as I might to avoid any more uncomfortable eye contact, I can’t help overhearing another snippet of Rory’s voice whispering to Kaleb.

“Just because it’s difficult to stay away doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try,” he says under his breath. “Do you think it’s easy for Marlowe and me? Let me tell you, it’s not. It fucking sucks not feeling like you can control yourself. But it’ll get easier, assuming that you don’t do anything foolish in the meantime.”

Control yourself?

I think back to Rory’s face up at the house. Control. He was barely in control.

I must have slowed down, because suddenly Rory’s eyes are on me again. This time when he speaks, he makes sure the whole hallway can hear him.

“Move along and mind your own business, Sabrina,” he says sharply. “I know it’s apparently hard for you to stay out of other people’s business, and their homes, but maybe you could try giving it a shot.”

I feel the blood rush to my cheeks as the hallway quiets. No one even pretends not to be looking at me now.

“Sorry,” I murmur as I duck my head down and hurry off to class before the stinging tears in my eyes start to show.

If I wasn’t already dreading my Civilizations class with Rory, I am now.

It’s not even the project that has me the most upset, because I know I can do it myself. By the end of last week I’d already resigned myself to doing it alone anyway. Strange to think that just a couple days ago my biggest worry was that Rory and the others wouldn’t come back.

Now that they’re here, it’s all I can do just to avoid them.

The anxiety of knowing I’m going to have to face Rory again, and so soon after that embarrassing display this morning, makes my stomach reel until I think I’m going to regurgitate my lunch.

“I’ll switch with you if that makes you feel any better,” Aimee offers, once I finally relent and tell them why my face apparently looks like I’m about to have a mental breakdown. “That way, you won’t have to go anywhere near the sexy asshole.”

“Sexy asshole?” Jess says, nearly snorting milk out of her nose. “Geez, Aimee, really willing to take one for the team there, eh?”

Aimee’s face goes a bit red as she splutters to find an explanation that doesn’t make her sound like the opportunist she is. Which is fine by me.

Let her have the asshole. Right now, I don’t want him.

“Well, despite Rory’s ever-present buzz-kill,” Tom says, after several minutes of back and forth between Jess and Aimee, “you have to admit those wine cellars were wicked cool. And we got away with it, which makes it all worthwhile.”

“What exactly is it that you think you got away with?” I ask. “We got caught. We’re lucky Rory didn’t tell his dad.”

At least I hope he didn’t.

Tags: Eden Beck Wolfish Paranormal
Source: readsnovelonline.net