Chapter 12: Cravings

“We can sit in the living room with my laptop. It’s much more comfortable,” I said.

“Okay.”

We went into the living room, which was twice as big as the kitchen and three times as extravagant. A brick fireplace sat in one corner, and an oversized portrait hung above it—a portrait of my mother, the only image I’d ever had of her. I saw Chloe looking at the picture, and I braced myself for the questions she was bound to ask. Surprisingly, she didn’t ask any.

We settled onto one of the three couches, the one that was placed directly in front of the massive window that overlooked the dense forest. This was my favorite place to sit—the view was incredible.

I grabbed my laptop from the coffee table and powered it on. Chloe sat so close to me that our bodies touched from shoulder to knee—not that I was complaining. The heat that radiated from her was hot enough to burn me alive. Again, not complaining, but having her so close only made me want to have her closer.

Forcing myself to focus on anything else, I opened my web browser and typed in some random search terms for the history of Keene Valley. I really didn’t need to do this research—I could simply ask Sean for the information—but I couldn’t tell Chloe that, so I played along like I was invested in this research.

The laptop rested on both our laps, and every few minutes, I’d nudge her knee with mine. And every time I did, Chloe’s heart would race. God, I loved that sound. After several moments, she offered to take notes.

After an hour and a half of internet searching and writing notes, she asked, “Can I show you some of what I found?”

No doubt she’d show me the image of Sean. What would I tell her? I’d better figure it out fast because I couldn’t put this off a second longer. Wordlessly, I angled the laptop toward her, and she typed in the web address, then she turned the screen so I could see.

She pointed to the man near the end in the photograph. “That’s Sean Halstead,” she said.

I remained quiet as I studied the picture. Sure enough, that was Sean. How had his picture ended up on the internet? We were always careful not to let that happen. I’d have to tell him, and then we needed to get this removed ASAP.

That was a problem for later, though. Right now, Chloe was waiting on me to say something. But what could I say? I didn’t exactly have enough time to delve into the whole truth now.

“When I first saw this, I thought it was you.” She laughed nervously. “The resemblance is uncanny.”

She studied me intently, and I made sure my expression never changed. I couldn’t do anything to let her know something was wrong. After a moment, I closed the laptop and set it on the nearest end table.

“I’ll ask my dad about that photo,” I said, praying she wouldn’t push for a better answer. I was such a coward. “I think we’ve got a pretty good start.”

“I agree.”

“We should be going,” I said. I didn’t want to leave; I’d rather stay with her as long as possible, but the day was getting away from us. “The trick to skipping school is to still get home on time so your parents—uh, your aunt and uncle—don’t know you weren’t in school.”

“Sounds like you’ve done this quite a bit.”

I shrugged. “Maybe, but this has definitely been the most fun I’ve had doing it.”

A grin spread across her face, and her eyes brightened. “Yeah, it was fun.”

“We’ll have to do it again,” I said, my voice dropping even lower.

Instinctively, I inched closer. My brain screamed at me to stop, to move away, to put as much distance between us as I could, but my body wouldn’t obey. I craved her, and I was pretty sure I’d die a slow, painful death if I didn’t satisfy this craving. My gaze lingered on her mouth, on plump lips begging to be kissed, then dipped to her neck, to the vein that pulsed like a beacon, before landing back on her lips.

She sucked in a breath. “Yes, we will,” she whispered.

I damn near groaned at how agreeable she was. The fact that she wanted to spend more time with me was both a blessing and a curse, and the fact that she did wasn’t helping with my vow to avoid anything physical.

She remained in place, not moving away, but not really moving closer, either. She wanted me to kiss her, though. Of that I was certain, and her unspoken consent shredded my self-control. I continued to close the distance between us, hyper-aware of her fluttering heart, her barely audible breaths…

And then I heard the faint rumble of Dad’s ancient pickup truck. I didn’t know if I should be pissed or relieved. Either way, I could not let Chloe meet my father under these circumstances.

I abruptly jerked back. “C’mon, we have to get out of here.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her off the couch.

“What’s going on?”

“My father.”

“What? You said your father was out of town until tomorrow.”

We rushed out the side door, climbed into my truck, and sped off down the road. The scent of adrenaline spiking through her veins permeated the air in the cab, and her heart raced. Yet, I didn’t detect a single note of fear from her. If anything, she was excited. Exhilarated. Slightly disappointed.

I made a deep growling sound. Blood rushed through her body, and her heart pounded even harder. And just like that, without even knowing what she was doing, she triggered my bloodlust. I took multiple deep breaths to calm myself, and I focused all my attention on driving.

When we were a good distance away from the house, I relaxed a bit. “That was close.”

She playfully smacked me, and I laughed. Smiling, she rubbed her palm on her leg.

“Dad has been known to show up earlier than planned,” I said.

“Oh, that’s nice. You couldn’t have told me that sooner?”

“No, because you wouldn’t have agreed to go.”

And honestly, I hadn’t really expected Dad to come home early this time. He was chasing a lead that he thought was promising. The fact that he was home already meant he hadn’t had much luck, and he was no closer to finding a way to break our curse. I turned down the road that led toward Roaring Brook Falls.

“I thought you were taking me home?”

“We’re taking a detour first.”

“Cool.”

“Do you have a cell phone?” I asked.

She was quiet for a moment, then she finally said, “No.”

“No big deal. We can use mine.” I leaned over, popped open the glove box, and retrieved my cell phone. What I was about to do was probably the corniest thing ever, but I didn’t care. I wanted to memorialize this day for both of us.

“Use yours for what?” she asked, confused.

“You’ll see.” I slowed to a stop and killed the engine. “Ready?”

“For what?”

I hopped out of the truck and was around to her side with the door open before she even had my seat belt unhooked. I really needed to be more careful with my movements around her. She was observant enough to notice I moved faster than most people. She remained in her seat, frowning, and concern punched me in the gut.

“Everything all right?” I tucked my cell phone into my pocket.

“Yeah. Why?”

“You were frowning pretty intently.”

“Oh. Guess the heat is getting to me,” she said with a faint smile.

The temperature had jumped almost twenty degrees while we were at my house. Though I wouldn’t exactly call this weather hot. I was surprised she did considering the weather she’d been accustomed to in Florida.

I put my hand on her forehead, checking her for a fever, and she shivered. I truly hoped she wasn’t getting sick. “You are pretty hot.” I winked.

She laughed. “That’s a horrible line.”

That sound was just as amazing as the sound of her heartbeat, and not for the first time since meeting her, I realized I wanted to spend every day for the rest of my existence with her, listening to her sweet voice and melodic laugh and overactive heart.

I raised a brow and lightly dragged my fingers down the side of her face, stopping to cup her cheek. Such soft, smooth skin. She peered into my eyes and held her breath. Our mouths were so close. One small move forward was all I needed to finally be able to taste her lips, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could deny myself.

“Do you trust me?” My voice was soft, hesitant.

“Yes.”

The force of her answer combined with the total lack of hesitation had the power to bring me to my knees. She hardly knew me, yet she trusted me. I marveled at that for only a moment before I slowly closed the distance between us. I pressed my lips against hers, featherlight and much too quick. Just enough to satisfy the craving that wouldn’t leave me alone. But in that split second, I realized my mistake. No amount of kissing would ever be enough, not where she was concerned.

I needed her to be with me for all of eternity.

Straightening, I moved away from her. I cleared my throat and rubbed the back of my neck. “Sorry.”

Christ. I did not just apologize for kissing her. What the hell was wrong with me? She opened her mouth, then snapped it closed. Yup. I’d messed up, and we both knew it. Would she call me out on it, though? I deserved nothing less.

“Come on.” I took her hand. “We need to make this quick so I can get you home before you get into trouble.”

We walked to the large sign at the entrance of the trailhead. I stood in front of it and wrapped my arm around her shoulder, holding her against me. Then I pulled my phone from my pocket.

“I hope you like selfies,” I said.

Laughing, she looked at me at the exact moment I smiled and took the picture. Not exactly the photo I’d wanted, but I didn’t care. She was with me, in my arms, and now I had something I could look at during the long, torturous hours when I couldn’t physically be with her.

“Ready to go home?” I asked.

“No,” she said.

At least I could always count on her honesty. “I’m pretty sure your aunt and uncle would not be pleased with me if I didn’t bring you home.”

“You’re probably right.”

I once again took her hand, and we headed toward my truck.

When we arrived at her aunt’s house, Abby’s car was in the driveway. That wasn’t good. Abby should still be in school. I slowed my speed and listened carefully at the sounds inside the house. Crying. Heavy pacing. Erratic heartbeats. Yeah, something was definitely wrong.

“Thanks again for today,” she said when I stopped the truck. “Guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Of course.”

She grabbed the door handle. “Bye.”

“Chloe. Wait.” I clutched her wrist. Suddenly, the idea of her getting out of my truck had my chest seizing with fear. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the moment she walked into that house I wouldn’t see her again for a while. But what was there to say that wouldn’t freak her out? Finally, I settled on, “I had a really good time today.”

“Me too.” She climbed out of the truck, and as soon as she was safely on the porch, I took off.

I was on a mission to find out what was going on and why my instincts were on high alert.