Draw Me In (27 page)

“Listen,” Karl said, as if he’d remembered that I was sitting beside him, “you know I try not to get involved in your personal life.”

I tightened my jaw as some of my tension returned. “Yeah.”

“Well, I’m breaking my rule here.” Karl set down his pen and picked up another with a finer tip. “Hailey’s a great girl. You were right to hire her. I’ve seen a couple of her drawings, and you were right there, too. She’s got talent. But as far as whatever else you two have going on—”

“Which is not any of your business,” I interrupted, scowling at him. The stool squeaked under me as I rolled it back a little.

Karl turned to me and arched a wiry blond and gray brow. “Didn’t I already say it wasn’t? I know you’ve got feelings for her, and I think she cares about you, too. But do you really want to get serious right now? I don’t think you do. Have fun, do your thing, whatever. But don’t hang your heart on this girl. You haven’t known her long enough.” He turned back to the dragon. If he noticed the way I was shaking with anger, he didn’t say anything about it. He just kept on preaching. “I saw how Gretchen wrecked you. And I don’t want to see that shit again. All I’m saying is, you need to take this slow.”

My knuckles cracked, my fists were clutched so tightly. Anger, hot and violent, rose within me until all I could see was red. My voice was a snarl. “Mind your own damn business.”

Karl set his pen down again and turned to me. “You want to kick my ass? Fine, go ahead. You can try. But you know I’m right. This shit’s happening way too fast, and you’re going to get hurt.”

Shoving to my feet, I grabbed my helmet and stalked out of the shop without another word. Karl could fuck off. I knew what I felt. She just had some studying to do, and she was distracted. For Karl to use that to make me regret being with her? That was a dick move, and I wasn’t going to stand there and listen to it.

Kicking my bike into gear, I spun gravel and shot out of the alley like the devil was on my back tire. I was ready for the day to be over.

Chapter Twenty-three

Hailey

Once I arrived back on campus, I headed straight for the library. The night was warm and clear, but I didn’t have a chance to take my time and enjoy it, look up at the sky and count the stars, feel the evening breeze on my skin. I had too much to do to admire the depth of blue and black through the thick green leaves. As I walked up the ornate brick stairs to the library’s front door, a voice called my name.

I turned and a relieved smile spread across my face. “Hey, Rose.”

The dark-haired girl winked over the armload of books she had balanced precariously in front of her. She started up the stairs a little crookedly. “I haven’t seen you outside of class for a while. Everything okay?”

I grabbed the top book before it could fall from Rose’s stack. “Yeah, everything’s great. Just been working a lot, that kind of thing.” Fortunately, I’d already turned to keep walking into the library, so my blush at the thought of what else had been keeping me from my usual routine would go unseen.

“I get you.” Rose’s footsteps echoed behind me as I pushed open the heavy white-painted front doors of the library. The scent of books wafted over me, as comforting as it was depressing. As much as I liked to read, I’d much rather have been spending my late night somewhere else. I frowned. Hopefully Neill had understood and wasn’t upset with me. I’d run out kind of quickly when he got there. But I hadn’t been expecting him to show, and besides all the homework I needed to finish, I’d wanted to wait a while before showing him what Karl and I had come up with.

“I’m going to be here for a while, working on an assignment,” I whispered to Rose, who’d joined the line at the counter. “Are you staying?”

Rose nodded. “Yeah. I’ve got to swap these out, but I’ve got some things to work on while I’m here. Grab us a table and I’ll join you.”

I walked past the front counter, lugging my bag toward the back corner of the library. I didn’t spend a huge amount of time in the library, but whenever I was here, I liked to hang out in this corner. In the middle of the biographies, there were two windows, a large spacious table that was almost always unoccupied, and in the afternoon, lots of natural light that silhouetted the dogwood outside the window. Hey, maybe I could see the blooms tonight. I dumped my bag onto the scarred wood table and propped my arms on the windowsill. It was too dark. All I could see was a far-off streetlight that made the softly waving dogwood branches look a little creepy.

Shaking my head at the ridiculous tickle at the nape of my neck, I spread out my books, claiming the table for me and Rose. Pulling out the religion assignment, I sighed and opened an extra-thick book about Catholic saints. No wonder Brian had taken so long with this assignment, despite his near-ridiculous IQ level and 4.0 GPA. There was a lot to go through, and I’d barely scratched the top of the third page.

“Twenty pages of this shit,” I whispered to myself as I stared at the book-laden shelves in front of me. The shelves were that dingy beige color, which made the spines of the books seem more colorful in comparison. My gaze ran over them, trying to find the answers that weren’t there. “I’m never going to have it done by Wednesday.”

Even with the sense of defeat hanging over me, I flipped to the correct page of the assignment and started to dig in. I wasn’t a quitter. I’d do this, and I’d ace it. I was determined. I kicked off my flip-flops beneath the table and let my toes curl into the dark brown carpeting.

“There you are,” Rose hissed as she dumped her bag and stack of books on top of the table. “I thought you’d left. How the hell did you know this corner existed?”

I smiled and tilted my head toward the windows. “It has the best light.”

“Ooh, you sneaky . . .” Rose sank into the chair at the end of the table. “I should’ve known.” She powered up her laptop and grabbed her earbuds. “Wave if you need me.”

“Ditto.”

We worked in silence for about an hour, Rose typing on her computer and flipping through her textbook, me flipping through historical text after religious tome, hissing a curse when I couldn’t find the right answer, cheering silently when I did. When the clock clicked over to twelve, Rose pulled her earbuds free and yawned. “I’ve done all I can do tonight.” Her voice was a whisper as she shut her laptop lid with a soft click. “How much longer are you going to hang out? I think they’re open all night from now until exams are over.”

With a depressing glance through the remaining pages of my assignment, I propped my cheek on my hand and whispered back, “Not long enough, I don’t think. I’ve got to finish this by Wednesday or I’ll be repeating this class.”

“Want me to stay?” Rose tried to stifle a second yawn and failed. “I really don’t mind.”

I snorted softly. “You’re about to fall asleep right there.”

“I was out too late last night. Black-light bowling. You missed it.”

“Sorry. But no, I’ll be fine. I’ll catch you guys for lunch tomorrow?”

Rose stood, putting her laptop in her backpack. “You got it. See you then.”

With a wave, Rose turned and walked away, leaving me alone with a stack of books and an assignment that refused to die. Wrinkling my nose, I stared down at the paper. “Well, I’m closer to done than I was.”

With that hardly reassuring thought, I dived back in.

At one, I got up to use the restroom. At two, I rummaged in my backpack for a granola bar. At two-thirty, I’d drifted off and then startled myself awake. I’d just about decided to pack it in for the night when a sudden movement outside the window caught my eye.

“What?”

I shoved the wooden chair back. Bracing my hands on the narrow windowsill, I leaned as close as I could to the thick glass. A form was standing on the walk on the other side of the dogwood, but the streetlight’s beam coming from behind made it impossible to see a face. The person was just a silhouette, standing stock-still as if staring back at me. I raised my hand halfway in a wave, but the figure didn’t wave back.

I looked over my shoulder, wondering if anyone else in the library had seen. But there was nobody around. In fact, there were no voices, no noises at all. It was as if I were alone in this huge library in the middle of the night.

And someone was looking straight at me.

When I turned back to the glass to get a second look, the person was gone.

“What the hell?”

I ran around the table, stubbing my bare toe on the chair leg. Smothering my yelp, I stared out the second window, but there was nobody there.

“Shit,” I whispered, my hands shaking and my toe throbbing as I raked the pages of my assignment back into a pile. “That is seriously creepy.”

With my book bag again stuffed, I shoved my feet back in my flip-flops and hustled to the front desk. A woman sitting behind a laptop looked up at my pointed throat-clearing.

“Would you mind calling security for me, please?” I said.

When the officer arrived, I explained what I’d seen, but after circling the building twice, he said there was no sign of anyone. He did escort me back to my dorm with a stern warning about the importance of getting enough sleep.

I shook my head as I walked down the long hallway to my room. Was he right? Had I been seeing things because I was so tired? I didn’t think so, but I couldn’t rule it out a hundred percent. I shoved my key into the lock and entered my room as quietly as I could. Jackie squinted at the beam of light that fell across her bed. “Hey, look who it is.”

I set my bag quietly on the floor by my desk. I waved at Jackie and whispered, “Go back to sleep, it’s just me.”

Jackie grinned and stretched. “Thought maybe you’d moved in with that tattoo artist. I never see you anymore.”

“Nope, still here,” I said, distracted as I rummaged through my bag for my chiming cellphone. Who the crap was texting me at three a.m.?

When the screen flashed into view, I dropped my phone with a gasp.

The text from an unknown number read: “You made a big mistake.”

Neill

The next day dawned gray and gloomy, but I was determined to make it a fucking wonderful day. I got up early, went to the gym and worked out for an extra half hour, treated myself to gourmet coffee on the way home. After I changed out of my wet clothes and got a warm shower, I hummed to myself as I headed out the door for the shop. I was buckling my helmet when the neighbor’s tree caught my eye. I grinned.

“They won’t miss one more,” I said to myself as I headed for the shed and grabbed the clippers. She’d enjoyed the last one I’d brought her. This one would cheer her up, maybe give her some encouragement as she was studying for exams.

As I carefully placed the blossom inside my backpack, I wondered what college would have been like if I’d made it. I’d never wanted to, not really. Karl had encouraged me to get my GED, and that had been enough of a pain in the ass. All I’d ever wanted to do was art, and tattooing did that for me. But Hailey wanted this degree, and I’d help her get it however I could. Even if it meant giving her some space.

Raindrops pelted me, getting stronger as I got closer to the shop. By the time I pulled into the alleyway, it felt like a thousand stinging needles were poking my cheeks. I shuddered with the chill as I killed the bike’s engine and swung my leg over. At least my leathers kept the worst of the wet and cold away.

Roger huddled under the small awning above the shop’s back door, the hand that wasn’t clutching his cigarette shoved in his pocket.

“You know, if you’d quit smoking, you wouldn’t have to stand out in this shit,” I said as I pulled off my helmet beneath the canopy.

“And if you got rid of that damn bike, you wouldn’t have to ride in it,” Roger countered with a puff of smoke. “I’ll kill myself my way, you kill yourself yours.”

I laughed. “Fair enough.” I yanked open the door and took a deep, proud breath. Blue walls, nice furniture, art everywhere. This place was mine. Well, half mine, anyway. I’d helped build it, I’d expanded the client base, and together Karl and I had made it the best shop in Leesville, if not the whole area. Even without a college degree, I’d accomplished a lot, and I was damn proud of it.

I glanced at Hailey’s desk on the way to my studio, but I wasn’t surprised to see her computer dark and her chair empty. It was kind of early, after all.

Stripping off my jacket, I hung it on the hook behind my studio door. With a quick glance around to make sure nobody was watching, I removed the delicate blossom from my backpack. This one seemed to have survived the journey better than the first. I tucked it into a small plastic cup, filling it halfway with water before I crossed the lobby and set it down beside her keyboard.

A self-satisfied smile spread across my face. There. Perfect gesture. I hadn’t been able to say those terrifying three words back to her yet, but I’d show her in a thousand little ways until I
could
say them. I knew what I felt, though my mouth refused to admit it aloud. But she knew that. Hailey knew me. She’d know this, too.

As I was on my way back to my studio, the shop phone rang. I turned on my heel and grabbed it. We weren’t technically open yet, but it wasn’t far off. And hey, I was feeling generous. “Sinful Skin, Neill here.”

“Neill?” Hailey’s voice came through the phone. “Hey, it’s Hailey.”

“Hey,” I said warmly, spinning the cup by her phone and watching how the light caught the soft white magnolia petals. “What’s up?”

She sighed. “I’m so, so sorry to have to do this, but I’m not going to be able to come in today.”

“What?” The cup stopped mid-spin, and I had to jump to keep the water from spilling all over her keyboard. “Are you sick?”

“No, I’m fine. It’s this stupid religion assignment. I’m not even halfway done, and it’s due tomorrow afternoon. It’s half my grade. I can’t mess this up.”

“I see.” I kept my voice calm. “Okay.”

“I’m really sorry to do this. I know you guys are counting on me.”

I shook my head, though she couldn’t see. “It’s okay. We’ll manage.”

“I may need to be late tomorrow, but I’ll let you know as soon as I can, okay?”

I sat on the edge of her desk, staring at the wall. “Hey, it’s okay. But I want to help. What if I come over and help you study or something?”