Falling by Design (16 page)

"Hi," I finally manage, hoping to get back to some resemblance of a neutral ground we’ve established. I hear Dakota clear her throat somewhere behind Grayson and tear my gaze away.

"Well, this is very interesting and all, but can we go?" Leave it to Dakota to make an uncomfortable situation even more uncomfortable. For Grayson that is. He still hasn't moved, even at Dakota’s words. I try not too feel too pleased by that aspect, but really, what girl wouldn’t.

"Shall we?" I ask, because one of us should be in control of whatever this thing between us is. He shakes his head a little, as if clearing it from a fog and I can't help but grin.

"We shall." He follows me out of the house. Dakota is already by the car, texting on her phone. Grayson stops by the front door as I lock it and when I turn, I find him studying me as if seeing for the first time. His body seems tense, almost on edge, as he caresses me with his eyes.

"You look, umm, what I mean is, umm, yes, you look beautiful." The words tumble one over the other, as he runs his hand over his hair, making me flush all over once more.

"You don't look so bad yourself," I manage. Then without waiting for an answer, I walk to the car, keeping myself from skipping.

So this is the power girls talk about when it comes to boys?

I like it.

TWENTY - FIVE

Tell a man there are 300 billion stars in the universe and he'll believe you.  Tell him a bench has wet paint on it and he'll have to touch it to be sure.  ~Murphy's Law

Chance never does anything half way.

When we arrive at the party, it's already bursting with people. Well, some of them are people, while some of them—

"Is that supposed to be a werewolf?" I point as we head to the front of the house.

"I think so?" Dakota replies following my line of sight. The guy looks more like a bear with fangs than a werewolf.

"Should've taken his inspiration from Teen Wolf," I say right before I'm swallowed up in a huge hug. I make a noise somewhere between a squeak and a grunt as Chance lifts me off the ground.

"Hey there, gorgeous!" Chance roars as he sets me back down to earth. “You look great.” As I stumble a little on my high-heeled boots, Grayson's arms reach out to steady me.

"Thank you, Chance."

"Thank you, Brooklynn! It's about time, too. How long have you had this costume in mind?"

"Why does everybody keep asking me that? Am I really that much of a nerd? Go be a pirate or something." I push him away from me, laughing. I was right about his costume. Chance makes a great Jack Sparrow. I glance over to Dakota, finding her eyes on him and I suppress a smile. Chance follows my gaze, his face transforms to that wicked streak of his as he lets his eyes roam over Dakota.

"Well ahoy thar me sweet." He turns on his pirate talk with a flare. "Ye lookin' mighty fine tonight."

"Keep it in your pants, Chance," Dakota growls, pushing past him but I catch the look of pleasure on her face before she ducks around us. Chance glances at me and I give him a thumbs up. I’m pretty sure his night is officially made as he follows after Dakota.

"When are those two gonna realize they're meant for each other?" Grayson asks from beside me and I’m pleased I’m not the only one thinking this.

"Hopefully sooner rather than later. It’s mostly Dakota and her world renowned  stubbornness. They drive me nuts."

"He's right though," Grayson comments as we head inside the house. He continues when I give him a puzzled look. "About your gorgeousness." I shake my head a little, trying to suppress a smile and failing. "Have you really never worn Princess Leia for Halloween before? I remember she was your favorite."

I stop suddenly in the middle of the room, turning to put a hand out so he doesn't run into me. "You remember that?" I ask, bewildered. I seem to be asking him this question a lot, but he never ceases to amaze me. I can feel his heartbeat through my hand, the steady rhythm of it echoing my own. I know I should remove my palm, but for some reason I don’t.

"Of course I remember. I've always wanted to be Han Solo." He gives me a little self-conscious smile, before placing his hand over mine. We stand like that for a moment, completely lost in our own world, the beat of our hearts joined, just like our hands, over his heart.

"Oops, my bad," I hear behind me as a body slams into mine with a vengeance. If Grayson hadn’t been in front of me, I would've face-planted for sure. I’m not even surprised to see Tamela, who lo and behold is wearing a sexy maid outfit. Big shocker there. Even though both of us are wearing high heels, she towers over me, her chest in my face, and I take another step back, placing myself firmly in Grayson's arms. His hands ease around my waist, keeping me close to his side as I wait for Tamela to make whatever nasty remark she’s prepared.

"What are you supposed to be?" she asks me. I stare at her dumfounded, before realizing she’s not kidding.

"Are you serious?" I finally manage. I notice her shift uncomfortably. "I'm Princess Leia." Blank look. "From Star Wars?"

"I know who Princess Leia is," she snaps. I know I shouldn't laugh, but I can't help it. Only someone like Tamela would have no proper cultural upbringing.

"These are not the droids you're looking for," I say, keeping my voice monotone and receiving another blank look from Tamela.

"These are not the droids I'm looking for?" she parrots.

Grayson loses all control then, busting out in the loudest laugh I've ever heard from him. He stirs me away from Tamela, snorting because he’s laughing so hard, as she stares after us, and I join in on the fun.

"Well, that went well," I say when I can breathe again. Grayson reaches for my hand, guiding me away from the center of the house and to the backyard. When we finally collapse on one of the lawn chairs, he raises the hand he's still holding and gives it a big smacking kiss. I freeze at the contact, but he's totally oblivious.

"That was classic! You deserve a trophy for that one." He's enjoying this entirely too much, as he leaps to his feet. "Chance, Dakota get over here. You’ve gotta hear this." My two best friends make their way over to us as I try to regain some composure. I can still feel his lips on my skin, the sensation so sweet I fear my heart will burst out of my chest. I don't listen as Grayson repeats our little Tamela adventure to the other two, but I hear them join in on the amusement a moment later.

"You are the queen!" Chance's voice brings me back to earth as I watch him bow before me. Apparently, there is nothing like a good Star Wars joke to set the mood.

"Whatever dork," I reply standing up and making myself focus on the people in front of me. "Can we please go dance now before I shoot you?" I state, reaching for my gun. Chance raises his arms in surrender before extending his hand in an offer of a dance. Almost automatically, I reach back, wrapping my hand around Grayson's and drawing him along with us, with Dakota close behind.

We stumble into the sea of bodies and I lose myself as the drumming beat washes over me. I close my eyes as I feel Grayson close behind me, letting the moment radiate in my mind. I’ve surprised myself, and I kind of really like that feeling.

TWENTY - SIX

The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not 'Eureka!' but 'That's funny...' - Isaac Asimov

There’s something exhausting about taking risks and pushing yourself.

It's about one o'clock when I finally decide I've had enough. I'm not much of a partier anyway, and staying out till one is a pretty big accomplishment for me. We've been playing Apples to Apples for the past thirty minutes, my head pounding to the beat of the music that's still on in the backyard. Dakota and Chance are in full on competition mode and while they're hilarious to watch, I'm ready to lie down.

"Hey guys," I say as we finish another hand, "I'm going to go. It's getting late. And yes, before you say it, I'm a grandma so sue me." I stand to the sound of protests, but my friends know better than to argue. Grayson rises to follow, but I place a hand on his shoulder and push him back down.

"I'll take you home," he says.

"No, it's okay, stay. One of the girls from my math class is leaving and she said she'll take me. We talked earlier." His face falls a little at that, and Dakota jumps in.

"Don't take it personally, Grayson. Brooklynn always has a plan to escape early." She’s right, but it’s not about to sway Grayson.

"Well, I brought you here so I'll take you home. I'm ready to go anyway."

Dakota catches my eye, giving me a knowing look but I pretend to miss it.

I walk over to Chance, placing a kiss on top of his head. "Happy birthday, knucklehead." He gives me a good squeeze around my waist and I ruffle his hair a bit. He lost his Jack Sparrow wig sometime during the night, and his hair is a mess of dark spikes sticking out every which way.

"Behave yourselves!" he calls as Grayson and I walk away.

We’re quiet as we get in the car.

"You always leave early?"

"I don't think one in the morning counts as early." I smile, looking briefly in his direction. "You don't think it's because of you, do you?" He gives me a small shrug before focusing on the road and I realize he does.

"Grayson, I'm not big on parties. I only ever go to Chance and Dakota's and I never stay late." I try to think back to the way I’ve acted, and perhaps I’m more confused than I realize. I don’t mean to play with him, but maybe that’s exactly what I’m doing. His next words tell me that I’m right.

"I thought," his voice is soft, unsure. "I thought you wanted to get away from me."

"We're friends Grayson. I wouldn't do that." He gives me another look then, but I can’t read whatever is written there. He starts the car, pulling out of Chance’s neighborhood as we grow quiet again and I wonder if I offended him. I'm not really good at these relationship games people play. I haven't actually ever been in one. The ride to my house is quiet, because I’m not sure how to fix whatever I’ve just broken. I don’t mean to be inconsiderate. I wish I could just tell him that.

We pull up in front of my house, parking in the driveway and I unbuckle my seatbelt.

"I had a great time tonight, Han Solo." He smiles as he turns to me.

"I had a great time tonight as well, Princess Leia." He says it like he means it.

"Grayson, I—" but I don't know what to say. I can't read him, I never can. Instead, I stare at him until he finally sighs. I feel the air grow electric, filled with a power that seems to be ever present between us. My eyes shift to his lips, ever so briefly, and I wonder if he’ll make that first move again, because I’m not brave enough to do it, to finish what we started weeks ago in his room. I catch a glimpse of an emotion I don’t understand, before he breaks the spell.

"Have a good night, Brooklynn." his voice is soft and he won't look my way. My heart clutches in disappointment, but I try not to let it show. Fine. I get out of the vehicle before he can come around to open the door for me. I don't say anything as I walk past him, stopping before I reach my door. I can’t leave like this, so I circle around, finding his attention already on me.

"I really did have a good time, Grayson," I say quietly, hoping to get back to that easy comradeship we seemed to have developed, especially tonight. He stands in front of his car, the headlights outlining his beautiful body, his shoulders slumped. I wait for him to say something, and when he does there is a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"I'm glad you did."

"Grayson," I call as he turns to get back into his car. "What did I do?"

"Nothing, you did absolutely nothing."

I stand there until his headlights turn around the corner. I messed it up. I always mess it up. I turn with a sigh, reaching for my keys and freeze.

My front door is open.

Reaching for my phone, I take a step back, knowing it's better to let police handle it before I go inside. I dial 911 as I make my way to the other side of the street.

"Phoenix 911, where is your emergency?" I give the operator my address, advising her I haven't been inside and don't know if anyone still there. After making sure I'll be waiting outside and call back if I see anything suspicious, she tells me this is a priority call and police will be on their way, so I disconnect. Sitting down on the curb, I hug my arms around my knees, feeling the steady beat of my heart. I stare at my house as if willing for someone to come out. I doubt anyone is still inside, it's not like Grayson and I were exactly quiet when we pulled up. A part of me wants to rush in and check the house myself, but the more rational part knows that's not my job.

I dial my parents next, my hands shaking a little. I try my mom first, then my dad. No answer. I'm not surprised since I knew they were going out of cell service and the number for their hotel is in the house. I leave a message anyway, making a mental note to call when I'm inside. I'm trying to stay calm, but the idea that someone could be in my house terrifies me. I watch the house, but see nothing from across the street.

About ten minutes later I see flashing lights down the street and stand to meet the officers. I introduce myself and let them do a sweep of the house. The officers come out a few minutes later, advising that no one is inside and nothing seems to be disturbed. I make my way into the living room, my eyes trying to find anything out of order.