Paradox (Unearthly Paradox) (14 page)

My next exam wasn’t until after lunch, so I had a few hours to kill. If I’d had my car, I could’ve gotten away from school, but without it, I was stuck. I pulled out my phone, scrolled through my recent call list, and found Jett’s number. I decided a text would be best—less personal.

Where’s my car?

While I waited for a response, I opened the last message from Lilly and sent her a text.
Are you still at school?

As soon as I hit Send, my phone beeped with a message from Jett.
In the car park.

And my keys?

He replied almost immediately:
Behind you.

I turned around and was met by a smiling Jett standing only inches away from me. My heart started beating faster as I inhaled his godly scent.

“Didn’t think I’d forget about you, did you?”

“No,” I lied.

He slung an arm over my shoulder. “So how’d it go?”

“I don’t know, but at least I finished this one.”

“I’m sure you did great.” He started leading me out to the car. “Do you want to go out for lunch somewhere?”

“As nice as that sounds, I’ve got another exam this afternoon that I should be studying for.”

“Come on. It’ll only be for an hour at most.”

“Since you put it like that… okay.”

“Seriously?” He laughed. “I thought I would’ve had to work a bit harder than that.”

I shrugged. “I’ve already failed one exam, so it’s not as if I’ve got a chance of getting into my course now, anyway.”

He pulled out my keys and clicked the unlock button. “You might be surprised.”

He opened the passenger door and helped me inside, even though I no longer needed any assistance. Walking around the front of the car, he looked around as if expecting someone to jump out of the bushes. Maybe he was worried that Tyler’s friends were going to come back for revenge. But Jett didn’t strike me as the type to be afraid of anyone. And those guys would have to be pretty stupid to take on the son of a drug lord. It was practically a death wish. And yet there I was, about to go out to lunch with him. What the hell was wrong with me? Two weeks ago, I would’ve laughed if someone told me that I would have a thing for such a dangerous guy.

Opening the driver’s door, Jett climbed in beside me then shut it behind him.

When Jett got behind the wheel, I asked, “Where are we going?”

He started the car. “Have you been into Surfers yet?”

I shook my head. “I know it’s lame but…” I shrugged.

Jett put the car into reverse then drove out of the lot. “You’ve only been here for just over one week, and for four of those days, you’ve been in recovery.”

“Speaking of that, when do my stitches come out?”

“Let me see.” He reached out and touched my shirt.

I grabbed his hand. “Not while you’re driving.”

I loosened my grip on his hand, but he held on as I dropped my hand to my lap, and I couldn’t be more thankful that I didn’t know how to drive a manual. He gave my fingers a squeeze and I realised that he was watching me as I stared down at our intertwined hands.

“You know there’s no one here you have to put on a show for,” I said.

“I know.”

“And why do you presume I would be okay with it?” I was so totally okay with it, but I didn’t want him to think I was like all the other girls who constantly fawned over him.

“It’s one of my special gifts.”

I almost laughed. “Confident, aren’t we?”

He glanced sideways at me. “I see the way you look at me.”

“Oh, really? And how’s that?”

He didn’t say anything for a minute, then he replied, “Let’s see. Every time you look at me, you get this cute little goofy look on your face.”

“I do not,” I said, smiling because I knew exactly what he was talking about.

“And whenever I have my shirt off, you have this major staring problem, and your cheeks flush—just like they are now,” he said with a laugh.

“It’s called blush. You know, as in the makeup.”

He raised his eyebrows. “You also have this cute little habit of staring at my lips when I talk, like you’re wondering if they feel as soft as they look.”

I choked on a laugh.

“Laugh all you want, it doesn’t change the fact that you think I’m hot,” he said smugly. “And you haven’t let go of my hand, even though you’re the one who pointed out that there’s no one watching us.”

God, I was so transparent. I thought about denying it, but then I decided there was no point. I looked out the window. “So what if I do?”

Jett pulled into a parking spot in front of the beach. “She admits it. You know… that’s the first step.” He killed the engine, then I heard him shift in his seat, and I was sure his eyes were boring holes into the back of my skull.

Unable to take it any longer, I turned to face him. “What is this, twelve steps to Jett recovery? First step is admitting we have a problem?”

Jett grinned. “Witty. Just another thing to add to your list of good traits.”

I raised my eyebrows. “I have a list?”

“Oh, yes. But not as long as mine.”

I whacked him across his chest.

“And there’s another one. If you keep this up, you’ll have a list as long as mine before you know it.”

I smiled. “Cocky much?”

“Just another thing you can add to my list.” He gave my hand a squeeze. “Come on. We can compare lists over lunch.”

I bit my lip, trying to suppress the stupid grin threatening to take over my whole face. I opened the door and stepped out of the car.

The beach was only metres away and looked more like a construction zone than a place to lie back and relax. I thought it might have had something to do with Schoolies. Last year, Surfers Paradise Beach was sectioned off so all the newly graduated teens could party with stages, lights, and music. One thing I hadn’t noticed when I saw the TV report was the eight-foot-high fence.

Jett slung his arm over my shoulder. “You just wait ’til the end of the week. You’ll be down there dancing away—hopefully with your shirt still on.”

I glared at him.

“I’m kidding. But you should see this place. You’re gonna love it.” He turned me toward the iconic Surfers Paradise sign at the entrance to the mall. “Where are we staying?”

“We?”

“You still need someone to make sure you’re okay. You know, just in case you get an infection or something.”

“Oh, really?” I laughed. “I guess thoughtfulness and self-sacrificing are on your list as well.”

“Quick learner,” he said. “So again, where are we staying?”

I tipped my head back and looked up at the building. “Up there.”

“Nice.”

“Have you stayed there before?”

“Yep. I stayed there for my Schoolies.” He pressed the button for the crosswalk light.

Palm trees almost two stories high lined either side of the strip, with fairy lights hanging between the buildings. I thought there would be clubs everywhere, but I didn’t spot any.

The green man lit up, and the Walk signal buzzed. We crossed the road and walked through the mall until we came to a street on the right.

“This way.” He turned and led me into a café.

Not waiting for us to be seated, Jett dropped his hand to my back and ushered me to a table with a Reserved sign. He pulled out a chair and waited for me to sit. Jett took the seat opposite me.

“I’m guessing ‘gentleman’ is another one on your list.”

“That particular one is reserved for very special people.”

“And I’m special? You hardly know me.”

With one arm resting on the table, he leaned back in his chair. “There aren’t too many girls who would get themselves shot just to spend time with me.”

“Yeah, that was my whole motivation,” I said sarcastically.

The guy behind the bar came over to our table. “There you go, mate,” he said, putting a beer in front of Jett. Then he looked at me. “What can I get you? Beer, wine, cocktail?”

I looked down at my school uniform and wondered what type of person would offer a schoolgirl alcohol. “Water will be fine.”

Jett handed me a menu. “I’ll have my usual.”

Looking through the menu, I became acutely aware that they were both waiting for me to pick something to eat. The trouble was that I usually took twenty minutes to decide. “What’s good?”

“Everything,” Jett said.

Getting flustered, I said, “I’ll have the same as you.”

Jett chuckled. “You don’t even know what that is.”

I smiled at the barman. “Thanks.”

He took the hint. Taking the menus off the table, he turned around and headed toward the kitchen.

“So you’re a regular here?” I asked Jett.

He took a sip of beer. “This is one of my dad’s businesses.”

“Right.” I scanned the café. “I don’t see any poles.”

Jett grinned. “They only come out at night.” His smile dropped. “I wanted to show you a bit about my life. My family don’t just own clubs. We have a few cafés, restaurants, and liquor stores.” He cocked his head toward the buildings on the other side of the road. “Across the street is the club I had to go to last night. My dad’s given that one to me to look after.”

I looked that way, trying to see where the club was. I finally caught sight of a sign with Paradox scrawled in unlit neon bars. “Paradox?”

“That’s the one.” He took another sip. “I’ll take you there during Schoolies if you like.”

“Do I really want to see it?” I had a picture in my head of naked women dancing around and filthy old businessmen drooling into their warm beers.

“There aren’t any strippers, if that’s what you’re thinking. My brother’s got that one.”

Well, that didn’t surprise me. “We’ll see.”

A waitress came out of the kitchen carrying two gigantic platters. She came over and put a platter down in front of each of us. The plate was filled with prawns, crabs, ribs, lamb cutlets, scallops, chips, and one bowl of mushroom sauce and another containing tartar sauce.

I gaped at the piles of food. “Oh, God!”

Jett had a grin plastered across his face. “You should’ve asked.”

Looking up at, Jett, I smiled. “I guess our taste in food is another thing we have in common.”

He looked as if he didn’t know whether to believe me or not. “I bet you can’t finish even half of that.”

“You’re on.” I looked at my plate again. There was no way I could finish it all, but I was going to give it my best shot. I picked up a lamb cutlet, dunked it into the mushroom sauce, and took a bite.

He shook his head and started eating. I got through a good portion of my plate before I needed a break.

“So just how big is your family?” I asked.

“I have two brothers. One lives in Sydney, and the other you’ve already met.”

“Are your parents still together?”

Jett nodded. “What about you? Are your parents divorced?”

“No.” I picked up my glass. “My mother died during my birth.” I took a sip of the water.

Jett reached across the table and placed his hand over mine. “Sorry.” He rubbed his thumb over my wrist.

I put down my glass. “Don’t be. I didn’t even know her.”

“You never had the chance, and that has to be just as bad.”

I thought about what he said. He was right. I had been denied the chance to know what it felt like to have a mum. She had been ripped out of my life, and I was left with an egotistical father who probably regretted the day she got pregnant with me. I looked down at my food and felt sicker than ever.

Jett stood. “Let’s get out of here.”

“You haven’t finished yet.”

“I never finish it anyway.”

I wanted to punch him for making me think I needed to eat all that, but he laced his fingers through mine and led me through the tables and onto the sidewalk, never once looking in the direction of the staff. I guessed paying for the meal wasn’t applicable when he owned the joint.

Outside, he let go of my hand and put his arm around my shoulders. “I don’t suppose you want to skip the rest of the day so we can go have some fun?”

I looked up at him, trying to figure out if he was being serious or not, and sadly, I thought he was. “As much as I’ve enjoyed this… whatever it is, I need to get back to school.”

“Figured you’d say that.”

I laughed. “You say it like it’s a bad thing.”

He shook his head. “Nope. It’s a good thing.”

“How so?”

“Most girls would’ve said yes.”

We stopped at the crosswalk, and I said, “I don’t think there’d be a single girl willing to throw away the rest of her life for you.”

“You’d be surprised.”

Somehow, I believed him.

I arrived back at school with about two minutes to spare. Not waiting for Jett, I jumped out of the car and made a mad dash to the classroom where my economics exam was being held. Oddly, my chest didn’t hurt at all during my marathon sprint.

I started freaking out when I saw nobody standing outside the room, but when I got to the door, I was relieved to find that they hadn’t started yet. As I was about to walk in, someone grabbed my arm.

“Good luck.” Jett leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, lingering near my face as he… smelled me? The whole thing was weird, but something about the way he did it made me want to take him up on the skipping-school idea.

Straightening, Jett said, “I’ll see you soon.” And once again he had to physically turn me around and gently push me inside my classroom.

As I took my seat, I looked toward the window, hoping to catch one last glimpse of him, but he’d already gone.

Two hours later, Jett was waiting for me outside the classroom. Sighs escaped from two nearby girls when he wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled my hair. How I even heard them above the beating of my heart was beyond me. I swallowed hard, trying to get my brain to function again, but it was impossible. As strange as his habit of smelling me was, having him so close was like a high that I never wanted to come down from. Sadly, he pulled away. I looked into the darkest brown eyes I’d ever seen. I had to blink a few times just to be sure they weren’t black.

“Come on. We’ve got to be somewhere.” Dropping one arm, he ushered me toward the car.

“Where?”

“You’re getting your stitches out now.”