The Bad Boy's Dance (32 page)

              His hands loosened on my waist.

              “But for once, this is actually a risk I’m more than happy to take,” I finished. I then did what I’d been wanting to do since I met him.

              Knotting my fingers in the silky strands of his dark hair, I pulled his face down and closed my lips over his. Unlike our last kiss, this one was soft and intimate. Asher crushed me to his chest, melding our bodies together, and I tugged at his bottom lip with my teeth gently, eliciting a moan. He cradled my neck and deepened the kiss, until all I felt, smelt, and thought was
Asher.
I was drowning in him.

              His strong arms kept me to his chest easily, and I’d never felt safer, warmer. We broke apart for air, but he kept me against him and pressed his forehead to mine. “Angel,” he panted. His cobalt eyes finally revealed all the emotion he’d been hiding, or I’d been too naïve to notice. He tucked a wayward tendril of hair behind me ear.

              “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” Asher whispered, and I felt like my heart would burst right there. He lowered his head…

              “Ivy?” a furious voice intervened.

              Asher and I pushed apart, and I spun around. My jaw slackened, and I hurriedly picked up the robe I’d discarded.

              “Shit,” Asher cursed softly.

              Paul was home.

            
 
Chapter     Twenty-Seven

Blood, Brothers, and Boys-Oh My!

Paul was standing in the driveway, frozen in place. His suitcase lay fallen on the ground.

              “You’ve got the worst timing ever,” I groaned quietly. Asher shifted his feet, unsure of the gravity of the situation.

              Paul finally animated, making quick strides toward us. I quickly intercepted his path to Asher and glared. “Paul! What is wrong with you?”

              He glowered down at me. “Maybe that the first thing I see when I come home is you kissing
him
!” he gestured behind me. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but the last time I saw you, you said you were only dance partners.”

              I refused to let him make me feel guilty for my feelings for Asher. I placed my hands on my hips. “Yeah, and? Feelings change! I like him, and he likes me. End of story.”

              Paul gaped at me and massaged his temples. “Have you lost your mind? Didn’t you learn from the last time?”

              “So what am I supposed to do, Paul? Never date again?” I shouted. It was becoming increasingly possibly someone inside the house would hear the commotion, but at the moment, I couldn’t have cared less.

              “I never said you shouldn’t date. But not
him
, Ivy! Do you have any idea what you’re getting yourself into?”

              At this point, I was ready to strangle Paul. He didn’t even
know
Asher, and he was accusing him of being like Jared. Paul had no idea I’d told Asher about Jared, or that Asher knew exactly what we were talking about.

              Two strong hands gripped my arms and bodily lifted me to the side. Asher raised a brow at me when I started to protest. “I can take care of myself, angel,” he repeated.

              He turned to Paul, and the two men stared at each other for a few minutes. “If you were anyone else, if I didn’t think your worry was justified, you’d be on the way to the ER by now. As it is, I understand,” Asher said quietly.

              Paul scoffed, turning his head away for a minute before returning his focus on Asher. “You don’t know anything.”

              “I’m not Jared. I would
never
harm Ivy. She knows that, and that’s pretty much all I care about. The only reason I’m bothering with explaining it to you is because she loves you.”

              Paul staggered back a step, staring openmouthed at Asher. He looked at me with disbelief. “You told him about Jared?”

              Nodding, I stepped to Asher’s side and slid my hand into his. Asher weaved his fingers with mine, squeezing tightly. “Yes. That’s what I’m trying to tell you, Paul. I trust Asher, and you need to accept it. Whatever happens in our relationship, he’s nothing like Jared.”

              Asher tightened his grasp on my hand, and I know he wanted me to tell Paul how Jared had come to see me, but I couldn’t. He’d had enough surprises. This would knock him out completely.

              We stood there in silence for a few minutes, the only sound Paul’s shallow breaths. Mist rose from our mouths, and I shivered from the cold. Asher released his hand from mine and shrugged off his jacket, wrapping it around my shoulders. He shot me a look before I could say anything. I stifled a smile of elation.

              Paul was watching our exchange speculatively. Asher extended his hand to Paul, and I waited anxiously.

             
Come on Paul, don’t be a nub.

             
With a sigh, Paul accepted his hand, and they shook. They shared some kind of look, and Paul said warningly, “If you hurt my sister in any way, I will roast your hide on my fireplace and feed it to the ducks.”

              He released Asher’s hand and went to retrieve his suitcase. He unlocked the front door and paused. He glanced back. “Ivy, get your ass upstairs in five minutes or I’m coming back down with a bat.”

              Paul closed the door softly behind him, and I glanced at Asher. He tapped his chin contemplatively before breaking out in a grin. “I think that went well, don’t you?”

              I laughed and caught my breath when Asher swept his fingers through my hair, twiddling a strand idly. “You’re so beautiful,” he mused, like he was stating the most obvious thing in the world.

              I arched a brow and motioned at my tattered robe and slippers. “Ready for the runway.”

              He caught my chin in his fingers, bringing my gaze to his. “Listen here, lady. I’m going to make you believe how beautiful you are if it takes me years, capiche?”

              I didn’t bother responding. The moonlight cast a bluish tint to his silky strands of dark hair and illuminated his cobalt blue eyes. His lips were tilted in the smile I’d only ever seen aimed at me. How could this breathtakingly gorgeous creature be mine?

              “Earth to Ivy.” Asher waved a hand in front of my face, interrupting my unabashed ogling. I blushed a beet red and coughed awkwardly.

              “Uh, there was a mustard stain..on your shirt,” I lied. Asher smirked, not even bothering to check. We both knew there was no mustard stain.

              “I should be getting to bed,” I declared. “Wouldn’t want Paul to muss that pretty face now would we?”

              “I think you mean ‘chiseled’ or ‘divine’.”

              “Whatever you say, pretty boy,” I teased, darting to the side when he tried to grab me.

              Asher rolled his eyes, and quick as a bolt, reached forward and hauled me to him. I was squished to his chest, with Asher’s arms secured around my waist. I buried my face in his neck, and he jumped. “Damn, your nose is cold,” he commented. “Let’s get you to bed.”

              “Buy me dinner first,” I mumbled, already feeling lethargic, cocooned in the warmth of Asher’s body heat and the comforting scent of his leather jacket.

              He chuckled and started walking with me propped against him, stopping at the threshold to the house. He gently deposited me on my feet, steadying my shoulders when I swayed. “I’d take you upstairs, but it would be just my luck for your parents and other brother to wake up too.”

              “Give Spencer a donut and he’ll leave,” I yawned.

              “I’ll keep that it mind. Now off you go.”

              I started making my way to the staircase and halted. Shuffling to the door again, I placed a soft kiss on Asher’s lips. “Goodnight.”

             
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

             
Groaning, I tried to reach for my alarm and only ended up rolling onto the floor in a heap of blankets and limbs. “Honey, wake up!” I heard my Mom shout from downstairs.

              This is what I got for my late night escapades. Smacking my blaring alarm shut, I dragged myself to the bathroom and commenced the morning routine.

              Dressing took a little more thought than normal. I wanted to dress up, but not overdress. Hmm. Quickly, I tugged on my favorite scoop-neck blouse with a blue cardigan over it and dark skinny jeans. I still couldn’t bring myself to let my hair loose, so I tied it into a customary knot, but I let a few long strands curl around my neck.

              When I skipped to the breakfast table, Mom and Dad shot me suspicious looks. “Why are you so chipper?” Mom wondered.

              Mm, toast. I popped a chunk into my mouth and smiled at my parents. “What’s not to be happy about? It’s a lovely day, Paul’s home, we’re all healthy.”

              Spencer lifted from his head from where it’d been buried in the fridge to narrow his eyes at me. “Are you high?”

              “No!”

              “You want cash?”

              “No.”

              “So you’re telling me you just feel cheerful?”

              “Yes!” I exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air.

              At school, pretty much everywhere I walked, people stared. It was seriously unnerving to the point that I had to hide behind Caleb.

              The girl from my Physics class-Phoebe, I think- was practically shoved into our path by her friends. Caleb scowled at her, and the poor girl paled. I elbowed him aside and smiled at Phoebe reassuringly. “Hey Phoebe!”

              She nodded excitedly. “You remember!”

              “Of course I do.”

              She shifted her feet and glanced at her friends, who flashed her thumbs up. “We- I mean my friends and I- wanted to tell you what you did was really brave. We haven’t been at the school long, but Brenda Curtis and her friends have picked on each of us. It was really great seeing them knocked a peg or two.”

              She smiled at me and scurried back to the safety of her friends. Me and Caleb shared a surprised look and resumed walking. “So that’s why everyone is staring at you. It’s
admiration,
” he noted. “Our itty bitty Ivy has claws.”

              I smacked his arm on the way to our lunch table. “You’re freakishly large. I’m
tall
.”

              Kyle and Dana smiled up at us as we sat. The minute my butt was on the bench, Dana started in. She was excited, so naturally her motor-verbal skills kicked in. “Oh my gosh, everyone has been congratulating me and in awe of you. I had no idea how many people couldn’t stand the Plastics. It’s cray-cray. Apparently Brenda couldn’t sue because most of the school saw her clawing at your face, so she’s at fault too. Oh, and I dumped Jason. You want half my sandwich?”

              Our chins hit the table. I was the first to recover. “What! Why did you break up with Jason? You’ve had a crush on him since forever!”

              Dana waved a hand in front of her nose like she smelled something foul. “He’s a jerk, is why. It’s been months since we made plans for Homecoming, and he didn’t buy the tickets no matter how much I reminded him, and he wouldn’t let me buy them. He barely acknowledges me when he’s with his friends, and he’s never even asked me out on a real date. So I told him to find someone else who would go with his sorry ass to Homecoming.”

              Caleb immediately stood, and Kyle followed suit. “I will find him. And I will kill him,” Caleb said in a poor imitation of Liam Neeson.

              Dana giggled. “Sit down, you two. Much as I appreciate the gesture, you have the soccer game this Saturday, and I’d feel terrible if you were benched because of me.”

              “Are you sure?” I asked. “I don’t have a soccer game, but I do have a taser.”

              “How about you just have half my sandwich?” she laughed, giving me half. The boys reluctantly sat again, and we talked for a while. Kyle kept picking at his sandwhich with an absurdly happy grin on his face. I knew I should tell them about me and Asher, but how does one drop that in the middle of a conversation? ‘Hey, I started going out with Asher Grayson, you know, the guy that went through girls like napkins, beat the living snot out of anyone who confronted him, and went to juvie for vandalizing a strip mall’.

              That’d go over great.

              Plus, it would seem callous since Dana broke up with Jason like five seconds ago. It would be like rubbing my happiness in her face, although I knew she would be excited for me.