Tainted, Book One: Possessed

37. Cross My Heart

Kerry

I sat on a flat rock that stuck out over a small stream, broke a piece off a stick, and threw it into the water.

I was running outta time. I had almost exactly twenty-four hours to come up with a plan to save myself.

The Halloween dance was tomorrow night.

What am I doing, thinking I can make it through a dance? Like I'm a normal guy. This is so dumb! Somebody's gonna end up gettin' hurt.

And I knew who would be doing the hurting.

All it would take was for someone to touch me. Or a taunt from one of the jerks who whispered 'demon taint' every time I walked by. Or me missing a cue and lashing out in a temper.

And that was the real problem. I hated that I might embarrass Gemma in front of the whole school.

I will legit break my leg to get out of this. No, she'd just heal it. Aw, this is a mess!

Panicking a little, I let a few cuss words slip out on a burst of power and they made a blue cloud in the air below my mouth.

"Is that where the expression 'turning the air blue' comes from, do you think?"

I leapt up and spun around in a half-crouch, then froze in place as I saw the beauty coming toward me.

Gemma smiled and her pretty green eyes sparkled. She looked cute in her green sweater and jeans, but what made my breath catch was her hair. She'd unbraided it since I saw her a couple of hours ago. It hung down her back and the sunlight brought out a hundred colors, from pale gold to dark rose.

It was the first time I'd seen it down since the night she raced down the garden path to the cottage, all ready to save me from Argaud and his two mutts.

When I remained silent, she stopped walking and her smile fell, and I wondered what my face must look like.

"I'm sorry." She lowered her eyes to the grass. "I can see you want to be alone. I'll, um, go."

"No." I stood up. "Stay. Please."

Half-surprised to realize I still held the stick, I tossed it aside, jumped down from the rock, and moved toward her. She seemed curious, but stayed still as I prowled around her.

I stopped when her back was an inch from my chest, then leaned down to inhale her scent. As always, it went straight to my head, making me feel a little buzzed, and I nuzzled my nose into her hair just above her ear.

"Kerry?"

"I'm not gonna hurt you, angel. I swear it."

"I know you won't. I'm just wondering what you're doing."

I half-smiled. No way I was gonna tell her I was smelling her. She wouldn't understand, and it might creep her out. Other nephs didn't get how a warrior's senses worked.

Straightening up, I gathered her hair in my hands, then spread my fingers so it fanned out. It was so silky, it slid right through them.

"I love your hair." My voice came out a little hoarse. I would have been embarrassed with anyone else, but not with her. "It's so soft and shiny and long. The color, though—"

"I know, I know," she moaned. "Like a clown's. It couldn't be deep red or auburn or even classic red. Oh, no, I had to get Great-Grandma Mabel's carrot top."

Wait. What?

"Don't say that! Who told you those things?" I snarled.

"When I was little, everyone except my mom and Uncle Paul." She looked at me over her shoulder. "Even my teachers. Copper Top and Carrot were the most popular, although there was one boy in middle school who stuck me with Punkin. Not even Pumpkin. Pun-kin. At lunch, he'd get the other boys at his table to chant, 'Punkin' when I walked by. Man, I hated that kid!"