Despicable Desires

Episode 33

Adeline

I remain stunned, unable to move an inch forward, afraid that doing so would bring me closer to the one person I want to avoid tonight. As I have done every day since our return from Seattle, I cross my arms, determined to completely ignore his presence, and begin to walk around the vehicle.

I know it's childish, but it's stronger than me.

As I prepare to pass the jeep, the driver's side door opens and a figure blocks my path.

"What are you playing at, little sister?" Jayden stands in front of me. Imposing. Impassive. Insufferable. His flippant remark ignites a smoldering rage within me that I had resolved to ignore.

"Oh, shut up, Jayden."

What exactly is he trying to accomplish by calling me that? To twist the knife? To torture me? To punish me? Damn it. He was there in the bathroom too. He didn't control anything either. He didn't try to stop me. So why is he suddenly playing the hero and reminding us that we're family?

"Get in," he orders.

"I didn't order a driver," I reply, but he grabs my arm.

"Stop acting like a child, damn it, and get in the car!"

I give his hand a sharp shove to remove it from my bare skin.

"Don't touch me," I hiss, glaring at him.

He's at least two heads taller than me, and right now I feel tiny. His black t-shirt makes him untouchable. Heavy. Tough. But as I say these words, I feel as if an indecipherable spark flashes across his pupils, as if he remembers, at this very moment, when my body was screaming for him to touch it.

"Very well," he capitulates, stepping back slightly. "You didn't ask for a driver, but Cameron called me. Now that I'm here, I'd appreciate it if you didn't make me waste my time."

"You could've just stayed home, and you can go," I growled.

I'd pass out if I set foot in his car, guaranteed. Him and me, alone in a confined space, his smell, his warmth... and his voice.

No way!

"You really have a shitty attitude, you know that?" he says.

"It's a family trait, apparently," I spit.

"Very funny."

We stare at each other, he still blocking my way. The door is wide open, and a few notes of music come in to break the palpable silence that hangs between us.

"If you don't come, I'll follow you until you get home," he continues quietly. "It will take forever. So don't be ridiculous and come. Please."

His look softens, but my anger doesn't subside. Quite the opposite. I want to slap him, scratch him, bite him even more now... I roll my eyes in exasperation and then back up to go around the jeep and get inside. He follows in silence, quickly closes the door, and then zooms off. A playlist of old hits from the 1990s blares from the speakers, and I try to focus on each lyric to distract myself from the person next to me.

"Why didn't you sleep at Holly's?" he asks.

"I think you asked the wrong question."

I cross my arms and stare at the road ahead, praying that the few yards separating us from the house will be quickly traversed.

"And what was I supposed to ask you?"

I sigh.

"You already know."