Melody's Crush

Chapter 12

Driving up to Kyle's house was like driving up to another one of his family's extravagant resorts. The home, if you could call it that, was at least triple the size of Jake's parent's property. It possibly even had its own zip code.

 A large fountain was centered in the looped drive that could double as a parking lot. Only, there were no cars.

Kyle pulled the red dream around and parked right in front of the grand entrance way.

"Why are we visiting Bill Gates?" I asked sarcastically.

He chuckled and got out. Walking around the car, he reached for my car door as I was opening it. His hand extended like the guy from the hotel. If he didn't make it as a manager, he had a future as a valet.

Pulling me upward, I held onto baby Chloe a little too tightly as he closed the car door behind me. Again, I felt warmth spreading through my limbs that made it hard to breathe.

I followed behind Kyle slowing as we got closer to the door. He easily opened the massive oak structure leaving it opened for me to pass through. But for some reason, I just couldn't get my foot to take the first step in. Turning, Kyle looked at me. His eyebrow rose as he walked back to me.

He must have noticed how nervous I was because he extended his hand wrapping it gently around mine and tugged me through the entrance.

"C'mon," he said gently. "It's upstairs."

When he said upstairs, he should have said up upstairs. There were like, I don't know how many of those suckers as he continued to pull me up and up.

"Is this where I will be staying on Tuesday?" I asked swallowing a mouthful of air.

"And Wednesday, Thursday and Friday."

Gulp.

"Does it come with a map and a tour guide?"

He chuckled. "I'll be your tour guide and no, no map."

"I was being facetious," I said sourly.

"And I was being serious." He looked down at me with that half grin. A little shiver ran up my arm from where his fingers intertwined with mine.

Why was he still holding it?

My eyes were drawn to how his fingers made mine look small and almost... girlie.

Heat crawled across my cheeks causing me to look away. I had never held hands with another guy other than Jake. And what was scary was that holding hands with Jake had never felt like this. For some reason, the thought of Kyle letting my hand go sent a frown to my lips that I just couldn't shake.

"Are you alright?" he asked causing me to jump a little.

He stopped at the entrance of a long hall I hadn't even noticed he had pulled me toward. Squeezing my hand, he hooked the knuckle of his other hand under my chin lifting my head upward.

While searching my features, his eyes moved to observe my lips. Something flittered across his eyes that had my lips parting and my heart racing. Like a strong magnetic force, our eyes locked and I could feel those icy crystals begin chiseling away at something deep inside of me.

What was going on?

He cleared his throat causing me to blink. I took a small step back so his knuckle was no longer the controller of my chin.

Averting my eyes downward, I again looked at the way his hand was securely around mine. Twisting my wrist, I moved my fingers until he finally let my hand go letting it drop to my side.

"The room is down here," he said, his voice lower than usual.

I didn't look up at him. I didn't dare. Nodding my head, I kept my eyes focused on the back of his heels as he turned and continued down what felt like a mile long corridor.

"The nursery is the same one my little brother was in until he outgrew it." I flinched at the sound of his voice.

"I forgot you said you had one," I said to the back of his head trying to sound calm. "He's younger, right?"

He looked back and nodded.

"Why haven't I heard of him at school?" I asked, my curiosity genuinely piqued. Surly if there was a little Kyle replica running around, someone would have said something at school about it.

 "Because he attends a private school," he answered not looking back.

"Oh," I said under my breath. Stewing over his answer a little bit I asked, "So why do you go to a public school, then?"

Stopping in front of a white door, he answered point blank, "Because I was a bad boy." Like a nut, I looked up to see a sparkle dance in his eyes as the corners of his lips tugged into a teasing smile. But something told me he wasn't joking.

Swallowing hard, I asked, "Really?"

He chuckled. "Really. Are you ready?"

Not waiting for my reply, he opened the door revealing an enchanted little world with walls painted in pale pastel blues. Near the ceiling's crown molding were sporadic hand painted clouds with hot air balloons suspending just beneath them. All around the room, there were stuffed animals and decorative toys that promised any infant a childhood full of fantasy and imagination.

"A boy, huh?" I asked not really thinking.

"Noooah... whatever gave it away?" His sarcastic tone had my lips tugging into a smile.

I popped his arm. "Smartass."

"Only when you're around," he said before turning and heading toward a closet.

Was he teasing or being serious?

I followed and reached him just as he was pulling out a box that had advertisement showing a picture of the thingies.

"Here it is." He inspected the unopened box and read the information while I stood looking around the room.

 "Cute room," I said while tapping my foot anxiously.

"Thanks," he said, his eyes still reading the box. "I think it needs batteries for the remote one. We'll get those on the way home."

Those damned butterflies again.

"What kind?" I asked while internally trying to swat away the feeling.

"Looks like double As." He suddenly looked up at me causing me a little startled jerk.

His eyebrow rose.

"Eh hem. I have a pack at home. Will eight do?"

He waited a second before answering. "It only needs two," he said, his lips now pursed while giving the universal sign for the number with his fingers.

Oh dear lord. Why was it so hot all of a sudden?

"Perfect," I said too eagerly. "Let's go."

He smiled down at me before stealing a quick glance around the room. It was as if he were seeing it for the first time.

"I take it you don't come in here a lot," I said not believing I was trying to learn more about him.

"My sister doesn't visit often." His expression seemed... sad maybe?

"I thought you were the favorite uncle?" I asked, my voice playful.

His eyes narrowed into slits. "I am." He moved to push me out of the room. "That doesn't mean I don't visit her."

"Oh yeah, riiiight." I responded nodding my head.

"Riiight," Kyle said mocking me as he continued to steer me into the hall and down the long mile back to the front door.