Jennifer Armentrout - Onyx

“I’m glad you like them. I was worried I’d look like a nerd for giving them to you.”

“No. They’re perfect.” I smiled. “Are you ready to go over?”

He finished up the wine cooler and rinsed it before tossing it in the trash. Mom would’ve loved him for that—well, not the underage-drinking-of-her-wine-cooler part. “Sure,” he said. “But I kind of have some bad news. I can only stay for half an hour tops. We have some family coming in last minute. I’m really sorry.”

“No,” I said, hoping the disappointment wasn’t audible. “It’s okay. We didn’t give you much notice.”

“Are you sure? I feel like such a tool.”

“Of course. You’re not a tool. You did bring me roses.”

Blake grinned. “Well, I want to make it up to you. Can you do dinner with me tomorrow night?”

I shook my head. “I can’t tomorrow. Spending the day with my mom.”

“How about Monday?” he asked. “Do your parents let you out on a school night?”

“It’s just my mom, but yes, she does.”

“Good. There’s this little Indian restaurant I saw in town.” He inched closer. There was a slight scent of aftershave that reminded me of the conversation I’d had with Lesa about how boys smelled. Blake smelled good. “You game?”

“Sure thing.” I glanced around, biting my lip. “You ready to head over now?”

“Yep, if you do one thing.”

“Which is?”

“Well, two things.” Another step closer and his shoes were touching mine. I had to tip my head back to meet his eyes. “Then we can go over.”

I felt a little dizzy, staring in his eyes. “What are the two things?”

“You’ve got to give me your hand. If this is a speed date, we’ve got to make it believable.” He dipped his head, still holding onto my gaze. “And a kiss.”

“A kiss?” I whispered.

His lips spread in a crooked smile. “I need you to remember me when I leave. In that dress, you’re going to have guys all over you.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“You will. So? Is it a deal?”

My breath slowed in my lungs. Curiosity filled me. Would kissing him be like kissing Daemon? Would the world burn or just simmer? I wanted to find out, needed to discover if I could forget the boy next door in a simple kiss.

“Deal,” I murmured.

His hand found my cheek, and I closed my eyes. Blake whispered my name. My mouth opened, but there were no words to be spoken. There was just anticipation and the need to lose myself. At first, his lips brushed across mine lightly, testing my response, and the gentle nature of the kiss was disarming. I placed my hands on his shoulders, and they tightened when he swept his lips over mine again.

His kiss deepened, and I felt like I was swimming in raw emotions. It was elating and yet confusing at the same time. I kissed him back, and his hands dropped to my waist, pulling me closer. I waited breathlessly in between kisses for something—anything—other than the restlessness stirring inside me. Then all at once, I felt frustration, anger, and sadness—which were nothing I was searching for.

Blake broke contact, breathing heavily. His lips were ripe, swollen. “Well, I will definitely remember you when I leave.”

I lowered my chin, blinking. Nothing had been wrong with that kiss, other than it was lacking something. It had to be me. Stress. With everything happening, I was thinking too much into things. And kissing him was just too fast. I felt like one of those girls in the books I read, delving into a guy headfirst without even thinking about it. Practical Katy still lived inside me, and she wasn’t happy with what I’d done. And it was more than that. A stirring of sour guilt poked at me, telling me that my heart hadn’t been in that kiss because of someone else.

“Just one more thing,” he said, and his hand found mine. “Ready?”

Was I? Confliction tore through me. Maybe if Daemon saw me happy with Blake, he wouldn’t feel compelled to pursue our unreal connection. I felt sick. “Yes. I’m ready.”

Outside, there were numerous cars lining the driveway and all the way down to the empty house at the beginning of our road. “Holy crap, I thought this was supposed to be a little party?”

Dee had really outdone herself. She’d dug up numerous paper lanterns and strung them along the porch. Through their windows, thick candles spread throughout flickered softly. A warm, pleasant cider-and-spice smell floated outside and tickled my nose, reminding me how much I loved the smell of autumn.

People were everywhere inside, packed on the couch, surrounding two guys in a Wii death match. Several familiar faces were crowding the staircase, laughing as they drank from red plastic cups. Blake and I couldn’t go two feet without bumping into someone.

Dee weaved in and out of the crowd, playing the hostess. She looked beautiful in her delicate white dress that highlighted the darkness of her hair and the emerald color of her eyes. When she saw our hands joined together, she barely hid her surprise…or disappointment.

Feeling like I was doing something wrong, I pulled free and gave her a tight hug. “Wow. The house looks great.”

“It does, doesn’t it? I’m a natural.” She looked over my shoulder. “Katy…?”

My cheeks burned. “He’s my—”

“Date,” Blake inserted, catching and squeezing my hand. “I have to bail soon, but I wanted to escort her to the party.”

“Escort her?” She glanced at him, then back to me. “Okay. Well, I’ll go…check on some stuff. Yeah.” Then she floated away, back stiff.

I tried to not let her disappointment get to me. She couldn’t seriously want me to be with her brother. One of them had already gone down that path with a human and look what happened.

A huge amount of suspicious noises were coming from the dark corners of the large house, distracting me from my thoughts. I then briefly saw Adam, who appeared to be stalking Dee through the crowd. I made a mental note to ask her how her call with him had gone.

“Want to get a drink?” Blake asked. When I nodded, he led me toward the dining room, where we could see several bottles. There was even a punch bowl. Spiked, no doubt.

“We had parties like this back home,” Blake said, handing me a red plastic cup. “In beach houses, though, and everyone smelled of sea and suntan lotion.”

“You sound like you miss it.”

“I do sometimes, but hey, change isn’t too bad. It makes life interesting.” He took a sip and coughed. “What did they put in this? Moonshine?”

I laughed. “God only knows around here.”

Wild giggles came from the kitchen. We turned just in time to see Carissa rush from the room, an annoyed look on her face as she bolted to where Dee was in the doorway. “Dee, your friends are crazy.”

“They’re your friends, too,” Lesa commented dryly, coming up behind Dee. She saw Blake and me and came to a stop. Then she bumped me with her hip. “Yay.”

Carissa folded her arms over her chest. “My friends would not do that with whipped cream.”

I busted into laughter at the horrified look on Dee’s face and the curious one that crossed Lesa’s. Blake smiled at me, as if he liked the sound of my laugh.

“What?” Dee screeched and took off toward the kitchen.

“I have to see this,” muttered Lesa, following quickly behind the flurry of white.

I glanced over at Carissa, whose cheeks were as red as my sweater. “You’re kidding, right?”

She shook her head emphatically. “You have no idea what Donnie and Becca are doing in there.”

“Aren’t they the two who planned to get married after graduation?”

“Yep. And I can tell you they have not waited for marriage for most things.”