Cassie laughed softly as she settled onto the bed beside him. “Is it over?”
“Might as well be,” he muttered.
Cassie patted his knee gently. “Are you going to stay here tonight?”
Chris shook his head before rising slowly to his feet. “No, it’s pretty quiet over there and I suppose I should go home once in awhile.”
“I guess,” she muttered.
“Are you going to miss me?” he asked teasingly.
“Always.” Though it was true, Cassie didn’t tell him that she didn’t wish to be alone tonight. If she was alone then she would think, and if she thought, she knew that her thoughts would be centered upon him.
Cassie shuddered; she wrapped her arms tightly around herself. She didn’t want to think about Devon, she wanted to forget his existence entirely, but she knew that was going to be impossible, especially if Chris went home. Unfortunately she couldn’t bring herself to ask Chris to stay. He would know something was wrong if she did, and she didn’t want anyone to know just how much Devon affected her.
Swallowing her anxiety, she drew on her pride as Chris swung a leg out her window to take his normal exit from her house. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Cassie nodded as he leapt onto the tree branch, swinging for a brief moment before scurrying down the limb hand over hand. His legs wrapped around the trunk as he swiftly used the other branches to climb to the ground. She watched as he loped across the street, disappearing through his front door.
Sighing softly, Cassie closed the window most of the way. Turning off her lights, she slipped into bed, knowing that she would not be able to sleep. Staring blankly at the flickering TV she tried hard to shut her mind off of Devon, tried hard not to think about him, but the harder she tried the more she found herself fixated on him.
Tossing and turning, Cassie finally managed to slip into a restless sleep at almost two in the morning. And the moment that she slept, she dreamed.
Of him.
***
Cassie squinted against the bright light of the morning, wishing that she had darker and stronger sunglasses. Her eyes were killing her; she was exhausted, twitchy, and extremely agitated. Her skin felt two sizes to small as she tried hard not to scratch at it with the strange urge to rip it off. The sun seemed to be burning it and she tingled with pain and discomfort.
It was going to be a miserable day and she hadn’t even made it into the school yet. Rubbing the back of her neck, she eased further into the shadows of the giant oak overhanging Chris’s Mustang. “Are you ok?” She glanced over at Melissa, nodding slowly as she hugged her books tighter to her chest. “Cassie…”
Melissa’s voice trailed off as a strange quiet settled over the student body. The tingling sensation of her skin increased tenfold, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. She turned slowly, her eyes instantly latching onto the sleek black Challenger that moved slowly past. Her heart turned over, her mouth went dry. She knew instantly who was behind the wheel, even though the tinted windows were to dark to get a glimpse of the driver.
“Wow,” Chris breathed his eyes so wide Cassie was certain they were about to pop out of his head.
Cassie took a step back, wishing that she could disappear into the oak as she bumped up against it. Memories of her dreams from last night suddenly assaulted her, flooding her body with heat and making her skin crawl even more. Though the dreams had just been bits and pieces of him standing by B’s and S’s watching her, they had left her longing for more. The searing look in his eyes as he had stared at her still left her shaken and trembling with a strange sense of unfulfilled desire and need. She had never experienced anything like these feelings before. Although they left her confused, she could not deny that the excitement tearing through her was a wonderfully alive sensation, and something she had not felt in a very long time.
She watched breathlessly, her heart hammering loudly in her chest as the car slid into a parking spot and Devon climbed out. Though he wore dark sunglasses, she knew the moment when his gaze locked onto hers. Her legs went weak, her body turned to rubber as she felt his gaze burning into her. Trembling, Cassie hugged her books tighter to her chest, unable to move as she stared back at him. She felt like a fool for being caught staring, no gaping at him, but she could not bring herself to care.
His gaze was torn from her as Marcy and Susan hurried eagerly up to him. Cassie slumped against the tree, trying hard to catch her breath, and ease the pounding of her heart. She was shaking, trembling like a leaf as the lingering effects of his gaze coursed through her. Chris was staring at her questioningly, an eyebrow lifted in surprise.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Cassie shook her head, trying hard not to completely fall apart. “Nothing.”
He continued to stare at her, but thankfully Jason and Kara picked that moment to arrive and distract his attention. The game was discussed, plans were made, but Cassie barely heard any of it. Unwillingly her gaze returned to Devon. He was still standing by the car, but he now had a large group of female admirers surrounding him.
Cassie’s heart lurched, jealousy filled her. She shifted uncomfortably, trying hard to deny the emotions suffusing her. There was some strange connection between them (or at least she believed so), but it was more than apparent that he could have his choice of any of the girls, and that none of them were avoiding him as much as Cassie was trying to. Her anger mounted as Marcy touched his arm, grinning brightly as her hand lingered far longer than Cassie would have liked. All she wanted was to know what he felt like, and now Marcy did.
“He is wicked hot,” Kara gushed from beside her.
Cassie started in surprise; she had been so focused on Devon that she hadn’t realized Kara had moved to stand beside her. “Who?” she managed to croak out, knowing full well who Kara meant.
Kara grinned at her, her light brown eyes sparkling merrily. “The new guy, the one you’re staring at.”
Cassie shifted uncomfortably. She hadn’t realized that she had been so overt in her ogling. “Um yeah, he’s ok,” she hedged.
Kara laughed softly as she flung her backpack higher on her shoulder. Melissa moved over to join them, her gaze steady and intense as she watched Cassie. “You want to go over there with me?” Kara inquired.
Panic tore through Cassie as she fervently shook her head. “No.”
Kara shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
Kara slipped eagerly away to join the growing group of girls surrounding Devon. “You ok?” Melissa asked softly.