Chasing Rainbows (2 page)

The textbooks weren't really heavy, so I picked up as many as I could. I'd probably have to make another trip when all I really wanted was to sit back down at my desk and fade away into the background. Mr. Shilon had called a student from each row so that meant I'd have to give Chase, his royal hotness, a book. I drew in a deep breath then caught Shelly Winter's eye. We'd know each other all throughout grade school. We were friends, but we didn't run in the same circles. She smiled, but her expression reflected loud and clear that she felt my pain and was suffering through this ordeal the same as me. She'd always been shy.

When I turned around, I forced myself not to look at him. Instead, I glanced at Kara who was discretely making obscene gestures which included rocking her fist next to her mouth while she pointed at Chase. Heat rose from my neck and flooded my cheeks as my eyes landed on him like a heat seeking missile. I was going to kill her.

He was watching me and wearing a smile. I walked up to him, propping the books on the edge of his desk and grabbed the one from the top of the stack handing it to him. His fingers accidentally grazed mine as he reached to take the textbook from my hand. His touch felt like a thousand tiny little jolts of electricity had traveled up my arm. My pulse jack hammered.

A soft sigh whispered past my lips. My eyes were mesmerized by the long tanned fingers holding onto the book. I forgot everything but the sight of them and fleetingly wondered what they'd feel like against my skin. There were tattoos on each one of his broad knuckles; faded blue stars outlined in black ink.

"I've got it," he said in a voice that sounded like a low smooth rumble. Only then did I come to my senses and let go of the book.

My lips opened and closed with no sound passing through them. It was as if my brain had been temporarily disconnected from my mouth. A heavy silence hung between us. He probably thought I was a stalker, or worse, a stoner. I needed to save face so I said the first thing that popped in mind. "Nice tats."

Up close, I tried to study the faint bruise on Chase's cheek without being obvious. But it was almost gone and hard to see.
How had he gotten it?
His nose was straight except for a small almost nonexistent bump high across its bridge; evidence that at one time, he'd broken it. Maybe he was into sports or martial arts. He definitely had the body for it.

"Thanks," he replied, his lips curving into a warm smile that revealed straight white teeth. Pools of jade green regarded me intently, and I swallowed, praying that drool wasn't running from the corner of my mouth.

A throat cleared nearby, and I glanced up to find Bryce watching me, wearing an angry expression. Immediately, I picked up the books from Chase's desk and moved past him. I laid one on mine and then moved on to Bryce, laying the textbook quickly on his desk without looking at him, and hurrying past. I didn't want him to get the wrong idea. I'd thought I had made myself more than crystal clear when he'd propositioned me in the park. Just because he was a star on the football field didn't mean he was getting into my pants.

If Mia knew, she'd make my life hell. She was a jealous lunatic. Last year, she and Miley had terrorized a freshman, who had made the mistake of only smiling at Bryce. The poor girl had ended up switching schools. My life was already hell, and I didn't need Mia to add to my misery.

I understood what she saw in Bryce. They actually complemented each other perfectly. Bryce with his blond, buff surfer-boy handsomeness and Mia with her blue eyes, shoulder length platinum blond hair, and surgically enhanced attributes. They were a real-life Ken and Barbie. Bryce just didn't appeal to me though. No one really had until now.

After one more trip, I finished up passing out the dreaded textbooks. I'd refused to look at Chase as I walked past him the second time. Sliding into my seat, I glanced at Kara, who was still busily texting on the phone now hidden beneath her desk resting on her thigh. She was smiling. Quite frankly, I thought it was downright sickening just how much she and Devon were in love with one another. Emotions like that couldn't be healthy; especially when the other person could complete your sentences for you.

Chase's broad back loomed directly in front of me. His shoulders looked like they might burst the seams on his blue flannel shirt. He made the chair he sat in seem as if it belonged in a kindergarten room rather than in a high school class. "Addie," Kara whispered, and I dragged my eyes away from his shoulders to peek across the aisle at her. "Talk to him," she mouthed, but I shook my head no and settled back against my seat.

Seconds dragged into minutes. I was antsy.
Why was I always afraid of everything? What would it hurt?
He was just a guy. Maybe, Kara was right, I should talk to him. On the other side of the room, Mr. Shilon was busy passing out the class syllabus. I took a deep breath and leaned up against my desk studying the back of Chase's head and tentatively extended my fingers toward his shoulder. He didn't turn around, but he did turn his head to the side.

A hint of a smile played along the sensual curves of his lips. My eyes shamelessly drank in his profile, memorizing every minute detail that made up his handsome face.

I leaned closer, forgetting to speak when he turned the rest of the way around in his seat. My gaze was drawn to the opened notebook lying before him. He'd been drawing; already the lines on the page forming a feminine face. Whoever she was, she was beautiful. He still held the pencil gripped in the tips of his blunt fingertips, and they hovered over the paper, waiting. I remembered myself when the heat of those eyes penetrated mine and his lips blossomed into a full smile.

"Why the stars?" I asked, blurting out the first thing that came to mind as I nodded to the hand gripping the pencil. Suddenly, I felt very foolish and unsure. He was out of my league, and this had definitely been a bad idea. Later, I'd remind myself to kill Kara. This was all her fault.

He seemed confused by my question then raised his hand giving me a better glimpse of the tattoos inked into the skin of each one of his broad knuckles. "Whoever messes with me will see stars," he replied, cockily.

A laugh bubbled up from my throat and escaped my lips. His attention shifted and focused directly on my lips. His expression made my insides melt.

"Addison!" called Mr. Shilon. When I looked up, he was wearing a frown and watching me from across the room. And so was everyone else in the classroom. "Whatever you and Mr. Logan are discussing can wait until after class."

"Yes, sir," I mumbled, sliding back against my chair, away from Chase. But he didn't turn around as I'd expected. He continued to watch me.

"Mr. Logan, is there a problem with that?"

"No, sir," he replied with a smirk, still looking straight at me, but from the tone of his voice it was obvious he didn't give two shits what anyone said, especially the teacher.

I glanced down at my desk trying to breathe normally. I hoped he didn't notice just how flustered he actually made me. When I darted a fleeting look around the classroom, thankfully, everyone else had already lost interest; everyone, except for Chase.

He still sat at a sideways angle in his seat. Our gazes held one another. My stomach muscles tightened when he winked at me. It was as if he knew just exactly how much he affected me. Slowly he turned and slid around leaning back in his seat.

Mr. Shilon stood in front of our row, he handed Chase a syllabus then moved past him to my desk and personally handed one to me. When he moved on to the next student, I was momentarily relieved to have been spared any further embarrassment or a lecture from his sharp tongue.

My sophomore year, Mr. Shilon had come close to losing his job when a female student made allegations against him. Even though he had been found innocent, I still didn't like him, nor did I want to get on his bad side again. Kara and I had spent the better part of the previous year in detention because of him. I noticed when I glanced across the aisle at her that her phone had somehow magically disappeared, and she was now studying the syllabus wearing a bored expression.

Mr. Shilon was making his way toward the front of the room heading for the blackboard when a note flew from over my left shoulder landing on my desk in front of me. I didn't know who had thrown it, but I had pretty good idea. With Mr. Shilon busily writing on the chalkboard and his back turned to the class, I decided to open it. There was only one word, and it was written in bold letters with black ink: WHORE.

It had to be either Miley or Bryce, but the letters were printed making it impossible to tell who had written it. Kara saw the note I held in my hand. She then checked on Mr. Shilon's progress at the blackboard before turning her attention back to me and the note. Her expression was curious.

"Nothing," I mouthed, as I wadded up the note and set it aside. I'd throw it away after class.

I wrote my name on the syllabus and turned my notebook to a clean sheet of paper. I had just begun to write down the assignments due at the end of the week when Bryce kicked my chair causing me to snap the lead in my pencil.

Chapter two

W
HEN SECOND PERIOD WAS OVER,
I
HEADED
for my locker, texting Kara along the way. I would meet up with her at lunch. I only had ten minutes until the next bell rang, and my locker was upstairs, which was a huge pain in the ass; especially when my next class was downstairs. I opened my locker door and shoved my books inside, but my English book took a nosedive. I jumped back to avoid being clobbered. As the book landed against the concrete floor with a crack, I became aware that someone was standing almost directly beside me.
Chase!
I smiled back at him in surprise as my mouth went dry.

"Hi," I squeaked, feeling extremely self-conscious when he didn't immediately reply. Instead, he bent down to retrieve my book. His gaze traveled slowly over my body, lingering on my chest and finally at last resting on my face. It felt almost as if he'd touched me. I watched as he picked up the book, and stood facing me. He handed me the book, but my mind was preoccupied by the subtle change in his appearance. I could have sworn he'd worn a blue shirt earlier, rather than the red one he wore now, but who knew for sure when just the mere sight of him was enough to scramble my brain.

"Hi, yourself," he replied in that husky gravelly voice of his which reminded me of warm summer nights chasing fireflies. This guy, he did things to me. Only then did I realize he was still holding my book. I reached out to take it, careful not to touch him because if I did, I was sure my thoughts would scatter.

"Thanks. How're your classes going so far?" I asked; amazed by the fact that I was actually able to form a complete sentence around him. He was just a guy and I kept reminding myself of this over and over as I shoved my book back inside my locker and shut the door snapping the lock into place. If only my heart would listen to this logic. When I glanced up, I found that he'd moved closer and was now invading my personal space.

My heart thudded faster and warmth surged through my veins as I came face to face with him. Then, my traitorous eyes drifted to his lips. I couldn't help it. With his dark hair and hooded eyes, he had a rakish appeal that sent my pulse fluttering. "Your classes?" I reminded him; anything to shift this undeniable tension between us.

He smiled, seeming to know exactly what I was trying to do. He made me so nervous. Chewing on my lower lip, I looked at him expectantly awaiting a reply.
Was he just going to stand there and watch me?

"If you keep that up, I just might have to give you what you're begging me for."

My breath hitched in my throat.
He did not just say that to me, did he?
A tiny sound of want whispered past my parted lips. He raised his hand, and I stood frozen and mesmerized by the sight of it reaching for me. He didn't pull me against him even though, I longed for him to do just that. Instead his fingers danced along the skin at the base of my neck, instantly giving me chills and tangling in my long blond hair. He moved closer, blocking me in; the cold metal of the locker against my back. Warm breath caressed my lips. Fingers strummed teasingly along my skin making me dizzy.

"You're beautiful," he murmured.

I closed my eyes, giving in to the temptation of him and expected to see stars at the first brush of his lips.

Immediately at that thought, my eyes popped back open just as his nose grazed mine. And the second before his lips could firmly settle into place, my hands were pushing him away. I didn't see stars, and that was entirely the problem. He took a step back, at first he seemed surprised by my reaction, then he laughed. Right then I knew something was wrong.

"You must have already met my brother," he said, grinning smugly.

I was floored. What was he talking about? His brother…

"Chase…" I whispered; feeling unsure and confused.

He seemed to take delight in my response and took a step closer to me. This time, I was the one to move away, trying to put some much needed distance between us.
What the hell was going on?

"My twin," he said, his expression deceptively calm.

Then, the bell announcing third period chose that exact moment to ring. And even though I was going to be late for class, I stood there blankly looking back at him as people darted past us.

"You're sick," I whispered and spun around walking quickly for the stairs. Behind me, I could still hear him laughing.

All the way to class I thought of what had almost happened. So, Chase had a brother, and he was a real a-hole in my opinion. I couldn't believe I'd almost let him kiss me. Maybe I was a whore just like the note stated. My stomach was tied in knots. I felt like throwing up. I needed to talk to Kara. She was the sane one. She'd know what to do.

When I walked through the doorway of World History, my third period class, I immediately spotted Miley with her perfectly styled strawberry blond hair, white cardigan, white miniskirt and heels. She was immaculate. Everything about her screamed perfection. She was sitting near the window, in the second row, fourth seat back, so I grabbed the front seat near the door by the wall. I didn't want to be anywhere around her because underneath all of her gild and her vapid prettiness was a wasteland of ugliness.