CRUSH (7 page)

He sighed heavily. “And if I can’t do that
anymore?”

I felt the tears welling. “Then I’ll be really
sad not to have you in my life.” I opened the door and got out. “Goodnight,
Clay.”

He didn’t look at me again before he drove off.
I watched until his car was out of sight before turning to go up the sidewalk
to my house.

Safely home. Thanks
, I texted to Hunter.

The reply was almost immediate.
Glad 2 hear it.
Text U 2morrow.
Night.

I stared at the words in front of me. Hunter
Wilder was going to text me tomorrow. Despite all that happened tonight with
Clay, I couldn’t help the little thrill that shot through me.

I sighed. What a crazy day.

Cami-

It was late when I rolled over and checked the
time. Wow. Ten o’clock and my mom hadn’t been in to wake me. I reached for my
phone on the charger and looked to see if Clay had messaged. There was nothing.
I didn’t know what to say so I didn’t text him either.

Grabbing some shorts and a t-shirt, I made my
way into the bathroom for a quick shower and then headed downstairs for some
breakfast.

“Well, look who finally decided to grace us
with her presence this fine Sunday morning.” My dad smiled from his recliner
where he was reading the Arts & Style section of the paper.

I bent and kissed him on the cheek. “Morning,
Dad. How are you today? Did you enjoy your band fundraiser last night?”

“I’m good and we had a great time. The people
in the hotel really loved the jazz performance, and we raised a lot of money.
I’m pleased we live in a town that appreciates good culture.”

Copper City certainly did cater to the arts. I
felt like he and Mom were really happy here. It was definitely their dream
place to live.

“I’m so glad. That’s awesome. I’m going to grab
some breakfast. Where’s Mom?”

“She stayed up late helping with clean up after
the banquet so I let her sleep in.”

That explained why she hadn’t been in this
morning. I went to the cupboard and pulled out a bowl before getting a box of
cereal off the counter and taking it to the island bar.

I was munching away when I felt my phone
vibrate. I stiffened. Chances were this was either Clay or Hunter, and I was
afraid to look, feeling nervous about hearing from either of them. I glanced at
the text.

Nice day 2day.
Wanna
grab some lunch & eat @ the park around noon?

I smiled, letting out a sigh of relief. It was
Hunter.

Sure. Sounds fun.

Gr8. Can I get UR address?

I texted it
back
to
him with a little smiley face.

Awesome. C U in a bit.

Nervous butterflies danced in my stomach. I
quickly finished my last few bites of cereal and hurried to my room.

“Where are you going in such a rush?” Dad
called.

“I have a lunch date!”

“With Clay?”

“No. His name is Hunter Wilder. He’s new. I’ll
tell you more about him after I’m ready.”

“Okay. I want to meet this kid before you leave
with him.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, Dad.” My dad was
totally the overprotective father type. I knew he trusted me, but I was a
little worried about what he might think of Hunter.

Yes, I’d been out a few times with guys other
than Clay, but they tended to be more of the studious variety, or they were
music and drama students—people who my dad would instantly approve of.
He’d even let me go with one of his students from the college. I’d never dated
anybody in the hot guy category of Hunter, though. It would be interesting to
see if he said anything.

I raided my closet and drawers, finally
deciding on a pair of tiny jean shorts and a cute square-cut tee with cap
sleeves in a bright, cheery yellow. I carefully applied my makeup and then got
my hot iron and painstakingly worked on my hair until my curls were bone
straight. I pulled it back into a trendy-styled ponytail, and added some gold
hoop earrings before slipping my feet into some matching yellow sandals that
laced up my calves.

It was only eleven-thirty when I finished, so I
went back down to the living room to visit with my dad, finding my mom had
joined him as well.

“You look nice.” She smiled, glancing up from a
romance novel she was reading. “Dad told me you have a lunch date with a new
guy. Who is he?”

“His name is Hunter Wilder. He recently moved
here from Tucson with his uncle. I guess both his parents were killed in a car
accident. At least that’s what the rumor mill says. I haven’t really had an
opportunity to talk to him about it yet, other than for him to tell me he’s
from Tucson.”

“So is he in your music and drama classes with
you then?” Dad asked.

“No, he’s in my Chemistry, English, Government,
and Photography classes.”

“Oh, so does he hope to be a photographer?”

I laughed. “I have no idea. I don’t know him
that well. He’s only been here a short while. We’ve never really spoken to each
other before this week.”

“Does Clay like him?” Dad smiled and I
instantly sobered.

“No, I’m afraid not.” I cringed. I knew my dad
put a lot of stock in Clay’s opinion about
who
I
dated.

“Why doesn’t he like him?” he pressed.

I shrugged. “Jealous, I think.”

“Jealous?”

My mom chuckled. “You’re a little out of the
loop, Brandt. Clay seems to have developed a bit of a crush on our girl.”

“Has he now? How do you feel about that?”

“Actually, it’s quite awkward, and I wish he
hadn’t. I don’t feel that way about him. It would be like dating my brother or
something. He’s making things difficult.”

“So last night didn’t go well?” Mom asked,
looking concerned.

“Not at all. In fact, I think Hunter asked me
out as a way to try and help rescue me from a very uncomfortable situation.” I
twisted my hands together in my lap.

“That was nice of him, though I’m sad you and
Clay are having problems. You’ve been friends far too long to let something
like this come between you. I hope you can fix it.”

“Me too. I love Clay, just not like
that
.” I looked back and forth between
them. “There’s something else I should tell you about Hunter.”

“What’s that?” Dad asked.

“He won’t be the kind of guy you’re used to me
dating. I mean he’s maybe one of the most popular guys in school right now. He
rose to fame around here pretty fast—drives a shiny new black
Camaro—and may actually be the best looking guy I’ve ever seen in my
life—I’m talking model worthy. I honestly have no idea why he would want
to go out with me.”

“Maybe because you’re beautiful and sweet and
he can see that.” My mom smiled.

“You have to say that. You’re my mom.”

“She wouldn’t lie to you either, honey,” my dad
added.

The doorbell rang, interrupting our
conversation, and I felt nervous. He was a few minutes early. I answered it,
surprised to find Clay, not Hunter, standing there.

He glanced over me before moving back up,
locking eyes with me—almost a desperate plea in them. “Hey, Cami. Can we
please go somewhere and talk?”

Right then a loud thumping bass sound filled
the air. I looked down the street, and watched as Hunter pulled up in his
Camaro with the windows rolled down.

I glanced back to Clay. “Um, I have a date
right now. Maybe later when I get done?”

Clay’s lips turned in an obvious frown. “He
didn’t waste any time, did he? Call me when you get home.” He turned and headed
down the sidewalk.

“Hey, man,”
Hunter
said as they passed. Clay ignored him and kept on walking. He got into his car
and drove away without a backward glance.

“Did I interrupt something important?” Hunter
asked as he approached. He was holding a couple of roses loosely in his hand
and I smiled.

“No, not at all. Come in and meet my parents.
They’ve been expecting you.” I stepped aside so he could enter.

He followed me into the living room, and my
parents stood to greet him. I noticed my mom’s eyes going wide in surprise, but
my dad’s narrowed as if he sensed a predator. His gaze traveled over the red
t-shirt and down to the amazing, deep-blue hipster jeans and dark shoes, all
designer of course. It was obvious he had money.

“This is my mom, Cecily, and my dad, Brandt.
Mom and Dad, this is Hunter Wilder.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Hunter said with
impeccable manners, shaking my dad’s hand firmly. He handed my mom a rose.
“This is for you,” he added before turning to extend the other one to me. “And
this one is yours.”

I couldn’t help the smile as I took a sniff.
“It smells wonderful. Thank you.”

He looked pleased. “You’re welcome. I saw them,
and they made me think of your pretty, red hair. Looks like it worked for your
mom too.” He laughed and gestured to her hair color.

“Well, aren’t you just the charmer?” My mom
giggled like a schoolgirl, and I knew he’d won over at least one parent. “Would
you like a drink or something?”

“Oh, no thanks. I figured I’d pick up something
with Cami, and we could go to the park and hang out together.”

“What else do you plan on doing while you’re
there?” My dad asked sternly.

“Uh, well, I brought a Frisbee I thought we
could toss around, if Cami‘s up for it.” He glanced at me.

“Sound fun,” I said, thinking how I couldn’t
imagine Hunter doing anything as lame as throwing a Frisbee.

“When will you have her home?”

Hunter shrugged. “I hadn’t really planned on a
certain time. I figured I’d take her to do whatever she wanted until she got
sick of me. She said there’s some good museums and stuff around. I thought I’d
let her decide since she knows better than I do.”

“I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful time,” my mom
gushed. “Cami’s curfew is midnight. As long as she’s home by then, we are
good.”

I think my dad may have actually shot fire out
of his eyes toward my mom, and I bit my lip to suppress a giggle of my own.

“Very well. Please remember she’s the most
precious thing in her parent’s lives and treat her accordingly.”

I almost choked. Boy, he was laying it on
thick.

“I’ll be fine, Dad,” I said, standing on my
tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. I could tell he was very
apprehensive. “I’ll see you both later.”

“Have fun!” My mom was glowing as she gave us a
little wave, and I grabbed Hunter by the arm and dragged him from the room
before things could get any weirder.

He walked me to the car and opened the door
before jogging around and getting in the other side.

“Sorry for the craziness in there.”

He smiled widely. “Nah, it was fine.”

“I think my mom liked you.”

“But not your dad?”

“I’d say the jury is still out. He’ll form a
better opinion of you after you’ve returned me safely home in the same
condition you found me.” I blushed.

“Well, I don’t want to deliver you home in
exactly the same condition I found you.” His eyes flitted over my figure and my
heart raced.

Suddenly I felt underdressed. “You don’t?” I
managed to squeak out.

He shook his head. “Nope. I want to bring you
back exhausted from having an amazing day with me.”

“Oh.” I didn’t know what else to say.

He started the car, and I jumped as the stereo
roared to life with a loud thump. I covered my ears in reflex.

Hunter quickly turned it down significantly.
“Sorry! I get a little carried away with the tunes while I’m driving.”

“It’s okay. It just caught me by surprise, is
all.”

“So, where do you want to go get food?” he
asked.

“Well, if you like burgers and stuff, I like
that little diner called Francesca’s.”

“Oh, I ate there with Russ one night. They had
great food. Let’s do that then.” He turned in that direction.

Everything still felt so surreal—being
here with him like this—but he was making me feel comfortable and at
ease.

I sighed. I already liked him, and I didn’t
even know him.

Hunter-

Her eyes widened when I opened my trunk and
pulled out the thick, heavy blanket I’d brought. I could almost see her
imagining what sort of nefarious things I might be planning.

“I thought it would be nice to sit on while we
ate.” I smiled.

“That would be good,” she replied, visibly
relaxing.