The Healing Power of Sugar: The Ghost Bird Series: #9 (The Academy Ghost Bird Series) (20 page)

It would do, I supposed. I could at least change into one of his T-shirts and get something on before looking for Luke.

The clothes in the basket appeared dirty. I went to the wardrobe, opened it, and shifted through rows of black T-shirts and jeans. It seemed like all of his clothes were in here. If he kept his clothes in here, what did he keep in the trailer?

There were several other types of outfits other than T-shirts and jeans, including tuxedos and some nice suits.

They air smelled musty and stale with only the very barest hint of any of the musk scent he usually wore. He wasn’t in here very often. Maybe these were clothes that didn’t fit in his closet in the trailer.

I didn’t think he’d mind if I borrowed something. I made a mental note to remember to send him a text message to let him know I was in here.

I placed my phone on the bed and then selected one of the more faded T-shirts and a pair of boxers. I took off the towel and pulled on the boxers. They were big on me and I wasn’t sure they would stay on.

I was standing in the room half-naked, thinking I needed a safety pin to tighten the waistband of the shorts when there was a quick knock at the door and it opened.

“North?” Luke said as he opened the door. “Why are you here? I thought you’d be...”

I froze for just a second, shocked. I grabbed the shirt, drawing it to my body before I turned, trying to cover myself. Why hadn’t I locked the door? Was there a lock?

Luke spotted me and froze. His mouth fell open, his eyes wide. He was in pajama pants, barefoot, no shirt. His hair was still wet, hanging around his face in dark blond locks. He looked around the room in confusion and then back at me.

I blushed and forced a cheesy grin. I held the shirt to my body, and I was covered—technically—but the boxers were edging off of my hips. I clamped one arm around my breasts, holding onto the shirt, and then reached for the boxers to tug them up.

“Oh,” he said. “Sorry...” He turned away.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

He laughed. “Why? I’m the one who walked in on you. Why are you in here?”

“I forgot to bring clothes into the bathroom. I went out in the hallway in a towel and then I thought I heard someone, so I ran in here.”

“You didn’t realize this is North’s room?”

“Only after I came in,” I said, tugging the clothes closer. “And then I thought I’d just borrow his clothes instead of running around in a towel...”

“Sang,” he said, laughing. He turned back toward the door. “I swear…”

He turned away, I thought to give me some privacy, so I quickly flipped the shirt around, seeking out the bottom hem so I could slide it on.

I heard footsteps while the shirt was over my head, but then by the time my face was free I saw Luke was coming back, heading toward me with a determined look in his eyes. Had he seen me?

It surprised me and I backed up, my thighs bumping into North’s bed.

He reached for me, holding my cheeks in his palms. He held me like that as I let go of the shirt and pressed my palms to his bare chest.

“Luke?” I said, a little afraid and yet drawn to him. It’d been a long afternoon, and the way he was looking at me now was serious. He needed something.

His eyes traced over my face. “I promised you I’d kiss you the next time we were alone together,” he said quietly. “I’ve been putting it off, waiting for the right moment.”

I froze, my hands on his chest and my heart pounding beneath my ribs.

Luke leaned in, closed his eyes and kissed me.

At first, my eyebrows went up and I was still. Part of me was surprised, sure he had meant to do something else.

But then my eyes closed and my mouth moved, as if knowing what I wanted before I did. I parted my lips, trying to deepen the kiss.

Luke responded by dropping his hands from my face, settling them on my hips, holding me as he kissed me.

His kisses were light and playful. When I would deepen the kiss, he would back off, teasing my lips with a quick peck, and then when I thought he was done and was about to back off, he’d come in again, more intense, deeper. His lean body pressed up against mine, warming me, even despite the chill in the house.

Everything we’d done through the day was forgotten. School felt like ages ago.

Luke was kissing me and that was all I could think about. It swelled up my feelings for him and my hope that maybe our plan might work.

He knew about Lily’s plan. This had to mean he approved, didn’t it?

Luke shifted a little, pushing me back, but I was already against the bed, so I ended up nearly falling backwards.

Luke caught me, but urged me to sit on the bed. He kept nudging me back and I picked up my feet, scooting up the bed. He moved forward, and then crawled on his knees, reaching for my hips again. He repositioned me, and then scooted in beside me, until I was on my back, then and he was lying over me.

My breath caught in my throat as he kissed me. This was more intimate than I’d experienced or expected from him.

Yet I was comfortable and my arms went around his neck. I’d been so worried about him with other girls, with the girl that had written her phone number on his arm. But here he was with me, perfect, beautiful Luke, so talented and nice.

Luke stopped kissing my lips to drop a sweet kiss on my nose. He hovered over me, his knees on either side of my thighs, and looked down my face. His eyes appeared bigger now, the brown and flecks of amber throughout, the light reflecting in them. “This was better,” he said quietly.

“Better?” I asked.

“Better than I imagined it would be,” he said. He smiled, closed his eyes and leaned in again, kissing me quickly before he leaned back and looked at me again. “I’d been reworking our first kiss a lot. I wanted to pick a good place, like in the movies. I’ve watched a lot of romantic movies…”

I smiled. “What?”

“I thought I could do better,” he said and then pecked me on the nose again. “Sang, it doesn’t matter. This is better.”

I was glad he thought it was. I stumbled for words, not knowing what to say. I wanted to let him know it was good for me, too, but everything seemed silly. “Luke,” I said quietly.

He smiled, bright and playful, and then leaned in, kissing my lips.

We kissed for a long time, and at one point, I had to turn my head a bit, needing some air.

He didn’t stop, and continued to kiss my cheek, and then moved down toward my jaw.

I closed my eyes, unsure of what to do, but it felt good. I thought I’d be so nervous, but for some reason I wasn’t.

His hand drifted up over my hips, catching on the shirt.

One moment, I was lost in his kisses, but the next, I suddenly became aware that his hand was moving the shirt up. He placed a gentle palm against my side.

I sucked in a breath. While it felt good, I was concerned about being tickled, worried I’d start laughing during a kiss.

When he returned his lips to mine, I deepened the kiss, opening my mouth and letting my tongue out like Gabriel had shown me. I licked at his lower lip, hoping to distract him if he was thinking about tickling.

It seemed to work. He pressed his body into mine and groaned. His tongue came out, touching my lips and then dipping in when I opened my mouth.

I was captivated, dizzy, but in a good way.

His hand slid up, dragging the shirt with it. His hand was almost to my ribs.

Then his other hand was on my hip, sliding down my outer thigh. When it got to my knee, he tugged gently, repositioning it further out.

My heart was now out of control. He was pressing against me, and my body reacted, wanting his weight on me. It felt good, surprising, but really amazing. His hips were pressing against mine while he hovered over me, and I wanted more of his body against me. I didn’t even know exactly how. I liked the pressure, of feeling him covering me.

He stayed like that, kissing with a hand still on my thigh. My shirt was up my stomach, his bare stomach pressed against me, skin to skin.

Luke was breathing heavily into the kiss. I was, too, finding myself so excited, my breath unable to catch up. He nuzzled at my nose once, looking at me through half-closed lids.

“I don’t want anyone else but you, Sang,” he said. “Don’t ever leave. Please?”

My eyes went wide, surprised at his words. I looked at him, so close, his eyes were so big, pleading.

I gasped, then swallowed, trying to summon up some words. Something. Anything. Why wasn’t my mind working? “Luke,” I whispered, the only thing that would come out. Had I dreamt it? Why would he be so desperate for me not to leave?

My head was buzzing so much, my heart pounding so hard, but then Luke started to pull away from me. He was looking confused, then turned his head toward the door.

The door was open wide and North was standing there, a strained look in his eyes. His black T-shirt was wet, his slacks sticking to his skin. His mouth was open in shock. His dark eyes took in Luke, on top of me, in his own bed.

And then when I checked at the state we were in, I realized my shirt was askew on my body, and the boxers I’d put on had slid down a bit, really low on my hips. Luke’s pajama pants were down, too, almost off his butt.

Luke got up on his knees, dragging the pillow from behind me toward his waist, partially covering himself. “Hey,” he said, his voice a throaty grumble, waving his hand at North in a shooing motion.

North gripped the door handle until it creaked, the muscle in his arm tightening. He growled and then shot a look at Luke. “You can’t fucking be on her like that,” he snapped at him. “What the…I…” His face reddened, jumbled up curses falling out.

Luke’s head reeled back. “North, just go,” he said, pulling away from me.

I panicked, pulling the shirt down over my body, unsure what to say. My cheeks were so hot and I wanted to pull the pillow over my face. The look in North’s eyes was hard to understand, but he was clearly upset.

He broke away from the door, stepping into the room, pointing a long finger at Luke. “This house is upside down and you’re in here with her and...”

“Whatever it is, tell me later,” Luke barked, sitting back on his heels and then fixing the pants he wore, adjusting them on his hips. “You can’t just barge in.”

“This is
my
room! And why the hell isn’t your phone on? What’s wrong with her phone? And why is Kota’s car door still open in the rain? And what is that thing in the living room hiding in a dog house?”

The more questions he asked, the louder his voice got. His eyes darted from me to Luke and back. There were more unspoken questions he wasn’t asking, ones that were etched all over his face.

Jealousy.

Despite everything North had said, reassuring me, despite both of them who had said they were okay with this new plan, it still didn’t stop the jealousy.

I pulled back, sitting close to the frame of the bed, my knees pulled in to my chest. This wasn’t going to work.

Luke dropped the pillow, his feet, squaring off with North. “That’s our pet skunk. Sang and I just bought him.”

North pushed a palm against his forehead, his eyes somehow going wider than before. The floor under his feet creaked as he took a step back. “God, please don’t tell me you two found a skunk in the rain…”

“We bought him at the pet store,” Luke said. He pointed back at me. “She wanted it. I got it for her.”

That wasn’t totally true. He wasn’t explaining it right and I thought North would understand if Luke would just explain it correctly.

North’s eyes flared. “I find that hard to believe. She doesn’t need a skunk.”

“How do you know?” Luke asked.

“She’s never…” He looked at me, his face twisting in confusion. “Sang, you’ve never said anything about a skunk. Why would you want a skunk of all things?”

“It was at the pet store,” Luke said, stepping between North and me. “She thought it was cute. Stop yelling.”

“Well, now it’s here!” North said. He pointed his finger at Luke again. “And I’m not yelling. Where are we going to keep it? And that still doesn’t explain the mess in the kitchen. And the car and your phones. And then with Sang…”