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“In your bedroom?”
I didn’t answer.
“How about tonight, you two meet in my bedroom. How do you think he’ll like that?”
Hayden’s pushiness should’ve put me off. But it didn’t. All I could wonder about was how I could kiss him again without falling down the rabbit hole. “I told my little sister I’d spend the day with her. I have to go home.”
“What are your plans?” Hayden asked. “Are you taking her somewhere?”
It wasn’t even lunchtime. I had plenty of time to wear Bree out before di
“They have a ghost town there too.” He pulled up in front of my house.
I wished I’d paid attention to where we were headed. “Hayden, I can’t go anywhere without my car. Why didn’t you take me to your house where I left it?”
He got out and jerked his head toward the front door. “Let’s get your sister and we can argue on the way to that ghost town.”
“Wait.” I tried not to swoon over him rescuing me, then wanting to hang out with me and a five-year-old. “You’re really going to be seen with us?”
He gri
My mom met Hayden and me at the door. I wondered if she’d been spying through the window then chastised myself for doubting she’d done exactly that.
“Hi, sweetheart,” she said to me then held out her hand for him to shake, smiling politely. “I’m Vivie
“I’m Hayden. Nice to meet you. Tessa invited me to spend the day with Bree and her. Is that okay with you?”
“Oh, of course.” It was my mom’s turn to swoon. She promptly turned, looking flustered, and called out for Bree. “Do you think you’ll be back in time for di
“No, Mom, we’ll eat while we’re out. It’s a long drive. We should get going.” I zeroed in on Hayden, hoping he’d take the hint. No such luck. Bree appeared at my side and I took her hand in mine, ready to bolt.
“Actually, we already pla
My mom beamed. The traitor. Why take an interest in my life now?
“That sounds wonderful. I let Bree stay up as late as she wants on the weekends. Have fun.” She practically shoved us out the door, probably anxious for me to get started. The sooner I hooked up with Hayden, the sooner he’d be her son-in-law. I could almost see the dollar signs in her eyes.
And what was with Hayden? Why waste his day with us when he could be ski
Whatever. Once we returned to his house, I’d have my car and could leave any time I wanted. I had to admit though, it would be nice having company for our little outing.
I guided Bree through the front door, but froze at the passenger side of his car. “Dude, no back seat. Where are we supposed to put Bree?”
“On your lap for now. We’ll switch cars at my house.”
When we got there, he didn’t want to take my dinky Scion. We piled into his mom’s SUV and cranked the stereo. The long stretch of muted red sand sprinkled with pine trees and cactus flew by as we roared down the highway.
A few minutes into our trip, I glanced at Bree to discover she was sleeping. “Hayden, I have to talk to you about something.”
He turned down the stereo. “What’s up?”
God, where should I start? “This is going to sound crazy but when I told you last night that I read minds, I wasn’t joking.”
I waited, anticipating mockery.
“You read minds?” The corners of his mouth crept up. “If you say so.”
This was one of those times when I hated being right. “Actually, it’s not really reading minds. I see images, like a movie. I don’t hear words or anything.”
“You’re messing with me.” He kept his eyes on the road but glanced at me briefly. “Or you snuck a drink when I wasn’t looking.”
“How about a test? We have nothing better to do.”
He gave a half-hearted shrug. “Knock yourself out.”
“Imagine something and I’ll tell you what I see.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I flinched, anticipating where his mind might go. I immediately got a very clear picture of making out with him in Christina’s garage. Why would I expect anything else from him? At least he wasn’t remembering rolling around with someone else. “Nice. But I have my own visuals for that. I was there last night, remember? Think of something else.”
His mouth dropped open. “You saw you and me—”
“Making out in the garage.” I said the words aloud then cringed, scooting closer to the passenger side door. Not because the thought was repulsive but because I knew how little it had meant to him. “Can we move on?”
His eyes narrowed. “What am I seeing now?”
“You’re in an auditorium — a stadium or something. There’s an audience cheering.”
“That was when I won regional title. Aikido. It’s a type of martial arts.” He stared at me long enough that I had a savage urge to take control of the steering wheel, certain he’d get us into an accident. Instead, I double-checked that my seatbelt was properly fastened and pointed for him to turn his eyes ahead. His gaze returned to the road. “So you read minds?”
“Pretty much.”
“That’s…” Hayden shook his head. “You’re tricking me somehow.”
“Listen,” I said. “I can’t blame you for thinking that. We can keep doing this until you’re convinced.”
Six rounds later, his mouth gaped. “So… if, for instance, I had a fantasy about you, maybe imagined you naked, you’d see it.”
Damn. He’d better not do it on purpose just to make me crazy. “Except that I look better in your fantasies than in real life.”
“I doubt that.” He gri
I squirmed in my seat and he chuckled.
“The last few days of tutoring, every time I got, eh, distracted, you knew?”
“Unfortunately, yes. But we’re getting off the subject.”
“Not really. This is exactly the kind of thing I want to talk about.” He chuckled. “I thought it was weird how you always seemed to know.”
“Right. Listen. Agent Phillips and Principal Linton, they’re like me. Same with the people who drugged us today. Both parties talk crap about the other side. It’s hard to know who to trust.” I explained everything I’d learned and told him about Movers and Blockers, also Fawn’s calming effect on others. Since it was a long drive, I had plenty of time. “If you’re going to be my guardian angel, you need to know what you’re getting into.”
Hayden scoffed. “I think I can handle it.”
“Really? Everything’s going to be fine with only two of us and I don’t know how many of them?” I raised my brows.
“Actually, I have no idea. Look at it like an adventure. All the more reason for you to stay at my house.”
I didn’t get the obsession with me staying over. Didn’t get it at all. That’s what his other girls were for. Anyone he’d call would have infinitely more experience at satisfying a guy’s needs and probably didn’t require the hoop jumping that I did. “Hayden, what is your deal? If you want someone to stay the night, you have lots of girls you can call.”
He looked at me like I’d spoken in another language. “Yeah, if all I wanted was sex. That’s not why I want you to stay over.”
“So you’re saying you don’t want to have sex with me? Should I be offended?”
He laughed and raised a hand from the steering wheel. “Whoa. That’s not what I meant. Of course I want to get naked with you. But I want more than that. I like your company.”
It didn’t compute. He enjoyed just being around me? “Why?”
“When I’m with you, it’s easy. Fun. And I like the way you call me on it every time I get out of line.” He gri