Between the Lives - By Jessica Shirvington Page 0,58
shook my head. Ethan must’ve thought his message was hilarious. My anger flared. Who was he to start spouting that kind of crap to me? At least it hadn’t given me away to Dex.
‘Sabine?’ Dex prompted, beginning to look annoyed.
‘Oh, sorry. I, um … I don’t know. Lucas didn’t say. Are you sure that’s the translation.’
‘Yes.’
I started to write it down.
‘If it’s just a quiz, why are you so upset?’
Only then did I realise I was still shaking my head. I stopped. ‘It’s just stupid. My brother can be such a weirdo,’ I said, trying to recover.
Dex knew how fragile my relationship was with Lucas. I hoped he’d buy my excuse as I pulled myself together. To my relief, he nodded. ‘It’s nice that you’re trying to do something for him. He’s not so bad, just the quiet type.’
I smiled and stroked his face. ‘Thanks.’ I gave him a brief kiss and we relaxed back into the night, sharing a plate of nachos and then disappearing into a corner to share a number of sub-ten-second kisses. I guessed if you added them all together, I was improving.
It was Lucy who interrupted us, pulling me away from a somewhat frustrated Dex.
‘So, I haven’t asked Noah to the graduation dinner yet,’ she told me and Miriam as we perched by the jukebox.
‘Why are you grinning from ear to ear then?’ I asked.
She squealed. ‘Because he asked me!’
If ever there was a moment for a group hug, this was it.
Miriam settled us down. ‘Look how perfect everything is. Me and Brett, Sabine and Dex, and now you and Noah. What were the chances of us all turning up to graduation with our dream guys?’
‘Totally! I can’t believe it!’ Lucy trilled.
I couldn’t quite muster the same enthusiasm, but I put on a good show for Lucy’s sake until I noticed the wall clock.
‘Oh, guys, I’ve got to go. I didn’t realise how late it was.’
My stomach turned over. How could I not have seen the time? It was already 11 p.m. and it was at least fifteen minutes home by car.
‘Is anyone driving?’ I asked, panicking when I remembered I didn’t have a ride home.
‘Sorry, Sabine. I came with Brett and we gave Lucy, Josh and Ollie a lift. It’s a full car. What about Dex?’
An arm snaked around my belly from behind. ‘What about Dex?’ he whispered in my ear.
‘She needs a lift home,’ Miriam said brightly. ‘You wouldn’t mind, would you?’
‘Of course not.’ He squeezed me a little tighter and I forced myself not to squirm.
‘Okay, well, that’s all decided then.’ Miriam threw me a coy look. ‘No all-night partying again tonight, Sabine. You need your beauty sleep.’ She winked suggestively before spinning on her heel with Lucy in tow.
Dex’s grip around my waist tightened to uncomfortable as we walked to his car.
‘What was Miriam talking about?’ His voice was rough. ‘Did you go out last night?’
‘No, no!’ I said quickly. ‘She was just teasing me because I looked so tired this morning. I didn’t go out, Dex.’
His grip loosened and I stepped away from him.
‘Are you sure nothing else is going on? You seem … different lately.’
Shit.
I needed to fix this. Now.
I smiled sweetly. ‘Different good, or different bad?’ And before he had a chance to answer, I stepped into his arms and kissed him like I’d never kissed him before. For the first time ever, Dex was the one to pull away, breathing heavily.
‘Promise me you aren’t seeing someone else,’ he demanded.
My hesitation only lasted a split second. ‘I’m not.’
Dex cupped the side of my face in his hand. ‘Kiss me again, Sabine. Like you did just then.’ Something about his tone made it seem as if he was daring me to refuse.
I didn’t.
I did everything necessary to assure both of us that Dex was the guy for me. The seconds went by; I tried not to count until he finally pulled back, satisfied with my response. As I opened my eyes, I was shocked by my feeling of disappointment – I’d been wishing to see someone else’s face.
Was it possible? Was that irritating, game-playing, cynical guy getting under my skin? Was that why it was so important that he know the truth?
‘Oh god, Sabine. I can’t wait for Monday night.’ Dex traced a line from my brow down to my bottom lip.
I forced thoughts of Ethan aside and fixed a sultry smile on my face.