“And if I knew she was going to bring Miles, I would never have encouraged her. Did you see him ogling me? I swear I felt defiled just being in his presence.” She shudders.
“I did. And, trust me, if things didn’t turn to crap, I would have kicked some Rycroft ass.” I bounce my lips off her forehead. The truth is I’m still sore as shit from the beating I received myself from Skyla’s idiot friends. “I swear to you, I don’t blame you for what happened tonight. You did nothing wrong. I apologize for even making you think you did.” I wrap my arms around her tight like a vice. What the hell was this mystery girl doing in Laken’s room anyway? Something about it feels too damn strange. But I’ll continue with the inquisition some other time.
Mom and Edinger spring through the entry and speed on over.
“Wesley, Laken.” Mom says Laken’s name in a curt manner, never a good sign. “The police have filed a report. We’ll know more after the autopsy regarding whether or not criminal activity played a role in the poor girl’s death. Are you sure you don’t know her last name?”
Laken shrinks a little and doesn’t say a word.
“I don’t. She just said her name was, Pearl.”
Edinger expels a hearty sigh. His cologne penetrates the air, thick and strangulating—far too sweet for my taste. The strong scent of cloves makes him smell more like a ham at Easter than the sophisticated douche he thinks he is.
Laken lets out a little laugh.
“What so funny?” Edinger’s eyes squint with a laughter all their own. He’s the only sub-human on the planet that smiles so damn much.
“Oh”—Laken squeezes my hand for help—“I heard Jen in the background say she just put in a batch of cookies, and I thought that’s just like my sister, always trying to make people feel better.” Thank God for Jen and her impractical culinary skills.
I bring her hand to my lips. I’m pretty sure Laken does a better job of making people feel better any day of the week. In fact I’m looking forward to her making me feel really good in the very near future.
“Young love.” Edinger spouts off for no reason. “It’s so beautiful to witness.” He cuts a hard look to Laken. “Be careful with your hearts. At this tender age they’re susceptible to a lifetime of damage. If you tell someone they’re your everything, you should most certainly mean it.”
Laken twists her lips. Good thing Wesley is my everything. She cuts me a little smile.
“I agree wholeheartedly.” Mom shoots him a look that could freeze middle earth.
“I smell cookies,” I say to Laken. “We’ll catch you two later.” I maneuver Laken and myself across the room, burying ourselves in the crowd to shield us from any more of Edinger’s bizarre and uncalled for relationship advice.
“Sounds like there’s trouble in paradise.” Laken glances back over at them.
“There is. She wants a ring and he wants a fling.”
“Sounds like a typical male, female relationship.”
It won’t be for us.
I pull her in as the music slows to a crawl and press my hips over hers. We move to the rhythm, and I moan into her ear. Laken has the ability to drive me wild from across the room let alone touching me in such an intimate way.
“Check that out,” she whispers, pointing to Jen and Jackson locked at the lips. “She’s gorging on his tongue as if it were a meal.”
Shit. I pan the room for my brother and spot him frozen in Jax Easton’s arms. He said the only reason he agreed to take her to homecoming was so he could keep an eye on Jen. Blaine plucks Jax off in haste as he migrates across the room at a quickened pace.
“Here we go,” I say under my breath.
Blaine wastes no time in dethroning Jackson as the victor of Jen’s lingual fluids and knocks him hard against the mantle just shy of setting the poor bastard’s ass on fire.
“Do something!” Laken jumps in a panic as Jen belts out a choir of hysterics.
Blaine pulls Jen in and thrusts his lips over hers. Their bodies remain perfectly still as they devour one another for the entire room to see.
“Oh Crap.” Laken spits it out disappointed. “I can’t stand to watch. I think I smell something burning. I’ll be right back.”
She takes off in her barely-there dress. Laken looks good in any color, but, hot damn, she’s setting sparks off with that