I feel his fingers trace over the back of my thigh as I bend to crawl in. I jolt a little, surprised by his forwardness in public.
“Knock it off, you’re going to have people talking about her,” Dante scolds, his voice low.
“Oh, come on! It’s not like they can see. Besides, they already are, might as well give them something to talk about.” Ollie drops into the seat next to me, and he looks in my direction before rolling his eyes dramatically.
I bite my lip,I should be worried about Dante’s words, but I don’t have the energy to care. I’m done with letting other people tell me how I should act, how I should behave. I’ve been invisible my entire life. I’m not anymore. “I don’t care what they say.” My voice is small, but I hear the truth to the words.
Dante slides into the driver’s seat, his eyes meeting mine in the rearview mirror. “You would if you knew what they were saying,” he counters, his jaw tight.
“No, I don’t think I would. It’seitherclose to the truth, or outright lies.” I raise my brow at him in challenge.
Dante spins so he’s leaning over the seat to talkto me, andOllie grabs my hand. “I’m not worried about what they’re saying. I’m worried one of them might try something with you because they think they could.” There’s so much left unsaid in that sentence and I’mprettysure I get thegist of it. The boys all think I’m easy. Giving it up to Ollie, maybe even Dante and Milo now. So he’s worried one of them will try something with me because they think I’m okay with hooking up.
I almost snort at the idea. If I was easy, I’d have slept with Ares one of the many times we’ve been alone together, or Dante for that matter. If Dante wasn’t so seriousright now,I’d roll my eyes and give Ollie a run for his money with the dramatics, but I can see the tautness in his jaw, the slight narrowing of his eyes—he’s not in a kidding mood.
I soften my expression, and give Dante a small shrug. “People will talk Dante. One day I’m holding Ollie’s hand, the next day yours, maybe even at the same time. I don’t want to hide anymore, I don’t wantto constantly worry about what people are thinking.”
Dante’s face changes the moment the words are out of my mouth. He reaches his hand over the seat and brushes his fingers against my cheek. “Idon’t want anyone bothering you. I don’t want them thinking they can touch you like that.”
With my free hand I cover his fingers on my face, bring them over to my lips, and kiss his knuckles. Dante’s lips part. “I know you’re just trying to protect me, but I can handle it, okay? Maybe if my mom thought I was strong enough to handle the truth, we wouldn’t be in the situation we’re in now.” I hope my kiss is enough to tell him I’m not upset. Iwant them to understand I’m not nearly as fragile as they think.
The passenger side door opens and Milo drops his bag on the floor, and then himself into the seat. “Sorry I’m late, the coach was trying to convince me to wrestle again.” Milo looks around the car and his brows furrow. “Everything okay?”
“Hi Milo, I missed you today,” I tell him while I still have the confidence running through my veins. “Everything’s fine,” I add, answering his question.
His eyes go a little wide, but he can’t hide the smile that blooms on his lips. “Missed you too.” Milo’s voice is low, almost a whisper.
Dante turns to face the front window as the purr of the engine rumbles to life.It takes us a few minutes to get out of the crowed parking lot, but before I know it, we’re speeding down the road that will take us back home, and to Ares.
Chapter 2
My hands are braced on my hips as I stare across the room at Ollie.His light hair is pulled back into a messy knot on top of his head. On most guys it would look ridiculous, but he looks amazing. The curve of his jaw and the blade of his cheekbone stand out more, and he couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than purely masculine.
As I watch him, his cool green eyes rake over me and I want to squirm, but I cock my hip out instead, my brow raised in a challenge. “It’s my turn to help you train.”
“Are you sure we shouldbe working on electricity? It’s always so much stronger when I’m working with you.”
“Yes, we need to see what you can do,” he tells me, fully confident in both of us.
Still reluctant, I reach for the power I feel within, and it’s right there on the surface. A crackling static rushes over my body. “Okay, I’m ready.”
“Good, I want you to pushalittle bitof what you feel out. Make sure you direct it.”
“Sure, because it’s that easy,” I mutter, closing my eyes to shut out how distracting he is. I picture the kiddie pool filled with sand a few feet away. I point my finger at the sand, visualizing the energy shooting in that direction, and give it a little push.
“Whoa, whoa, too much,” comes Ollie’s urgent warning.
I stop the flow immediately and the energy snaps back, coiling inside me. I grit my teeth, the vibration is almost more than I can handle. I yank my eyes open as panic overwhelms me. What if I can’t hold the energy, what if it explodes out of me again and fries the wiring? Or worse, hurts someone?
Ollie approaches, his steps slow and measured. “It’s okay Laura,” he soothes me, his voice calm and gentle.
“Don’t touch me,” I warn, shaking my head. I’d probably sizzle his heart if he touched me right now.
“Laura, look at me.”
I’m scanning the room, looking for any place to go to get away from him, or anyone else I might hurt. When my eyes finally land on him, he’s way too close. I back up, the hair on my head tingling.
“It’s okay, listen to my voice, listen.” He comes even closer.“Your ability is tied to me,right? You can feel it, how it binds us together.”
