Ever since the day outside of the school, when he pulled the Superman-speed crap, he felt like he was walking around on pins and needles. Bethany hadn’t brought it up again, but he knew she was thinking about it. Every so often, he caught her looking at him as if she were trying to really see him. See behind the clothes and the skin, to what really existed underneath.
Part of him liked that. The other part was terrified. If she ever found out…
Easing the Jetta down the narrow road choked with elm trees, he took a deep breath. No doubt she wouldn’t want anything to do with him if she knew that more than 90 percent of his DNA was from out of this solar system.
Was it wrong, lying to her? He wasn’t sure. Honestly, he’d never even asked himself that when he’d messed around with human girls before.
He had no clue what that really said about him.
The old farmhouse came into view, rising up against the gray skies of early April, and he saw three cars parked out front. One was a Porsche, which he knew belonged to her uncle.
Dawson had been surprised when she’d asked him last night if he wanted to come over. From what he’d gathered, her parents would flip if she brought a boy home. But here he was.
He parked the car and climbed out, smoothing his hands over his jeans. Probably should’ve worn something nicer. Not that he met a lot of human parents, since his interactions with human girls didn’t get this far.
Stopping in front of the door, he let out a long breath. Sneaking out so that Dee didn’t question where he was going had been the hard part. Parents would be a piece of cake.
Yeah, keep telling yourself that. Mom and Dad will be so proud that she brought home an alien.
Before he could knock on the door, it opened, revealing a tall, slender woman who looked waaay too young to be Bethany’s mom. Eyes that matched Bethany’s met his. The woman blinked and looked like she wanted to take a step back.
“You must be Dawson,” she said, placing a hand against her chest.
Dawson smiled. “Yes, ma’am. I’m here to see Bethany.”
Footsteps pounded down the stairs, cutting off Mrs. Williams’s response. Bethany appeared behind her mom, eyes wide. She wiggled around her, grabbing Dawson’s hand. She pulled him inside.
“Mom, meet Dawson. Dawson, meet Mom.”
Her mom arched a brow. “That’s not how you typically introduce people, Bethany.”
“Works for me,” she quipped, tugging him toward the stairs.
A man stepped out from what appeared to be a living room, a remote control in his hand and a confused expression on his face. “Uh…”
“And that’s Dad. Little butt — er, Phillip is taking a nap.” Over her father’s shoulder was a frail, thin wisp of a man. Dawson almost didn’t recognize him from the few times he’d seen the doctor around town. “And that’s my uncle.”
Dawson gave them a wave. “It’s nice to meet—”
“We’re going upstairs.” She started for the steps, shooting him a look that had him grinning.
“Keep the door open,” her mom called from the bottom.
“Mom,” Bethany whined, cheeks flushed. “It’s not like that.”
Dammit. He wanted it to be like that and then some. Her mother repeated the order again, and Bethany pulled him down the hallway.
“I’m so sorry. My mom thinks whenever a boy is in my bedroom that must mean we’re making out or something.” She dropped his hand, opening her door. “It’s so embarrassing.”
Dawson stepped around her, scanning her bedroom. Music played on low from her laptop. There wasn’t much going on, just the basics, with the exception of the easel sitting in front of the window. “Do you have boys in your bedroom a lot?”
She laughed as she skirted around him. “Oh, yeah, all the time. It’s like a train station in here.”
His brows shot up. He couldn’t tell if she was joking or not.
Seeing his expression, she laughed again. He loved that sound — loved that she laughed so much. “I’m joking,” she said, sitting down on the bed. She patted the spot next to her. “Actually, you’re the first boy to be in my bedroom.”
A rush of possessiveness hit him hard. Ignoring it, he sat beside her and leaned back, watching her from behind hooded eyes. “Well, you are new still. Unless you work fast, I’d hope I’m the first guy.”
She twisted around, sitting cross-legged. “I bet you’ve been in many, many girls’ bedrooms.”
He shrugged one shoulder.
Her eyes narrowed. “Come on, with someone who looks like you, there’s probably a line of girls hoping to take you home.”
“So?” He reached out, tugging on the hem of her jeans. “I’m here with you, aren’t I?”
“Yeah, you are.” She frowned. “Sometimes I wonder why.”
Dawson stared at her a moment, then laughed. She couldn’t be serious. There was no way she didn’t know how pretty she was or how her laugh drew people to her.
Her frown deepened. “Are you laughing at me?”
“Yes,” he replied. He shot forward, moving faster than he should have, and caught her hand. “You can’t tell me you’re surprised that I’m here. I’ve been your shadow since the first day you arrived.”
Beth’s eyes dropped to where his hand wrapped around hers. After a moment, she settled down. “I know I’m not ugly, but you’re…you’re…”
A grin pulled at his lips. “I’m what?”
Crimson stained her cheeks, and his grin spread into a smile. She pulled her hand free, but he didn’t think she was mad. “You know what you are,” she said, reaching over and picking up a large album. “Anyway, I found this old photo album. You want to look at it?”
He leaned back on his elbows. “We can do whatever you want.”
Her lashes lifted, and he felt as if he’d been punched in the stomach when their eyes met. No. Not that. Like when he shed his human skin and took his real form. That rush of pure electricity and power when his being became light.
That is what he felt when Bethany looked at him.
More than anything, he wanted to know what was going on in that head of hers, what was making her eyes so dark that it was almost difficult to tell the difference between her pupils and irises. Did she feel it? God, he hoped he wasn’t reading her wrong, because if so, this was all about to get really awkward.
But it wasn’t like humans were all that different from Luxen, once you got past the whole alien thing.
She showed him pictures of her family from Nevada, flipping through the album with a soft smile on her face as she made a comment about this relative and that one. But man, did he ever have a hard time paying attention to them.
All he wanted to see was sitting right next to him — on a bed, no less.
He couldn’t stop staring at her — at the finely arched eyebrows, her cheekbones, the way her lips curved, how she tilted her head—
Bethany laughed, lifting her chin. “You’re not even looking at the pictures, Dawson.”
He thought about lying but grinned instead. “Sorry. You’re distracting.”
“Whatever.”
She had no idea that he could literally stare at her all day. It was like he was obsessed. Whipped is what Daemon would say, but his brother didn’t understand. Hell, Dawson wasn’t even sure he understood what he was doing here, with this girl — this beautiful human girl.
This was trouble.
And he really didn’t care.
Over the low hum of music, he could hear her parents talking with the doctor. His eyes flicked to the bedroom door. Willing it closed the rest of the way with a soft click, he turned his attention back to Bethany, but she didn’t appear to notice.