Prologue
Blackwell, South Carolina, two weeks earlier
Pepper sat back on Jess’s sofa, his feet lounging on the coffee table. To an outsider it might have looked as though the boys were bored, but they were deep in thought. “Maybe we could find one at our school…” Peter thought out loud. Pepper simply ignored the dumb comment while the other two boys stared at Peter with facial expressions that said ‘are you serious?’ “If there was one at our school we would have found it by now” Jess insisted in an agitated tone. Mitch pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. “This is a waste of time…we should just leave everything how it is” the pitch in Mitch’s voice was argumentative. No one commented on what he had said. Pepper sat up then, flipping his dark shaggy hair out of his face. “I had a dream the other night about one…I think we could find her, I have a feeling she’s close” he stated, looking upward as if thinking it over. The other boys sighed in unison. “How many times are we gonna have to look?” Mitch groaned. “Who’s going to be the one to do it?” Peter asked. Suddenly all three boys laid their eyes on Pepper. He cracked a small smile that seemed almost taunting. “I was hoping you’d choose me” he said smoothly.
Chapter One
Keller, South Carolina, present day
Delilah got out of her silver Toyota Camry and made her way into the school. Tess, her closet friend, waved and waited for her at her locker. Tess looked the complete opposite of Delilah. She was pale, curvy and brown headed with blue forget-me-not colored eyes. Delilah was olive toned; model sized skinny and had raven black hair with honey brown eyes. “Did you do your English essay?” Tess asked, as they walked to class side by side. Delilah nodded. “Finished it last night, you?” before Tess could answer someone ran right into her, knocking her backwards. “Watch where you’re going” Tess frowned as she stood. “Sorry” the boy apologized, handing Tess her books from off the ground.
Delilah was sure she had never seen him before, she would have remembered him. He had stylish dark shaggy hair that covered most of his eyes, which from what she could tell were a gray so dark they seemed black. He was fair skinned and at least a head taller than her. She wondered if he was a freshman or sophomore, then she noticed his lean but muscular build and decided he had to at least be a junior. Tess must have noticed what Delilah had because the next thing that came out of her mouth was, “Who the heck are you?” The boy eyed Tess then Delilah, as if deliberating to tell them or not. “Pepper James” he said in a matter of fact way. Tess smiled, in what Delilah had once called her flirty smile. Tess put her hand to her chest, “Tess Gables”, then she pointed to Delilah, “That’s Delilah York” Delilah stared at the boy named Pepper and gave a weak smile, and then she looped arms with Tess and tugged their way to their classroom. “Don’t want to be late to class” she mumbled when Tess seemed to tug away.
At lunch Tess couldn’t seem to stop talking about the new boy. “Isn’t that a weird name?” she went on. Delilah shrugged as she took a sip from her tea. “Pepper…hmm…Tess and Pepper, how does that sound?” Tess asked as she ran her hands through her golden brown hair. Delilah sighed in exasperation. “Sorry to tell you this but he’s not your type” she took another sip of tea. “What do you mean?” her forehead creasing. Delilah rolled her eyes. “Remember what you said at the beginning of the year?” Delilah asked, toying with her mashed potatoes. Tess cocked her head to the side, narrowing her muted blue eyes as if trying to remember. “No…remind me” she demanded. “You said that you were only going to date football players and he is definitely not a football player” Delilah pointed her fork at Tess for emphasis. Tess grinned. “Your right…did you see what he was wearing? Converse, dark jeans dark shirt, he’s not my type at all, but there’s an exception to every rule” she winked. Delilah smiled as she eyed Pepper from across the crowded lunch room. “Speaking of exceptions” Delilah said, slyly pointing behind Tess with her fork. Tess turned her head, scanning the lunch room. “I hope we have some classes together, it will put a damper on our relationship if we never get to see each other in school…” Tess’s voice tolled off. “Not to be the bearer of bad news but he puts off a certain…vibe that screams ‘back off’… and if you ask me he looks like trouble” Delilah admitted. Tess rolled her eyes. “I love trouble” Tess said with a devilish smile on her face.
At the end of the day Delilah was surprised to see Pepper in her chair. She eyed Tess, who was at the back of the class. Tess simply shrugged and began doodling in her notebook. Delilah sighed and took the seat next to the strange boy. The world history teacher, Mr. Gale walked in as the bell rang. His class was the easiest class to pass because all they had to do was take notes and watch videos. He eyed the class room with his bird like eyes; Delilah always thought he resembled a hawk. “Where’s the new student?” he asked in his monotone voice. Delilah looked over at Pepper, who was slouched down in his chair and looking like the definition of comfortable. He looked over at her and held her stare long enough to make her olive skin warm, she looked away, feeling uncomfortable and oddly nervous. She fidgeted momentarily then began copying notes. Mr. Gale picked up a piece of paper off his desk and eyed it. “Pepper James, is he here?” he scanned the room again. Pepper sighed and lifted his hand, but held his slouching stance. Mr. Gale narrowed his eyes then gathered a stack of papers off his desk and gave him the papers. “This is what you’ve missed so far, this class isn’t hard so you should catch up rather easily” Mr. Gale said, then went to his desk and began typing on his computer in a dull rhythm that the class had grown use to. Pepper stared up at the board then over at Delilah. She felt his dark eyes on her and tried to ignore him. She heard him sit up and out the corner of her eye she saw him leaning his elbow on the table with his head in his hand, facing her. She turned her head slightly towards him and gave him a look that asked ‘what do you want?’ He flashed a smile that looked part teasing and something else that Delilah couldn’t put her finger on.
“You’re going to take all those notes?” his tone was close to disbelief. Delilah furrowed her brows and nodded, making her ponytail bob. “Why wouldn’t I?” she asked, feeling slightly defensive. He stared at her a second longer then sat up and began taking notes. Delilah fought against a smile, she felt like a good influence. Then he slid his notes toward her and she stared at what he wrote. She frowned. He hadn’t been taken notes, he had written down his phone number. “What’s this for?” she mumbled. “What do you think?” he asked in a tone that implied Delilah was slow when it came to these types of things, which in retrospect was true, but she didn’t want him to know that. That’s when a thought came to her. She smiled, which seemed to make him curious of what she was thinking. He leaned in, waiting for her answer, making her uncomfortable. “I know what you want” Delilah stated nonchalantly. He raised his dark brow, which was not visible because of his hair. “And what’s that?” he pushed, a slight smile threatened to show. She turned in her chair and looked at the corner of the room where Tess was applying make-up. Pepper followed her glaze and realized what she was implying. He frowned. “I don’t want her, guess you’re clueless when it comes to me” he shrugged, seeming satisfied that Delilah was clueless. “I don’t even know you” she muttered. Delilah wondered what he was talking about. What did he want?
When the bell rang, Delilah walked out of the class room, leaving Pepper’s phone number on the table. Delilah wasn’t dumb and when it came to her instincts she followed them. She had the feeling that Pepper was trouble and she should stay away, she planned to listen.
When Delilah got to her road her eyes went to the driveway. Josh, her older brother, wasn’t home. Delilah had lived with Josh ever since their dad had walked out on them. He was most likely at work, towing cars and what not. She sighed as she went into the house. She usually spent most of her time alone nowadays. After she did her homework, ate, and took a shower she started on a load of laundry. As she was emptying her pants pockets she pulled out a folded piece of paper. It was the pants that she had worn to school. She didn’t remember putting anything in her pockets. She unfolded it and frowned at the paper in confusion. It was Pepper’s number. She remembered leaving the paper on her desk. Had she absentmindedly put it in her pocket? She shook her head. There was no way she had put it in her pocket. Delilah jumped at the sound of the front door slamming closed. “Oh baby sister!” Josh called. Delilah rolled her eyes, she was hardly a baby anymore, they were only four years apart. She threw the pants in the washer and closed it. She made her way to her brothers voice, Pepper’s number still in her hand. “You’re home early” she said, eyeing her brother as he made a sandwich. He shrugged as he searched around the fridge for more fillings for his sandwich. He grabbed the mayonnaise and pickle jar. “It was a slow day” he said as he opened the mayonnaise and spread it on his bread with a butter knife. Delilah stared at him a second longer. They had some comparisons. He was olive skinned and raven haired, but he had deep green eyes like their mother while Delilah had bright honey eyes like their father. He had a muscular build from laborious work; Delilah on the other hand was what most of her family called a ‘skinny minnie’ and she came off as fragile to most, which was true. She then turned and made her way to her room.
As she walked pass her dresser, she placed Pepper’s number in her jewelry box; which she used for a piggy bank and memo holder. She had never been one to wear jewelry, unless she counted the top of her ear which she always had an earring in. She flopped down on her bed and stared at her small room. The walls were a powder blue color, the carpet was a royal blue and her curtains and comforter were stripped with both colors. The walls and carpet had already been that color since she lived here and she had never felt like changing them so she just got curtains and comforters to match. She didn’t even particularly like the color blue but then again she didn’t particularly like any color. Delilah’s phone went off loudly, causing her to flinch. She got off her bed and retrieved her phone. “Hello” she answered. “What are we doing this weekend?” Tess asked, not bothering to greet Delilah properly. “Nothing” but she sounded unsure like it was a question. “We should go to the movies…Vince asked me to go with him and you know how my parents are…I need a chaperone” Tess admitted. Delilah smacked her forehead with the palm of her free hand. “I don’t know…” she mumbled. “Please, I’ll pay for you and your food” Tess begged. Delilah hated when Tess did this to her. She always made her a third wheel or sometimes worse, like the time when Tess’s date brought his friend…that night had been horrible and very awkward. Delilah groaned. She could never seem to say no to Tess. “Fine, but don’t you think Pepper will be mad when he finds out you’ve been seeing other guys?” Delilah teased. “Umm…Pepper…I’ll have to find the right time to strike him” Tess said, thinking out loud. Delilah laughed. “You make yourself sound like a snake” she told Tess. “Hmm…do you think he likes snakes? I bet he does…” Tess’s words trailed off. “Goodnight Tess” Delilah said after a minute of silence passed. “Tell Josh I said sweet dreams” Tess said then hung up. Delilah laughed. Tess had always had a crush on her brother and she found it funny while he found it disturbing. She went to bed soon after that.
Chapter two
Delilah struggled to pay attention to Tess as she ranted about the school’s lunch. Delilah was feeling a little groggy and had had a hard time paying attention to much of anything all day. She hadn’t gotten much sleep for the past few days and it was affecting her attention span. She tried to think of what was waking her up at night and couldn’t think of anything in particular. All she knew was that she would jump awake from her sleep and was unable to fall back. She doubted she had had any nightmares, she would remember.
In fact, she had been having a dreamless sleep for the past few nights. Maybe stress? She wondered. “Did you hear me?” Tess asked, waving a miniature carrot stick in her face. “Umm…what did you say?” she asked, staring up at Tess. Tess sighed. “I said that it looks like it’s just you and me going to the movies… Vince is a total ass” Tess sounded aggravated from having to repeat her self. “What happened?” she asked. Tess gave Delilah a concerned look. “Are you ok? You’ve been acting weird lately…I like just told you everything that happened between me and Vince, is there something you need to tell me?” Tess asked being overly dramatic like she always was. “No…I just haven’t been getting much sleep” Delilah explained. “Oh no, don’t tell me that you’re on drugs…or worse, are you prostituting after school?” Tess joked with a straight face. Delilah laughed, almost spitting her tea all over herself. “Me? Prostituting? You’re funny” Delilah grinned. Just then someone took the empty seat next to her. “How much you charge?” someone taunted. Delilah turned in her seat to find Pepper smirking. Her eyes widened with embarrassment and her olive toned face reddened. Tess responded before Delilah could. “Sorry, she just told me she’s getting out of the business” Tess shrugged. Delilah stared over at Tess. She grinned. “Too bad” Pepper’s rosy lips pulled upward into a smile but his smoky gray eyes seemed to be holding agitation, from what she had no clue. Until she noticed him eye Tess and an impatient expression came upon his face. Delilah gave him a look, communicating with her eyes, asking what his problem was. To her surprise his smile returned and he winked. She looked away as he stood and walked off without another word.
“He is totally into you!” Tess shrieked as she watched him disappear into the lunch crowd. Delilah flushed and averted her eyes, staring at the monstrosity the lunch ladies called lasagna. “Don’t say that” she mumbled, feeling uncomfortable. “I guess you can have him…I still have Josh to fall back on…but there’s just something about a bad boy that gets my blood rushing” she then sighed heavily at the loss of something that hadn’t even been hers. “Sorry to let you down again but Josh isn’t interested and he’s too old for you” Delilah said, hoping to change the subject. “Twenty-one is not that old and he is interested…he’s just playing hard to get” Tess said with the flip of her golden brown hair. Delilah sighed. Tess was dead serious and Delilah knew it.
Ever since Pepper’s first day at Keller High, Delilah had ignored him which seemed to make things worse. She felt he was determined, why and for what, she didn’t know but she knew something was strange about him. That’s why she didn’t trust him and had no intention in getting to know him any farther. But he seemed to have other plans in mind.
“Why don’t you ever talk to me?” Pepper asked as Mr. Gale switched off the light and attempted to turn on a movie about the civil war. Delilah avoided his eyes and shrugged. He narrowed his eyes at her, as if thinking. “Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked. Delilah flushed at his forwardness. “No” she answered truthfully, then wishing she had lied. His lips twitched as if fighting a smile. “What?” Delilah asked. He shook his head, excluding her from his secret joke. “What are you doing this weekend?” he asked, changing the subject. Delilah brushed her raven hair out of her face. She shrugged. “Hanging out with Tess” she answered, her voice guarded. His face hardened just the tiniest bit. “Do you not like Tess?” Delilah asked, as Mr. Gale finally got the movie going. Pepper smiled but it was a wicked smile that made Delilah feel uncomfortable. “What’s to like?” he shot back. Delilah took that as a rhetorical question. She felt a little defensive, he obviously didn’t like Tess and that bugged her.
She stared at the movie wondering how long her head had been hurting without her noticing. She closed her eyes and rubbed at her temples. “What are you two doing tonight?” he asked suddenly. Delilah opened her eyes and looked over at him. “I’m not sure…why?” she lied, knowing completely well that they were going to the movies. He shrugged. “Thought I’d convince you to go to the movies with me” he said nonchalantly. Delilah’s eyes widened. What if she saw him there tonight? She would just ignore him, simple as that she told herself. “I don’t even know you” she mumbled. His lips twitched again, fighting back a smile. “Well, if you would talk to me then we wouldn’t be strangers, would we?” he asked. Delilah moved around in her seat uncomfortably. She was about to be honest with him. “I have enough friends and I don’t need anymore” she said, looking at the blurry war going on in the movie. “Who said anything about being friends?” he asked, cocky. Delilah looked away, hiding a smile. For some reason she thought what he said was hilarious. Because it will never happen, she told herself. “So, will you?” he asked, sounding exasperated. She shook her head, acting distracted by the movie. “Fine then” he said but he sounded surprised, like he had never been turned down before. Probably hasn’t, but he better get used to it, Delilah thought to herself. She suddenly thought of all the guys over the years that she turned down and realized she had never been on a date unless she counted that horrible double date Tess had set up, and who would want to count that? She tried to ignore his dark glaze for the rest of the movie, and found it very awkward.
When Delilah pulled into her driveway she noticed her brother’s white pickup. She got out of her car and hurried into the house, trying to get out of the early January wind. She walked in the side door. The old brick house had three exits, the front door to the living room, the side door in the kitchen and the back door in the laundry room. She closed the door loudly, making her presence known. She remembered the time she came home from school to find his girlfriend at the time walking around naked, he had been in the bathroom and she had been too shocked to say anything about it to him.
She walked through the kitchen and down the hallway to her bedroom. As soon as she walked in her phone rang in her pocket. “Hello” she said, already knowing it was Tess without looking at the screen. “Are we still going or are you going to stay home and read the dictionary?” Tess teased. Tess had always thought that Delilah’s love of books was unnatural and she teased her about it when ever she could. “Do you want me to meet you there or are you going to pick me up?” she asked, ignoring Tess’s teasing. “You know what? I’m feeling extra generous today…I’ll pick you up” Tess said sounding like she was waiting for a thank you. “Oh thank you great one! What would I ever do without you?” Delilah teased, sounding like a peasant praising its savior. “You are most welcome; oh no, I have grown a soft spot for the little people!” Tess shrieked jokingly. “What time are you coming?” Delilah asked, dropping the joking. Tess paused. “Hmm…be ready around seven” she answered. “Yep” Delilah said. Tess hung up without another word.
Delilah had tried to take a nap but still felt restless and on top of that her head was steadily throbbing. She sighed as she went to the kitchen for medicine for her headache. Afterwards she went to her room to change her clothes. She slid on a pair of dark skinny’s and a tank top with a cardigan then decided to wear her tan colored Ugg boots. She then went to go brush her teeth.
“Going somewhere?” Josh asked, sneaking up behind Delilah and causing her to jump. “To the movies with Tess…is that ok?” she asked, forgetting that she hadn’t asked him. After all he was her older brother and sometimes he seemed to be like the father both wished they could have, though Josh did seem to get a little over protective at times. He shrugged. “Sure” he said, acting as if he didn’t care. He turned to leave the tiny bathroom. “One more question” she said. He paused and turned slightly, waiting for the question. “Should I wear my hair up or down?” she asked a grin on her face, knowing that when she asked him those types of questions he got agitated. But he just simply smiled and turned to leave. “Up, don’t want your hair blowing in your face” he said as he made his way up the hall. A little surprised by her brothers answer, she obeyed, brushing all of her soft raven hair into a ponytail but her side swept bang that Tess insisted was too long and warned that if she falls into an open pothole from not being able to see she would not be held liable. Delilah thought that was ridiculous and had laughed for a long time.
At a quarter till eight Delilah heard a knock at the front door. Josh had beaten her to it. She watched as he let Tess in, a frown on his face. No doubt Tess had said something perverted to him. She walked over to Tess. “You ready?” Delilah said moving towards the front door. Tess held her arm out to stop her. “Wait I have to tell you something…and you’re going to hate me” Tess said as she lowered her head as if ashamed. “What is it?” Delilah asked feeling worried. Tess waited until Josh left the room. “Umm…Vince is coming with us, he’s uh…giving us a ride, is that ok?” she asked with a frown. Delilah sighed and feigned a smile. “Sure it’s ok” she said trying to hide her disappointment. “Look on the bright side” Tess said. “And what’s that?” she asked. “You get go to the movies for free” she smiled. “Have fun Dill” Josh called from some where down the hall. It was his nickname for her, a little inside joke. When their great grandma was alive they used to visit her and she would always call Delilah, Dililah and Josh thought it was funny so he shortened it and had called her that ever since. They walked outside to Vince’s car. “Hey” Vince greeted as he pulled out of the driveway. “Hey” Delilah mumbled as she looked out the backseat window. Delilah didn’t necessarily like Vince. He was tall, blonde haired; blue eyed, and a total jock. He was on the football team and never let anyone forget it. Delilah stayed quite for the whole ride.
Chapter three
They arrived at the Midline theaters at five till eight, since their small town didn’t have much everyone always went to Midline, which was just one town over. Vince chose the movie which was called final combat. Delilah wasn’t that picky when it came to movies unless it was a horror movie, though she didn’t like to admit it, she got scared pretty easily. They found the screening that was playing their movie quickly. Almost all the seats were taken, forcing Delilah to seat on the other side of Vince. How awkward, Delilah thought, they’re going to be making out right next to me. As she looked up at the screen the movie came on, the medicine for her headache hadn’t done much and her week of missing sleep suddenly washed through her body. She rubbed her temples and tried to act like she didn’t notice Vince and Tess swapping saliva. Why did I agree to this? She asked herself. Oh, that’s right, because I’m a total push over. She thought to herself. While the movie tolled on Delilah scanned to see if there was an open seat, preferably without anyone making out near it. She didn’t see any available. She slouched down in her seat and looked up at the screen. It seemed that two archenemies were going to have to work together to defeat a common enemy. How predictable, she thought. She looked away, sure that the screen was making her headache worse. She also had a strange feeling, like she was being watched. She looked around and didn’t see anyone staring. It was about twenty minutes into the movie when Vince and Tess decided to take a break. Tess looked over at Delilah guiltily.
Delilah ignored her and acted like she was watching the movie. Vince wiped his mouth, which was probably sticky from Tess’s strawberry lip gloss. Delilah scrunched her face in disgust, not that she meant to. He looked over at her and smiled. His smile was lopsided and seemed to dare her to challenge him. When she did not respond he playfully elbowed her. She gave him a ‘don’t mess with me’ look. She was starting to feel grumpy from lack of sleep. He got the hint and went back to kissing Tess. Delilah was now positive that she didn’t like Vince; he was a jerk. Tess always dated jerks and then wondered why she could never have a stable relationship. After another fifteen minutes, Tess sprang up and stage whispered that she had to go to the bathroom. Delilah stayed where she was, too aggravated to follow. Tess left saying she would return with more popcorn. Vince sighed, seeming happy. He turned towards Delilah. She stared at him. “How long do you think it’ll take for her to get back?” he asked. She shrugged, wondering why he would ask such a stupid question. That’s when he laid his hand on her knee. She gave him a wide eyed stare, shocked. He leaned in, about to kiss her. “I’ve always thought you were cute, a little skinny, but still cute” he whispered, his mouth almost brushing hers. She reacted without thinking. She reached out and slapped his face. “You’re disgusting” she muttered as she stood up. He grimaced, looking like he was about to lash out at her, but she was already walking away. She stopped in the lobby and leaned against a vending machine. She was glad she never wore make up, because if she did her mascara would have been running down her cheeks. She brushed her bang out of her eyes and wiped under her eyes. She knew that she had no reason to cry but she was tired, had a headache and her lack of sleep was making her feel emotional. She turned, about to walk to the bathroom to figure out how she was getting home.
There was no way that she was going to tell Josh what happened, he would get angry and they would probably get into an argument. There was also no way that she was going to stay and ride home with Vince. She was almost to the bathroom when someone grabbed her arm. She turned; about to tell Vince to leave her alone, but her words got stuck in her throat. Pepper stood before her clad in his usual getup; dark jeans, dark shirt, and converse. His usually dark eyes were bright and mesmerizing. Delilah gently pulled away. “What do you want” she sniffed, knowing that her face was spotted red from crying. He gave her a sympathetic look. “I saw what happened” he said, stepping closer. Delilah furrowed her dark brows. Just because Vince was a jerk doesn’t make Pepper a good guy, Delilah reminded herself. He held out his hand. She stared at it blankly. His lips twitched, fighting a smile. “Come on” he said grabbing her hand, leading her back towards the screenings. “Where are we going?” she asked as he paused to see which movie he wanted to sneak into. After some deliberation he drug her into one, she didn’t get to see the name. As they took their seats near the back she realized that he had chosen a scary movie. As theatrical music began to play loudly the movie goers began to scream in unison. Delilah looked at the screen to see what everyone was screaming about. There was a child that seemed to be evil and he was viciously killing, what Delilah guessed, his mother. She put her feet up and hugged her legs, her face on her knees and turned towards Pepper. She knew he could feel her staring at him but he didn’t seem to mind. His smooth complexion seemed to glow off of the light of the movie. He flipped his shaggy hair out of his eyes, his face emotionless as the others who were watching the movie screamed again.
Her phone vibrated in her back pocket, she cringed. When she opened her phone she saw she had gotten a text from Tess asking where she was. Vince is a jerk so I’m watching a different movie, she answered. What did he do? She asked. Delilah bit her lip. I’ll tell you later, ok? She typed. Fine, Tess answered. Delilah closed her phone and stuck it in her back pocket, her arm still wrapped around her legs. She looked up to find Pepper staring. She didn’t know what to say so she closed her eyes and ignored him. Exhaustion washed over her again, this time stronger. She felt as though she could actually go to sleep and wondered if it had anything to do with Pepper’s presence. Soon she felt herself drifting off only to open her eyes when she felt Pepper’s light breathing near her face. “I don’t think the movie is that boring” he whispered near her ear. She smiled despite herself. He leaned away seeming satisfied that he put a smile on her face. She peeked up at the screen to see a different little boy running from the evil one. She watched as the good little boy and the evil one fought, flinching when the evil one bit the good one’s ear almost completely off. Near the end of the boy’s battle the good one found a weapon and stabbed the evil one, killing him. Then it showed a year later, the good boy sleeping soundly in his bed, suddenly the evil one appeared, standing over the good one and slit his throat, the screen went black and the credits began to scroll upward.
Delilah looked over at Pepper who started to stand. He didn’t seem affected by the movie at all. She stood and followed him out into the lobby. Just then her phone vibrated. She opened her phone. Tess asked her if her movie was over yet. She didn’t want to answer. Yes, she typed. Delilah began to walk towards Tess’s movie not intending to say goodbye to Pepper. Pepper grabbed her wrist. “Where do you think you’re going?” he asked. “Home” she said but it came out like a question. He slid his hand down her wrist to entwine his fingers with hers. Her heart reacted to the contact by thumping loudly. Delilah scowled at him. “Let’s go home then” he said as he pulled her towards the exit doors. Delilah tried to pull away but her weak arms seemed to be ok with leaving with some strange, maybe even dangerous, boy. “I’m not going anywhere with you” she warned. He stopped near the exit. “So you’re telling me, you would rather ride home with him than ride with me?” he seemed offended. Delilah stared at their enlaced hands then sighed. “Straight home?” she asked. He shrugged. “If that’s what you want” he answered, already leading them outside. Delilah reached for her phone with her free hand. I’ve got a ride, she told Tess. After five seconds she responded. Omg! Is that you leaving with Pepper? I can like totally see you! She typed. Delilah frowned and didn’t answer. Is he holding your hand? Omg, I totally hate you right now, I’m stuck with Vince while you get Mr. Bad boy, why is life so unfair? She asked. Delilah tried not to laugh but couldn’t hold it in. Pepper stared at her with curious eyes. She shook her head as if saying he wouldn’t understand.
He came to a stop at a 1999 black mercury cougar. “You wanna drive?” he asked, his cockiness seemed to always be enlaced in his voice. She shook her head and went to the passenger’s side. He grinned and unlocked the doors. As they pulled out of the theater Delilah’s phone vibrated. She stared at the screen. Josh was calling. She looked over at Pepper as she answered her phone. “Hey” she greeted. “Howdy” he said, his voice slightly slurred. “Are you home yet?” he asked rather loudly. Delilah could hear muffled sounds and she instantly knew he was at a bar. “I’m on my way now, tell Rob and Chase I said hi” she smiled. Rob and Chase were Josh’s best friends. “Will do” he said then hung up abruptly. She slid her phone in her pocket murmuring to herself how she hates it when he goes out. Pepper must have heard her soft complaining. “Parents?” he asked, causally. Delilah looked at him, debating if she wanted to tell him something so personal or not. “No, my mom died when I was in middle school and my dad ran out a couple of years after that” she answered. He was silent. “Sorry” he whispered. “Its ok” she mumbled, looking out the window. He paused, thinking. “I thought you said you didn’t have a boyfriend” he accused. Delilah looked over at him then grinned devilishly. She wondered if she should tease him and say that she lived with her boyfriend but her smile faded and she felt too tired to tease. “I don’t, I live with my older brother. Turn left on Iverson” she said as she directed him to her house. He obeyed. “How old is he?” he asked. “Keep straight, he’s twenty one” she answered. “And your sixteen?” he asked. Delilah looked out the window. “No, I’m seventeen” she answered. “How old are you?” she asked, still staring out the window. “Seventeen” he said sounding bored with her question. “Left” she ordered as they came to another stop sign. “So, it’s just you two that live at your house?” he asked. Delilah could see what he was getting at. “Yes” she answered, her voice guarded. He looked over at her, waiting. “What?” she asked. “Which house?” he asked a smile about to show. Delilah flushed. “Third one on the left” she muttered.
She got out and, as she expected, he followed. She went to the side door, which was the one she used the most. Delilah could feel Pepper’s eyes on her back as she tried to unlock the door. It was deathly cold and she wanted nothing more than to lie down in her warm bed. She heard Pepper draw nearer. She turned to face him. She sucked in a chilling breath. He had come very close to her; the only thing that separated them was a tiny inch of cold air. He stared down at her, his dark gray eyes piercing, causing her heart to beat wildly. She backed away, against the door. He smiled wickedly, stepping closer as he did so. “Thanks for the ride” she whispered, her hand feeling for the door knob. Again there was only a slither of cold air between them as Delilah’s hand fumbled for the door knob. “You’re welcome” he said, his cocky voice lowered. She sighed when her fingertips came in contact with the knob. He leaned in, his eyes locking with hers, refusing to let her get distracted. She turned the door knob and took a step back, into the house. Pepper grinned. “Goodnight” Delilah breathed, trying to calm her thrumming heart. “Not going to invite me in?” he asked, his smile widening. She shook her head. “My brother would kill you” she said a smile forming at the idea of Josh clabbering Pepper. “I think I would survive” he said, stepping closer. Delilah pulled the keys out of the door knob. “Goodnight, Pepper James” Delilah said, her smile wavering. As she started to close the door, he stopped her. “Aren’t you forgetting something?” he asked. “What?” she frowned, wondering what she had forgotten.
He locked eyes with her again, leaning in ever so slowly. Her pulse raced as she stared into his dark eyes. Then, as their lips were about to brush Delilah leaned away. “No one can always have what they want” she whispered. He smiled wickedly at her and started to walk away. “Good thing I’m not just anyone” he said over his shoulder. She leaned in the door jamb and watched him leave. She brushed her fingers over her lips, where just a second ago he had almost kissed. “That’s for sure” she murmured, then she turned to go in the house.
Chancellor, Florida
Gabriel stirred in his sleep. He was dreaming of her again. He knew that there was a chance that he wasn’t sleeping, that he had unintentionally summoned himself to her. He couldn’t seem to control himself anymore, ever since he left them. He shook his head attempting to shake away the bad thoughts. He stared down at the sleeping girl. She rolled from her side onto her back, restless. She looked so fragile to him. He sat on the edge of her bed, watching. He knew he was the reason that she was antsy, but he also knew his presence wouldn’t cause so strong of an effect. Someone else had to be convening in her sleep. He looked around the girl’s small bedroom. He saw nothing. Just then she sighed and turned on her other side. Her hair was splayed out across her pillow, resembling spilled ink. That’s when he noticed it. He hadn’t taken notice to it before but now he felt it. He leaned closer towards the sleeping girl, her dark brows pulled together as if she could sense him. She smelt faintly of vanilla and lavender and something else. Gabriel’s eyes widened. She couldn’t be pure, not after all this time he had been searching. How could he have found her so easily? Suddenly he heard a door close from somewhere in the girl’s house. She stirred, then to his surprise, sat up, blinking rapidly and rubbing her eyes. He could have swore that she was looking at him but it was dark in her room and the only light was the light coming from the cracks under her door. She froze then suddenly reached out to turn on her lamp. He wished himself away, returning to his bed in Florida. He had finally found her and now that he had, he had to go to her. He sat up in bed turning on his lamp. Suddenly it became clear, why she was so restless, why he had felt another presence. They had already found her, probably before he had. It didn’t matter, what mattered was that he get to her before it was too late. Her life depended on it.
“Dilly, wake up, I’m home!” Josh called from down the hall. Delilah knew she had wakened before he had even came in the house. She didn’t remember her dream that well but she was sure she had had one. She forced herself to remember but suddenly her whole recollection of the dream disappeared. She frowned as she got out of bed. She was undoubtedly tired, especially from talking on the phone with Tess. Tess had seemed too interested in what had happened and wanted every little detail. She told Delilah that she knew that her and Pepper had kissed. When Delilah said they hadn’t she seemed disappointed and suddenly got bored with the conversation until Delilah told her what happened with her and Vince. She apologized and said she had to go so she could give Vince a piece of her mind. Delilah opened her bedroom door and went to her brother. “I told Robbie and Chase you said hi and you know what those bastards said?” Josh asked his voice slurred, he was leaning against the wall at the top of the hallway. “What?” Delilah said as she hooked her arm around his torso and led him to his room, which was at the end of the hall across from the bathroom. “They asked when you were turning eighteen and we got into a fight and the son’s a’ bitches kicked us out! Can you believe that… but then they said sorry and took me to a different bar and bought me some drinks, I love those guys” he informed, his voice muffled because he was talking into Delilah’s hair. She could smell the alcohol radiating off of him. He was pretty heavy and Delilah’s tiny frame struggled to keep him up. “I’m sure you do” she said, her voice strained from his weight. Finally she got him to his room and dumped him on his bed. She went to the bathroom to get the trash bin and a poured him a glass of water. She laid the bin near his face which was hanging off the edge of his bed. She put the glass down on his night stand to go get him some Tylenol. When she returned he was asleep, she laid the bottle next to his water and she walked out of his room without another word.
She had grown use to him coming in late and didn’t really mind it. He was twenty one after all; he was a good brother and deserved to have fun. Not all twenty one year olds have to look after their baby sister so he should be able to go out when ever he wants, she thought to herself as she went to the kitchen and poured herself some orange juice. The tanginess made her jaw lock up. She finished her juice, placing the glass in the sink, and then went to the living room. She turned on the TV and curled up on the couch, covering herself with the fleece blanket that was on the back of the couch. She stared at the TV not really noticing what she was watching. After a while she finally dozed off, hoping she would stay asleep.
Chapter four
It was Monday, Delilah had to work today. She worked at the local candle shop on Main Street stocking shelves and working at the cash register. It didn’t pay much but it put gas in her car and allowed her to buy house necessities, which Josh always failed to do. She had finally gotten some sleep over the weekend and felt a little better. Josh seemed worried when she had slept the whole Saturday away but she told him she was just tired. He seemed suspicious but didn’t say anything else about it. “…I cant believe that he actually tried to lie about, I mean come on, if your guilty then just admit it instead of making yourself look like a jackass” Tess was saying as they made their way to Mr. Gale’s classroom. Delilah was sure Tess was still talking about Vince and had started tuning her out since lunch. Delilah sometimes had to tune Tess out if she wanted to keep her sanity. The girl’s walked in and took their assigned seats. Pepper walked in just as the bell rang, as he usually did. He took his seat beside her, instantly slouching in his chair. “How was the rest of your weekend?” he asked, not looking at her. She shrugged then wondered if he had even saw the gesture. “Hmm, sounds boring” he said, tilting his head to see her reaction to his rudeness. She eyed him and decided not to respond, knowing he would like to see her get agitated. “What are you doing tonight?” he asked suddenly. She tightened her ponytail. “It’s Monday” she stated. “I know and that doesn’t answer my question” he said, staring at her. “I’m working” she answered. He paused, thinking. “Where do you work?” his question sounded more like a demand. Delilah began to copy notes as Mr. Gale walked in. “Why do you want to know?” she asked after writing a couple lines. He shrugged. “Just curious” he answered nonchalantly. She didn’t trust the innocent tone in his voice. She could think of a million things that Pepper could do to get her fired if he found out where she worked. “I’m sure you are” she said as she began copying again. Pepper didn’t respond, he seemed to have more important things on his mind. They didn’t talk for the rest of the class.
On her way to her car Tess stopped her. “Do you think you could come over later?” she asked. Delilah pursed her lips. “If I get off of work early, but probably not, Mr. Pent has been extra grumpy lately and he’ll probably make me stay late” she explained. “What time does it close?” she asked. “Eight thirty, but he always makes us stay at least an hour later to restock the shelves and write what needs to be shipped in” Delilah answered as she unlocked her car. “What the hell kind of candle shop is he running?” Tess asked. Delilah laughed. “A popular one” she answered, getting in her car. In fact it was the most visited shop on Main Street, and on weekends there are so many customers that Mr. Pent sometimes had five staff members on the job, which is a lot for a candle shop. Delilah waved to Tess as she backed out and headed for home.
She had an hour until she needed to be at work. She had a snack, did her homework then decided to get ready. She put on her work uniform which consisted of slacks and they were allowed to wear a blouse, it was either that or wear the white collared shirts the boys wore. She decided to wear her dark navy colored blouse, and then she slid on her black flats. She brushed her teeth, adjusted her hair and made her way to her car. She got to the shop ten minutes early. Mr. Pent was arguing with his wife, Velma, about something when she walked in.
Mr. Pent was a rather tall man, around fifty and he had the wrinkles to prove it. He was pale with ruddy spots here and there along his skin, he was balding and the hair he did have was brown, though he was grumpy most of the time he had a soft spot for Delilah and didn’t yell at her as much as he yelled at everyone else. Velma Pent seemed the opposite of Mr. Pent. She was also around fifty but she had seemed to have aged softly and her skin looked baby-soft. She had long light brown hair but the texture was wispy. She was even tempered and didn’t pay her husband’s argumentative ways any mind. They seemed to even each other out, most of the time.
As Delilah clocked in and began dusting the older candles on the shelves someone lightly tugged on her ponytail. She turned to see who it was. She smiled. It was only Jake. He was about her height, had short brown hair, with dark brown eyes to match, he always had a tan and a smile no matter what the season. And he was interested. Delilah couldn’t deny that she did like him…a little, but she always turned him down when he asked her out. She thought it would be awkward for them since they worked together; at least that’s what she told him. “Hey Jake” she greeted with a warm smile. “Hi” he grinned, dusting the candles she couldn’t reach. “So what did you do this weekend?” Delilah asked, making conversation. “Went to the movies…with Chelsea” he said in a matter of fact tone. Delilah thought that over, and then smiled. “I went to the movies too, with Tess” she said. He stopped dusting, staring at her face. “I saw you there, but not with Tess” he stated. Delilah flushed and looked away. “Who was that boy you were with?” Jake asked slowly. Delilah picked up a jarred candle and stared at it. “You must be talking about Pepper” she murmured, not looking up from the candle. “Pepper” Jake said as if trying the name out. “Yeah, he gave me a ride home when Tess’s date kind of tried to kiss me” she mumbled, placing the candle back in its place. To Delilah’s surprise Jake started laughing. She looked over at him. “What?” she demanded. “Nothing, I just think it’s funny” he said, his laugh fading. “What’s so funny about it?” she asked feeling defensive. “Think about it, Tess goes on a date and her date ends up trying to kiss you…then you end up leaving with a whole other dude entirely, I knew you had something alluring about you but I never thought you would attract boys of all stereotypes” he smiled, clearly pointing out that he was not the only one who was attracted to her. Delilah blushed then smiled to hide her blush.
“I don’t pay you to socialize!” Mr. Pent growled from another aisle. Delilah and Jake both jumped at the sound of his voice then grinned at each other and parted ways. Jake went to the cash register while Delilah went towards the back to restock most of the selves. Four hours and thirty minutes later, Delilah made her way to the small parking lot behind the shop. Jake had already left and Mr. Pent was still in the shop arguing with Velma because she dropped a candle. That was the worst thing a person could possibly do as far as Mr. Pent was concerned, and once he got worked up he basically went into a rage; all over one busted up jarred candle. Delilah hurried to her car, she hated going to her car while it was so dark, anyone could be out there. She unlocked her door and climbed in, blocking out the whistling cold wind. She shivered as she started her car and made her way home, the heat on high.
“Hey Dill” Josh greeted as Delilah walked in; he was lounging on the living room couch in sweats and a pair of her purple fuzzy socks, watching TV. “Hey” she mumbled as she shivered, making her way to the bathroom. “Cold out there?” he smiled as she passed him. “Yep” she grumbled. She was just walking in the bathroom when she asked “Are those my socks?” She heard him laugh. “Yep” he answered. She closed the bathroom door. “That’s what I thought” she said, mostly to herself.
After her bath and blow drying her hair, Delilah decided to call Tess before she went to bed. She answered on the first ring. “How was work?” she asked skipping a greeting like she always did. “Fine I guess” Delilah shrugged as if Tess could see her. “Guess who I just saw at the gas station” Tess said her voice spilling with excitement. “Who?” Delilah asked, not feeling like guessing. “Jake Cladler, he said he had heard what had happened and asked who my date was…do you care to explain?” Tess said, her voice sounding like a teacher lecturing a misbehaving student. Delilah sighed, not feeling like explaining. “He said he saw me with Pepper at the movies and wanted to know why I was with him so I kind of told him a shorter version of what happened…what I want to know is why he asked who your date was” Delilah said her words trailing off into thought. “So Jake’s got the hot’s for you too, my gosh I want to know what it is about you that attracts all the good looking ones…no offense, do you think if I lose a couple pounds and act all innocent they’ll want me too?” Tess said ignoring Delilah. Delilah frowned. “I can’t help I’m skinny and I don’t act innocent!” Delilah said feeling offended. “I know Dee, it’s not an act…sorry if I hurt your feelings you know how I can get sometimes” Tess apologized. “It’s ok” Delilah said, looking at her walls. “See you at school” Tess said her voice lowered. “Yep” Delilah answered, as they hung up at the same time.
Delilah crawled under the covers but kept her lamp on; she felt on edge and didn’t feel safe without the light. “Night, Dilly” Josh said, poking his head in her room. “Night, oh and stop stealing my socks” she warned as she heard him make his way to his room. He laughed. She rolled over on her side and closed her eyes. She was surprised how easily she fell asleep.
Delilah knew she had to be dreaming. She had heard something rustle around in her room so she sat up, squinting her eyes until they adjusted. Her lamp was still on and her door was closed just like they had been before she went to bed. But something wasn’t right. Maybe it was the dark figure standing at her dresser digging through her stuff, his back to her. She was about to scream until she recognized the familiar build of the intruder. He was dressed in dark clothes. “Pepper?” she asked, her voice sounding squeaky from sleep. The intruder turned towards her. His dark smoky eyes were gentle, but his smile was that of a villain. He put his index finger to his lips, a sign that she should be quiet. Delilah felt her face scrunch up in confusion. Was she dreaming or was Pepper just crazy enough to sneak into her bedroom? She had trouble deciding which seemed more likely. She had to admit that she didn’t feel like she was asleep. She had no clue what to do so she rubbed her eyes a couple of times. He was still there. She eyed him as he walked towards her; she sucked in a breath, prepared to scream for Josh if he tried anything. He sat near where her feet were. She slid them up, hugging her legs. He looked around her room then rested his dark eyes on her. Her chin was resting on her knees and she was too shocked to say anything. He moved closer towards her. She felt as if her heart was going to bust right out of her chest. Suddenly he was face to face with her, his chest against her legs. She leaned her face away, trying to let out a scream but she could only manage a whimper. His eyes held hers in a lively glaze. She felt her face redden and her heart began to thump loudly against her legs. He leaned in, his eyes never leaving hers. Her eyes widened and she prayed she was dreaming. He reached around her and as he did so he put his lips to her ear. “You look tired” he whispered. Delilah trembled, was he implying that she wasn’t asleep? She heard a click then her room went dark, he had cut off her lamp. Suddenly he backed away leaving Delilah wide eyed and breathing heavily. After her heart calmed she rested her chin on her knees and rocked back and forth, trying hard not to think. She didn’t dare cut the light back on, too scared to see what was in her room. She rocked back and forth for a long time, until her eyes burned and she found herself dosing off.
Chapter five
“Dill, wake up…your alarm is getting on my nerves” Josh said as he shook Delilah. She opened her eyes, to show him she heard him. He clicked her alarm clock off and left the room without a word. They usually didn’t talk to each other in the mornings; they both hated getting up early and talking or any noise for that matter when they just got out of bed. Her mom use to call her and Josh grumpy old bears in the mornings. It usually wore off of Delilah by the time she got to school. She stretched, noticing that she was on her stomach. That’s when she remembered what happened. She lurched out of bed and looked around. She noticed it was too bright in her room; she glanced to her left and saw that her lamp was still on. Not that it calmed her any. She sat there for a minute as exhaustion washed over her. She didn’t want to go to school today and she definitely didn’t want to see Pepper. She felt fear wash over her as soon as she thought of him. She pulled the covers off of herself, ignoring the coldness she felt and patted barefoot down the hallway, to stop at Josh’s door. She knocked, making her presence known like she always did. “What?” she heard him mumble grumpily. She cracked the door and she could see he was huddled under the covers with two pillows over his head. “I’m not going to school today” she informed, not meaning to use her fake sick voice. It took him around twenty seconds to respond. “Kay” he managed to mumble from under his pillows. She closed the door and made her way to her room. Before she got back in bed she decided to tell Tess that she would not be in school. Why, are you sick? Tess asked. Tired and I have a headache she replied, lying about the headache part. Oh…well I guess I’ll talk to you later then, Tess had typed. Delilah put her phone on her night stand and climbed into her warm bed.
It was starting to get bright outside so she clicked off her lamp. She sighed, pleased to be in her warm bed and not at school. She closed her eyes and fell straight asleep. She slept soundly, though she did wake up once when she heard Josh getting ready for work. She got up at around two; she ate then took a shower. She felt a little groggy and her sleep had not helped her calm down. She pulled her hair up and decided to get her outfit for work out early, she might have missed school but there was no way she was going to miss work. She imagined Mr. Pent’s scowling face and frowned. She went to her small over stuffed closet. She pulled out a pair of fresh slacks and deliberated on which blouse she wanted. She went with a burgundy colored one then she tossed the outfit on her bed, which she had just made. She went to the living room and watched TV until three, which was around the time Josh came in. He stared at her like he had forgotten she was home. She ignored him and started to go to her room when he stopped her. “I don’t have the time but when I get back we need to have a talk” he said, his voice stern. “I have to be at work in an hour” she informed, not liking the firm look on his face. He frowned. “When you get home we’ll have a talk” he said, walking to the kitchen. Delilah walked into her room wondering what she had done wrong. Fifteen minutes later she heard her brother leave, noticing he didn’t say goodbye. “I must be in some real trouble” she whispered to herself.
Mr. Pent was out and Velma was trying to fill in. Delilah had a hard time concentrating so she asked Velma if she could take stock in the back. Velma agreed. Jake didn’t work on Tuesday’s so she didn’t have to worry about him following her around. Claire, a quiet blonde headed girl worked with her on Tuesday’s and she didn’t seem to want to talk to anyone, but she was good to work with if Delilah had a lot on her mind. Today would have been the perfect day to relax and think through her problems, but the problem was that she didn’t want to. There were too many problems in her life right now and none of them seemed easy to solve. Again her mind went back to what Josh had said. Why would they need to have a talk? She pursed her lips as she checked for any broken candles that might have been damaged during shipment. In the back of her mind she wondered if he was going to tell her he can’t take care of her anymore and that she would have to go live with their aunt Sandra. Whenever Josh said he had to tell her anything her mind automatically assumed that he wanted to get rid of her. Who would want to waste away their golden years by taking care of their little sister? I sure wouldn’t. She thought to herself, a slight frown on her face. She thought of that the rest of her shift.
She mumbled a goodbye to Velma and Claire as she exited the shop from the back. She walked to her car in her regular rushed pace, only to come to a screeching halt. It was dark out and there were no lights in the parking lot only the dim light from the street lights which where placed in front of the shops. He was leaning against her car, ankles crossed, hands in pockets. She felt her heart lurch and fought her instincts which told her to scream and run away. Instead she stayed perfectly still, waiting for him to say something. She watched as her breath clouded in her face. He sighed; sounding bored, and then pushed off of her car to stand. She slowly walked towards her car, not trusting him. He didn’t move as she walked past him to go to the driver’s side. “How’d you find out where I work?” she asked, pulling her keys out of her pocket. He was on the passenger side, tracing aimlessly on the top of the car with his fingers. He didn’t look up. “You weren’t at school today” he informed. “So” she shrugged. “So, I was worried and I asked your lapdog where you worked, I figured you wouldn’t skip school and work” he still didn’t look up. Delilah had never felt more afraid in her life. She searched for her car keys on her crowded key chain with shaky hands. She was about to say that she didn’t appreciate him calling Tess her lapdog but he looked up then and his smoky eyes silenced her. She swallowed. “I’m fine” she whispered, hoping he didn’t hear the shakiness in her voice. He moved then. He walked around the car slowly, his fingers trailing across the hood. She again fought the urge to scream. “Really? You seem a little jumpy to me” he said softly, as he came to stand right in front of her. Her whole body trembled and she knew it wasn’t because of the cold weather. She unlocked her door. “I wonder why” she said, staring up into his eyes to see how he responded. He didn’t react in any way. Instead he just met her glaze full on. “Is something wrong?” he asked, his voice sounding too innocent to Delilah’s ears. She shook her head, not knowing if her voice would come out as a shriek. A gush of freezing wind blew, blowing her side swept bang in her eyes. He reached out and brushed her hair out of her eyes. She flinched. “Are you scared of me?” he asked suddenly. “No” she mumbled, knowing she answered too fast. She knew he knew that she was lying, but he didn’t react to her answer.
He leaned against her door as if having no intention on letting her leave. “Pepper?” she whispered. He stared at her, waiting. “I have to get home before my brother gets worried” she said, her voice a little higher than a whisper. “Sorry, don’t want big brother to get upset” he said, his tone mocking. He moved away from the door. She still didn’t trust him enough to relax. He began to walk away. She opened her door about to get in when he turned back towards her. “Oh and Delilah” he called, getting her attention. She stared at him. “I really hope you feel better” he said, then turned and disappeared into the darkest corner of the lot. Delilah tried to breathe normally hoping her heart wouldn’t explode on her way home. She fought to see the road as she wiped away fear filled tears. She prayed that Josh wasn’t home. If he saw her shaking and crying uncontrollably he would probably send her to Aunt Sandra. She forced herself to relax, it didn’t work.
When she got home she was relieved to see the driveway empty. She rushed into the house and went straight to her room. She buried her face in her pillow and began to sob quietly. Soon she fell asleep. The alarm tolled loudly in Delilah’s ears. She got out of bed, showered, dressed, ate, and brushed her teeth then made her way to school.
At lunch Jake stopped her and said he was glad she felt better. Tess seemed to be talking about something but Delilah couldn’t focus. “…so I told Jake and he actually had a talk with him, not that you care…since you’re like in love with Pepper and all” Tess muttered looking aggravated. “Wait…what did you tell Jake?” Delilah asked, only hearing the end of Tess’s chattering. Tess rolled her eyes. “Remember when Jake asked me who my date was?” Tess asked. Delilah nodded. “Well I told him and he talked to Vince, I don’t know what he said but Vince called me last night and begged me to forgive him…I would have told you last night but you didn’t pick up” Tess frowned. “I had a lot on my mind plus work…and speaking of work, why did you tell Pepper where I worked?” she asked, her tone full of disgust. Tess shrugged. “He asked, why what’s wrong?” she asked, concern on her face. “Nothing” Delilah whispered. Nothing you would understand, she added in her mind. Her next two classes went by too fast.
She was on her way to Mr. Gale’s class when someone tugged on her ponytail. “Hey” Jake greeted, giving her a warm smile. “Hey” she said, finding herself smiling though she was sure she was in no mood for smiling. They stopped in front of the classroom door. “I heard you had a talk with Vince” she said, staring up at his face to see his reaction. His smile seemed to have wavered. “I might have” he said lowly, shrugging. “Why?” she asked, truly curious. His smile returned and his dark brown eyes had a shimmer to them. “I think you can guess…it’s obvious that I like you and I’m not ashamed to say it” he said, his eyes glistening with emotion. Delilah blushed and fidgeted uncomfortably. “I don’t think…” she began to say but he interrupted. “I know you don’t like me like that but maybe if we…” this time Delilah interrupted, shaking her head about to object. Jake brushed her bang out of her eyes. “We can talk about it later” he said, turning then disappearing into the classroom down the hall. Delilah realized that anyone in the classroom could have been watching her and Jake. She eyed the class and saw that no one had paid her a mind, except for Pepper. He was staring at her, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes narrowed. She took her seat next to him and folded her arms on the table, burying her face in them. The bell rang loudly for class to start.
She sat up looking only at the board. She noticed out the corner of her eye Pepper turn towards her. She turned slightly, staring at him coldly. “If you were trying to make me jealous, it’s working” he said then grinned devilishly at her. Her eyes widened and her face seemed to be warming quickly. “Why would I want to make you jealous?” she asked, shocked. He didn’t answer instead his smile grew wider. “You’re going to break his heart” he said after a while, seeming happy by his prediction. “How do you know?” she mumbled, knowing he was talking about Jake. “He’s a nice guy” he shrugged. “So” she said, confused. “So, you’re not attracted to nice guys” he stated. “Yes I am and how do you know what kind of guys I’m attracted to?” she said, not meaning to sound like a pouting child. “You’re attracted to me and I’m not a good boy” he stated, his usually smoky eyes had a stormy look to them, daring her to deny it. It took all of Delilah’s will power to not deny that she was attracted to him. Instead she paused, pursing her lips. In truth she was attracted to Pepper but she didn’t want him to know that. “I like Jake” Delilah informed, changing the direction of the conversation. She had switched one word around, she might have been attracted to Pepper but she did not like him. “You do?” he asked, feigning interest. She nodded, then began bubbling answers on the sheet Mr. Gale had passed out. “What do you like about him?” he demanded. She shrugged. “He makes me smile…” Pepper cut in. “I make you smile” he stated. She nodded. “Yeah, but it’s not the same…and he’s really sweet, I don’t think I’ve ever had to open a door while I was with him, and he…” Pepper put his hand up to stop her. “I think I’ve heard enough, your bruising my ego” he said, disappointment in his expression. Delilah covered her mouth to stifle her laugh. He eyed her and frowned. “It’s not funny” he muttered. “I think it is” she said, trying to stop her laughter.
The last twenty minutes of class Delilah spent thinking. Thinking of what Josh was going to tell her, but mostly she thought about what she felt at that moment. Last night she had been terrified of Pepper but now she felt as she did before she had that dream or whatever it was, mildly suspicious. Maybe she had had no reason to feel afraid of Pepper, maybe it had been only a dream and maybe he had only been checking on her last night…it almost made sense. Except she had a feeling that she had been right to react the way she did last night. She sighed. Why would he break into her room only to tell her she looked tired and suggest that she needed sleep by cutting off her light? Looking back now, she felt dumb for reacting so radically. It wasn’t even a big deal. She couldn’t seem to control her emotions anymore and Pepper had to be the cause of it.
When the bell rang, Tess and Delilah made they’re way to the parking lot as usual. When they got near Delilah’s car Tess stopped her. “Looks like someone wants to talk to you” she said pointing to Pepper, who was leaning against her car, with her chin. “Wonder what he wants” Delilah mumbled walking towards her car. “You mean besides you?” Tess teased as she walked off towards her car. Delilah ignored the comment as she came to a stop in front of Pepper, who was leaning against the driver’s side door. “What?” she asked, wishing he would move so she could get home. “Do you work tonight?” he asked, ignoring her sudden grouchiness. She nodded, not liking where he was going with the question. “Why?” she demanded. “Is…Jake working with you?” he asked, a sudden defiance flashing across his eyes. She nodded again. “Whatever you’re planning, stop, ok?” she asked, pulling her keys out of her pocket. He pushed himself up off the car. “I don’t know what you’re talking about” he said with an expressionless face. She felt suddenly agitated and saw only one way to deal with him. She pushed him against her car, taking him by surprise. She leaned against him, trapping him. She stood on her tip toes so they would be eye to eye. She stared at his smooth face and cocked her head to the side as if noticing something. He seemed too surprised to do much; instead he stood very still, waiting for her next move. She looked deep into his eyes as she leaned her face in. She felt not only her heart pounding but his too. She smiled; surprised that she had that affect on him. When her lips were close to his she turned her head slightly, causing her lips to brush across the side of face. She felt him take a deep breath. Her lips stopped near his ear. “You look tired” she whispered, then leaned back a bit to see his reaction. He seemed surprised that she had gone out of her comfort zone to tease him, but as usual he kept most of his emotions hidden. His lips twitched and his eyes were tightened around the edges but that was it. She was beginning to back away when he grabbed her waist and swapped places with her, spinning her around, penning her between her car and his body.
She gasped and looked around to see who was watching. Most of the lot was clearing but the one’s that were out of their cars and socializing seemed to pay them no mind. “You’re right, I am tired…” he whispered, releasing her waist and taking hold of her face. “I’m tired of playing games” he said, his voice low. Delilah knew he was about to kiss her and there was no stopping him this time. Her heart thrummed loudly, and her body pulsed with unwanted nervousness. “Who’s winning?” she asked suddenly, not sure where the question came from. He paused, and pursed his lips. He was actually thinking about it. She took that time to push him away. “I’ll give you some time to think about that and you get back to me” she said, relieved that she had held him off. She unlocked her door then climbed in. He frowned then turned and walked away.
Josh was already home when she got there. He patted the place beside him on the couch. She took it, feeling nervous. “Got a minute?” he asked. She looked at the clock then nodded. She still had around an hour until she had to be at work. “I’ve noticed that you’ve been acting strange lately” he informed, suspicion all over his face. She looked away, feeling guilty. “You’re crabby all the time now and I could have sworn I heard you crying when I came home last night…so do you care to tell me what’s going on?” he asked, staring at her. She shook her head. “Nothing’s going on and the only reason that I’ve been crabby is because I haven’t been getting any sleep” she answered, slyly changing the direction of the conversation. Josh narrowed his eyes. “All you seem to do is sleep…and you still didn’t tell me why you were crying” he said, refusing to get distracted. Delilah knew she couldn’t tell him about Pepper or her weird dream, if that’s what it was. So she came up with the closest lie that would be relative to what was going on. “You know when I went to the movies?” she asked, staring down at her feet. She saw him nod. “Well, Tess brought her date and when she left to go to the bathroom he tried to kiss me…I know it sounds dumb but I kind of feel embarrassed about it” she whispered, looking over at him to see if he bought it. He ran his hand through his short raven hair and let out a sigh. “What’s his name?” he asked suddenly, his voice sounding gruff. She shook her head. “Josh just let it go, it’s ok now…he…umm, apologized and I just want to forget it ever happened” she said, struggling to keep up with her lies. If she thought about it, it wasn’t entirely far from the truth. He surprised her by putting his arm around her shoulder. “You should have told me…just because I’m your brother doesn’t mean we can’t talk about other things besides who left an empty milk jug in the fridge” he smiled, relived that the talk had gone well. She playfully elbowed his side and stood. “Wasn’t me” she teased, making her way to her bedroom. She felt as if a huge weight was lifted off of her chest, he hadn’t wanted to get rid of her.
Chapter six
Delilah worked with Jake and Chelsea today. Chelsea had a huge crush on Jake and always followed him around. She had strawberry blonde hair, a light trail of freckles over the bridge of her nose and had bright blue eyes; she had a bubbly personality that sometimes annoyed Delilah. Though Delilah was sure Chelsea could care less what she thought, after all her crush did like Delilah. Delilah sighed as she recounted the new shipment that was in. Mr. Pent always made them recount the shipments at least three times before they could even bring them to the front. She was glad to be in the back again. Though the shop was a pretty decent size, she couldn’t distance herself far enough from Jake, she never felt comfortable with Jake when Chelsea was around. If Jake would help Delilah with something or just simply talk to her, Chelsea would glare at Delilah as if Delilah controlled what Jake did. After a while of working together, Jake noticed and when working with Chelsea he kept to himself.
Near closing time, Delilah went to the cash register, where Chelsea was working and bought a jarred candle. Chelsea was in a good mood and gave her a small smile as she put Delilah’s candle in a bag and handed her change to her. Just then the bell on the shops door rang, signaling that there was a costumer. Both girls looked to the door. Delilah saw who it was before he got through the door. Her heart fluttered and she felt panicked. What did he want now? Delilah turned back to Chelsea then. “Where’s Jake?” she asked, her eyes scanning the shop. Chelsea frowned, not liking her question. “He left early” she answered, clearly displeased that Delilah wanted to know where he was. Delilah sighed in relief and turned as the door closed behind Pepper. He smiled as he walked pass the cash register. Delilah wanted to know what he was up to so she followed him. “What are you doing?” she whispered, as he turned and stopped on the Christmas candle aisle. “Looking at candles, what about you?” he said innocently. He began walking again, back towards the cash register. Chelsea was eyeing them and Delilah could tell she was straining to hear. “He’s not here” Delilah muttered, aggravated. He stopped, staring at Delilah. “Who?” he asked, his tone too innocent. They were close to Chelsea now and Delilah wondered if she could hear them. “Jake” she whispered, looking over at Chelsea to see if she was listening. “Why should I care if he’s here or not?” he asked his tone accusing. Delilah flushed, wondering why she felt rejected. She turned then and made her way towards the door. He stopped her, putting his arm around her waist. She looked up at him, surprised. Chelsea coughed a rather phony cough. Pepper turned forcing Delilah to turn with him. He smiled. “Delilah I didn’t know you had a boyfriend” Chelsea stated, sounding cheered, probably thinking that Jake would go out with her now. Delilah tried to pull away from Pepper but his grip tightened. “I don’t…” Delilah began to say but Pepper had begun to talk over her. “I wouldn’t call what we have a relationship, it’s more of an attraction…she can’t seem to get enough of me” he explained with a straight face. Chelsea looked uncomfortable but smiled politely. “Well good for you” she stated, clearly not knowing what else to say. Delilah was speechless, feeling too mortified to do much of anything. It suddenly became clear what Pepper was doing. Now that Chelsea thought that Delilah was having some fling with Pepper she would tell Jake and Jake would be upset. Pepper began to pull Delilah out the door. “Have a nice night” Chelsea said as the door closed behind them.
“Why did you do that” she whispered, too surprised to yell. “I don’t know what you mean” he said leading them around the shop, to where the parking lot was. Her anger was boiling and she was having trouble containing it. She came to a stop in front of his car. “Don’t play dumb” she warned, never feeling so frustrated before. He sighed and sat on the hood of his car, his arms crossed over his chest. “It wasn’t a lie” he said, as if that justified anything. That pulled her up short. It was true, mostly. She resisted the urge to smack him and went towards her car. She heard him follow. She turned back towards him. “Can’t you just leave me alone?” she whispered, feeling as though she were about to cry. He stared at her face for a long time. “No” he answered flatly. “Why not?” she asked, embarrassed by the shakiness in her voice. “I just can’t” he answered, his eyes tightening around the edges. He turned and walked away. Delilah got in her car and placed her candle on the passenger’s seat. What did he mean he can’t? She wondered as she drove home.
“Hey Dill” Josh greeted from the kitchen, eyeing the bag in her hand. She gave him a weak smile. “I got you a candle” she said, handing him the bag. He pulled the candle out of the paper bag and smiled. It was his favorite scent, midnight breeze. She sometimes bought one for herself though it was a manly scent. The smell reminded her of Pepper, he smelt similar to it. It was a rather wild smell, piney but with a sedulity, something close to juniper. “Thanks” he smiled. She returned the smile and went to her room. After she did her homework and ate, she got ready for bed.
She sat on her bed cross legged, looking through her phone. She had three missed calls. Two were from Tess and the last from Jake. She was surprised and she knew she didn’t feel like talking to either of them tonight. She closed her phone and laid it on her night stand then switched off her lamp. She hugged one of her pillows tightly, trying to ignore the guilt she felt. She shivered and regretted not blow drying her hair. It was wet and lustrous with dark curls. That’s the one thing she liked about her hair, she could easily wear it straight or curly; though she preferred wearing it straight. She closed her eyes as she heard Josh peek in. He closed the door quietly and Delilah found herself already half asleep.
She had awoken later that night, feeling she wasn’t alone in her room. She blinked, trying to adjust her eyes to the darkness. She saw him to her far right, looking out the window. She slid from under the covers very slowly, knowing he would see her. He turned, looking at her. Her heart pounded to life as she froze, caught in Pepper’s glaze. She looked over at her door and wondered if he would catch her if she ran. She dashed for her door but he was faster, grabbing her wrist and jerking her to him. She slammed into his chest, knocking the breath out of her. She tried to back away but he stopped her, wrapping his arm tightly around her waist. She looked up at him, panicked. He took in a breath perhaps smelling at her hair, which smelled of her shampoo, vanilla lavender. She squirmed as he knotted his hand in her hair. His face looked pale in the darkness of her room, his expression unfathomable. He walked forward, forcing her to walk backwards. She felt shaky and she swore her heart was going to beat right out of her chest. She gasped as he pushed her against the wall. Trapped against the wall and his body, she watched helplessly as he leaned in. His chest was heaving angrily and his lips came down hard on hers. Her heart reacted in a way she was sure it never had, causing her whole body to pulse. Her breathing was embarrassingly loud to her ears. He gripped her waist tighter, maybe trying to force a reaction out of her. She tried with all her might not to kiss him back, his lips were hard and forceful against hers and she knew he was taking his frustration out on her, probably his pent up frustration from her rejecting him every time he tried to kiss her. Soon she felt lightheaded and made a sound similar to a whimper. His whole body went still at the sound. He slowly pulled away, sliding his hand out of her damp hair. He stared down at Delilah, her honey colored eyes wide with panic.
He suddenly looked sad, his gray eyes, that were bright just moments ago, going dark as if ashamed. Delilah was confused, why did he look so guilty? He released her waist only to grab her face, brushing his thumb along her bottom lip. “Sorry” he whispered, his now smoky eyes burning with sincerity. She knew she had to be dreaming if Pepper had just apologized for kissing her. She stared into his eyes and blushed, wishing she could look away. He leaned in again, slower than before as if giving her the option of pulling away. She didn’t move, feeling her heart pound and her stomach flutter. Her breathing was louder than before and she tried to breathe evenly. His lips brushed hers gently causing her heart to pound loudly in her chest. He released her face and placed his hands lightly on her hips. She felt as if she was on fire, her body tingling and her heart pulsing. His lips were soft as he moved them against hers. He was being very gentle with her and she wondered if he was trying to make up for the first kiss, which had actually been her first kiss. He broke the kiss, looking deep into her eyes. Her breathing was ridged and she blushed from the loudness of it. He released her and when she blinked she found herself jumping upright in her bed. Her alarm went off a minute later. She clicked it off and switched on her lamp.
Again the question came to her, was it only a dream? Part of her hoped it was. She sighed as she went to open her bedroom door. She tried to turn the knob. The door was locked. She sucked in a breath of air. She hadn’t locked her door before she went to bed last night. She tried to think of something else as she unlocked the door and made her way to the bathroom. Her hair was now dry and wavy, she decided to wet it again and add mouse so it would keep its curliness all day. The only problem was her bang which didn’t seem to want to stay out of her face so she pulled it back and clipped it into place. She dressed, ate, brushed her teeth, and then made her way to school.
She stayed to herself most of the day. She had forgotten about Jake calling last night, until he walked up to her at lunch, ignoring Tess who was talking about who knows what. “Can we talk?” he asked, grabbing her arm. She looked up at him then and nodded. He hauled her up and led her out of the cafeteria. “Sorry I didn’t call you back last night” she mumbled as they came to a stop in the hallway. She noticed that he didn’t seem to be in a good mood. His eyebrows furrowed and he ignored her comment. “Chelsea called me last night” he informed his dark brown eyes that usually looked warm looked cold. She looked down guiltily. “Figured she would” she muttered. He looked at her with surprise; he had probably been expecting her to lie about what happened last night. “Is it true?” he asked, his voice pained. “What did she say?” she asked softly. He sighed from frustration. “She said something about you and Pepper being in some creepy ‘friends with benefits’ type thing” he said with a look of disgust. Delilah frowned. “No we’re not, he was teasing her and trying to make me angry” she answered. He looked at her face as if trying to decide if he should believe her or not, then sighed with relief. Her eyebrows pulled together, hating what she was about to do. “Even if it where true what were you going to do? Jake can’t you understand that I just don’t like you that way… I just want to be your friend, ok?” she said lowly, hating confrontation. His shoulders slumped and he sighed in defeat. “I knew you were going to say that” he whispered. She looked away, feeling bad for hurting his feelings. “Sorry” she whispered. The bell rang and the hallway began to crowd. He walked away, disappearing into the crowd.
Near the end of the day Tess found Delilah as she made her way to Mr. Gale’s classroom. “What did Jake want?” Tess asked. “Ugh… he probably hates me now” she mumbled, mostly to herself. “Why would he hate you…wait let me guess, you told him to hit the road…didn’t you?” Tess accused, seeming to always find a way to make a joke of things. Delilah nodded. “If you’re not interested you’re not interested” Tess shrugged, finding the justice in her friend’s decision. They walked in the classroom and took their seats. Delilah felt oddly nervous, wondering how Pepper would act today. She didn’t as much as glance at him. She finished her assignments quickly only then realizing that she had nothing to distract her. She dared a side glace and found Pepper staring. He was leaning on his elbow, chin in hand. He looked down at her hands that were on the table. He reached out and began to trace aimlessly on the back of one. “Are you mad at me?” he asked, not looking up at her. His light touch raised goosebumps on her arms. She wondered if he was asking if she was mad at him about what happened at the candle shop or in her bedroom. He looked up when she didn’t answer right away. She still said nothing. She was trying to decide if she was still angry at him for what happened at the candle shop. She sighed. “No, I’m not mad at you” she whispered, looking at the hand he was toying with. He slid his hand away and sat up. “I saw you leave with him at lunch” he said, sounding accusing. She didn’t look at him. “Chelsea called him last night; he wanted to know if you and me are…together” she said, in a blaming tone. “What did you say?” he asked. She looked at him then away. “I said we weren’t and that it didn’t matter if we were because I still wouldn’t like him that way” she admitted, feeling bad all over again. “Can’t say I feel bad for him” he shrugged. Delilah ignored him and suddenly had the urge to know if she had dreamed about kissing him or if it had been real.
“What did you do last night?” she asked innocently. He shrugged. “Nothing out of the ordinary” he answered nonchalantly. “Hmm…” she pursed her lips. “Why?” he asked, leaning in. She shook her head. “It’s nothing, I just had the weirdest dream and you were in it” she shrugged. He grinned. “What kind of dream?” he teased, but his eyes seemed defensive. Delilah smiled. “To be honest I couldn’t tell you” she answered, being coy. The bell rang and they stood. Delilah gathered her things as Pepper started to walk off. “Oh and Pepper?” she called sweetly. He turned, waiting. “You forgot to unlock my door” she said softly. He gave her a look that said he had no clue what she was talking about, and then he turned and walked off. She wondered if she had just made herself look like an idiot and then decided she didn’t care.
Blackwell, South Carolina
Peter stood and began pacing the room. Jess watched him with mild aggravation. “What’s taking him so long?” Peter asked. Jess rubbed at his temples getting tried of hearing that same question from Peter and Mitch. “We haven’t heard from him in weeks…do you think something’s wrong, maybe he’s dead” Peter guessed. Mitch slapped the back of Peter’s sandy blonde head. “How could he be dead…stupid, who would kill him?” Mitch asked in an agitated tone. Peter paused, thinking. “Maybe it found out, and killed him” he whispered. Mitch and Jess stared at each other. It was a possibility. “I think we should give him some time, Pepper’s never let us down before” Jess reasoned. Mitch stood, heading for the door. “There’s always a first for everything” he said then exited swiftly, slamming the door behind him. “I hate that son of ah bitch” Jess spat. Peter bowed his head. “But he’s are brother…he’s part of the brethren” Peter mumbled. “The day he’s my brother is the day…we burn in hell” Jess said, his voice gruff. “I have a feeling that day is coming sooner than later” Peter whispered, lost in thought. “We can’t back out now” Jess whispered, mostly to himself.
Chapter seven
Friday came without incident and Delilah was glad she had not had any more dreams, or whatever they were. Pepper had not talked much for the rest of the week and Delilah was becoming more suspicious. “We should do something tonight” Tess suggested as they walked to their cars. Delilah shook her head. “I feel like staying in tonight, sorry” Delilah answered. “What a party-pooper, guess I’ll have to find someone else to hang out with” Tess shrugged, walking off towards her car. Delilah wasn’t that surprised when she found Pepper standing next to her car. She waited for him to say something and when he said nothing she felt uncomfortable. “Um…hi” she mumbled. He smiled at her like she had just said something funny. “Hi” he said back, slightly smiling. She fidgeted with her keys then went to unlock her door.
As she opened the driver side door he leaned against it, making it slam shut. She looked over at him. “Don’t you think that’s kind of rude?” she asked, her eyebrows pulling together. He shrugged then came closer towards her. “What are you doing tomorrow?” he asked, changing the subject. This surprised her. Was he actually asking her out? She eyed him and noticed he had moved considerably closer. “Has your mama never taught you about personal space?” she asked, backing her face away from his. He shrugged. “No, my mama never taught me that” he teased. This sparked her interest. “So, you live with your mom?” she asked, trying to sound causal. He leaned in and brushed her hair behind her ear. “That, my darling; is none of your business” he answered, his tone half teasing. She fought herself to not seem like a pouting child. “That’s not fair, you get to know everything about me and I know nothing about you” she said pulling away when he tried to touch her face. “You’re right, I haven’t been very fair, but if you go out with me tomorrow maybe you could force me to tell you about myself” he suggested. She shook her head. “You would have to meet my brother and there’s no way I’m going through that” she admitted, looking at her feet. “Is that all that’s stopping you? Piece of cake, I’ll come over around eight” he smiled then started to walk off. She opened her door. “Sure I’ll go out with you and while we’re at it, let’s just go get ourselves killed by my brother” she mumbled sarcastically to herself. She heard him laugh.
She pulled into the driveway, noticing there was a truck right behind Josh’s. She walked in and found Josh in the living room, he wasn’t alone. “Dill this is Gabriel, Gabe this is my little sister Delilah” Josh said cheerfully. Delilah stared at the stranger and found herself blushing. He was broad shouldered, he had flaxen blonde hair that was splayed out across his forehead and he had dark blue eyes that seemed to be staring straight through her. She gave a weak smile. “Hey” she greeted weakly. He smiled, his dark eyes lighting. “Hey” he said, and then he stood. “Well, I’ve got to get going, see you around” he said staring at her, though she was sure he was talking to Josh. “Yup” Josh said, changing the channel with the remote. Delilah sat as she heard Gabriel leave. “Who’s that anyway?” Delilah asked, trying not to sound too interested. “He works with me now, he just stared last week” Josh said with disinterest. Delilah thought he looked around her age give a year or two. “He doesn’t go to school?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowing. Josh shrugged. “I don’t know” he answered, still flipping through channels.
Delilah sighed then decided to tell Josh about Pepper now. She wanted to get this over with. “Umm…Josh?” she asked, looking down at her hands that were in her lap. “Yeah?” he answered, looking over at her. “Is it ok if I go out tomorrow?” she asked, not looking up at him. “Sure, where are you and Tess going?” he asked. Delilah clasped her hands together. “I’m…not going out with Tess” she mumbled. He paused. “If you’re not going out with Tess, then who are you going out with?” he asked, his voice sounding surprised. She sucked in a breath before she spoke. “This boy at school” she whispered. “Who…is it Jake?” he asked. She shook her head, slightly aggravated by his assumption. “No, his name is Pepper…Pepper James, you don’t know him” she whispered. They sat there for a while; the only noise in the whole house was the TV. He sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. “Fine” he muttered. She smiled at him then went to her room.
Later that night Delilah tried to force herself to sleep but it wasn’t working. Her mind was at work trying to figure out why she had said yes to Pepper, where they were going to go on the date, and what she was going to wear? In the very back of her mind a tiny voice told her that she should call off the date and stay far as possible from Pepper but she ignored the voice and continued to worry over things such as her hair. When she finally started dozing off the voice had seemed to grow louder. He’s trouble, he’s dangerous… he can only hurt me. Delilah forced the thoughts out of her head and closed her eyes. “I’ll give him a shot and if I don’t like what I see I’ll stay away from him” she mumbled to herself sleepily. The only problem was she had tried to stay away from him before but that had seemed to make things worse. She sighed heavily, not wanting to think about it and fell asleep.
Chapter eight
It was almost eight and Delilah had went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror over five times already. She was nervous and she couldn’t deny it. She looked down at herself, scrutinizing her outfit. She had on a cream colored long sleeved V-neck with a cranberry colored jersey cardigan, dark skinny jeans, light brown slouch boots and to top it all off, a cream colored beanie. Josh watched her pace from the living room. “You must really like him” Josh implied. Delilah stopped mid-pace and frowned. “I do not!” she shrieked, then blushed from her out burst. Josh grinned from where he sat. “A little touchy, are we?” he asked in a teasing tone. She looked down at her boots and clasped her hands together. “No” she mumbled, trying to avoid his eyes. “Dill, aren’t you suppose to like a guy first before you go out with him?” he asked jokingly. She was about to answer when the door bell saved her. Delilah’s stomach fluttered and she felt jittery as she walked to the front door.
She opened the door with a shaky hand. And there he was, his smoky gray eyes were warm and there was a small smile on his face. Delilah grinned, despite herself. “Hi” she smiled, inviting him in. “Hi” he smiled back, walking into the living room. She eyed him as he walked over to Josh, who stood and shook hands with him. He was wearing a white V-neck with a brownish colored V-neck cardigan, dark fitted jeans and dark brown ankle boots. She stood by the door, in a slight daze, while Josh and Pepper talked. A couple of seconds later Pepper was leading her out the door. Once outside, Pepper wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. Which at the moment, she didn’t mind, since she didn’t have on a jacket. “I forgot my jacket” she said, pulling away, about to go back in the house to get it. He pulled her back to him. “You can use mine, it’s in the car” he said, opening the car door for her. She got in; a little surprised by the way he was acting. She found his jacket and covered up with it, breathing in his scent. He got in and moments later they were off. “You know, your brother’s not that scary” he said, looking over at her. She shrugged. “Bring me home late and let’s see what you think then” she said, a small smile appearing. He laughed.
Delilah noticed when they were on the outskirts of town. “Where are we going?” she asked. He shrugged. “I have to make a stop first” he said. Though she didn’t ask, she wanted to know why and where did they have to stop. Soon they pulled up at a bar with a small neon sign in the front; Wales. He got out and went around to her side to open the door for her, which surprised her again. She left his jacket in the car and followed him inside. The bar was warm and dimly lit. There weren’t many people and the ones who were there looked like locals. He went towards the bar and she followed. He slapped the counter twice. The bar tender, a big tattooed bald man, turned around with a grimace on his face. “Hey, Louie” Pepper smiled. “How’s it going?” Louie said, eyeing Delilah. She gave him a small smile, if he saw it he didn’t respond to it in any way. “I was looking for Mitch, is he in the back?” Pepper asked. Louie nodded as someone at the other end of the bar called for his attention. He went back to work without even another glance at them.
Pepper turned towards Delilah, who was looking around the bar with wide eyes. He smiled. “You’re so damn adorable, you know that?” he said, touching the tip of her nose. She frowned causing him to smile again. He then grabbed her waist and lifted her up on a bar stool. “I’ll be right back” he said walking off towards the back of the bar that led to a dark hallway. Moments after he disappeared, a man in his early twenties appeared and came to sit next to her. He had short bleach blonde hair and she noticed he had a giant tattoo on his arm of a naked woman on a motorcycle. She adverted her eyes to the bar’s counter where there were names that people carved into the wood. She could feel him staring at her so she looked up. He grinned lazily, which indicated that he was drunk out of his mind. “Can I get you a drink?” he asked, leaning in. Delilah felt uncomfortable by his closeness and backed her face away from his.
“Umm, I’m underage” she answered, though she was sure he knew she was. His grin widened and he winked. “Really? Could’ve fooled me” he smiled drunkenly. Delilah grew more uncomfortable. She looked back down at the bar. “No one has to know” he stage whispered. “Know what?” she asked, slightly confused and not liking where she thought the conversation was going. He placed his hand on her knee. She felt as if she were going to throw up from disgust. “I think you know, sweetie” he answered, sliding the hand that was on her knee higher, towards her thigh. Her face paled, feeling violated. She didn’t know what to do so she slid back a bit in her stool, causing his hand to fall away. “I’m fine, thanks” she said in a shaky voice. He leaned against the bar and rested his head in his hand. “I like you, you’re shy…what’s your name?” he asked. She momentarily debated if she should tell him a phony name.
“Delilah” someone called out from behind her, answering the stranger’s question. Delilah knew it was Pepper and she instantly felt safer. She took in a deep breath and turned towards him. He eyed the man as he walked up to her. “Making friends?” he asked. She sighed, ready to get away from the creep that was next to her. Pepper grinned, which was absolutely nothing but pure trouble. He came closer to her, placing his hands on her waist. Her breathing sped and she knew her face was flushed. He leaned in, his dark eyes locked with hers. She tried to breathe evenly but didn’t succeed. That’s when he broke eye contact and looked over to the stranger, who was eyeing them stupidly. He leaned in closer until his lips met her cheek. He kissed her cheek softly; his eyes never leaving the stranger’s. “Let’s get out of here” he whispered. She nodded. He pulled her off the bar stool, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her to his side tightly. They exited the bar, leaving the drunk stranger looking angry and frustrated.
Outside, Delilah tried to pull away from Pepper but he just pulled her closer. “Don’t you think you’re getting a little grabby?” she asked as he opened the door for her. He leaned against the door as she got in. “Grabby? Babe, you haven’t even seen me being grabby yet” he said nonchalantly then winked. Her heart reacted heavily and she grabbed the door handle and closed the door on him. She saw him smile as he walked across to the driver’s side. Once they were on the road again he looked over at her then sighed. “What?” she asked. He shook his head then looked back at the road. “How do you feel about parties?” he asked slowly. Delilah knew as soon as he asked that, that’s what he had planned on doing for their date. She had never been to a real party and she was ok with the idea of never going to one…until now. “Is that where we’re going?” she asked, trying to sound indifferent. He looked over at her. “If it’s ok with you” he said, making a turn onto a back road that was nothing but gravel and woods. “Sure” she said, looking out the window.
They came to a stop in front of a two story farm house. The yard was packed with cars and littered with beer cans. As they parked, Delilah slid on Pepper’s jacket. He walked around the car and opened the door for her. She felt nervous; the only person she knew here was Pepper. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she unconsciously leaned into him, when she noticed what she had done, she pulled away a little. “You can’t keep fighting it” he said lowly, as they made their way up the front porch. “What am I fighting?” she asked, curious. “It’s clear that I want you, and I know that you want me…so why fight it?” he said, releasing her waist to open the door. Delilah blushed and started to deny what he said but instead she stayed silent. She felt a little light headed from what he said and she wished that he didn’t have that kind of affect on her. She scrunched her eyebrows together as he wrapped his arm around her and her heart pounded against her ribs.
He pulled her into the house, which was clouded with smoke and loud blaring music. It was so crowded in the house that they had to slither through the various groups of people sideways. He led her to the kitchen, which was less crowded than the living room and hallway. He grabbed two red plastic cups, filled with who knows what, and handed it to her. She peered into the cup and looked up at him. He grinned but said nothing. She didn’t trust his smile so she just held the cup and watched him drink his. He flipped his hair out of his eyes and leaned down. “I want you to meet my friend” he said, having to shout over the pulsing music. She nodded. “You stay here, and I’ll go get him” he said. She nodded even though she didn’t want to be left alone. He turned and disappeared into the hallway.
As soon as she lost sight of him, she felt someone come up behind her. Then when she tried to turn to see who it was, they wrapped their arm around her waist tightly. Delilah shrieked but it was cut short by the stranger covering his free hand over her mouth. She squirmed and wiggled but he was too strong. She wondered why no one was helping her but that’s when she looked around the kitchen and noticed that no one was moving, breathing, blinking. They were frozen in place. They all looked like mannequins and now that she noticed, even the music had stopped. Was she going crazy? Or had this stranger just stopped time? It seemed too impossible to wrap her head around. She tried to scream and claw at him but it didn’t really affect him much. That’s when he started leading her out of the kitchen and down the hallway to the stairs.
By this time Delilah was crying silently and wishing Pepper could some how appear to save her like he had at the bar and at the movies with Vince and Tess. The stranger led her up the stairs to a random bedroom. It was dark in the room and he didn’t turn on the light. She was shaking and was prepared for the worst when he started to speak. “I’m not going to hurt you, but you have to promise not to run, we don’t have much time until they figure out I’m here” he whispered near her ear, she noticed that his soft voice sounded slightly familiar. Delilah nodded, confused but curious to what he was talking about. He released her mouth first and when she didn’t scream, he released her waist. They stood in the dark for a second before he reached for the light switch. When the light came on Delilah blinked for a second, wiping the tears from her eyes, then looked around the room. It was empty. So she turned towards the door. When she turned around she sucked in a breath, shocked at what she saw. “Gabriel?” she whispered.

Impressum

Texte: The image on cover is from google images* This book is here by under copyright and any unlawful reproduction or distribution without the permission of the author, Breauna, will result in immediate legal action
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 25.07.2011

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