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It took fifteen minutes to arrive at home, and I saw one of the garage doors remained open, Gareth’s car just inside, telling me he’d gotten home and was waiting. I’d bet anything he was waiting in my room to make a move, to pounce on me and remind me that I belonged to him.
And, okay, I knew I’d agreed to it before, but I was out of my mind. You couldn’t hold me to the things I’d said when I was hopped up on medication in the hospital or when adrenaline had filled every vein in my body while I was trying to keep Gareth from killing Erin.
Neo slowed to a stop before the steps that led up to the grand front door. He leaned over me, peeking at the large, impressive house through the window. “Damn,” he whispered. “It’s bigger up close.”
“It’s even bigger inside,” I muttered, unbuckling my seatbelt. “Thanks for tonight, Neo. Sorry Gareth tried to ruin it.” I started to get out of the car, but Neo grabbed me—right on the injured wrist. It took everything in me to hold back my wince and turn toward him without punching him in the throat with my other hand.
“I shouldn’t have let him rile me up like that,” Neo said, slow in releasing me once he was sure I wouldn’t fly out of the car like a bat out of hell. “Besides that, I hope you had fun. I know I did.”
“You did?” I couldn’t hide the shock in my voice.
He flashed me a smile that was perfect, practiced, the kind of smile that definitely made other girls weak at the knees. If I was normal, he would’ve had me, right then and there. But I wasn’t normal, and my heart was already being pulled in more directions than it should’ve been. “I did,” Neo replied, still wearing that easy smile. “We should do it again sometime—without Gareth, though.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, without Gareth. That’d be fun. I’d like that.” It was, of course, a lie, because I didn’t want to go out with Neo again. Neo was only a means to an end for me. It was wrong to use him like this, but I couldn’t think of anything else to do.
Gareth could show me the pool house and the cold room, he could show me that there wasn’t a body hanging inside it, having been drained of its blood, and I still wouldn’t believe him. Gareth was the least trustworthy person I’d ever met in my life.
“Great,” Neo murmured out the word, his voice changing. Before I knew what was happening, he’d grabbed the back of my head and pulled me to him. We both leaned over the center console in the car as our lips met, and after a few seconds, I could honestly say that kissing Neo wasn’t like kissing Gareth.
Or Alistair.
Or even Rick.
No, kissing Neo was boring. Kissing him didn’t bring out the fire inside me, didn’t stoke the flames and make them burn hotter and brighter. My body didn’t feel anything at all when our lips met. It was like kissing a statue, an inanimate object, something I shouldn’t be kissing at all, almost as if my body knew, deep down, I wasn’t meant to be with Neo.
Not sure what that said about me.
As much as I didn’t want to, I kissed him back, if only to keep him on the line, to make him believe he had some kind of chance with me. I wasn’t done using him yet. I’d get Gareth to fess up, one way or another.
When Neo was done with the kiss, he pulled away, giving me another easy smile. “Goodnight, Brianna.” His hand lingered on the back of my head for a few seconds, and then he pulled it off me, letting me go. His eyes never once left me as I got out of his car, not even as I went to the front door.
I hadn’t turned around for Rick or Gareth tonight, but after opening the front door, I did just that for Neo; had to make the boy feel like I was crushing on him, like I wanted him. It was only after he grinned at me through the darkness that he drove away.
I shut the door, feeling weird about the kiss. As much as I wanted to use Neo against Gareth, I didn’t like the taste of his lips on mine. I needed something to drink, some water to wash it down, so I wandered into the kitchen, finding my mom talking to Gareth. I froze, my heart doing something funny in my chest when Gareth’s emerald stare shifted to me.
My mom wore pajamas, some kind of smooth, satin material with dainty flowers printed on it. Her brown hair was unkempt, a little messy, and she held onto a cup that I assumed had some kind of tea in it. “Gareth was just telling me about your date tonight,” she spoke before taking a sip from her cup. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a date with the school quarterback?” Her eyebrows lifted.
Resisting my urge to glare at Gareth, I went straight for the cupboard with the glasses. I got one out and walked to the fridge to get myself some water. “It didn’t seem that important,” I spoke with a shrug, lifting the glass to my lips and gulping it down.
“Brianna, a date with the star quarterback is very important, especially if he’s as good as Gareth says.” My mom paid no more attention to Gareth, staring at me, which was the only reason why Gareth was comfortable enough to smirk behind her. “Athletes do very well for themselves.”
Ah, my mom was only interested in my date with Neo because, if Neo continued on the path he was on, he could possibly make a whole lot of money, and I could become his trophy wife that had stuck with him through it all. High school sweethearts made the country swoon and all that shit.
“Did Gareth tell you he only came to the game to spy on me?” I gave Gareth a sly smile, watching the smirk fall off his face. He didn’t think I’d tell my mom, but hey, with Erin still MIA—and her family as well—I had to keep the guy on his toes.
“I think it’s sweet your stepbrother went to make sure you didn’t do anything stupid,” my mom said, unsurprisingly taking Gareth’s side. “He’s only looking out for you. He wants what’s best for you too, I’m sure.” She took a sip from her mug.
“Yeah,” Gareth said, “I only want what’s best for you.” It wasn’t what he said, but rather how he said it that made a chill creep up my spine. How he could look at me so angrily but also hungrily at the same time, while all the while my mom stood next to him, oblivious about it all.
My mom set down her cup, asking me, “Are you going to see the boy again?”
“I don’t know, probably. But it’s been a long night. I’m tired. I’m going to bed.” I didn’t say anything more as I turned to leave the kitchen. Neither my mom nor Gareth stopped me, and once I made it to the hall and was out of sight, I hurried to the grand staircase, taking two steps at a time as I went.
I thought Gareth would follow me. I thought he’d come to me, lock my bedroom door, and shove me against the wall as he whispered venomous things in my ear. I thought he’d do something… but he didn’t.
I changed into my pajamas in peace. I got ready for bed without seeing him again. And when it was time to crawl under the covers, in the darkness of the night, I was still alone.
Huh. That was weird.
