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I do care about my dad. Lincoln and I are here for him. After almost losing him, too, we didn’t protest when he decided abruptly that we should all go live in the vacation house he built for my mom in Arizona.
We didn’t opt to go to Cave Hills–a much better school that’s farther away because we wanted to stay close to monitor his mental health.
“Now what, partner?” Abe stands too close. I wish he wasn’t such a perfect specimen of manhood. Not that I’m into jock-types. Not at all.
But It’s hard to ignore Abe’s sheer masculine virility when he’s right beside me. He’s a foot taller than I am and probably weighs twice as much because his body is built of solid muscle.
Solid.
Muscle.
I know because I just felt the hard-as-rock relief of his chest when my hands flew up against it to push him back. I may have memorized the ridges of his washboard abs.
I would like to say I never craved tracing the exquisite lines of his upper arms. That I haven’t wondered whether he has a six-pack or eight-pack. It’s not about how you work out, it’s genetic–I learned that last year in AP biology.
That’s the only reason I return the favor of touching his back. I pat it like a child and give him my most condescending, “Good job, Abe” when he brings the solution to a boil.
I expect another lazy smirk, but his upper lip curls in a snarl that makes me snatch my hand away. It was an instinctual reaction. I’m not afraid of him, but something about that look startled me.
Like most bullies, he usually plays offense. He’s the one poking at others.
I blink, and it’s gone. The smile doesn’t return, but Abe’s face goes somewhat blank.
I’m not sure how to interpret that reaction. Abe’s insecure about his intelligence, maybe?
I decide to go back to ignoring him and doing the lab on my own.
“You’re good at this,” he says after I’m the first one finished, and Ms. Miller comes over to praise us.
It’s not hard. It’s not even an AP class–they don’t have one here. So I shrug. “I guess.”
“You’re going to help me study for the test,” he declares.
I shake my head. “In your dreams, baller. I have better things to do than teach your sorry ass about chemistry.”
The pirate smile is there. Good thing I’m immune to it.
Good thing I have a boyfriend.
The one I’m breaking up with.
“You’ll do it. I just have to find your leverage point. Everyone has one. So what’s yours?”
But, that’s the thing–I don’t have one. I’m a teenager who just lost her mom. Nothing else could hurt at this point. Nothing even touches me. I truly have no fucks to give about anything other than keeping our dad alive.
Abe considers me. “Pleasure?” His grey eyes sweep up and down my body with…is it appreciation? Heat? It’s the first time I’ve seen anything other than cockiness or scorn on that beautiful face of his. “Or pain?”
I don't know why his words hit me physically. And when I say physically, I mean, well, sexually. My core tightens, and my nipples get stiff. Parts of me I didn’t even know existed rev to life.
Abe's nostrils flare, and he steps a little closer. “Hmm? Which is it?” His voice is a low rumble. Like honey over coffee grounds. “Or is it both together?” There's innuendo in his tone. A leer in his expression.
Oh, God. It does nothing to quiet the stirring between my legs.
I'm not attracted to him. Abe’s about as far from my type as a guy could be. But for some reason, my body is all lit up. My belly squirms. Heat prickles across my skin.
I’ve never felt this way about Luke–even before I went numb.
Maybe it's just that I felt nothing for so long that feeling anything shocks me, but I have to take a step back.
