Where was Cole?

Mackenzie Love caught my eye. Wearing a skimpy black dress with colorful peacock feathers stretching over her shoulders, she strutted over. “Well, well. Ali Bell. I’d like to tell you how awesome you look, and if I can figure out a way to sound sincere, I will. What is that thing?”

My cheeks flashed white-hot with embarrassment. “You can’t guess?” I asked, using a scathing tone that suggested she was an idiot. “Wow. How sad for you.”

She paled and stomped away.

“New drinking game, everyone,” the new guy, Gavin, called. Blond and handsome—and dressed as a pimp—he was surrounded by a bevy of hot brunette vampires. “Anytime someone speaks, down a shot!”

Cheers abounded.

“And meanwhile, if anyone wants a free make-out session,” one of the vampires shouted, “I’m giving them away.”

More cheers as a laughing Gavin kissed her.

Then he kissed the girl next to her. He used tongue with both.

I watched, reeling. For once, a vision just had to be wrong. There was no way I’d be into a guy like him. He was beautiful, yes. I’d give him that. But no. Just no.

“Ali!” Kat rushed over and threw her arms around me. She had to be the cutest Little Red Riding Hood I’d ever seen. Her barely there dress was red, black and white, and hugged all of her curves. The tulle skirt flared at the waist and stopped a few inches below her panty line. Long white socks stretched to her knees. “You made it!”

Before I could respond, Cole stalked past us, grabbed my hand and tugged me away from her.

I tossed her a he’s-going-to-get-it-now glance. She gave me a thumbs-up before Cole pulled me into a shadowed corner, and I lost sight of her. He crowded me against the wall, his arms at my temples, caging me in. His heat and scent surrounded me, drugged me.

Oh, no. I wasn’t going to melt this time.

“What are you doing here?” he demanded.

How dare he use that tone with me? “I am so mad at you,” I said, beating at his chest.

His aggressive stance softened in the slightest degree. “I know. And you have every right to be.”

“You ditched me. You want a break from me.”

“Yes. No.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “Not from you. You don’t understand.”

“Of course I don’t! Moron! You haven’t explained it to me. You ignored my text.”

He glared at me, his anger heating back up. “I wanted to be with you, I did, but I couldn’t not come here since I’m the D.D.”

“And you couldn’t bring me with you? Because, and I quote, making plans with me was a mistake?”

“It was. I don’t want you here because I know...”

“What?” I demanded when he paused. I hit him again.

“Gavin is here, all right?” He flashed his teeth in a scowl. “I don’t want you around him, okay? Get it now? I need a break from the jealousy. As long as you’re near him, I can’t get past it.”

How could I want to slap him and kiss him at the same time?

But then, I already knew the answer. I’d been battling the green-eyed monster, too. “I promise you have no reason to be jealous.”

His shoulders drooped. “I know that, in theory, and I’m sorry for the way I’ve acted. I’ve never felt this way, and I’m not handling it well. If you have another vision with him...”

I slid my hands to the nape of his neck and toyed with the ends of his hair. “It wouldn’t make a difference. My feelings won’t change. But I guess we need to talk about what I saw, even though I’d rather forget it.”

“It’s bad, isn’t it?” he croaked.

I nodded, suddenly unable to speak.

“Then I’m not ready.”

He faced monsters on a daily basis, but this was too much for him? Oh, Cole. What am I going to do with you? “Will you trust me, then? Trust my feelings for you?”

A moment passed before he nodded. It was a stiff acceptance, but an acceptance all the same.

I smiled at him.

He smiled back. His gaze raked over me, and his eyelids became heavy, staying at half-mast. “You look edible, by the way. You have no idea how badly I want under that skirt.” His voice dipped huskily as he added, “I wish I had time to prove it.”

Oh.

My.

“Nana said the hat is for you. I’m Alice in Wonderland, and you’re the Mad Hatter.”

With a laugh, he took the hat and settled it on his head.

“So, what are you doing that you don’t have time to try and get under my skirt?” I moved my palms to measure the heavy beat of his heart.

His features closed up shop, displaying zero emotion. “You will just have to trust me.”

A thousand questions sprang to instant life. I ignored them all. As his tone implied, I couldn’t ask him to trust me about the vision if I couldn’t extend him the same courtesy about this. Whatever “this” was. Besides, he could have lied and made up an excuse for his behavior. He hadn’t. He wasn’t that kind of guy. He gave truth, or he gave nothing. I’d always liked that about him.

“Do you have a few minutes to spare?” I asked softly.

He fisted two handfuls of my hair, his grip hard and unyielding, holding me still for his perusal. “For you?” The panic I’d noticed last night returned for one second, two, before he gave me the softest of kisses and whispered, “Anything.”

“Yo, Cole,” a voice said. A head peeked around the corner. “I’m taking off with Kira and Jane and—”

I turned to look, and my gaze locked with Gavin’s.

The world disappeared. Cole disappeared—

—there was only here, now, and Gavin, and we were back inside my bedroom, on my bed, my body on top of his. One of his hands was in my hair. The other was sliding down my back to cup my bottom and urge me to grind against him, hard...harder—

—a low snarl snapped me back to the present. To Cole.

The growl had come from him.

“Yeah, uh, I’ll just be going,” Gavin said, and beat feet.

Cole and I stayed where we were for a long moment, silent.

“What I saw with him...” I began, fighting for calm. I’d said it wouldn’t make a difference, and now had to pray I was right. “It was the first vision all over again.” Only a bit more vivid.

“Don’t tell me,” he lashed out. “Not tonight.”

“Cole—”

“Not tonight, Ali. Please.” With that, he walked away from me for the second time that day.

He watched me from afar the rest of the night, but at least he continued to wear the hat.

* * *

As the days wore on, I had to admit my relationship with Cole was unraveling.

Every day he grew a little more distant with me. Anytime I tried to talk to him about Gavin and the vision, he would shut me down, saying, “I can’t do this right now.”

I was trying to trust him like he’d asked. I really was. But the hot-and-cold treatment was wearing me down. Even though he’d always been lavish with his praise of me, I hadn’t spent the past few weeks mutating into a secure person. Especially with matters of the heart.

Should I call him again?

What was considered good girlfriend behavior? What delved into Stalkerville?

I knew something other than the vision was bugging him. The few times I’d seen him, his features had been withdrawn and pinched. And what had the panic been about? But again, when I tried to talk to him about it, he shut me down and walked away.

I wasn’t sure how much longer I could wait for an explanation about his odd behavior without banging on my chest like a gorilla and screaming.

Eventually, he stopped returning my calls. His replies to my texts were short and abrupt—if he bothered to reply at all. He stopped coming by Mr. Ankh’s, and he stopped working out at his own gym.

Maybe Gavin had told him about the vision, and he’d decided to wash his hands of me?

Oh, good glory. No! I bet that was it, though. Dang it! The admission should have come from me. I should have grown a pair of lady balls and forced Cole to listen to me. Then I could have assured him I would rather die than allow my lips to touch any part of that he-slut’s body.

I hadn’t seen the Georgian slayer since Halloween, and I had no idea what would happen the next time we locked eyes. Part of me didn’t want to know. Part of me needed to know. If nothing happened, I could assure Cole wires had somehow gotten crossed—twice, yes—and I was meant to lick and grind on him.

What should I do next?

I couldn’t talk to Kat about this. She had her own problems, and I wouldn’t add to them.

I couldn’t talk to Reeve. I couldn’t risk a slipup.

I couldn’t talk to Nana. She’d just lost her husband.

I couldn’t even talk to Emma. To her, kissing was gross.

I missed the days when I’d thought the same. I was alone in this.

A bell rang, loud and shrill, signaling the end of class. I stood on shaky legs and gathered my notebook and pencil. Earlier today I’d met the new principal of Asher High, an older black man with kind eyes—a nice change considering the last one had been the queen of ice-cold hearts. I’d turned in all the work the teachers had sent to my sickbed. I was finally caught up.

“Glad to have you back and dominating my assignments, Ali Bell,” called Ms. Meyers as I strode from the room.

That was right. In my turmoil over Cole, I’d lost my excitement for my grade. I palmed my cell and texted Nana.

Got an A on my Creative Writing paper! I’d been working on my own at home, and it was nice to know the time and attention I’d put into everything had paid off.

A few seconds later, her reply came in. WTF an A!

I blinked, sure I was misreading. But no, the letters didn’t change.

Me: Nana, do U know what WTF means??

Her: Of course, silly. It means “well, that’s fantastic.”