Unconventional Scars Page 13

  She dressed in a pair of deep purple Victoria’s Secret lounge pants and a camisole, trying to tell herself she was opting for comfort but knowing better. The possibility that tonight could be the night both terrified and excited her. She didn’t know what to expect, really. Then again, maybe when he said he wanted to be alone with her he meant just that and nothing more. Who could tell? She was mulling this over in her mind when she heard the tap at the door.

  Letting him in, she gave him the once-over while his back was turned, as he closed the door behind him and locked it. He was dressed in jeans and a plain black t-shirt, and the ends of his soft brown hair were still damp. Yummy, as Karen would say. To her surprise, he had brought his sketchbook and easel along with him.

  “What’s that for?” she wanted to know.

  He grinned devilishly. “Show me your room.” It was more of a command than a request. Trying hard to quiet the butterflies, Anna led him upstairs, wondering what he had in mind. She was almost afraid to ask.

  Scanning her room quickly, Alex selected a spot and set up his easel and sketchbook while she watched curiously. He moved her desk chair in front of the easel, then pulled a small plastic case out of his pocket and looked at her expectantly.

  “I want to try something.”

  “You want to draw me?” It was the only plausible explanation.

  “I want to sketch you nude.”

  Anna stopped breathing. She stood rooted to the floor, frozen.

  “Are you all right?” He looked amused.

  “You want to what?”

  “Why is it whenever I suggest something interesting, you pretend you’re hard of hearing?”

  “I heard you! You just . . . took me by surprise, that’s all.” To say the least!

  “If you’re that modest, you can cover yourself partially with your bed sheet.”

  Well . . . that didn’t sound so bad. At least she wouldn’t be completely exposed. The thought of such close scrutiny of her body was a little nerve-wracking.

  It was also very, very exciting.

  “How . . . um, how do we do this?”

  The blue eyes twinkled mischievously. “Well, Princess, in order for me to sketch you nude, you have to be naked.”

  “Right here?” Did he expect her to just strip right there in front of him?

  Walking over to her bed, he yanked the comforter onto the floor and pulled off the top sheet, handing it to her. “Go in the bathroom, undress, and wrap this around yourself.”

  Okay. I can do this. It’s just like wearing a toga, right? She went in the bathroom and closed the door, then slipped out of her purple outfit. There was a brief moment of hesitation before sliding down her panties. I can’t believe I’m doing this.

  Opening the door, she saw Alex standing by the bed, arms folded. “Come over here.”

  Somehow she made it to where he stood without her knees buckling.

  “Lie down on your stomach.”

  She crawled onto the bed, clutching the sheet tightly to her chest. He shook his head with a smirk. “Jesus, Anna, loosen the sheet a little. If I wanted to sketch a mummy I’d have gone to the museum.”

  His humor put her a bit more at ease, and she smiled. Lying on her belly, she propped herself on her arms and looked up at him apprehensively. “Like this?”

  He took one of her hands and gently pulled her arm out in front of her. “Lay your head on your arm. Yeah, like that. Now fold your other arm in front of you. Nice.” He paused to meet her gaze. “Now I’m going to arrange the sheet so it’s just sort of draped over you, okay?”

  “Okay.” She tried not to tremble as he pulled the edges of the sheet out from under her. He then proceeded to slide it down so that she was exposed from the waist up. The only part of her body still covered was her backside. She’d never felt so incredibly vulnerable.

  “That’s perfect.” His voice was soft. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”

  She merely stared at him, eyes wide.

  He cleared his throat. “All right, I guess I can get started now.” Retrieving a charcoal stick from the plastic case, he settled himself in front of the easel and began.

  Anna’s tremulousness gradually faded as she observed him at work. He kept his eyes in front of him for the most part, glancing up at her only occasionally. It was fascinating to watch the graceful movement of his arm. She already knew he was talented. Once, with his permission, she’d flipped through his sketchbook at school. The drawings, mostly of ancient trees and the ruins of an old church, were impressive. There was one in particular that touched her - a sketch of a small child cradling a rabbit. It would be interesting to see his interpretation of her.

  It didn’t seem very long at all before he placed the charcoal back in the case, saying, “All done.”

  “Already? That didn’t take long.”

  “Do you have any hairspray?”

  “Hairspray?” That was an odd question.

  “It’ll set the charcoal so it doesn’t smear.”

  “Oh. There’s some in the bathroom.”

  Alex disappeared. She could hear him washing his hands, and seconds later he emerged with the hairspray. He sprayed a quick coat over the paper, then returned the can to the bathroom.

  “Would you like to see it?” He smiled at her.

  “Of course!” She propped herself back up on her elbows, yanking the sheet up so he didn’t accidentally get an eyeful.

  He brought the sketchbook over to the bed. “What do you think?”

  She stared at the drawing speechlessly. The girl in the picture was her - of course she recognized herself, but . . . she’d never seen herself portrayed that way before. Her hair was carelessly splayed out around her and the eyes, her eyes, seductively looked back at her from the paper in a way she’d never known she possessed. It was exquisite.

  “Is that me?”

  “That’s you.” He placed the pad back on the easel. “Do you like it?”

  “It’s beautiful.”

  “I have my model to thank for that.” Returning to the bed, he sat beside her, watching her intently with cloudy eyes. With one hand, he reached out to gently stroke her hair.

  “Alex . . .”

  “Hm?”

  “Um. Never mind.” She felt the need to say something, but had no idea what.

  He lightly ran his finger down her cheek, then stretched out beside her, kicking his Nikes to the floor. His arm reached underneath the sheet to rest on her naked back. The touch of his warm hand on her bare skin sent shivers of anticipation up her spine.

  She rolled on her side to face him, and he pulled her close and kissed her hungrily. She loved the way he tasted, like wintergreen and warm cocoa, delicious and familiar. Very quickly, his kisses became deeper, more desperate, leaving her breathless.

  “Wait a minute.” Anna pulled away.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, I just . . . nothing. Forget it.”

  “What is it, baby? You can tell me.”

  “I, um . . . just thought you should know. I have some . . . uh, some condoms in my dresser drawer. If you need them.”

  “What the heck are you doing with condoms?” He seemed genuinely surprised.

  “Uncle Phil bought them for me.”

  “What?”

  “The day after . . . you know . . . he walked in on us.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me! Why would he do that?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe he saw this coming.” She could feel his body shake as he laughed.

  “No pun intended, right?”

  Anna tried to stifle a giggle. It was kind of funny, when you thought about it. “He said he just wanted me to be safe. In case, you know . . .”

  “I know. That was very . . . um . . . commendable of him. Although I don’t think I’ll ever be able to look him in the eye again.”

  “Well, it’s not like he’d ever know whether we were using them, you know.”

  “I have no intentio
n of using them.” Alex ran a finger slowly across her lips. Anna tensed.

  “Well, I’m not on the pill and I have no intention of winding up like Bailey. Just so you know.”

  “You’re not going to get pregnant because we’re not going to have sex,” he told her gently.

  “Oh.” Anna had never felt more foolish in her life. She also felt as though there was no way, no way, she was ever going to understand the male mind. Never! Wasn’t sex all a seventeen-year-old boy was supposed to think about? How could she have been so stupid?

  “Anna.” Alex took her chin in his hand, urging her to look at him. “Sweetheart. Don’t misunderstand. I want you. I want you so much it hurts. But . . . it’s just not the right time for us yet. There are some things you need to know about me before we can take that step. We don’t have to rush things.”

  She was even more confused than ever. “What . . . things?”

  “Nothing we need to get into tonight. Just . . . know that I love you. Can that be enough for now?”

  It was more than enough. It was all she could ever want out of life.

  “Alex . . . I love you too . . .”

  “I can still make you feel good,” he murmured softly into her ear. “Would you like that?”

  Oh God oh God oh God. She had no way of knowing how to answer that, what to say. Instead of replying, she snuggled closer to him.

  His lips found hers again, kissing her more leisurely this time, sucking gently on her lower lip, eventually sliding his tongue deep into her mouth. His hand left her waist, traveling upward to explore delicately with his fingers. She wondered if he could feel the pounding of her heart. Surely he must. It was amazing the reaction he could elicit from her so easily, just by the touch of his smooth fingertips.

  He looked into her glazed eyes. “Do you want me to stop?”

  “I . . . I don’t know,” she responded simply, honestly. She didn’t, of course she didn’t, but she was afraid.

  His hand reached down to lightly brush her belly, causing her to jump nervously. He laughed softly. “I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to do, love. You can relax. You’re safe with me.”

  She felt safe.

  And when she finally shed her inhibitions, when he finally touched her in a way that sent her over the edge, she didn’t care if the very universe collapsed so long as she was in his arms forever after.

  ****

  They lay there together afterwards, face to face, her fingers brushing the silky strands of his hair while they waited for their pulses to slow. Anna had never loved him more.

  After some time, he spoke. “Maybe we should go downstairs. We’ll be here all night if you keep looking at me that way.”

  “What way?”

  “All sleepy and sexy and stuff.”

  “You’re the sexy one. I’ve always thought so.”

  “Is that right? You mean we could have been doing this all along?”

  “I’m pleading the fifth on that one, you deviant man.”

  “So I’m deviant now? You’re the one who’s lying there naked. Not me.”

  She flushed pink and pulled the sheet closer around her. “Why don’t you go on down while I get dressed. Okay?”

  “Yes ma’am.” With a sanguine grin, Alex hopped up and sauntered off downstairs.

  Later, they watched A Nightmare on Elm Street while eating licorice whips, and talked about everything under the sun, like how creepy dreams could be, and whether UFO’s really existed, and how horses could manage to sleep standing up. Nothing serious or important because who wanted to waste a glorious summer on anything other than triviality? The funeral had been enough of a melancholy interruption. Maybe it was selfish, maybe it was irresponsible, but so what? This was their time.

  ****

  Alex’s cell phone rang some hours later, waking him. They’d fallen asleep somewhere near the end of Attack of the Mushroom People. “Huh?” he mumbled groggily into the phone, looking down at Anna who was slumbering peacefully, her head resting on his thigh. Her hair had fallen over her face, and he brushed it back gently. She began to stir.

  “Where the hell have you been? Do you know what time it is?” It was Creed, sounding cranky.

  “Time?”

  “It’s two o’clock in the morning! Mom will be home any minute. I’m surprised she isn’t already. Where are you?”

  “Oh. Ah . . .”

  “Never mind, I know where you are. You better get your ass home fast, because if she finds out you’ve been over there all night you know she’s gonna flip.”

  “On my way.” He slid the phone back into his pants pocket.

  “Who was that?” Anna sat up, rubbing her eyes. “What time is it?”

  “It’s late,” he told her. “We fell asleep. That was Creed. I need to get home before my mom does.” He kissed her forehead. “Go on up to bed, sleepyhead. Call me when you wake up in the morning. Or afternoon.”

  “M-kay.” She followed him to the front door, blinking drowsily.

  “Be sure and lock it,” he reminded her, and with a last quick kiss, he headed home. Dark as it was, he didn’t notice the black car that blended into the night.

  ****

  Two o’clock in the morning and some guy is just now leaving her house. Well, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it? It’ll just make it that much easier to remain detached.

  Doesn’t appear her mother’s gonna show up, after all. Well, it was a long shot. I have a feeling the kid will know where to find her, though. I just have to get her alone. She might not want to talk, but I’m quite sure I can change her mind.

  15

  His brother glared at him when he walked through the door. Alex just grinned.

  “Well, I can see someone had fun tonight.”

  “Someone did.”

  “Am I to assume, then, that she’s aware of the situation and is okay with it?”

  Alex sighed. “Seriously, dude, you are starting to sound like a broken record. Would you get off my back? I’ll tell her when I tell her.”

  “She still has no idea.”

  “Nope.”

  Creed shook his head helplessly. “I don’t even know who I’m looking at anymore.”

  “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

  “It means, I can’t believe you’re stringing this girl along the way you are. It’s sick.”

  This made Alex mad. “Who the hell are you to accuse me of stringing her along? What makes you so ethical all of a sudden? I don’t exactly see you treating Jennifer all that great!”

  “At least Jennifer knows what she’s getting with me!”

  “Well, isn’t she the lucky one!”

  “You know what, that’s beside the point! Have you even stopped for one second to consider Mom? Don’t you think she’s already been through enough crap with you?”

  “Mom doesn’t live in the past, unlike you!”

  “That’s bullshit!”

  “Is it? You’re the one who was so damn afraid people would find out about me! You’re the one who told me to keep this shit under wraps because you didn’t want to have to move again! God forbid my petty problems inconvenience your charmed life! And now you want to throw Mom in my face but you know what, she’s over it already, I think you’re the one with the problem and you always have been! So now, what, suddenly you have a change of heart and you think I should advertise my personal business? Maybe you should make up your fucking mind!”

  “Maybe you should have just stayed away from that girl in the first place, like I told you to!”

  “And maybe it’s none of your goddamned business!”

  “You’re right, it’s not! I’m not in high school anymore - I don’t have to deal with it, you do! So go get yourself nearly killed again and see if I care.”

  “You don’t even make sense! Could you at least try to be consistent? One minute you’re pissed at me for not telling her, the next you’re panicking because somebody might find out. I don’
t know what you want from me, Creed. I don’t! But I can tell you one thing - I’m sick and tired of trying to protect you.”

  Creed looked stunned. Quietly, he said, “I always thought I was protecting you.”

  Alex slumped into a kitchen chair. He folded his hands together and stared at them without speaking.

  His brother sat beside him. He was calmer now. “Surely you knew that, right? Please tell me you know I was never ashamed of you or anything like that. I just didn’t want to see you hurt again.”

  “Yeah. Well . . . I guess getting hurt is probably inevitable, huh?”

  “I don’t have all the answers.”

  “I love her, man.”

  “I know you do.”

  “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”

  “The rules have changed now, Lex. There’s someone else who could get hurt by this, someone besides us, and she doesn’t deserve it. You know you have to stop putting this off. Make a decision. The longer you drag this out, the harder it’s going to be. For both of you.”

  “She’s gonna hate me, Creed.”

  “She’ll find out eventually. Don’t let her find out the hard way.”

  ****

  When the doorbell rang early the next morning, Anna was annoyed. For some reason she assumed it was Bailey, only because she’d done this once before. Apparently waking people up at the crack of dawn on Sundays was going to be a new habit with the girl.

  After the second ring, she realized Uncle Phil hadn’t made it home from Lisa’s yet, and even though she was still half asleep, she stumbled downstairs and opened the door.

  It wasn’t Bailey.

  The middle-aged man in the three-piece suit smiled pleasantly at her. “Miss Moore?”

  “Yes?”

  “You are Anneliese Moore, then?”

  Oh, no. What now? “Yes sir, that’s me.”