Blood Storm

Curiosity Killed The Cat

I woke up feeling surprisingly well rested the next morning, and my mood was significantly improved.

Mom and I had made amends the night before, and she didn’t seem to be holding a grudge. I’d told her how sorry I was, but she already knew. She had just hugged me and told me she loved me, and we didn’t speak of it at dinner or the rest of our evening. We’d watched tv together and looked through some photo albums, and without the cloud of exhaustion in my head, I was actually able to laugh and enjoy it with her for the first time since I’d been in Rockport.

I groaned as I stared at my hair in the mirror. My red curls looked wild this morning, no matter how much I tried to brush and pull my fingers through them. Frustrated, I grabbed a black ribbon off of my shelf and pulled the top half of my hair up into a ponytail, leaving the spiral curls on the bottom half of my hair free. It definitely looked better than the big mess it had been before.

I stared at the clothes hanging from my shower curtain rod in contempt. I hoped today wouldn’t be awful.

I pulled on my favorite pair of wool leggings and an oversized sweatshirt and stared at myself in the mirror before yanking the sweatshirt back off and walking back to my room to pull a long sleeve white shirt from my closet. It fit way better, showing off my tiny waist and making me look like much less of a blob.

I frowned. It wouldn’t matter, anyway. Jax had seen me looking like a drowned cat just two days ago. I pulled on my black bomber jacket— the only other heavy jacket I had since the ocean ate my other one— zipped it up and walked off towards the kitchen, throwing my book bag over my shoulder.

“You ready to go?” Mom asked, yawning. Her auburn hair was a mess, piled into a knot on top of her head.

“Actually, a friend is going to pick me up.” I didn’t make eye contact with her as I said this. I just grabbed a granola bar out of the cabinet.

“A friend?” I could feel her staring.

I shrugged my shoulders. “Jax. I met him at the library.” It wasn’t a lie, it was just me leaving out my near death experience and all of the parts she wouldn’t like.

“Does he go to Rockport High?”

I turned to make eye contact with her for the first time, and her onyx eyes were curious, and also skeptical. “No, he graduated already.”

Her eyes narrowed. “How old is he?”

“Nineteen.” I bit off a piece of my granola bar.

“And he’s making a special trip here, just to drive you to school?”

I sighed. “Calm down, Mom. He’s nice.”

She bit her lip, unsure. “I’m glad you made a friend here, Colette, but I just want you to make sure you associate with good people. What’s his last name?”

“Cross, I think. I think Jax might be short for Jackson.”

Her eyebrows shot up, and all of the blood drained from her face. She looked like she had seen a ghost. “Jackson Cross is coming to pick you up for school?”

Dumbfounded, I just stared at her, confused. She looked like she knew him somehow, and like he somehow frightened her.

“Yeah. Why? Is something wrong with that?”

She pursed her lips. The color didn’t come back to her face, but she looked a little more resolved. “I knew a Jackson Cross when I was younger. I’m assuming this is his son.”

“Oh. Yeah, maybe.” I wondered what history my mom had with them to make her face look like that. Maybe she dated his dad before she met my dad.

A knock sounded at the door, and we both jumped. I watched my mother’s face as she took a deep breath, and slowly her face got a little color back to it.

My heart was already hammering, though, knowing Jax was on the other side of the door.

I went to answer it eagerly, leaving my mom to gather herself in the kitchen. I would have to ask her about her reaction later.

The hammering of my heart contributed to my heat pouring off of my skin as soon as I saw his face. My butterflies were back again, stronger than ever.

I didn’t think I would ever get over how just.. handsome he was. His white blonde hair was pushed back on his head like usual, messy, but sexy without even trying. His perfectly sculpted face didn’t look tired at all, considering the early morning. I couldn’t help it when my eyes traveled down his tall frame. He was wearing a suit this morning, and I assumed he was going to work later. It fit him perfectly in all of the right places, accentuating his muscular frame. It also looked expensive. I couldn’t help but feel dumpy, looking down at my leggings and jacket.

He smiled at me, his black eyes twinkling a little bit, and my heart almost stopped. “Good morning.”

“Good morning.” I stepped outside of the door, eager to get him away before my mother could come out and interrogate him, but I wasn’t quite quick enough.

My mom rounded the corner to catch both of us on the front stoop, right before I closed the door. Jax wasted no time introducing himself, either.

He held out his hand as she approached the door frame, a polite smile on his face. “You must be Colette’s mother. I’m Jax.”

My mother had a foggy look in her eyes, almost as if she were trying hard to remember something. She looked at Jax curiously, her grey eyes examining every inch of his face. It took her a moment, but she reached out and grabbed his hand. “Rachel. It’s nice to meet you.”

My mother shook her head, as if she was trying to get rid of her thoughts. “You’ll have to excuse me. You just look.. extremely familiar.”

Jax kept his polite smile, but I thought I saw his jaw flex a little, as if her comment stressed him out. “You may have known my father, he spent quite a bit of time in Rockport on business.”

My mother was slow to answer, but she nodded. “Yes, that must be it. Was your father’s name Jackson Cross?” My mother was prying, and I couldn’t help but shoot her a glare.

He nodded, perfectly composed. “Jackson Cross Senior.”

My mother’s eyes seemed to relax a little, and she gave him a small smile. “You guys better get going so Colette isn’t late. It was lovely to meet you, Jax.”

My mother waved us off and shut the door to the house. I was so stunned by their interaction that it took me a minute to make my feet move off of the porch. I just stared at the door, wondering what Jax’s father could have done to make my mother seem so.. off.

Jax gently pressed his hand to the small of my back, guiding me forward and snapping me out of my spell. Even through my layers of clothes, I felt like his hand was burning through my skin when he touched me. I snapped out of it, looking up at him and smiling.

As we walked to his car, I noticed for the first time that he drove a sleek, black Mercedes. I didn’t know much about cars, but I did know this one wasn’t cheap. This had me wondering again what it was Jax actually did for a work— in Rockport, especially— to make that kind of money. I supposed it really was none of my business, but I was curious anyway.

He opened the door for me and I slid in, the plush leather seats welcoming me. The car was already warm, and it felt great against my red cheeks. It took about two seconds before he was sitting in the driver’s seat next to me and putting the car into gear.

“I really hope you don’t mind me asking,” I eyed him. “But what exactly do you do for work?”

He laughed, and it was the first time I’d heard the sound. It warmed my insides. He shot me a knowing glance.

“City council, I guess you could say.”

Hm. “Oh. That’s not what I expected at all.”

“I work with a group of older wealth in Rockport,” he told me. “It would probably bore you to death.”

Something about his answer seemed.. rehearsed, like so many things he had said to me had. I assumed maybe he was just articulate and charasmatic. He spoke well. I noticed his familiar, delicious smell for the first time this morning, and inhaled deeply through my nose.

“Can I ask you something?”

He looked over at me, and he actually looked like I had surprised him for the first time. “Of course.”

“Why did you want to drive me to school? I mean, I’m sure you have more important things to do.”

He stilled, as if he couldn’t believe that I thought something was more important than this, but he played it off well. “At least if I drive you, I know nothing is going to come out of the woods and attack you.” He laughed, but it sounded forced.

“Please don’t misunderstand,” I continued. “I really like being around you. I just.. really don’t understand why you want to be around me.”

The car stopped on the gravel road, and he looked over at me, grabbing me by the chin so I had to look at him. My face heated under his touch, and I tried to stop myself from leaning towards him.

“You are fascinating,” he murmured. His black eyes were boring down into mine with that same intensity he always had with me lately that made me have a heart attack. “Why wouldn’t I want to be around you?”

I gulped. “I don’t know. You’ve obviously got your life together. I don’t. I don’t know where I’m going to be tomorrow, much less next week.”

The early morning sunshine was streaming through the window behind me, even through the dark tint, and it seemed to catch his eye. He let go of my chin to grab hold of one of the red curls by my cheek and tug slightly.

“Not knowing what life is going to hold for you is a beautiful thing. Not a crime.” He said it absentmindedly, as if there were a deeper meaning behind it. He sighed, letting go of my hair and putting the car back into drive and continuing his way down my bumpy driveway.

I decided to strike up another conversation. “My mom looked weird when I mentioned your last name earlier.”

That tenseness in his jaw was back, but his facial expression gave nothing away. “My father wasn’t a great man back then. Sort of a tyrant, actually. I’m not surprised if her memories of him aren’t fond ones.”

“So.. you said you aren’t from Rockport originally.. so where are you from?”

He laughed again, and I reveled in the sound. “Believe it or not, just north of here. My family is originally from Maine, so not much of a change. We’ve lived a lot of places over the years, but we tend to stick to the eastern seaboard.”

I nodded. That seemed to make sense with everything else he had told me before. “Do you have family here?”

He glanced over at me anxiously, as if he didn’t know if he shoulder answer the question or not. “Yes. My brother and sister are here with me.”

That was good. At least he wasn’t alone. I knew how I felt after losing my dad, I couldn’t imagine losing both of my parents and having no one to lean on. “That’s nice.”

“Do you have any siblings?” He asked me suddenly.

“No. I used to wish I did, but now I’m not so sure. My best friend Aaron has two brothers, and he’s not that fond of them.” I crinkled my nose up.

He nodded, understanding. “Sometimes it’s a difficult relationship to have.” I suspected there was a deeper meaning behind his words.

I breathed in deeply, but this time the heat sent a scratch up my throat and I coughed a few times. I definitely felt better than yesterday, and I was sure the cough would be gone tomorrow, but that didn’t stop Jax’s eyes from worriedly flashing over to my face.

“How are you feeling today?” His eyes were examining my face thoroughly, as if looking for any slight changes.

“Better than yesterday. I still can’t believe that happened. I was stupid to go out on the dock.” I was still mentally kicking myself for the other night. That reminded me. “I hope that wolf doesn’t hurt anyone else. I probably should’ve called somebody or something.”

Jax gritted his teeth. “I don’t think that will be a problem anymore.”

We were pulling up to the school now, and I frowned, upset that our time together was almost over. The high school was very.. plain. Several large brick buildings came into view, surrounded by a tall chain link fence. It almost looked like a prison more than a school.

Jax pulled the car into the parking lot in front of the main building, putting it into park. Suddenly, I didn’t know what to say. I was actually kind of touched at how he seemed to be going out of his way to take care of me. We sat there in silence for a minute, neither of us wanting to go our seperate ways. I found myself, again, looking over at him and focusing on the sensitive set of his mouth. He looked back at me, and that same gaze that felt like it would spear me into the ground came back to his eyes.

I had pretty much stopped breathing by the time he reached out and pushed my hair back over my shoulder, his eyes flashing down to my collarbone. He reached over and adjusted the collar of my jacket, his knuckles and fingers gently brushing against my neck.

His finger came in contact with the soft skin behind my ear, and he froze. Blood was rising to the surface of my skin everywhere that he touched me, and he seemed to notice that. I saw pain in his eyes for a fraction of a second before he collected himself, leaving me wondering what about this was painful for him.

Without me having time to collect myself, he was out of the car and opening my door for me. I got out relunctantly.

The parking lot was full of students now, all of them looking over their shoulders curiously at the gorgeous man in in the suit and his expensive car. I barely noticed it as I leaned back against the now closed passenger door.

Jax was leaning closer to me now, and his delicious breath hit my face like a wrecking ball. My knees wobbled as he leaned even closer, and for a second, I felt like I actually might faint.

His black eyes gave were smoldering as he brushed my hair away from my cheek and leaned in, planting yet another gentle kiss on my cheek. My eyes fluttered almost closed, the pleasurable feel of his lips against my skin making me feel almost drunk.

“Have a good day,” he murmured. His eyes were worried now, conflicted. I assumed he didn’t want to leave me anymore than I wanted him to leave.

He took a few steps back, and I tried to collect myself before I quite literally passed out in the middle of the parking lot.

“Can I pick you up later?” He asked.

I had trouble forming words with his scent so prevalent in my brain, so I just nodded, stepping away from his car. He gave me a brilliant smile. “I’ll see you this afternoon.”

His face was torn as he got into his car and drove away, and I stared after him, willing my legs to walk me towards my first class.