He shook his head, a strand of blond hair falling down his forehead. “I can’t accept that.” There was heat behind his words to back up how passionate he felt about my absence.
“It doesn’t matter if you accept it or not.”
His face was suddenly a whole lot closer than it had been a moment ago. Our noses almost touched, and my stomach dropped as I got a taste of his smell. It was sensory overload. God give me strength. A thousand feelings bombarded me. I never saw his fingers move. They were just there under my chin, holding my face, forcing me to look into his eyes, which were a blend of aqua and gold.
I’d never seen a more enchanting sight.
“Emma,” he whispered. “I missed you. Every. Day. Don’t push me away. Not now that I just got you back.”
How easy it would be to just slip back into his arms, press my lips to his, taste him. The fact that I wanted it so much was exactly why I couldn’t.
“I’m not yours anymore.” I reached for the handle this time, hit the unlock button, and opened the door. I made sure that I didn’t look back.
What was he trying to do to me? Why had that been so hard to say? Why did the words feel like sandpaper in my throat, leaving me raw?
The answer was simple.
I still had feelings for Travis Winters.
And really, what girl wouldn’t? I had to have been the world’s biggest idiot turning away from a guy like him, but the majority of the world didn’t have my problems.
It was for the best, I cajoled as I ran inside my house, slamming the door behind me.
Chapter 10
The next day, I enrolled in school.
Joy.
Truthfully though, I was secretly thrilled to be back in a classroom. Being educated at the facility had not been high on their list of priorities. Online classes an hour or two a day at the most. I’d missed interacting with people, walking down the halls, having my own locker, and graffiti desks with carved hearts. The little things that everyone took for granted or complained over, those were the things I’d missed the most.
The hunger for learning had never left me, but my peers thirst for gossip would be first and foremost. My return was going to be five o’clock news worthy.
Tossing my hair into a ponytail, I wore no makeup, but my cheeks were already a natural rose color. My green eyes were bright with anticipation and a hint of nerves. Dressed in what had become my usual wardrobe of black khakis and a tee, I had traded in my dresses the day I was taken.
Staring at my reflection, I gave myself one of those “Emma, you can do this” speeches. They never helped, but it was worth a shot. I snatched my keys from the counter and slung my bag over my shoulder.
Here goes nothing. Senior year, here I come.
And to think I was going to graduate Hall High.
With my head held I high, I entered my old school feeling just a little nostalgic. What I hadn’t missed was the attention, the hushed whispers, and the gasps of surprise. I could have done without all that, but it was understandable. There were a least a dozen rumors swirling around about my disappearance, and none of them came close to the truth, but I figured a fabrication was better than the real thing in this case.
Did my peers really want to hear about the tribulations I’d endured before I was broken in body and spirit? I didn’t think so. Mostly everyone here would have covered their ears, except maybe Chase and Craig. They were kind of warped.
My boots clapped on the linoleum floor as I made my way to my assigned locker. Weighed down with school supplies, I was stopped a few times, girls gushing over my unexpected reappearance. I revealed as little as possible, and their silly tears made me uncomfortable, especially from girls who barely knew me.
I ended up distracted, seeing Angel. Alone. I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity, so I pulled myself away from the swarm of peeps. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite mutant,” I said in my sweetest voice, knowing it would irritate her.
Angel screwed up her face in anger. “Fancy seeing you here. I’d say it’s a pleasure, but I’d be lying.”
I tsked. “Such manners. Didn’t your mama teach you that if you don’t have something nice to say, you shouldn’t say anything at all?”
Her eyes practically flashed red. “Listen, you redneck skank—”
I grinned. “Do you kiss your boyfriend with that dirty mouth?”
“I told you. He is not my boyfriend,” she enforced between clenched teeth.
Blah. Blah. Blah. So she said before. I leaned in, propping a hand on the locker by her head. “Is that why he spends so much of his time with his hand up your shirt?”
She shook her head and shoved off the locker. “I don’t have time for this.” She began to move toward the crowd, fuming with each heavy step.
“Lucky for you, all I have is time,” I sneered.