“Do you think he meant what he said?” I ask, loving the way Hael absorbs every inch of me, cataloging my body for future jack-off material, no doubt. I want him to keep looking; I just wish I could look at him, too, naked and thrusting above me. I lick a bit of the sweet cherry gloss from my lips. “About me and him being exclusive after the wedding?”
Hael shrugs his shoulders all of a sudden and steps back, acting like he cares as much about the blue sportscar as he does my breasts. And the lie detector test determined … that was a lie.
“Hah.” He barks a laugh and reaches up to mess with his hair. “He meant it alright. Doesn’t mean I’m going to listen.” Hael winks as he circles the Ferrari. “Besides, you heard Callum and Aaron; I said my piece.” He grins, because in reality, he didn't really say much at all, did he? I keep wondering if I'm going to blink and Hael will suddenly be back to his old ways, cavorting around campus with occasional forays into Fuller High or Oak Valley prep pussy. He better not. “We all agreed that you'd be our girl, Bernie. I guess we each have to define what that means, what we want out of a relationship with each other.” Hael points between me and him as he bends down to examine the rims. He pulls his phone out, pops the stylus from the bottom, and starts scratching down notes.
“Yeah?” I ask, following him around the car as he makes his rounds, taking note of certain things and marking them down. He's barely looking at me now, acting like he doesn't give a shit that I'm in here. Lie. He knows damn well where I am, and he's avoiding me.
Out of respect for Vic, no doubt.
“I think Oscar would be satisfied at using you for target practice,” Hael suggests, rising to his feet. His red faux-hawk is styled to perfection in a crest along the top of his head, the sides shaved. There's a single tattoo on the side of his neck, a skull and crossbones that reminds me of the image on my bikini cup.
I smile.
“As long as the offer goes both ways, and I can shoot him in the balls, then I'm okay with that.” I exhale as Hael looks at me again, his honeyed eyes softening slightly before he looks away. “What about you?” I ask, trying to draw his attention back to me. I love the way I feel when he looks at me, like I could slide into his Camaro and take off down the highway with the windows rolled down and never look back.
Freedom.
That's Hael's particular taste, and I'm craving another bite.
“What about me, what?” he asks, flashing a saucy smile. “What do I want from a Havoc girl?” He puts a hand on the hood and then hops up on it, sliding over and then slamming his boots onto the pavement in front of me. Hael parks his elbows on his knees and rests his chin in one hand. “You know what I want, Bernadette Blackbird. I've been sweet on you since we were homeless together.”
“Don't you play with me, Hael Harbin,” I say, crossing my arms again and taking a small step back. He catches me by grabbing onto the ends of my robe ties and pulling me a bit closer. “You have a lot of things to answer for.”
“Do I?” he echoes, and I give him a look.
“Do you not remember stripping off my homecoming dress and giving it to that pond-scum, bottom-dweller Kali Rose-Kennedy?” I quip, popping out a hip and resting my hand on it. The motion only serves to open up my robe even further. “Or what about that time I walked in on you with one of the blond math teachers?”
Hael stares back at me like I'm crazy for a moment, and then flicks his gaze to the ceiling in thought.
“Math teacher?” he asks, but I just narrow my eyes.
“I know what I saw: you and some blond faculty member with her lipstick smeared and her hair mussed. Don't try to tell me that what was going on in that classroom was innocent.”
Hael drops his attention back to me again, and then gives a crooked grin, one that's just dripping with cocksure impertinence.
“Oh, baby bird,” he laughs, shaking his head. “You got it all wrong. I do know what you're talking about, but let me explain.”
“Please do, Harbin. I'm waiting.”
Hael pulls me even closer, and I just know that if Vic walks in, we're going to get into trouble. Not sure that Hael would accept being ousted from the room a second time, and I really can't bear to see Havoc splintered into pieces over me. Obviously I'm aware that none of that would be my fault—it's ludicrous to blame a girl for the actions of a bunch of guys—but nonetheless, the fallout would suck.
“I'm not going to lie and say I never screwed a teacher, Blackbird. But the ones at Prescott are just … not my type. What you're talking about is the time I caught Miss Addie fucking the other blond math teacher, Mrs. Daines. You just saw me blackmailing Miss Addie is all.” Hael taps underneath my chin with his fingers and smirks. “So cheer up, little bird. No harm done.”
“Oh, I'm sorry. All you were doing was blackmailing a faculty member? Right, excuse me for thinking it was something sordid.” Hael puts his hands on my hips, and I don't stop him, even though I know we're sliding into dangerous territory here. Me plus Hael plus an empty car hood … Gah. I wanna see how well those shocks really work. Can the Ferrari handle our particular brand of speed bumps and potholes?
Mm.
We cannot push the envelope and find out.
Victor has to come to this decision on his own; he has to know that he made the final choice. He has to choose Havoc.
Otherwise, this will never work.
“Any other burning questions I can answer to soothe your weary soul?” he asks, digging his thumbs into my pelvic bones and making me bite my lip to hold back a groan. My eyelids snap shut, and I have to really work at not throwing myself at him. When I feel Hael's breath against my bare belly, I almost lose my shit.
“Did you really try to kill Neil for me?” I ask, and he pauses. The energy in the room shifts, and I open my eyes just in time to see Hael pull back, his expression morphing into something completely different. I touch my hands to either side of his face, loving that he's clean-shaven again and smelling like coconuts. Come to find out the asshole likes to shower with a very specific shampoo and conditioner. Gotta keep the hawk fresh, he'd said, pointing at his hair. He's such an asshole. “I'm not a mind reader, Hael. I don't know what any of you are thinking, what you've done, where you've been.”
Hael stands up suddenly, and I gasp. There's a look on his face that just tears me into pieces.
“Come on,” he says, grabbing my hand and moving over to the passenger side door. He opens it, despite my constant bitching about chivalry, and I slide in. With that dark expression riding his handsome features, how could I refuse? Besides, I've never sat in a car this nice before; it's disconcerting.
“Where are we going?” I ask, but Hael just slams the door behind me and then jogs over to the door that leads into the house. He yanks it open, shouts something inside, and then hits the button to open the garage door. The sea greets us, glittering blue under a surprisingly cheerful sky. It's still cold as fuck, but at least it looks pretty. “What did you just say?” I add as Hael climbs in and starts the engine. At the sound of its admittedly satisfying growl, he puts his forearm on the steering wheel and leans his forehead against his tattoos.
“I'm gonna come in my jeans, Bernadette. Did you hear that? Not as pretty as that signature shriek the models from a few years back had, but I'll take it. Not bad for a turbocharged engine, am I right?”
“You may as well be speaking French to me again,” I say, wishing with all my heart that he would.
“Pourquoi est-ce que tu me poses des questions qui me poussent à me dévoiler, Blackbird?” Hael murmurs, lifting his head up and smiling at me. His right arm is closest to me, and I can't help but smile at the checkered flag tattoo, the racetrack, the colorful cars and pretty girls lounging atop them. “I told Victor that I was going to teach you to drive. Sorry, cher, but I'm not putting all that work into the Eldorado so you can park it in Aaron's driveway.”
Hael sits up and then pauses a moment to connect his phone to the Bluetooth sound system. He surprises me by choosing Carry on Wayward Son by Kansas. He puts the top down and then slips his sunglasses from his pocket, sliding them over his beautiful face.
“Ready?” he asks, but my throat is suddenly tight, so all I can do is nod. “Then let's fucking go!”
Hael slams his booted foot down on the gas, and I let out a small scream of delight as we peel out of the garage and take off down the curving driveway. It ends in a road that hugs the sand for a while, and I throw my arms up, letting my head fall back as sunshine streams across my skin.
That flickering firefly inside of me goes nuts. There isn't a soul on this earth who doesn't love a sun-drenched convertible ride along the beach. Add in the adrenaline from knowing we stole the Ferrari and the beauty of Hael motherfucking Harbin on my left, and I'm drowning in unconscionable bliss.
Hael doesn't bother with directions or anything. Instead, he just follows the curving road that kisses the shore. Even his playlist is fun, full of classic rock that makes me smile.
“Really, Hael? Pat Benatar?” I ask as “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” comes on. He just shrugs his shoulders, driving with his left hand while his right reaches over to caress my bare knee.
“Marie likes classic rock,” he says, referring to his mother. Just that little tidbit, pulled out of his past and chucked at me like a stone at a window, makes me want to open it wide and see what's out there. I need to understand each Havoc Boy the way they seem to understand me; it isn't fair.
“Your mom seems nice,” I hazard, but Hael's expression just sort of … locks in place? Like, it doesn't seem as genuine as it did just a second ago. He has so much darkness inside of him; I just want to understand. “Even if she has problems, she loves you.”
“You think so?” he asks, but in a detached sort of way. Since I can't see his eyes behind the lenses of his sunglasses, it's impossible to tell what he's thinking.