Chapter 7 #3
“You’re not sad, not in this moment,” he said softly from far too close to my ear.
Heat stained my cheeks as my eyes flashed open and my hands raised in defense to hit nothing but air.
His smile was huge when I focused my gaze and glanced his way.
“And, you know what? Neither am I.” He took my hand, his skin warm and electrifying as it so familiarly claimed my own.
“Let’s keep walking. This is my favorite part of the city, but I have tons more to show you if you haven’t done anything touristy yet. ”
I stumbled, then used it as an excuse to stop him. “Hold on. I thought we were talking about why you don’t want me around your brothers.”
He shook his head, his expression genuinely confused.
“I never said that, not exactly. You did. You’re remarkably good at determining what people want from you when they first arrive but not afterward.
Jeremy told me you read him, too. Afterward, you stop.
Look, I’m sorry I prejudged you.” His brows lifted in innocence even as his gaze strayed over my body for a second.
“How did you decide I was a snob? What about me screamed that I didn’t want you around because you were poor? ”
Should I tell him? Crossing my arms, I actually had to work to keep from puckering my bottom lip in a pout. “I have my ways.”
“And you’re not going to share them?” He stepped closer then continued walking, causing me to have to double step for a second to catch up as he shook his head. “But be careful with that. You’re not right, not this time.”
Fair. Maybe this time. “I’m supposed to see your brothers tonight. Do you want to text them to say I won’t make it?”
“No.” He took my hand. “There’s a lot more park to see, but we aren’t even going to attempt it. We’ll see a bit more today, and then we’ll head to other locations. You ready?”
I caught my breath, shivers still radiating from where his hand so easily held mine captive. “Do I have a choice?”
He considered me carefully, his voice strangely soft as he said, “You always have a choice. I guess my question is do you want what I’m selling?”
It was such an interesting turn of phrase that my lips quirked into a grin despite my intended neutral expression. “What are you selling?”
“Make no mistake, Alatheia, every person on this planet is selling some thing. The trick is to figure out if you want what they’ve got or if they’re a waste of your time. Every relationship is transactional in some way.”
I pursed my lips but managed not to blurt out my opinion. I disagreed with him. In my future, once I got away from these people, it wouldn’t be like that for me. My friends would want me around just because of me. I could feel my shoulders stiffen as I silently vowed to do the same for them.
“Oops,” he winced. “You didn’t like that. Okay, look, it’s not such a bad thing. Life is about give and take, that’s all I’m saying. Don’t worry about it now. If you want to spend the day with me, come with me. Otherwise, I’ll take you back home.”
I didn’t want our time to end, but I wasn’t willing to admit that much to him, either. Instead, I reverted to answering his question with a question. “I don’t usually talk this much. How are you doing this?”
“I don’t think it’s me, Alatheia.” He took off his sunglasses and his gaze was filled with happiness.
“If I’m being honest, I don’t usually notice that being around me makes someone glow, or brings anyone out of themselves.
Most of the time I make people shut down, so it’s kind of cool if the vibe between us goes the other way for once. Let’s go.”
Most of the rest of the day passed in a blur to me. Time s Square. Rockefeller Plaza. One World Trade. By the end of the afternoon, as the sun set, we stood side by side in Battery Park staring at Ellis Island in the distance.
“I don’t know anything about my family,” I finally confessed.
My throat ached from talking so much, but I was no closer to understanding how he blurred my thoughts than I had been when we met.
What is it about him? Is it him ? Still, I continued, adding, “I don’t know if they came through that island or if they’ve been here since the revolution or anything.
” I looked over my shoulder at him, enjoying his profile in the golden glow.
“What about you? Do you know how your family got here?”
He lifted an eyebrow, meeting my gaze evenly with his gorgeous eyes. I liked that he didn’t hide behind the sunglasses anymore. “We can trace my mother’s family back to the Mayflower. My dad’s side is more complicated, but we’ve all been here since the eighteen hundreds,” he said.
What must that be like? I couldn’t even imagine knowing everything about my family, not to mention having a complete history.
We’d kept the conversation surface level so far.
I didn’t know any secrets about him, and he didn’t know any of mine.
Well … he probably knows just about everything I’ve ever told Jeremy and Julian, since they clearly filled him in on all the juicy details .
Not that I expected secrecy from them. I never did .
My life seemed entirely public fodder, privacy yet another perk reserved for someday when I got free.
Whatever people wanted to know, they could find it out—other than about my anime.
It was the one thing that no one—not a single soul—knew about. I loved it that way, maybe loved it more for the sheer secrecy and privacy of it.
Out loud, I steered the conversation away from unsafe topics like my work. “So, you’re going to Columbia—but to do what?” I turned to him. “I didn’t catch what you’re studying.”
A gust of wind hit me in the face, cooling it a bit for a brief second.
I tried to imagine a truly hot day in New York City, but somehow I couldn’t wrap my mind around the fantasy.
Then again, despite knowing it snowed a good chunk of the year, I couldn’t fathom any of it covered in fluffy white, either.
He stroked a finger down my cheek, both snaring my attention and making me shiver. “Are you real?”
I startled, a slight tremor actually making my body hum as if he’d struck some tuning fork deep within me. “What?”
Barrett shook his head, his face so close that I could feel his breath. “I’m trying to decide if you’re going to run for the hills once you really know us. In the meantime, I need to buy you dinner. To answer your question, though, I’m supposed to be studying law.”
I gaped, too shocked to speak for a few seconds as he turned away. Finally, I managed, “Not running for the hills, but I think my boarding school is in Switzerland—so technically, I’m heading for big mountains, right?” I gave him a grin, my best attempt at making light of a very dark truth.
After two silent beats, he burst out laughing.
“I like your wordplay. You’re actually really funny, but you try to hide it, I think.
About me, though, I’m not a fan of law, but that’s what I’m doing.
Political science and economics before I narrow my focus at law school, if you want the technical breakdown of my plan.
Damn it. They were right. I hate it when my brothers are right.
It’s always so much easier when they’re just wrong.
” He shook his head. “You also don’t even blink when I say weird things like that. ”
I shrugged. “I figure you need to share something but you’re not ready to tell me all of it yet. That’s okay. I have a big secret that I’ll never tell you.” I waggled my eyebrows like he did, or at least gave it my best shot. “No matter how charming you are.”
His smile fell, his expression going serious. For a second, I felt like I might drown in the brown of his gaze. “Maybe you’ll tell me someday. I’m good with secrets.”
“Your brothers aren’t,” I blurted, then chewed on my lower lip as I worried over his response to my honesty. “Not that my personal details are really secrets, so to speak. Still, I would be lying if I said I didn’t find it disconcerting to know they texted you our entire night’s conversation.”
The wind struck us again, lifting my hair in wild curling tendrils as he looked off at the island.
“They had to tell me. We have a … situation in our family, so we have to tell each other certain things we might prefer to keep private. It’s a promise we made a long time ago.
For instance, when we’re lucky enough to meet someone like you, we have to share it.
I promise, they didn’t tell anyone outside of our sibling chat, so other than Phoenix, no one else knows.
Then again, Phoenix only knows if he’s around his cell phone and cares enough to bother to read his messages. ”
I tapped my fingertips, twitching to sketch, but instead chose to focus on the facts he gave me. “You don’t want to study law.”
I didn’t expect him to hoist me onto the bench, or to climb up beside me. I laughed, the sheer ridiculous fun of it bursting out loud.
As he rubbed his hands up and down my arms, he admitted, “I’d like to study education. I want to teach—but that’s probably not going to happen. I want to teach and open music clubs. It wasn’t the plan for me. I’m supposed to be the lawyer.”
A speed-walking woman slowed just long enough to stare at us and scold, “Those are for asses, not feet. Show a little respect.”
Barrett laughed, throwing his head back. “Thanks for your opinion. Get on with your day.”
As she went back to speedwalking, I tugged his sleeve. “What happens if you don’t do what they want? I’m not being dumb; I honestly don’t know. Personally, I don’t have any future plans besides surviving. I’ll figure the rest out later.”
He shrugged one shoulder, a half-smile twitching his lips.
“I don’t know, honestly. I don’t ever dare to disobey, so how would I ever find out?
Not much, anyway. Come on. Let’s go have dinner.
Afterward, I’ll answer the million texts that my brothers probably sent me since I ran away with you. Do you like musicals?”
I shrugged, not having any good reason to lie to him about such a simple question. “I’ve never seen one, other than on television. My mother used to like Bye Bye Birdie . Honestly, I’m not sure what I like or don’t like.”
He slid his arm around me before giving my shoulder a squeeze. “Maybe we’ll go to a jazz club, then. Do you like Thai food?”
My lips curled into a smile, and I couldn’t help but think it was probably the strangest, most wonderful day.