Page 25 of Trip Through Your Wires

She yelps then giggles playfully as he carries her up the stairs, yanking the back of her skirt down so we don’t get an eyeful.

“Don’t mess up your makeup!” Jenica yells up the stairs as the door slams shut.

As Jenica looks up the stairs, I take a moment to admire her. I don’t know if she’s aware how much of a knockout she is, but even as a zombie she’s smokin’ hot. She’s got the kind of energy that says, ‘fuck with me and find out,’ and when you pair it with those piercing blue eyes and dark hair, it’s mesmerizing.

The first time I laid eyes on her it was as if a door slammed shut in front of my face. A wall of air crashed into me, stealing the very breath in my lungs. Only once she hung up the phone she’d been talking on and started ringing up the booze I set down at the register where she was working, did I start to breathe again.

Now that I know the girl under the steely resolve I first saw that day, she renders me speechless in a whole different way. There is so much more to her than meets the eye, and she’s one hell of a girl.

“I say they have a kid in the next two years.” She turns and flashes me a beautiful smile as “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” Ellery’s current favorite, starts to blare.

Cruz was not a fan of grunge, but when it comes to Ellery, he would listen to feral cats fighting if it meant making her happy.

“Up it,” I grin, remembering what he said yesterday. “Three by the time he’s twenty-five.”

She laughs and makes her way into the living room, stopping to look out the window. Knowing they’ll be up there for at least a couple of minutes, I follow and come up behind her.

“I missed you last night,” I whisper.

She turns and looks up at me over her shoulder. “Sorry, passed out early.”

If anyone deserves a peaceful night’s sleep it’s Jenica. For the past seven months that hasn’t been the case. “Adrenaline can do that to you.”

My eyes search hers, before drifting down to her bare shoulders. “Are you going to be warm enough tonight?”

“Of course,” she shrugs. “Why not?”

While the weather had warmed this week, a storm was coming and snow was expected in the coming days. While the sunset last night would hint at an early spring, the patches of fog in the corners of the window right now was a sign of a cold night ahead.

I look back up, finding her big, beautiful eyes on mine. They’re heavily coated. Like they’ve been dipped in ink. Ice blue, flanked by black raven feathers.

“Winter up here isn’t like the south,” I swallow, her beauty disarming. “You may need something to keep you warm.”

“I’ll be fine,” she insists.

We’re both quiet for a moment, but when I reach out to brush her cheek, she turns and looks back out the window.

“Hey,” I wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her back to my chest. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she shakes her head, but I know it’s a lie. I can feel the thrumming of her heartbeat against my arm. It’s faster than normal and her muscles are tense.

“I’d like to think we’re closer than that,” I bring my mouth to her ear. “Much closer.”

“Says, who?”

“Says my mouth on your skin, and my hand in your—”

She spins around and slams a hand down on my mouth, eyes flicking to the stairs. “Didn’t we agree, that stays between us?”

I start to reply but when she can’t make out what I’m saying, she drops her hand. “You know you’re cute when you’re embarrassed.”

“I’m not embarrassed.”

“No?” I arch a brow.

“I don’t get embarrassed,” she steps back, my arm slipping away. “I just don’t want them to catch us in a compromising position.”

“Oh,” I rub my chin while taking her in. “That outfit is making me think of a few compromising positions.”

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