Bella Notte (26 page)

“
God
,
Emma. You are such a
freak
!”
She rolled her eyes and tossed her beautiful blonde locks behind her.
Mike and Acacia took notice right away. Mike looked angry, but I
could see the hope behind Acacia's eyes.

“
Whatever,”
I mumbled trying to sound indifferent.

“
How can you
even sit here, you know
you're
not one of us.” She practically spit at me.
Damn
she's good
.

I let shock color my
face.

“
Now wait one
second, Kelly … who are you to tell Emma …” Mike
was cut off.

“
Oh shut
up
,
O' Shanold. You're no better than she is. And you're dragging the new
girl down too!” She scoffed, turned her head toward me, winked,
and walked up to Acacia.

“
I'm Kelly.
You really don't want to hang out with
these
people. How about you come join us for the rest of lunch?” she
purred perfectly.

Really good
.
Mike stared in shock.

“
Um, Mike is a
friend. But I am sure he wouldn't mind joining us?” Acacia
cooed.
She's
like my personal Hell on wheels
.

“
Actually I
do. But go ahead.” I could feel the anger coming off of him as
he slid closer to me.

“
Okay. I'll
see ya later, Mike.” She batted her lashes at him.

Stupid evil
guttersnipe!

“
Emma, I'm
really sorry for today. I was trying to help Acacia get a feel for
things- apparently her kind of things aren't mine.” He sneered
at Kelly's table, while I was secretly thanking all the mystical
beings for putting her into my life.
Thank
you!

“
I understand
Mike- next time though- I get my seat.” I smiled at him.

“
Agreed. Look,
I know lunch is almost over, but how about we leave early and go get
dinner?”

I could tell in his
eyes that he meant it.
Why
are the heavens against me? Just when I win a victory- ugh!

“
Sorry, Mike,
I can't. I've got a week's worth of work to catch up on, which
includes staying after today, through Friday.” I sighed.

“
That's not a
problem. Tomorrow, we'll- as in you and I- will go to the deli for
lunch.” He grinned at me.
God,
I've missed that.

I inhaled.
What's
that smell? He isn't
...
I sniffed again and narrowed my eyes at him.

“
Uh oh, what
did I do now?” He looked worried.

“
Are you
wearing cologne?” My voice was venomously sharp with contempt.

“
Oh. Yeah.
Why?” He was confused.

“
Why?” I
raised my brow and narrowed my eyes.

“
Mom bought me
some. I thought I'd surprise you- duh! But perhaps I was wrong.”
His voice faltered.

I blushed.
He's
wearing it for me …

Lunch ended and I
felt the blush still on my face. As I walked toward the drab senior
building, I saw Kelly, smiled, and then mouthed 'thank you'. She
waved it off and continued on her way to Gym as she toted Acacia
along with her.

I was about to pull
open the evil dungeon doors when a pair of arms closed around me and
turned me around so quickly that everything blurred. I knew it was
him even before he planted the kiss on me. I sighed. He still loves
me best. I watched Mike run off toward the gym. I smiled and stumbled
into the building- my thoughts were lost.

I saw Mike after
school and he kissed me bye before I had to report to Mr. Fitzgerald.
I found that working on English was decidedly harder when you'd
rather be out with Mike. I also encountered the problem of when I
thought of Mike, I decided I shouldn't have gone to Italy and when I
thought of Italy, I thought of Dominic. Somewhere amongst my daydream
of Dominic's beautiful pale skin next to mine on the plane to Italy-
I realized it was time to go.

I raced home,
ignoring all traffic laws as my greatest desire was to check to see
if I had an email. My recklessness was highly rewarded.

Dear Emma.

I have bad news. My
time away will take longer due to a need of further discussions. I am
sorry to hear that this girl has created such worry in you. I am sure
you truly have nothing to worry about.

You are you after
all- no one can compare. Perhaps your Mike is nervous that you have
fallen in love with me during your time in Italy- which of course is
silly. So do not worry, I am sure he'll come around. I would love to
see your lightning storm, I can only hope I will get to see one while
I am with you. I miss you even more knowing that I can't hear your
voice. I hope that these meetings end quickly.

With too much love,

Dom.

My face was flushed
when I finished reading the email. I found that I really missed him
as well, even if he was as stubborn as I was.
Emma,
you shouldn't think of him. You're getting things back to normal with
Mike. Dominic is nothing
.
My brain was shouting at me as I was stuck in a reverie of the kiss
that I'd shared with Dom.

“
I am so
confused!” I shouted at the laptop.

Right, like it's
going to help.

I didn't know what
to write. I couldn't tell him how confused I was, or about my horrid
day. When I was in Italy he was my confidant. But here, in my normal
world, I couldn't see myself talking like that. I suddenly realized
that I couldn't talk to Mike either- I was alone.

I wrote back to
Dominic with shaking fingers and sweaty palms.
Something
is clearly wrong with me.

Dom.

I'm sorry things
didn't go as planned. I'm sure they'll work out. Oh, tell Abner that
I said 'Thank You,' if you don't mind. Today started rough, but was
okay in the end. Well, I have to do some catch up work now. I guess
I'll talk to you later.

Emma.

It was short and I
knew if he really knew me that well he would see through my attempt
to distance myself. I had to fight the desire to call Italy- my best
defense was that I didn't know if he'd be there. That was how my day
ended- a constant battle between Mike and Dom in my head.

I spent the next
days and following week trying to get back into the flow of things.
Mike talked animatedly to me in the classes we shared as Acacia
glowered at me from her place with Kelly. Kelly helped to keep her
busy at lunch so we could go to the deli. I knew that Mike spent his
time in his other classes chatting and flirting with her- a little
blonde bird kept me well informed. I didn't hear much from Dom, which
hurt some. He only let me know how the plans were going and I only
replied accordingly. I knew it was stupid, but I wanted normal back-
even if I had to lie to myself about caring for Dom.

When I wasn't in
class I was still working on catching up. I had no spare time-
meaning Acacia had the weekends and evenings with Mike. But I
survived.

The week before
break, I finished everything by Wednesday after school. I got to
leave earlier than before and I was so excited. That was until I
realized I had nothing to do. I knew if I called Mike he'd be with
her, and it was still hard for me to deal with, so I went home and
sat in my room deciding what to do. I checked my email out of habit
and felt my heart skip a beat as I saw Dominic had written me.
Stupid
heart
.
I clicked on the title; 'A Surprise.'

Mia Bella
.

God it feels like
ages since I have allowed myself the pleasure of addressing you as
such. I find myself in good spirits and could only think of you to
celebrate with. All of the deals are done and the Bella Notte clubs
will begin construction after Christmas. As a result, I will be
returning to your quiet haven that you have hidden yourself in. I
know that you want distance here between us. It is too hard for me. I
tried to endure but you are my beloved. I know I am not yours, but I
can wait … forever if need be. Perhaps, one day, you will be
mine. I am sorry for sharing this with you, but it is only fair that
you know my side. Perhaps, once I get there, I will be able to
distance myself from you while knowing you will welcome back our
friendship and think fondly on your time in Italy. I cannot know. I
do know I should be home tomorrow. So, I will see you, my Little Emma
Bird.

Dom.

He's coming home!
My heart was singing.
I
can't wait to see him; we'll get to spend time watching movies. Maybe
Mike will learn from him? Mike … oh crap! He can't come home.
My normal life will be gone.
My mind went from joyous song to dead stop, but my heart continued to
flutter happily in my chest.
That's
it … I'm insane
.

I didn't know how to
react so I tried not to. I ate dinner and went to bed.

The sun was too
bright when I woke up. It was never really that sunny here, but the
sun seemed to feel that it would make an exception for the day. The
world felt at odds with itself.
Great,
now I can see myself in the temperature and weather of the town.
I was too eager as I got dressed; I desperately tried to shove my
foot into the wrong shoe.
Dammit,
Emma! He is just another person and you have Mike- barely, but you
have him.
I let out the breath I wasn't aware I was holding and adjusted myself
for the day.

As I approached the
school, I was filled with trepidation.
How
will this day go?
I had never felt so uncertain. I didn't know when Dom would get back
and that left an uneasiness clinging to my body. I went to class and
sat in my seat.

The lecture was
boring and didn't help to distract me as I had hoped it would. Mike
held up a light banter as we went to Science. He hadn't noticed my
mood and I responded to all his comments- I tried to keep my mood
light.

At our first break,
Acacia decided she wouldn't be led away and Mike would give her the
attention she deserved. Kelly shot me an apologetic look and I smiled
to let her know it was fine.

Their conversation
was radiating heat- perhaps it was their chemistry. I stared blankly
out over the cafeteria- a place I still didn't belong in.

I felt his presence
before I felt his cool hands on my shoulders.

My heart reacted
without my permission.
Stupid
heart.
My
face flushed as I tried to continue to stare, I saw Kelly glance my
way and look absolutely ecstatic. I couldn't understand her reaction.

I turned slowly to
look up at him. I realized both Mike and Acacia were watching as
well. Mike's eyes glower at Dom, and Acacia's face was aglow with
happiness. Clearly something was visible between us- I couldn't see
what it was. I threw my legs over the bench and looked up at Dominic.

He was staring down
at me with all the angelic beauty of a divine creature. His hair was
tousled and caught the bright light with a golden accuracy- it was as
though his hair was made of rays of sunshine. His eyes seemed to be a
light spring green and full of the promise of flowers yet to bloom.

His cheeks dimpled
slightly as he smiled at me. I felt a strange sensation of
recognition flood my blood as I smiled up at the apparent angel.

“
Hey there,
Little Emma Bird.” His teeth glistened in the sun.

I stood and hugged
him in as friendly a manner as I could manage.

“
Hey you. How
was your trip?”

He took a deep
breath- like he was breathing in my scent.