NorthangerAlibiInterior (9 page)

“Reading people’s minds?”

“Finishing each other’s sentences. Tony’s the best at it. He can always tell what I’m thinking before I say it.”

I knew it!
My hand gripped the armrest of the car so tightly, my knuckles had gone white, but I didn’t care. “So, I overheard you inviting Tony to come to the theater with us—is he coming?”

“Yeah.” She looked awkwardly at me. “You don’t mind, right? I mean, I didn’t blow it between the two of you because of my outburst?”

“Blow what?” I chuckled nervously and excitedly all at the same time. “There’s nothing to blow, so you’re fine. I just wish Joe was coming too.”

“Ah. You would. Whatever. I don’t even like the guy.” She chucked the phone right at me.

I caught it easily. “So, who’s breaking hearts now, hmm?”

***

The movie was great. We decided on an animated film, since we couldn’t agree on anything else. Okay, so we pushed up the average age of the audience by a few years, but it was fun. And it was really fun seeing Tony and Nora interact. They laughed just as loud—if not louder—than the little kids around us. I didn’t know many teenagers who’d let loose like that. Everyone I knew was too cool to admit they still liked certain things, like cartoons.

“So, where to next, girls?” Tony’s smile was really sweet as we walked out of the theater. “This is on me.”

I glanced at my watch. “I don’t have much time left, just forty-five minutes. Is that okay?”

“Only forty-five minutes?” He grinned wickedly and looked over at Nora. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Yes.” She giggled. “Let’s do it.”

“What?” I asked.
Oh my gosh, they’re reading each other’s minds!

“Do you think she’d like it, though?” Tony talked over me. “Plus, do you think she’s trustworthy enough?”

“Definitely. Come on, Tony, you can’t get an idea like that and not do it,” Nora said. “You have to now.”

“Do what? What are you guys talking about?”

“You think?” He was milking it for all it was worth. “I don’t know . . . she isn’t technically family, you know. And usually only family gets invited.”

“She’s close enough. Besides, Darlene and Roger are like family.”

“Close enough for what?”

“That’s true.” Tony looked at me. I stood between them with my hands on my hips. “Let’s do it.” He laughed.

“Come on,” Nora tugged on my arm. “You’re going to love this!”

I planted my feet right where they were. “Wait. What am I going to love? What are you guys talking about?”

Tony’s smile lit up. “We’re going to the park, of course.”

“The—the park?” I was
so
thinking it would be something more exciting than a park.

“Yeah.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “It’s where I used to play Little League.”

“It’s so much fun. Come on—say you’ll come, Claire.” Nora was practically jumping up and down.

The feel of Tony’s strong arm on my shoulders made my head spin. I could hardly concentrate on what was happening. “A park? I have to be trustworthy to go to a park? A park where you used to play base—” I gasped. Holy cow. A baseball park! Just like the Cullens in Twilight. They’re taking me to play vampire baseball! I quickly turned within Tony’s arm to look up at him.

“Are—are you . . . are you sure?” I couldn’t believe he was willing to take me there.

For a moment, his eyes sparkled down into mine, and I realized he wasn’t saying anything.
He must be trying to read my mind!
I couldn’t help it—I blushed.
Oh my gosh! Can he tell how hot I think he is right now? Seriously, up close like this, he is way cuter than Jaden. At least, I think so
.
I was having a really hard time remembering what Jaden looked like at the moment.

“Hey, uh, I’m going to go get the car,” Nora announced. Neither of us answered her.

“I wish I knew what you were thinking right now,” Tony spoke softly as his eyes scanned my face.

I gulped. “You mean you can’t tell?” I thought for sure he could.

“I thought I knew, but it can’t be—it’s just too good to be true. You have to be thinking something else.”

“I do?”

“Claire, what
are
you thinking right now?”

That you’re the most wonderful vampire in the whole world, and I would follow you to the ends of the earth if you asked me.
“That I’d like to go to the park.”

“Nothing else?” he teased.

“Uh—if there
is
something else, I’m going to bank on you using your intuition to figure it out.”

He squeezed my shoulder and brought me in for a hug. My cheek rested against his rock-hard frame. “Deal,” he muttered above my head. “But I do have to warn you, my intuition rarely fails.”

“I didn’t know it
could
fail.” I inhaled a soft, musky scent.
Washington guys are really into hugs.

Tony chuckled, and his whole body vibrated. “So, can I have your permission to act on whatever it is you’re thinking, then?”

I pulled back so I could see him better. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, if I can tell you want to be kissed, can I kiss you?”

Washington guys think a lot about kissing, too.

Tony chuckled again. “Don’t look so surprised. I’m a guy. It’s all we think about. Especially when we’re around a pretty girl.”

Yeah, right
.
I rolled my eyes and pushed away from him. “So where’s this place, anyway?”
Where is Nora?
I took a couple of steps forward and searched the parking lot.

“You’re not going to answer my question, are you?”

I shrugged and tried to act nonchalant. ”If you need to have a girl’s permission to kiss her, it’s not spontaneous.” My knees started to shake, and I stood straighter. “And take my word for it—we all love spontaneity. It’s much more exciting.” I thought about Jaden and smiled.

“So, uh, you’ve had a lot of spur-of-the-moment kisses, then?”

I looked back and caught him kicking a small stone with the toe of his shoe. “Nope. Just one.”

Tony cleared his throat and glanced up at me. “So, is that guy your boyfriend or something?”

I laughed. “Who, Jaden? No. I don’t even know him. I only met him today.”

Tony’s eyes flashed as he raised his head. “Are you saying some guy you don’t even know kissed you today?”

“Yeah. Oh my gosh, I almost had a heart attack, I was sooo freak—”

“Where?” he blurted.

“At the mall.”

“At the mall? Some guy kissed you at the mall?”

“Yeah, in Old Navy.”

Tony muttered something under his breath. “Where in the—where was Nora?”

“Oh, she was standing right next to me.”

He lost it. “Nora was standing right next to you when some random guy walked up and kissed you?”

“Yeah. But it’s okay, because he thought he knew me. Well, he didn’t when he kissed me—I mean, he knew I wasn’t Sadie—but when he first came up to me and gave me a hug, he thought I was this girl, Sadie.”

“Wait! So this Jaden dude who was at Old Navy just walked up to you,” Tony said as he walked up to me. “Just like this, and hugged you?”

“Yep. Just like that—except he
was smiling.”

“So, when did he kiss you?”

“Oh, when he put his finger over my mouth. He said he knew I wasn’t Sadie then, because he’d never felt like kissing her when he was around her, and as soon as he touched my lips, he felt like kissing me.”

“He said all this” —Tony looked down at my mouth— “while he touched your lips?”

“Oh! No. He told me that after he followed me out of the store to apologize.” I decided not to mention the smoothie fiasco.

“So what happened next? After he touched your—” Tony brought his finger up and very gently caressed my bottom lip.

I froze.

His brief touch was so light, it felt like little butterfly wings before he removed his finger and ran his hand through his hair instead.

“He—he stopped and then stared at my mouth.”

Tony’s eyes flew back to my mouth again, and he took another step forward.

“And he made me nervous, so I licked my lips.”

“You licked your lips?”

“Yeah.” My actions mirrored my words as I unconsciously licked my lips again.

“And that’s what made that guy kiss you?” Tony nearly whispered, his eyes never leaving my mouth.

“Yeah.”

He leaned in, his mouth hovering a fraction of an inch above mine. I gasped.
Is this really happening?

Better than Vampire Baseball

A car honked nearby, and we jumped apart. It was Nora. I heard Tony mutter something under his breath as she rolled down the electric window.

“Are you two coming or what? Hurry up. We don’t have that much time.”

“Okay,” Tony answered as I bolted for the passenger door.
Talk about awkward.
For some reason, I was having a hard time even thinking about looking at him.

I can’t believe he almost kissed me! Seriously, what is with me? Do I have some new kind of perfume on?
Just the thought of almost getting kissed for the third time that day nearly drove me crazy. And to think that earlier that week, I was complaining I had never been kissed at all!
Mom would so freak out if she knew. What is it about moms and not letting their sixteen-year-old daughters kiss, anyway? Why do they all of a sudden flip out over something so small—and okay, not meaningless, since we all know kisses mean a whole bunch? But honestly, what is the big deal?

“So, are you ever going to forgive me for honking?” Nora giggled in the seat next to mine.

I heard Tony move behind us. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

His sister burst into laughter. “You know you deserved it! What were you thinking, anyway?” she asked the rearview mirror.

I looked out the window and tried to ignore her.

“Just drop it, and get us to the park, okay?” he said.

“Drop it?” She laughed again as she pulled away from the curb. “Ha. This is way too good. Especially after all the times you’ve teased
me
about kissing. Oh, heck no. This is going down in the Hall of Records.”

Tony groaned. “You’re kidding, right? I was only playing with you, Nora. Come on. Don’t do this.”

“Just like I’m only playing with you now?” she retorted, then turned to me. “So, you’ll never guess what my brother has given me a hard time about since I kissed my very first boyfriend.”

I rubbed my hand over my eyes and shook my head.
Just leave me out of this.
When I looked up again, she was waiting. “Gee, could it be kissing?” I said.

“Yep!” She laughed at Tony’s groan. “But not just that. I wouldn’t be giving him such a hard time now, if it was just that. Nope—”

“Nora!” he growled from behind. “I will get you back—”

“It’ll be worth it.” She smirked into the mirror, then glanced my way again. “Tony’s got virgin lips.”

“Virgin lips? Tony?” I didn’t dare glance back at him.

“Yep. My brother, the playboy—the guy every girl dreams of kissing—has never kissed a girl. Can you believe it?”

No way.

“You are so going down,” he mumbled.