The Thousand Year Curse (The Curse Books) (17 page)

"Nothing? You expect me to believe that shit?" I ask, scowling at him.
 

"If you knew what was good for you, you would." He mumbles. He should wish I didn't hear that because I am livid. He isn't acting like the guy I fell in love with.
 

"You know what Ollie, screw you." I grab all my stuff off the floor and storm away. It's not fair to keep me in the dark. If Ollie won't tell me what's going on then I'll go to Ari. I run the rest of the way out of school.

"Ari!" I call out when I make it to the parking lot. I yell his name a couple more times before he finally turns to face me. He looks confused but then his face contorts.
 

I am nervous to go up to him, but I do anyway. Even though he's clearly mad, I have a feeling he would never hurt me.
 

Trust me, I know it sounds crazy because I don't know him at all but there's this feeling I get when I am near him that makes me feel safe.
 

"Ari, what the hell is going on here?" I inquire placing my hands on his chest to get him to stop pacing. Butterflies fly in my stomach from our closeness and I blush.
 

"It's nothing,
Ryder
, just go back to your little boyfriend." He states like I am a five year old which only makes me more mad. I push his chest where my hands are and he stops to stare into my eyes. His are a deep green—completely different from before.
 

"I don't want to go back." I tell him. I keep my hands on his chest and I feel it start—that hum that vibrates through me. The energy rushes through my body causing my eyes to widen in response.
 

"I can't tell you." He says.
 

"Can't or won't?" I question him back. My voice comes off sad and defeated.

"Can't. Trust me, I would tell you anything you want to know." He says, his eyes locking onto mine.
 

"Just tell me. Please, Ari." I give him my puppy dog eyes, poking out my bottom lip. This technique always works with dad.

"Come with me first?" He asks. I don't really answer but he doesn't give me a chance to as he turns around to walk towards his car.
 

I know that Ari and Ollie know each other. Ollie has been acting crazy all day long. Not to mention my crazy dreams and how they're both in them. I glance back towards the school and spot Ollie's face in the window of the library.
 

He looks hurt, like he knows I am leaving. It's like I betrayed him, which I haven't at all. I give him an apologetic smile and turn towards where Ari is. I don't glance back to Ollie because I know if I see his face again, I'll cave in.
 

Instead of stopping at a car, he stops at a motorcycle. It's not a Harley like I would have guessed—it's a crotch rocket. This thing looks intense with black and green colors. Luckily there is just enough room on the back for me.
 

I start to day dream, imagining Ari racing on this thing when a boost of adrenaline runs through me. Luckily I opted for jeans today, otherwise this would have been an interesting ride. Ari sits on his bike and hands me a white helmet. I let my hair down so it fits on tight.

"Hold on tight, little girl." He says and openly laughs. I'm not sure what he is even laughing at but I giggle attempting to straddle the bike. I'm not tall enough to get on so I have to jump. I don't want to violate his space so I put my hands on the back of the bike holding onto the plastic part. It definitely doesn't make me feel safe, though.
 

He revs up the engine and starts out going slow—we are in a school zone after all. Once we get on the main road we gain speed. I start to freak out a little, questioning what the hell I am doing. I start panicking.
 

What if I fall off this thing? There's no seat belts on here. Nobody knows where I am. I could be dead and nobody will find me.
 

We stop at a light and Ari turns around on the bike facing me. "Relax, Ryder. Grab my waist." He instructs, not sounding creepy like I would have expected. I appreciate that he can hold back his hormones for a couple of seconds to make me feel safer.

I lift one hand off the back and place it around his stomach. Once I am secure, I lift the other hand and interlock my fingers around him. I don't want my hands to land on his lap because hello, that would be quite awkward so I leave them over his upper stomach.
 

This spot only makes me blush more because I can feel every bone and muscle in his stomach. It gives me the shivers but I like it. He is so hard and hot—temperature wise, of course. His ribs are strong and outlined perfectly. I brush my hand up one side not realizing what I'm doing. Before I lock them back in front, I feel up his six hard lumps of pure muscle.
 

I lean my head forward against his back and tilt my face to the side, watching the passing landscape. It looks like a whole new world we are driving through when everything is a blur, all the colors skirting by. I breathe in his amazing guy smell and it sends me over the edge. I don't know what is in the water today but I am crushing on Ari, hard.
 

This stranger who was a complete jerk to me all day long is suddenly appealing to me. I can't stop picturing myself kissing him and him kissing me—my tongue in his mouth, his on my neck. I shake my head a little to try to make the images go away but I can't. They're ingrained in my brain.
 

I've never acted like this person I'm becoming and I am starting to like her. I feel confident. I feel like I am powerful which strangely I'm not at all. If anything I have no control over this situation. I am completely, one hundred percent trusting Ari. I shouldn't since he is a stranger but I do—I really do.
 

Ollie is lying to me and refusing to talk to me. He acts like he owns me. He treated Ari like crap for no apparent reason. I just don't get it and I don't know this new Ollie at all.
 

CHAPTER ELEVEN

sunset beach

Ari starts to slow down the bike when we hit a strip of beach. I think we are in Westport but to be honest, I lost track of time. The sun is just starting to set across the water making the sky a nice shade of orange. Ari parks the bike on the side of the road and puts the key deep in his pocket. He swings one leg over and steps off the bike, very swift in his movements. It's almost like a dance he's perfected over time.

He takes off his glasses and puts them on the handlebars. Then he takes off his helmet and puts that over the glasses being very methodical with his bike gear. I can tell he takes great pride in his bike and all its accouterments.
 

Ari finally notices me staring at him and smirks. He comes over and takes off my helmet for me. I'm sure my hair looks horrible between the wind and the helmet. Seriously, what girl can actually pull off helmet head?
 

He looks at me admiringly making me slightly uncomfortable. I can honestly say I have never been openly ogled before. He touches my hair, smoothing it out by stroking the loose strands. His hand lingers longer than it probably should. His touch feels magnified against my skin.
 

"Sorry." He murmurs under his breath, drawing his hand back.
 

"It's okay." I blush. He offers me his hand and helps me hop off of the bike. It's a big jump so without him I probably would have fallen flat on my face. We strip our shoes off in silence then walk towards the dark water. There's empty space between us but it's probably for the better since I have Ollie.
 

The sand is surprisingly cold. It's getting to be fall and you can feel it everywhere. The wind from the water is frigid, chilling me from the inside out.
 

Like the gentleman I didn't know Ari was, he takes off his jacket, draping it over my shoulders. It's thick enough so it shields me from the chill.
 

He pulls me close to him wrapping his arm around me. The heat from his jacket and body definitely make me sizzle. I catch him smile down at me before he turns to look forward, the mask coming back up.
 

I don't mind being close to him. I'm getting the feeling that he puts up a front for everyone not letting us see his true self. I feel a sudden urge to break down his walls and figure him out.
 

I feel like tonight instead of asking questions about Ollie, I should ask more about him. I don't know him at all but I feel a burning connection. It's similar to the way I felt about Ollie when I first met him but different at the same time. Ollie's connection was safe, my connection with Ari is more electric but scary at the same time—risky and dangerous.
 

We stop to stick our toes in the water once we are close but it's way too cold to linger there. Ari steps back and sits a couple feet away in the sand. I hurry to sit next to him. Neither of us break the silence but it is comfortable.
 

We watch the sun set in quiet. It only takes the sun about six or seven minutes to disappear but it's eye opening. The sunset gives off so many different colors. Yellows turn to oranges which turn to pinks and purples. I want to spend every sunset right here in our special spot. The sun will always remind me of Ari.
 

Once the darkness takes over it's dead silent. Birds cease to chirp, fish stop jumping. The ocean waves are barely audible anymore. It's eerily quiet. I strain my ears wanting to hear something, anything but I don't. No grasshoppers, nothing.
 

"Who are you and where did you come from?" I ask him, half jokingly and half serious wanting to break the haunting silence. I want to know Ari, the real him, not this dream version I have concocted in my mind.
 

"I'm just me." He states laughing under his breath. He plays with the sand underneath his feet sifting it between his toes like an hourglass running out of time.
 

"Why did your family choose Ridgefield? It's in the middle of nowhere." I start playing with the sand in between us, digging a hole. My eyes stay on Ari though. As it gets darker, I have a harder time making out his sharp features.
 

"I came to find you." He admits after a pause. His eyes refuse to meet mine when all I want is to look into them. I don't want him to be uneasy so I scoot closer to him. I lean over to lay my head on his chest while I wrap my arms around him. Shutting my eyes to hear his heart pounding in his chest, I listen to the rhythmic beats.
 

"Why are you so hot and cold with me?" I ask him quietly. He tenses underneath me and I can tell I hit a hot spot. I'm putting my relationship in jeopardy over a near stranger. I've clearly lost my mind. I know something is here between us and I want to understand it.
 

"It's nothing. I can handle it, okay." He grits the words out. He breaks our contact and shifts away from me defensively.
 

"How do you know Ollie?" I want him to explain so badly but my expectations are low. He doesn't owe me anything. Ari starts to part his lips and I wait for words to come out, the anticipation killing me.
 

"Ollie and I go way back. I've known him basically my whole life. We've tried to be friends but it never works. There's always something we both want but only one of us can have. He wins every single time. He has a power over me that I can't compete with. He plays dirty and I just have to sit on the sidelines and watch this hell over and over."
 

Ari storms off visibly upset, jogging towards the water. It's much darker now so I can barely make out an outline of him. I feel bad that I've set him off but I had to ask.

What is it they would both want? I immediately think it's me but I shoot that idea down fast. I met Ari today, there's no way it's possible. And if they've known each other forever then it doesn't make sense.
 

I decide to dwell on that later. I have to find Ari. Walking towards the last place I saw him I look in every direction but he's not here. I call out for him but I only hear the sound of the ocean waves back. I yell again and am rewarded with pure silence.
 

I feel a presence behind me and spin to see what it is. Thankfully it's Ari. His large silhouette scares me briefly but instead of screaming or being scared, I reach for him. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I hold on to him like my life depends on it. When we touch, the familiar hum sparks to life comforting me.
 

"I won't ask anymore." I assure him, instantly feeling his body relax beneath me.
 

"Let's go." I agree because I'm sure my dad is curious where I am and wants me home for dinner. Guilt washes over me when I realize we have to go back to real life. For some reason with Ari, it's all like a dream, an alternate reality.
 

When we get back to the motorcycle, I grab my cell out of my backpack. I flip it open and see a bunch of missed calls and text messages. I only care about one person though. I tell my dad I'm on my way home. There are two missed calls from Ollie and four from Junior. I ignore them and put my phone back in my bag. I'll deal with those two jerks tomorrow.
 

Ari turns the motorcycle on causing it to roar to life. I start walking over to the front of the bike where the headlights shine but stop when Ari shoves his hand in front of me. Two large bodies are outlined with light their faces shielded.