Crush

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

Hunter-

Gosh, she's gorgeous, I thought as I sat staring at her from my desk chair in my room. She was asleep, her beautiful red hair spread across my black pillowcase. Her face looked peaceful, flawless in her innocence. She was so trusting. She's the only girl I ever want in my bed again. The thought hit me hard, and I closed my eyes. I had fallen for her, and I knew it. I'd never had these kinds of feelings before, but somehow I'd expected it to take longer. I wasn't prepared for it to come racing in this way, capturing me.

I briefly turned my attention to the musical still playing on the television in the corner. We'd been cuddling on my bed while we watched it, but I kept getting distracted kissing her and not paying attention. She hadn't seemed to mind much—fully reciprocating in fact.

She had no idea how many secrets I had hidden away from her in this room, most of them buried in the bottom drawer to my left. I wondered for the millionth time what she would do when she found out the truth, how badly she'd feel betrayed.

There was a soft knock at the door, and it opened slightly. "You here?" Chris called peeking in. His eyes landed on Cami, and a frown crossed his face. "Hunter . . . ," he whispered emphatically, and I widened my eyes to shush him. "Out here, now," he practically ordered.

I got up and followed him into his bedroom at the end of the hall. He shut the door behind me.

"What the heck is going on?" he asked and I heard the frustration in his voice.

I sat on the edge of the bed. "I'm crazy about her, Chris, that's what's happening. I need your help."

"Hunter, she's seventeen. She's too young."

"I know how old she is!" I snapped, feeling my carefully maintained threads of control unraveling. I sighed trying to calm down. "I don't think you understand. I don't care if she's seventeen or forty. She's the one, Chris. I know she's young, and her life is just starting, but I also know she's the one I want. I feel it burning inside. It's killing me to keep lying to her. I'm gonna blow everything."

"You can't let your feelings for her get in the way, Hunter. If we don't get these deals to go down right, we're screwed. You're putting her in danger too. What if she got caught up in the middle of a drug war? That's bad news, and you know it."

"I'm aware of that, and I'm desperately trying to separate her from that part of our life. I tell myself to walk away, but I can't keep my hands off her."

"So, I'm guessing the no-kissing policy didn't go over so well?" he asked wryly.

"That's the understatement of the year."

"How close are you two?" he asked bluntly.

"Close enough we've talked about how things will work out for us after graduation when we move back to Tucson. I'm not kidding. She's the one I want."

He sank down next to me. "That's not what I meant."

I sighed. "I know."

"Are you going to answer me?"

"No." What Cami and I were doing—or not doing—was no one else's business but ours as far as I was concerned.

He stared at me pointedly. "If you've slept with her, her parents could have you arrested since she's a minor. We'd have cops swarming all over investigating us. Most police departments don't take kindly to that sort of behavior, you realize. That's the last thing we need."

I didn't reply to his implied question. "How would you feel if someone was asking you to lie over and over again to Sheridan?" I asked, moving the subject forward by making it personal. "And how would you feel knowing those lies were placing her in a dangerous situation?"