Chapter 10
ADAM
I occupied myself for a few days by fixing up my bike. Every once in a while, I noticed Chloe out of the corner of my eye, looking like she wanted to approach me, but never gathering up the courage to do so.
Good.
It was better that way.
The feelings that had awakened inside of me during that night at the hospital could never resurface. It just wouldn’t be right.
She was my stepsister.
Still, in the back of my mind, all I could think about was her beautiful face. Those kissable lips. Adorable freckles. If I didn’t keep my distance… I would end up doing something I regretted. The last thing I wanted was to hurt her. So, I ignored every instinct in my body telling me to fold her into my arms and hold her close.
“Adam.” My father appeared standing in front of my bike.
I sat up, my arm slung over my forehead to shield the light from my eyes. “What’s up, pop?”
“Rachel and I are going to be away for the weekend. I’ve left money in the kitchen so you and Chloe can buy food and whatever else you want.” He paused, looking me in the eye. “Please try to get along with her. She’s been having a hard time adjusting to things here. Her mother says she’s homesick.”
He ran his fingers through his balding hair. “I know you aren’t exactly the affectionate type, but at least try to make her feel welcome.”
“I’ll try. No promises.”
He frowned. “I’m being serious.”
“So am I,” I countered. “What do you want me to do? Hold her hand and take her to the park?”
His lips pressed together. I knew he wanted to say something to me but he held his hand, disappearing back inside.
I sighed and got back to work polishing my rims. Chloe would just have to suck it up. She’d be back home by the end of the summer anyway.
***
Chloe appeared at the doorway, waving her mother goodbye. She had a cardigan wrapped around her body. Her eyes were puffy and red like she had just been crying. Her hair was on the frizzier side like she hadn’t washed it in the morning. Despite all this, she still looked like the most beautiful girl in the world…
Before my thoughts could wander, I looked away.
She was my stepsister. She was my stepsister. I kept repeating in my head over and over, forcing my desires deep, deep within myself.
My father pulled out of the driveway, disappearing down the street.
I sat there for a moment, staring at the sea of trees across the way. The leaves swayed slightly in the breeze. Since the sun was starting to set behind the tree line, everything was dyed in a brilliant mix of reds and oranges. It was truly a sight to be admired.
“It’s beautiful here…” Chloe’s voice broke me from my trance.
She sat down beside me, hugging her knees.
I didn’t say a word as I picked up my monkey wrench and started to tighten up some bolts.
She was quiet, running her finger along the blacktop, tracing out invisible doodles.
I snuck a few glances in her direction, wondering what was going through her head. She must hate me for ignoring her. A part of me wanted to tell her exactly how I felt, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.
“What did I do?” she finally asked.
I pretended to busy myself with cleaning the body of my bike.
“I thought… we were going to start getting along. I mean… when I woke up to find myself in your hospital bed… your head on my lap… I thought.”
“You just looked uncomfortable. I didn’t want you to hurt your back.”
“Was that all it was?”
“Yes.”
She bit her bottom lip. Seeing her do so made me want to grab and kiss her. To press my lips against hers and taste how sweet she really was. My heart ached just thinking about it. Thinking about how it was a desire that I could never quench.
“I don’t believe that.”
“Well, that’s your problem.”
“You have to feel it too. When we are close… it’s like the air around us fills with electricity…”
“You’re out of your mind.”
“No!” She grabbed my hand, yanking on it. I looked up and our eyes locked. “I’m not… I just can’t explain it… but…” her voice fell along with her hand. “Who am I kidding? I’m probably just lonely…”
I sighed, “Look, I’m not the best of company. I’m rotten. I’m the boy your mother warned you about.” I moved closer to her, our faces gravitating together. Her hot breath caressed against my lips, nearly causing me to lose control. “If you knew better, you’d stay away from me.”
“I’ve tried! But… I just feel so hollow… I want things to go back to the way they were when we were inside the station wagon, singing Adele together…”
“I was delusional from the allergic reaction,” I said quickly.
“No, Adam. You know that’s not true.” Her hands cupped my cheeks, holding my face so I couldn’t pull away. “Tell me that you feel it too…”
My expression softened. Her eyes were so sad as she spoke that it broke my heart. Maybe it was against the rules to like my stepsister, but rules were meant to be broken.
“Come on, I want to show you something.” Abruptly, I took her hand, hoisting her to her feet.
“What? Where are we going?” She furrowed her brows together in confusion.
“It’ll cheer you up, I promise.”
“Why can’t you just tell me where we are going?”
“Because then it wouldn’t be a surprise,” I winked at her, tightening my grip on her hand.
She planted her feet firmly on the ground, refusing to budge. “You’re nuts if you think I’m going anywhere with you.”
I sighed, turning around so I could look her in the eye. “Look, I know I’ve been a jerk. I have my reasons but just trust me, okay?”
She looked unconvinced but nonetheless followed me.
I smiled, walking hand in hand with her across the street.
“You really aren’t going to tell me where we are going?”
“Nope.”
She rolled her eyes.
“You’ll be asking me to take you there all the time once you’ve been there, but we have to hurry if we want to make it in time.”
I quickened our pace as we entered the tree line. Usually, I could navigate through the thick foliage with my eyes closed, but with Chloe in tow, I had to be more careful. I didn’t want her to get hurt.
“Here. Let me give you a boost.” I moved behind her, my hands on her hips as I hoisted her onto a large, fallen tree. “Steady, now.” My hands had dropped to her thighs in an attempt to stabilize her.
I looked up, accidentally getting a view up her skirt. Thick, milky thighs. Baby blue panties with a lace trimming.
For a second, all the blood from my head rushed down between my legs.
God, why was she so perfect?
“Uh… Adam…?” Chloe looked down at me. “What are you doing?”
“Sorry. Sorry,” I broke from my lustful trance, shaking my head slightly. “Just zoned out there for a second,” I said as I jumped onto the log along with her.
Her arms were outstretched like a trapeze artist. She swayed to the left, nearly losing her balance.
Instinctually, I reached out and grabbed her, pulling her into my body. Our hips locked together. Our chests beat with the same passion as we looked into each other’s eyes, the soft rays of sunshine breaking through the canopy of leaves causing the particles of dust in the air to sparkle like tiny fairies.
“Adam…” the sound of my name whispered from her lips nearly drove me insane. Her face gravitated closer and closer.
I pushed away, jumping to the ground. “Come on, we are burning daylight here,” I said, trying to ignore the fact that I almost kissed her.
“Right…” She placed her hand in mine and jumped down, her skirt flying upwards for a moment, once again exposing her baby blue panties.
I bit my lips to keep my hormones in check, but she was making it oh so very hard… in more ways than one.
She blushed, quickly pushing down the skirt. I knew that she wasn’t teasing me on purpose. She was much too modest for that. Maybe that’s one of the reasons why I liked her so much. She was different from all the other girls I knew. Innocent. Smart. Beautiful. Everything about her made me want to hold her in my arms and protect her from all the evils of the world.
Once she had recomposed herself, we continued forward, weaving through the forest, getting deeper and deeper.
The sun was quickly disappearing behind the trees. We had to hurry. Abruptly, I picked up Chloe, cradling her against my chest in a fireman’s carry.
“What are you doing?” she asked, her eyes wide and her arms slung around my neck.
“You’re being a slow poke,” I said, jogging through the forest with her in my arms.
Soon enough, we entered a clearing. Up ahead, was a small abandoned draw bridge. “Here we are.”
“The surprise is an old bridge?” she sounded disappointed.
“Don’t judge a book by its cover,” I said, taking her hand and pulling her toward the bridge. There, we carefully traversed the support beams until we arrived at a rusty looking ladder. “You go first.”
“You want me to climb this thing? Are you nuts?” She shook her head. “No way.”
“Come on. I promise it’ll be worth it.” I nudged her forward. “Besides, if you fall, I’ll be there to catch you.”
She looked at me for a moment before she grabbed one of the rungs and started climbing.
I followed close behind her, trying to control the perverted side of myself that just wanted to peek under her skirt.
No. She was my stepsister, not someone I was supposed to ogle at.
Finally, we reached the top, which was a small platform lined with protective railing. The wind blew a little harder here, causing Chloe’s fiery hair to flutter behind her. In the dying sunlight, her pale skin seemed to glow. She looked like a modern-day goddess…
“It’s beautiful up here…” she whispered. “You can see the sun set right into the water.”
“I told you,” I teased, leaning against the railing.
Chloe joined me, standing so close that her arm brushed against mine. A surge of electricity ran through my body at the contact.
In silence, we watched the sun disappear into the water, dying everything in a vibrant ray of colors from bright reds, warm oranges, and breathtaking purples.
Slowly, Chloe’s hand found mine. Our fingers locked together as if they were always meant to be that way.
I looked over at her to see that she was staring at me, her green eyes bright and beautiful. All the sunsets in the world could never compare to her…
She stepped forward, destroying the distance between us. Her petite body fit against mine like the missing puzzle piece in my life.
Unable to control myself any further, my arms wrapped around her slender torso, bringing her even closer. Her lips parted slightly as I leaned down and kissed her.
At first, neither one of us moved. It was like the kiss had turned us both into statues. But, as soon as her sweet taste transferred to my lips, I couldn’t help myself from pressing my hand against the small of her back, tilting her back slightly, and kissing her with all the passion that had built up over the past days.
As soon as I did, our lips started to dance together, like familiar partners. She melted into me, her body limp and supple in my arms. I cupped one of her cheeks, caressing her skin with my thumb as we continued our passionate kiss.
Even when we were both running out of air, we didn’t pull away. It was like we were addicted.
Addicted to something we couldn’t have…