Scarlett White (44 page)

Scarlett could hear their whispering and talking as she drove by with the roof of her car down. 'Who is that?', 'He looks just like Christian Cox!', 'Chris doesn't have a brother, does he?', 'Damn, Scarlett's sexy'. Tristan heard that last whisper and growled in his seat.

"Oh, you'll get used to that," Scarlett replied. "People don't know how to whisper at this school."

"That's not what I'm not used to," Tristan said.

"Oh, I suppose that's because I was a loser at school before," Scarlett said lightly.

"You weren't a loser."

"Tristan, who are you kidding? You didn't even realize I existed before we were assigned to be lab partners."

"That's not true."

Scarlett gave him a dubious look. "You never talked to me, you never even glanced in my direction, you didn't even know my name until this year."

"I knew you're name," Tristan argued. "You were the smartest girl in our class."

"Were?" Scarlett cocked an eyebrow.

"I mean, you still would be, except that you don't exactly attend Watson High anymore."

"Oh, that's right. C'mon, let's get something with loads of calories in it," Scarlett replied as she hopped out of the car and locked it as she walked into the Starbucks.

"You locked your car, but you still have the roof down," Tristan noted.

"Yeah, I find that it comforts me if I know that it's locked anyways." Scarlett laughed.

"Sure, yeah, I understand, because locking the car, but leaving the top down makes complete sense."

"Exactly. Now you're catching my drift."

They walked into the shop together, and Tristan looked at the menu behind the counter as Scarlett ordered her double chocolaty drink.

"And what's your name?" the boy behind the counter asked.

"Scarlett."

Tristan glanced for the first time at the boy. He was handsome and good-looking, but that wasn't what bothered Tristan. The boy—Dale was his name, according to his nametag—was practically drooling over Scarlett; he was undressing her with his eyes, and Scarlett was completely oblivious. Actually, Tristan noticed, she wasn't oblivious. She smiled at the boy. She actually
smiled
at him. The Scarlett that Tristan knew would never have done that.

"Where did you get that?" Dale asked, indicating Scarlett's split lip from what had happened when she had gotten amnesia.

"Oh, this bully at my school…well, I'm not exactly sure what happened. I got temporary amnesia; it's all very fuzzy," Scarlett replied with the smile still on her lips.

"Amnesia?" Dale whistled as he eyes widened. "That must have been a real shocker. How long did the amnesia last?"

"Only a couple of weeks. I remember mostly everything now," Scarlett said, that damned smile never faltering. Tristan was starting to get very aggravated and crossed his arms.

"That's scary. I couldn't think of not being able to remember anything. How did you recall everything?"

"I went back to my hometown in Florida," Scarlett said. "I only moved to Ohio a few months ago."

"You used to live in Florida? What was that like? I bet you had a bunch of fun in Miami on vacations, huh?"

"Oh, I was a total nerd back then. I stayed home and studied every night. I didn't have a life back there."

Tristan was hurt. How could she say such a thing? She had him, didn't she? He had told her that he loved her. And he had meant it. He did love her. He loved her so much. And he obviously meant nothing to her because she apparently didn't have a life back in Jacksonville.

"So, does that mean you're not a nerd now?" Dale raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, I'm definitely a total geek. I study my ass off, but I like to party now. Actually, I think one of my friends is having a party this weekend."

"Is that an invitation?"

"If you're free, you're welcome to come. You're going to need an invitation to get into her house. Here, just use this." Scarlett pulled a small piece of paper and a pen from her purse. She wrote down Chloe's address and signed her name. "That signature will get you in with the guards."

"The guards?" Dale asked.

"Yeah, Chloe goes all out when she throws a party. Well, hopefully I'll see you there," Scarlett said as her name was called because her drink was ready.

Tristan let out a sigh of relief. He was so happy that she was done talking to that idiot boy. How could she have been so…so…seductive? She had held a full conversation with him. What had happened to that shy, quiet Scarlett from Jacksonville? She had gone full…Queen Bee. Tristan ordered his drink grudgingly, giving Dale the evil eye.

Scarlett and Tristan sat down at a table with their drinks. Tristan was quieter than usual, and Scarlett picked up on it right away.

"What's wrong?" she asked concerned.

"Nothing."

"Tristan, don't talk to me like I'm one of your idiot football teammates," Scarlett said.

"That boy back there, at the register, he was hitting on you."

"Yeah."

"You knew?" Tristan looked up.

"Of course, I knew. Why do you keep acting like I'm stupid?" Scarlett replied.

"Well, you were acting as if you liked it."

"Liked being talked to as if I'm stupid?" Scarlett asked.

"No, it looked as if you liked being hit on," Tristan said.

"Oh, well, I've just gotten used to it, I guess. I mean, a bunch of kids at school hit on me all the time. And I hate being rude to them, so I usually talk with them and then invite them to whatever party is coming up next. It usually works. They come to the party, I say 'hey' to them, and then they go off and dance with some slut, completely forgetting all about me," Scarlett explained.

"Oh," Tristan said, seeing the brilliance of her plan. "Well, I guess that's okay."

"Thought I was cheating on you, did you?"

"It might have flashed through my mind once or twice." Or sixty times.

"Trust me, I'm very faithful and loyal, besides all the months I've been at Humphrey Day, and I have yet to find someone who equals your amazing and sparkling personality," Scarlett said with a smile on her lips as she placed her hand over his on the table.
Well, maybe except for Christian.
But Scarlett would never let Tristan know about the chemistry between her and his cousin.

There was something else that bothered Tristan. It was what she had said about not having a life back in Florida, but he didn't want to ruin her cheerful happiness right now.

"So, am I invited to this Chloe's party?" Tristan asked.

"Nah. I thought you would have a better time with your aunt, knitting or something," Scarlett said sardonically.

"Oh, yes, that does sound very entertaining," Tristan replied with a smile on his face.

Scarlett and Tristan finished their drinks with light conversations about what had happened in Ohio and about all the new people Scarlett had met. Tristan was surprised to realize how many parties Scarlett had been to, though she said every single one of them she had been practically depressed the entire time because Tristan was in a coma. Tristan felt a certain lightness in his chest when he heard this. She thought about him while they were apart the same way Tristan thought about her.

Finally they headed back to the car, where they decided it would be best if they went to Tristan's aunt's house. At first, Scarlett had been reluctant because she knew that Christian would be there, but she knew that her mother was going through a violent period with her withdrawal from alcohol.

Scarlett walked in Christian's house behind Tristan. She was timid at first because she remembered him. She remembered everything about him.

"Hey, Aunt Sandy," Tristan said as he walked in.

"Hey, Tris. Oh, who is this?" Aunt Sandy asked as she spotted Scarlett.

"This is my girlfriend, Scarlett White," Tristan introduced them.

There was twinkle in Aunt Sandy's eyes, as if she knew something about Scarlett. "Hello, Scarlett," she said with a knowing smile.

"Hey, mom, did you get those—?" Christian stopped when he walked into the hallway to see Scarlett. His eyes widened slightly, but he caught himself. "Hey, Scar."

"Hey, Chris." Scarlett waved meekly.

Tristan's eyebrows knitted. Why had she suddenly become so shy and quiet? When Dale was hitting on her, she was so normal and bubbly. And now, all of a sudden, she was timid. There was only one explanation Tristan could come up with, but he shook that thought from his head at once, in denial.

"Well, we're just going to head up to the guest room," Tristan said.

"Okay," Aunt Sandy replied. "See you both in a bit for dinner?"

"Sure. Sounds great," Tristan said, walking up the stairs.

"Thank you," Scarlett said to Aunt Sandy.

She glanced in Christian's direction, wanted to say something, but couldn't think of anything to tell him. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She closed her mouth and smiled weakly before she bolted up the stairs after Tristan.

Scarlett enjoyed her time with Tristan. They talked about everything. They sat on his bed, close together. Scarlett sat cross-legged. Her scarlet curls falling over her shoulders. Tristan sat right beside her with their legs touching. Suddenly their conversation came to a stop. Tristan looked up, and their eyes met. Without a second's notice, Tristan pulled her onto his lap and kissed her full on. Scarlett wrapped her arms around Tristan's neck, and Tristan wrapped his around her waist, pulling her still closer to him. Tristan's lips moved against Scarlett's greedy ones, parting them slightly. And Scarlett felt Tristan's tongue gently slide against her lips, and she very quietly moaned.

"I love you, Scarlett White," Tristan whispered; his voice husky against Scarlett's lips.

It only took a few seconds for Scarlett to know what she was going to say. Tristan had told her that he loved her multiple times now, and she had been too afraid to tell him she felt the same way until now.

Tristan groaned, and their kisses became more passionate, their bodies moving in synchronization with one another. They both knew what the other was thinking, but they were both too nervous to speak up first. Finally, when Tristan was looking deep into Scarlett's eyes, she nodded. Tristan looked at her with amusement and uncertainty clear in his eyes.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked.

Scarlett silently nodded and locked her arms back around Tristan's neck, her thumb caressing his soft skin there.

"I want you and only you," Scarlett whispered; her mind completely on him. It was true, he was her first love, but it felt like more than love, if that was possible. She wanted him; she needed him. She was actually quite surprised to realize that she hadn't once thought of the blonde boy downstairs the entire time she had been in Tristan's room.

"If I hurt you—"

"You won't," Scarlett interrupted.