“Right.” I shook my head in disbelief as we walked to the front door. Why Liam’s mom and brothers wanted to meet the Vigilante Teen Killer was beyond me. Maybe they wanted to pat me down for weapons, or warn me to stay away from Liam when his back was turned.
“And just so you know, it was my bro Christian who helped me write that poem for you. He’s the family romantic. Tug, on the other hand…” He blew out a breath. “Let’s just say you need good reflexes. Watch out for flying objects.” He winked and took my hand to escort me into his small house.
“Hey, guys,” Liam said warmly to the two boys sitting in front of the TV. “I want you to meet Ruby.”
At first, all I saw were eyes. Two big, bright brown eyes and two big, beautiful green eyes—looking up at me with the same excitement.
The older boy stood up and came over to shake my hand.
“Hi, Ruby. My name’s Christian.” He was thin, with short dark hair and glasses. He looked nothing like Liam. Actually, he was sort of the opposite of Liam in every way.
“Well, hello, Christian,” I said, shocked at his polite and formal manner. Either he’d been prepped for this or he was the most charming twelve-year-old I’d ever met. “It’s nice to meet you.”
He smiled and returned to the carpet. Tug teasingly punched him and made a googly face. Tug had the same dark hair but was thick as a tank.
“Tug, be nice,” Liam warned, though he was obviously amused. “Don’t expect Tug to shake your hand, Ruby. He’s got cooties.”
“Hey,” Tug said. A shoe went flying past Liam’s head, barely missing his scarred ear.
“I see what you meant about reflexes,” I said to Liam.
“Yeah, we’d better get going before someone gets hurt.” Liam smiled. “Mamacita! Estás lista?” he called into the back rooms. I hadn’t realized he spoke fluent Spanish.
A woman with luxuriously dark hair and eyelashes that went on for days came gliding into the room. I could see where Liam got his lashes and olive skin, but other than that I was confused. Liam had much lighter hair and blue eyes. And I thought I looked nothing like my mom.
“Oh, Ruby,” she said, her dark eyes just as vibrant as the boys’, but softer at the same time. She took my hand in both of hers, then swiftly pulled me in for a kiss on each cheek. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
Oh, snap. Hearing things about me couldn’t be good.
She pulled away to look me in the eyes. “Thank you for taking a minute to come by so I could take some pictures. Liam doesn’t go to many dances. I have to seize my opportunities.”
It was only now that I noticed she had an accent. And that kissy thing wasn’t very American, either.
“Of course,” I said, finding myself naturally drawn to her. Either she didn’t know who I was and what I’d done—or she truly didn’t care.
“OK, vamanos. I have to get to my shift, and you have to get to the dance.” She motioned for me to follow her out the back door. “My name’s Claudia, by the way—or Ma, as the boys like to scream at me.” She swiveled her head around to smile.
Liam guided me through the house with his hand placed at the small of my back. True to his word, he made the whole thing painless. We took a few quick shots in the backyard flower garden, made pleasant small talk, and were out before his mom could ask any tricky questions.
When we got back into Liam’s Jeep, his family came outside to wave good-bye. A pang of envy struck me as I absorbed the way they beamed at Liam. They were a family—perhaps a damaged, struggling family on some levels, but they were together.
A wave of fear came rushing in right after. What if they lost him because of me? How would they ever fill the hole that Liam would leave? It made me sick to think my selfish desire for his help could destroy their world.
“Was my family that bad?” Liam asked after a few minutes of silence.
“What? No.” I shook the sour look off my face and attempted to smile. “It’s not that. They’re all lovely. Your mother is so beautiful. Where’s she from, by the way?”
“Costa Rica. My dad was a big wave chaser.” He grimaced a little at the mention of his father.
“What shift does she have to get to?” I asked, trying to get away from the dad subject.
He frowned. “She’s sort of a…bartender. Works nights. It’s not like she’s the most powerful attorney in the county or anything, but she makes unbelievable tamales most Sundays.”
I’d trade the powerful-attorney thing any day for a mom who would look at me the way Liam’s mom looked at him. With obvious love—like he was the most wonderful thing in the world.
“What is it, then?” Liam said. “Did Tug put something slimy in your pocket when I wasn’t looking? He does that—”
“No, Tug is hilarious, and Christian is a little heartthrob. Really,” I assured him. “Your family is great.”
“Then why’d you just go all brooding brow on me?” he asked, not paying nearly enough attention to the road.
I rubbed my forehead. “Look, I’d never forgive myself if anything ever happened to you because of me. Your family needs you.”
“Well, I need you, Ruby,” he said flatly. “You make me crazy, and constantly worried, but…I need you.”
“Yeah, you need me like you need a hole in the head,” I said, realizing immediately what a distasteful joke that was. I wasn’t sure I’d ever been told that I was needed before. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that.”
He wrinkled his nose for a second, then reached out and touched my hand. “Let’s make a deal, OK? Let’s play pretend.”
“Like pretend we have supernatural powers and can actually defeat the evil villain?” I shook my head. As if.
“Even better, let’s pretend we’re normal seventeen-year-olds, and we’re going to a high school dance. Curfew is two hours later than normal, and nothing else matters tonight. You’re just a girl—an insanely sexy, kick-ass girl, obviously. And I’m just a guy—a totally hot yet sensitive guy, of course.” He smiled. “And we’re going to rock this Sadie Hawkins dance tonight! That kind of deal.”
I laughed. “OK, deal.”
“Sweet.” He turned up the stereo and started moving to the music. I laughed even harder. “I promise, tonight will be epic!”
As we pulled into the school parking lot filled with matching teen couples, I shooed away the creepy-crawly thoughts of Silver showing up to ruin my night. Just as I started imagining some terrible incident involving blood and punch bowls, Liam opened my door and reached for my hand.
As if he could sense my nervousness, he leaned in and kissed me, forcing the worries away. I tensed up at first, then gradually relaxed, my mind going blank as his fingertips threaded through my hair. Tasting him, breathing him, feeling him, wanting him, were the only ping-ponging thoughts I could find in the corners of my mind right now. Nothing and no one else mattered.
A tingling sensation of desire formed deep within me. I wanted to pull him back inside the Jeep and go someplace else where we could be alone.
He pulled away sooner than I wanted.
“If I have to do that every time I catch you brooding,” he said breathlessly, “I will.”
“Is that a threat?”
“It’s a promise.” He pressed his lips together in a way that made me want to kiss him again. Then, taking my hand, he led me through the parking lot and into the gym full of handmade posters, dangling streamers, and so many strobe lights a girl could have seizures.
The first person I saw as we walked through the balloon archway was Alana. She saw me, too, but instead of brightening with a flash of excitement like the one I felt at seeing her, she looked away in a flash of something else. Anger? Hurt? Fear?