“Let me see.” My mom walked over and held the tag in her own hands for a while before looking up at me with a resolved expression on her face. “We’re buying this dress. It doesn’t matter how much it is.”
“Mom, can we afford it?” I whispered.
“Sure,” she shrugged with an easy going smile. “Money is just money. We can make more. Or we can lose it all. It doesn’t really matter. This place is not our home, Stella.”
“Who are you? What have you done with my mother?” I gaped.
She shook her head at me and straightened the top of my dress a little before saying, “If anything, this whole thing with Seth has made us realize how important this time is for you. When you turn eighteen everything is going to change for you. You only have a little bit of time left to make the most of this gift of freedom and independence. Your father and I want you to make the most of it. We know how hard that will be while Seth is taken away from you, though. And that’s why moments like these are all the more important. I want you to go to prom and have the time of your life. I want you to enjoy humanity while you still can.”
Her speech brought tears to my eyes as it sank in. I would be done with humanity in just under fifteen months- completely done. She was right about making the most of the time I was given. I just hated that Seth couldn’t be a part of this, too.
Still, I understood her point and really wanted the dress anyway.
“Yay!” I squealed in a tiny voice. I whirled around to admire the dress for a few more minutes before it was time to take it off.
“I’m going to see if I can find some shoes to go with it,” my mom beamed at me and then slipped out the open doorway.
I rocked back and forth on my bare feet admiring the dress in every angle and on every side. I felt so pretty. I just loved it.
Jude reappeared behind me, like a thunder cloud on my bright sunny day. I barely gave him an acknowledging glance before returning back to the staring at the dress.
“Tristan’s a lucky guy.”
I looked up and met Jude’s eyes in the mirror. He was closer than I thought he was and I jumped a little, surprised by his body standing right behind me. His voice was growly and a bit hoarse. And his charcoal eyes looked black in this dim light.
I whirled around and the movement brought the strong smell of smoke and mint into my nose. He must have disappeared to go smoke really quickly.
“You snuck up on me,” I breathed, feeling inexplicably out of breath.
“You know,” he smirked. “For a Star, you are not very good at the surprise attack thing.”
“Are you surprise attacking me?” I asked purposefully naïve.
“Maybe,” he answered seriously.
A shiver skittered down my spine. I had no idea what he meant. Was he being candidly honest? Were Seth and the contract and Aliah, all just a show? Or was he just teasing me?
He was impossible to read.
He trailed the tips of his finger over my lower back, just where the tight, cinched bodice met the full, poofy skirt. “Prom’s a big deal?” he asked right in my ear and his minty, post-smoking, breath tickled my neck.
Just when I was about to scold him for being inappropriate, he pulled back and plopped down into one of the half-circle chairs. Then I decided it was stupid to think he was flirting with me. He looked so angry and menacing in the girly, floral chair. His long, jean-clad legs stretched out in front of him, his motorcycle boots remained untied and loose on his feet, and his arms hung around the back of the chair too casually.
He looked every bit the bad boy, fallen angel he was.
“Why are you really here, Jude?” I ignored his comment.
He shrugged and met my angry glare with a steadiness that unnerved me. “I have a job to do.”
“A job that includes dress shopping? I’m not buying it.”
He looked around the small hallway, lined with slatted wooden doors on the other side, finally dragging his gaze back to mine. “You’re not exactly safe these days, Stel. My life is on the line, too, if something happens to you.”
“I thought I was off limits. Why wouldn’t I be safe?”
“You tell me,” he sighed.
“My life is no more dangerous now than it was before.” Which was obviously a lie, but I needed to get Jude out of my day-to-day activities. “And I can take care of myself.”
His lips twitched obnoxiously, causing him to look away. “I remember Heaven.”
That caught me completely off guard. “What?” My voice was barely a croak.
“I remember Heaven,” he said louder, just to be an ass. “I was there, you know, before the whole Fallen thing. I remember what it was like, what the people up there were like.”
“Alright,” I said slowly. Where was he going with this?
“You’re nothing like them,” he finally said. “You’re different.”
“Wow,” I cocked my head back and resisted the urge to stab him. “Thank you." My tone was pure, undiluted acid, and I felt my skin start to burn into a glow.
He just chuckled at me. “See? This is what I mean. All this attitude and defiance. You definitely belong down here. They wouldn’t know what to do with you up there.”
“What about you?” I challenged. “Where do you belong?”
His eyes started to darken angrily and his jaw clenched tight. “I’m where I belong,” he growled.
“You were meant to be Fallen?” I challenged. “Your kidnapper just knew at the age of eight you
were going to be one of the baddest, meanest guys out there?” I rolled my eyes and turned back around.
“What I’m saying is that it all worked out for me.”
“Jude, how did you get pulled into the contract?” I asked in a softer voice. I was totally playing on the fact that I knew he somewhat respected me. There were things I didn’t know. The more Jude hung around, the more I realized how in the dark I was about the…. Dark side. And he was my answer to it all- to how to save Seth. But first I had to get him to trust me.
“I told you, I was the right age.”
“But they could have picked someone older that just hung around and didn’t make contact with me. It’s not like I get attacked at school.” He raised his eyebrows at me and I amended, “Not very often, anyway.”
“You were just attacked a couple weeks ago, Sweetheart,” he growled at me. “I saved your life.”
“You saved my life?” I laughed. “And never, ever call me sweetheart again.”
He jumped to his feet and took two fast steps forward so we were standing just inches away from each other. “I saved your life.” His words were firm truth and I believed him. I didn’t want to believe him, but I did. “Sweetheart,” he finished on a breathy growl.
“How about these,” my mom asked brightly from the doorway. She walked further into the space eyeing Jude and I carefully. She was holding simple nude pumps that would match perfectly.
I stepped back from Jude and took the shoes from her, offering a reassuring smile. “Perfect. Thanks, Mom.”
I slipped into them and went back to admiring myself in the mirror, ignoring Jude completely. I didn’t know what to think about him, but it was so obvious how dangerous he was to me and my life.
Thankfully he stayed quiet the rest of the trip. The shoes looked amazing with the dress, so I went back in and changed while my mom took the items to the register. I was surprised to find Jude waiting for me when I came out of the changing room. He was draped in the same chair and his eyes immediately locked on mine when I walked out.
Just when I thought we were going to start arguing again, he got to his feet and walked out ahead of me. He remained silent the entire way home. I probably would have forgotten about him entirely, if it wasn’t for his constant need to smoke.