Read The Unofficial Zack Warren Fan Club Online
Authors: J.C. Isabella
“Perfect,” I muttered. I’d just allowed one of the guys on the baseball team to think I’m dating Zack Warren, my stepbrother. Could my life be anymore complicated?
Chapter 12
Zack
One minute Chloe and I were hitting it off, and I was working up my nerve to ask if she wanted to go to the movies, then she disappeared.
I went downstairs. She wasn’t there. Molly asked me if I’d seen her. I said no, and noticed Chloe’s cell phone on the kitchen table. My dad joined the conversation, mentioned seeing Chloe slip out the front door.
Molly was worried. Hand wringing, lip-biting worry that was bound to freak out my dad, so I grabbed my keys and took off to find Chloe. It was getting dark. Considering she slept with a nightlight, I didn’t think she’d like being outside for too much longer.
It didn’t take much effort to find her, considering Chloe tended to attract attention. And by attention, I meant the ass wipe pushing a muddy dirt bike next to her.
How in the hell did she manage to run into Max out here?
I knew he lived nearby, but I made sure to not to tell him where I was moving. Mostly because I didn’t want him to park his ass at the house, stink the place up. And I saw red every time he looked at Chloe.
I pulled off to the side of the road. Before my feet touched asphalt, Chloe bounded up to greet me. She beamed at me.
Beamed, like she was excited, to see me.
If Max had touched her, I’d break his nose…or his arm.
Either one would satisfy me immensely.
I leaned against the door, all calm and cool on the outside, raising an eyebrow at such an enthusiastic greeting from her. “I’ve been looking all over for you, Chloe. Molly is going crazy because you left your phone.”
She stepped even closer. Our shoes were almost touching. “Sorry, I got held up by some people from town.”
I surveyed the area around us, wondering what she meant, still confused by her welcoming behavior. “People, as in, plural?”
“Yep, the rest of them left.”
“I was making sure she got home safe.” Max supplied.
I eyed him. “I bet.”
Chloe turned so she was standing next to me, facing Max. She crossed her arms. Bad body language. She was shutting down, ready to head home by the looks of it. She probably would have been happy to see anyone. So it wasn’t me that made her act that way, just the prospect of getting out of the dark.
“I’m surprised you let pretty Chloe out of your sight. It’s not safe at night if you aren’t familiar with the area.” Max winked at her.
“I’ll be sure to keep a closer eye on her.” I said.
“It was nice walking with you, Max.” Chloe lunged for the truck.
I’d never seen her move so fast. Apparently Max didn’t strike her fancy. Fine by me. I grabbed her waist and gave her a boost so she didn’t fall back on the pavement. The truck was pretty high off the ground.
“Yeah,” He sounded put out, then said to me, “she ever wants to walk at night again, Zack, I’ll have no problem taking her off your hands.”
Chloe gasped and I laughed. Did he forget our talk? The one were I where I threatened to maim him if he went anywhere near her? I faced him. “Really?”
“Sure.” He said. I caught a whiff of him on the wind and pursed my lips.
Wow.
And I don’t mean that in a good way.
I shook my head and got into the truck, slamming the door in Max’s face. The cab felt very small all of a sudden. Chloe sat right next to me. She hadn’t slid all the way over yet. I leaned out the open window. “Thanks for the offer, but you haven’t got a snowball’s chance in hell of getting any closer to Chloe.”
I peeled rubber and turned us around, speeding down the street, away from Max.
“How do you know him?” I tried to keep my voice level and clam. I couldn’t see Chloe’s face hidden in the darkened cab. Wasn’t sure I wanted to see her expression after implying Max didn’t have a chance with her. Would she be happy? Or pissed that I’d assumed?
“We just met. He was being too friendly, maybe because you guys are friends or something.”
“Chloe, Max and I are not friends. I want nothing to do with that bastard.”
“He doesn’t seem like someone you’d hang out with.”
“Got that right. What did he want?”
“At first he was just walking with me, I guess so I wouldn’t be alone. But he was too friendly. So I told him I had a boyfriend.”
“You made up a guy?” The relief I felt was insane. It hit me hard, right in the gut, like someone tried to knock the wind out of me.
“Yeah.”
“Good.” I relaxed into the seat, but she was stiff and strait as a board beside me. “What’s wrong?”
“Max assumed you were him.”
“Him who? Your boyfriend?”
“Yep,” she laughed nervously.
I cussed every word in the book, and then said a few words she probably never heard before. “Great, so not only am I your stepbrother, I’m now your boyfriend?”
“He assumed!” She argued. “How was I supposed to know you’d round the corner at the precise time I was trying to tell him off?”
“Do you always make up boyfriends when a guy is interested in you?”
“No, this was a first.” She laughed again, but there was no humor in her voice. “Max had the nerve to call me chicken because I wouldn’t go for a ride on his bike. I don’t even know him. Ugh, and he smelled awful.”
I cracked my knuckles against the steering wheel, wondering what our parents would do if they thought if Chloe and I were together.
Put us on opposite ends of the house when we came home from school?
Because there was this overwhelming need in me to stake a claim, mark my territory. Be the caveman. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could suppress it.
Max probably saw right through Chloe’s remark about having a boyfriend.
He wasn’t that stupid, just stupid enough to think I was all bark and no bite.
Max didn’t know I used to be the kid that threw punches before asking questions. Always in the office for something, be it a scuffle in the hallway or skipping class. The teachers seemed to understand what I was going through, losing my mom. They could have been a lot harder on me.
I’m surprised my smart ass wasn’t hauled off to kiddy jail.
I mean, I’d broken my fair share of noses and ribs. A few of the guys I hung out with started calling me the Beast. And damn if I didn’t live up to that name.
I’d finally come to terms, started behaving, not acting out because I’d lost my mom once I started high school. I fought in karate competitions, not restrooms and parking lots. I won trophies for my abilities, rather than keeping my title as the Beast. Max saw me as a good guy, a pretty boy, rather than trouble. My truck was the Beast now.
That isn’t to say trouble went away completely…
You can take the dog out of the junkyard, but taking the junkyard out of the dog?
Good fucking luck.
“Everyone at school knows we’re stepbrother and stepsister now.” I said, wishing like hell I never mentioned my dad was marrying Chloe’s mom, even to Kyle. “Letting them think we’re dating is going to be weird.”
“We’re not blood related, Zack.” I felt her shrug. She was still right next to me, arm pressed against mine. The heat of her skin seeped into mine, warming me up in ways she’d never have imagined. I needed to go inside and jump into a cold shower for sure. I saw a lot of cold showers in my future.
“Are you saying that you want to pretend we’re friends for our parents and add a fake relationship on top of it?” Tricky, but maybe it could work.
“I never said that.”
“You implied it,” how could we fake a relationship? It was just a bad idea. I never should have let my mind wander in that direction. What was I thinking? Life wasn’t going to be that fair to me. I lost my mom. Why did I ever think the cosmos would be nice enough to let me have Chloe after our parents were married? This wouldn’t work out. How could it?
“No.” She said. “I made a mistake by telling Max I have a boyfriend, and now we have to figure out a way to fix it.”
I forced myself to lean away from her warmth. Immediately I felt empty. “We? There is no we Chloe, there is you. You messed up. You fix it.”
“You’re such an ass.” She spat, scrambling out of the truck once I jerked it to a stop in the yard.
I took my time getting out, mumbling. “Yeah, I am.”
She didn’t hear me. “I’m going to fix it, Zack. Don’t get your panties in a twist.”
“Now there’s an image.” However the first thing that came to my mind was Chloe in her frilly underwear looking doe eyed and sweet. Shit.
I followed her into the house, feeling cold inside even though it was probably ninety degrees out. We didn’t so much as look at each other the rest of the night. I’d pushed her away yet again, for her own good.
I didn’t really want her to fix the problem of Max thinking we were a couple. The thought of Chloe with another guy made my teeth hurt.
So what was I going to do about that?
Just let it go?
Or go after the one thing, the one girl, I wanted more than anyone ever before?
Chapter 13
Chloe
Zack descended the stairs the next morning, and I had to keep myself from falling off the couch. He was just as sexy with rumpled hair and sleepy eyes, wearing his worn jeans and a white t-shirt. It was too bad that I found him attractive, since when I went to bed last night I decided I hated him for real.
Seriously.
I hate Zack Warren…kind of.
Really, how can you hate perfection?
So I hate his guts, all the insides that weren’t exposed to the steamy Florida sun.
He plopped down on the couch, next to me of all places. I was in the living room watching cartoons, a very mature thing to do.
“Hey.” He said, voice raspy with sleep.
And here I thought we’d be ignoring each other, shooting imaginary daggers into each other’s backs. Last night he acted as if I’d ruined his life. This morning I was thinking he’d be angry, something other than pleasant.
I tried to appear unfazed. “Morning.”
“It’s quiet.” He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, not having shaved yet. The blond scruff on his face looked prickly.
“Yep.” I wondered what it felt like, and had the strangest urge to run my fingertips over his skin.
“Where are the love birds?”
“Grocery shopping.” So we were keeping things surface. Good, I could do that. No more talk about last night, which was fine with me. One thing I did not need was the fan club getting wind that Zack and I were dating, even if it was fake dating. They’d be on me like ravenous wolves.
His sleepy laugh rumbled low in his throat. “I’m sure the store is going to be an interesting experience.”
“They brought the cooler and ice with them. Mom only shops at Publix.” I could count on my mom to be a loyal shopper wherever she lived, creature of habit.
“I guess they’ll be gone for a while then.” He let out a breath. “Thank god.”
“My mom made French toast, there’s a plate for you in the fridge.” I wonder if he’d temporarily forgotten what happened last night. Was his brain still asleep?
“Great.” He sauntered into the kitchen. Clanking around, opening the cabinet and fridge, then the microwave. He came back with his plate and resumed his seat next to me.
We settled in to watch Elmer Fudd duke it out with Bugs Bunny. It felt so normal and comfortable, like we’d always spent our morning’s vedging out in front of the TV.
The knockdown drag out I anticipated never happened.
Maybe he was waiting to catch me off guard…probably hoping I’d get paranoid.
And if that was his goal, he’d achieved it in spades.
The doorbell rang sometime later. Zack was putting his dishes in the dishwasher. I went to answer it and checked my reflection in a mirror by the door.
Didn’t want to scare anybody, since I hadn’t looked in a mirror yet. I was in my gray shorts and an old tee. Both were splattered in paint, thanks to mom.
Not that I didn’t care about my appearance, I did. I just wasn’t going to fluff myself up for the hot guy in the room next to me, even though I really wanted too.
I had a million cute outfits, teeny shorts and halters, flirty dresses, that I knew made guys look twice. Lana told me so, and I figured this was one area where I could trust her judgment.
“Hello,” A blonde was waiting on the other side of the door wearing a hot pink sundress. Her skin color was reminiscent of George Hamilton— the old actor who reminded me of a human Cheez-It.
“Hi,” I said. Someone came up the porch behind her. It was the leader of the bike gang, the big guy that had been with Max.
“I’m Stella Wright, and this is my boyfriend Carlos Perez.” She held out a basket of fruit, the Florida welcome gift, even given in winter. Nothing says hey neighbor like a bunch oranges someone probably picked off a tree in their yard. “We wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood.”