Chapter Twenty-Two

“It’s hardly stealing if you’re giving it to me,” I retort. Butterflies flit around my stomach at his words before I remind myself harshly that he’s only my partner out in public. I take his coat anyway, grateful for the preheated material. I resist the urge to bury myself deep inside of it and drown in the smell that clings to the fabric.

As promised earlier, Adrian deposits me in the driver’s seat of my G-wagon to let me drive home. I manage to slam on the breaks to avoid hitting a pedestrian on my way out of the parking lot, and Adrian scolds me like I’m a teenager with a permit.

“Pay attention when you’re driving,” He says, though he sounds amused instead of miffed by the experience. “This isn’t Florida, the standard is a little higher.”

I roll my eyes before continuing to the same gate that we came out of. “Is this really the front entrance?”

“Yep, it is. Most people stay on-campus though, so there isn’t a lot of traffic going in and out.” Adrian folds his arms as he leans back in his seat, appearing very relaxed compared to usual. His eyes don’t frantically dart from mirror to mirror this time, as he keeps his gaze forward for once. He’s awfully at ease for a campus with so little security and apparently bad people in attendance.

I bring the SUV to a stop in front of the gate. “There isn’t a code or something to open it?”

Adrian glances at me from the corner of his eye. “Nope. It registers the weight of the car and opens on its own.”

As if on cue, the gate begins to swing open with the same swiftness as this morning. “Why is there no security on campus?” I ask incredulously, pulling through the gate and onto the roughly paved driveway that leads to the main road.

“There’s a chip on your car that lets the scanner at the gate know you’re a student,” He says calmly. “I put it on the front bumper before I picked you up on Friday.”

I furrow my brow, trying to recall seeing anything out of place on the front. It must be a pretty small chip because I don’t remember seeing anything. He asked me to trust him more though, so I decide to brush it off instead of pressing the issue.

We drive for a while with nothing but the music playing softly in the background. Now that I’m not distracted, I have a moment to admire how pretty the trees are that line either side of the road, almost like hundreds of guards that protect the school from view. Something about this area in particular feels peaceful and undisturbed, and I can’t wait to see what they look like covered in snow.

Even though I didn’t grow up in Florida, I’ve never seen snow before in person. I’ve always been jealous of my friends who’s family lives in New York or other cities climatically cold enough for a white Christmas. My Dad lives in Beverly Hills, so growing up the closest I ever got to the Christmas Spirit was palm trees decorated with lights like Christmas trees.

After a while, we come across a car pulled off to the side of the road with its blinkers on. Adrian sits up in his seat as we watch a young woman step into the road from the front of the car, waving her arms in the air at us, seeming to ask for help.

I begin to slow down and prepare to pull off to the side of the road ahead of her. If that were me, I’d be praying for someone to stop and help me. I know there’s no cell phone service in this part of the woods, so she can’t call anyone for help if her car is broken down.

Adrian reaches over to grab the steering wheel, yanking it gently back onto the road. “Never stop on this road,” He says darkly, taking me by surprise. I notice his avid avoidance of looking at the stalled vehicle as we pass.


We pass by her regretfully, and I resist the urge to slam on the brakes anyway, insisting that we help. “What are you talking about?” I ask, trying to keep myself from shouting. “She clearly needed our help.”

“We can’t help her,” Adrian glances in the mirror behind us, and I look out of curiosity too. The car and the women are gone, out of view.

I furrow my brow in confusion. The road is straight here and we just passed by the car, so how can it be gone? I shake my head, trying to clear it of what I just saw. “What the hell was that? Why is she gone?” My voice is frantic despite my best efforts to remain calm and logical. “Was that a ghost?”

Adrian resumes his calm demeanor, leaning against the armrest to touch me reassuringly. “Something like that, if that’s what you believe,” He says, sounding undisturbed despite what we both just saw. “But you’re safe here with me. That’s why I say not to pull over for any reason on this stretch of road, okay? If there’s someone that I can help, I’ll tell you to stop.”

I keep my eyes forward, trying to focus on breathing to calm my racing heart. The scent from Adrian’s coat helps, but my hands still tremble against the steeringwheel. “Okay. And here I was just thinking how pretty and quiet this road was,” I say, chuckling nervously.

“I know,” He says, resting a hand on my thigh. “It usually is.”

For the rest of the drive back, I try to keep my mind occupied by focusing on the weight of Adrian’s hand against my leg, where he keeps it until we reach the gate of our neighborhood. He asks me to roll down my window and tells me to type a code into the keypad at the gate, after which it swings open slowly to grant us access.

I pull the G-wagon into my garage and cut the engine, but I stay seated in the cabin, looking out the window as my brain continues to process. Seeing my intention to sit in the car for a moment, Adrian leans back in his seat, looking at me cautiously. He remains as still as if he was encountering a wild animal he doesn’t want to disturb, seeming to hold his breath while waiting for me to say something.

“I’m sorry you had to see that. I know you must be scared,” He speaks first, leaning over to rest a hand on my thigh again. “Are you okay?”

Both my hands remain frozen to the steeringwheel as I collect myself, taking a deep breath. I force myself to realx and lean back into the seat, peeling my fingers away from the wheel. “I think so. I’ve just never seen something like that before. It was… Bazaar.”

“I know,” He says, voice sympathetic. “This is a really old town.” He never takes his eyes from my face, studying my expressions closely. When I turn to look at him, I see the apprehension in his eyes, as if he’s concerned I’ll have a mental break or something.

I shake my head to clear the thoughts away, forcing a reassuring smile. “It’s kind of thrilling, actually. Let’s go inside, it’s starting to get cold in here now,” I say, making to open my door.

My hand pauses on the handle as I remember what Adrian said this morning, after I nearly dinged the car beside us. Even though there isn’t anything to hit in the otherwise empty garage, I still wait for him to exit first to come open it for me. I think he likes to feel useful, honestly.

Adrian pats me on the head as my feet hit the concrete, greeting me with a smile. “Good girl. Thank you for waiting this time, bunny,”

I glower up at him playfully and swat his hand away. “You don’t have to act anymore, even if you do put on quite a show,”

I follow him to the door and we step inside, depositing our shoes before entering the kitchen. He turns to hold his hand out expectantly, reminding me that I’m still wearing his coat so I shuck it off and hand it to him.

“It looks huge on you,” He says, examing it before tossing it over the back of one of the bar stools. “I’ll have to give you my clothes more often.”

It seems like he’s choosing to ignore what I just told him about not having to pretend anymore, but I don’t really mind. If he’s having fun with it, then I’ll let him be as long as he doesn’t try any funny business again. Just the thought of it makes my cheeks feel hot, so I take my coat off too.

“Would you like something to drink?” Adrian asks, oblivions to my nervousness. “Just no more coffee. You’ve had enough caffine.”

“Sure. Maybe just some tea then,” I say, digging through my bag for the Macbook and taking it to the livingroom. “I’m going to get started on some of that homework.”