“Romance,” Nat answered. “And before either one of you argue with me, just know that I had to go to not one, not two, but three movie premiers when I was with Alec, and they were all gory action movies that made me want to bang my head against my own hand.”

“They were pretty rough,” Alec agreed. “But he’s a cool dude, so I wanted to support him.”

“He?” Alyssa asked tentatively.

Alec grinned. “Jamie Jaymeson. He’s from England. Girls love him, but he sports an American accent in all his action movies.

Anyways He’s good people.”

Alyssa nodded. This was the part that made me nervous.

Everyone knew who Jaymeson was. I mean, next to Robert Pattison he was the biggest thing to cross the Atlantic since Twilight. Did it freak her out to know we were all friends? That it was part of our world and would soon be part of hers too? It scared the hell out of me when I thought of merging my life with the one in Seaside. It didn’t fit. I wanted it to, but it was like two puzzle pieces that weren’t cut to go together, and I didn’t know how to fix it. I looked down at my food and sighed.

We ate the rest of our food in silence. I was too hungry to talk, and then when I was finished I couldn’t help but stare at Alyssa. Everything about her was sensual. The way she ate bread was freaking sensual. I really needed to get a hold of myself if I was going to be in the same room with her without dying.

Pretty sure I read somewhere that it could happen to a guy.

It seriously felt like it now. I cleared my throat and looked away, even though all I wanted to do was be the creepy dude that watched her cut her meat.

Yes. I wanted to watch her cut her meat. That was how hard I had fallen. I dug out a piece of taffy from my pocket and popped it into my mouth.

Jack Daniels taffy sure did take the edge off. What I wouldn’t do for a joint.

“Movie?” Alyssa asked once the plates were cleared.

“Let’s do it,” I said, this time watching her as she stood and stretched her little arms above her head, giving me an amazing view of a tight little stomach. God, I was going to die this way.

Chapter Seventeen

Alyssa

The drive to the small movie theatre wasn’t too bad. The closer we got to the narrow roads of Seaside, the easier it was for me to remain calm about the fact that for the first time in years I had traveled outside my tiny little hole of a town.

My chest still hurt, but I swear it was like Demetri could tell when I would start to panic. He’d squeeze my hand, and then it was like by squeezing my hand, he somehow pushed the fear away.

I sighed in relief the minute we rolled back into familiar territory.

The movie theatre wasn’t crowded, which was a double bonus. I didn’t do crowds, and I knew Demetri and Alec would be irritated if there were lots of teen girls running around screaming their names and sobbing their eyes out.

They were normal guys, right? I mean, it wasn’t as if anything about them was any different from any other guy in this world.

I stole a glance at Demetri as he got out of the car and stretched his arms out in front of him. Seriously, how did that sweatshirt even fit him? It hugged every muscle in his arms. I had no idea guys even had that many muscles in their arms, and I used to hang out with football players all the time.

He looked my way. I felt myself blush. Caught. Crap I was totally caught ogling the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. My mouth was even open. Perfect. He sauntered, yes, sauntered, as in slowly walked toward me with his hips swaying slightly back and forth. I looked down at the ground. My eyes were screaming at me to look at him, but I swear, in that moment I felt like if I did I would melt into a puddle, efficiently ruining one of the best days I’ve ever had.

“Lyss? You okay?” He chuckled, tilting my chin toward him.

His smile was my addiction; it was too bright, too beautiful not to respond to. His deep set dimples made his face light up into what I think every woman in my position would refer to as perfection.

“Yup,” I croaked. “Just awesome.” I felt my eyebrows lift as if to prove how totally fine I was, when really on the inside my heart was racing like crazy.

“Mmm…” His mouth descended.

Forget what I said earlier about him being like any other guy.

Other guys don’t kiss like that.

What do they do in Hollywood? Give kissing lessons? Teach the art of seduction?

His tongue tasted like the Jack Daniels taffy I had given him, sweet with a bit of salt. I opened my mouth to him as his warm hands braced my lower back, reaching lower than what was probably appropriate in public. He pushed me against the car and moaned into my mouth. I wrapped my arms around his neck and tried to press harder against him. It was as if I couldn’t get enough of him.

“Dude,” Alec ground out. “We’re going to miss the movie.

You can make out later. You’re going to kill her if you keep sweeping in like that with no warning whatsoever. She can barely stand straight!”

Demetri pulled back chuckling. I was that girl. The girl that I swore I’d never be. The one that would literally stalk the object of her affection and never look back. His kiss did so many things to me. Things that, the minute Brady died, I thought too painful to experience again. I waited for the all too familiar stab in my chest.

But it didn’t happen. Demetri held out his hand and smiled at me.

Being with Demetri wasn’t the absence of pain. It was the added presence of peace, making it easier and easier for that little part of my heart to heal again.