Page 73 of Chasing Stardust

Eyes locked on mine, Dash stalks forward with purpose. He stops directly in front of me, takes my face in both hands, and fixes his lips to mine, kissing me until my head swims from lack of oxygen.

When he breaks free, he’s panting every bit as hard as I am. “You. Are. Amazing!”

20

The Man Who Sold the World

After fulfilling my purpose in New York, sliding into the Tesla’s warm leather seats at the end of the day feels like greeting an old friend. As much as I would love to explore the rest of the Big Apple, the open road calls to me, and I’m eager to see what Mom has in store for us next.

“You really don’t mind leaving without seeing more sights?” Dash turns to me, stress lining his face. “Staying at my dad’s place would save money, but—”

His muscles flex as I coil my fingers around his forearm.

“I promise, I don’t mind. To be honest, your sisters freaked me out a little. It was like waking up in The Shining.”

His laughter fills the car. “Margo, Dad’s wife, insists on dressing the girls like that, and it’s definitely creepy.”

“So creepy.”

“I guess we’re heading to Boston.” He taps the address into the GPS.

With his dad’s building still looming behind us, a low hum vibrates through the quiet car.

“What is that?” I dig through my tote for the source, but it’s not coming from inside my bag. It sounds like it’s coming from the back seat, and I realize this isn’t the first time I’ve heard it today. “Is that your phone?”

“Maybe.” He glances at me as he fiddles with the satellite radio.

“You’ve been ignoring calls all day, haven’t you?”

“Have I?” He stares into the traffic, avoiding my gaze. “I hadn’t noticed.”

“You know what I’ve noticed?” I poke his denim-covered thigh. “You don’t get calls. Like the whole time we were in Tennessee, all the way to New York, you didn’t get a single call. Other than dialing Mack’s for me back at the diner and talking to your dad this morning, I don’t think I’ve seen you so much as open your phone since I’ve known you. Don’t you have any friends? Should that worry me?”

“I have friends.” He glares at me, as if mildly offended. “They just don’t have this number. I didn’t want anyone trying to influence my decision.”

“If you say so.” Narrowing my eyes, I attempt to uncover his secrets through telepathy. “For a guy who supposedly didn’t give out his number, you’ve gotten a lot of calls in the span of an hour. Come on, Dash, what gives?”

His shoulders stiffen. “Probably a robo-dialer.”

“A robo-dialer?” I glare at him and cross my arms.

“You know, a computer that dials a bunch of numbers and—”

“I know what it means. I just don’t believe you.” A twinge of something resembling jealousy flares in my gut. What if he won’t tell me because it’s the girl he mentioned before . . . the soulless creature?

Dash squirms in his seat, and his nervousness coils around my insides like snakes.

“It’s whatever.” I shrug. Two can play this game. “You don’t owe me anything. We kissed a few times, big deal. I just didn’t think we’d resorted to lying to each other already.”

“I wasn’t lying!” He blows out a breath. “Not exactly.”

I arch an eyebrow and stare him down.

He lets out a low chuckle. “When you lay on a guilt trip, you lay it on thick.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I told my dad I’d call him back, and I never did. Now he has his assistant calling me every fifteen minutes. She may as well be a robo-dialer.”

The tightness in my chest loosens, but I’m not ready to let him off the hook. “What’s so urgent?”

“He’s . . .” Dash’s jaw tightens. “Super intense. And he doesn’t like to be ignored.”