Chapter Two - Slick


Edward spent the rest of the weekend mostly holed up in his room, unpacking and ignoring his parents. It wasn't hard to do; his parents were busy with similar things. Sunday was ending, but he needed a few things before he started school the following day.

Grabbing his keys, he looked in the mirror across from his bed. His brown-auburn hair was a fucking mess, but no amount of finger combing helped. Too lazy to look for his comb, he just slipped into his leather jacket. He didn't give a fuck if anyone saw him in town.

Out in the hallway, he waited and listened for any sign of his parents a floor below. They were home; he had heard them arrive an hour earlier. Satisfied, hearing nothing after a minute, he headed downstairs and hoped his luck would stay. His hand was on the doorknob leading to the garage when he heard his mother call him from the kitchen.

"Dinner will be ready in an hour, sweetheart. It's your favorite."

She was offering him an olive branch; it was up to him to take it.

"Fine." He looked over his shoulder to find her once vibrant, green eyes he inherited duller than usual. The shit he pulled back home was the cause, and the animosity between them ate away at her. "I'll return for dinner on time." Turning to meet her eyes, he breathed in deeply. "Bye, Mom."

He heard her breath catch, since he hadn't called her that in a while.

Not in the mood to deal with much more, he let the door close hard behind him. The purr of the engine helped as he drove out into the cool, wet night. The road was slick with water after the last rain, the clouds leaving no visible stars in the sky. Back home he could see some, but there in middle-of-nowhere Washington, there was nothing but green shit surrounding him. Green shit and clouds.

The static from his stereo reminded him he'd have to search for radio stations to preset, a pain in the ass task. Did the rainy town even get any reception? He searched for a while, hating every station he came across. Preoccupied with his stereo as he reached the first stoplight, he realized he had passed half the town.

"One fucking stoplight," he said in disbelief. The chances of finding the shit he needed seemed slim, turning into a general store.

A familiar blue truck caught his eye, along with the parking space beside it. At first glance the other night, he would've thought the truck was a hunk of junk. Now, it was obvious it was well cared for 48' Chevy, souped-up, with new rims, and a recent paint job. Even the interior looked new, and none of the cheap ass vinyl they try to pass up as leather. Hoping for a glimpse of the girl, he made his way to the entrance.

Inside the store, it looked like a catchall—part thrift store, part grocery, and part convenience shop. He found the mechanical and charcoal pencils he preferred, some pens, graph paper, and a poor excuse for a drawing pad. It was all they had as far as art supplies, so he'd have to order his favorites online.

"Come on, Bells," he heard someone say behind him, a slight whine to the tone. "I don't see what the big deal is."

"Whining is not helping you right now, Jake."

There was something familiar about the voice. Was it the same girl from Friday night?

"I'm almost sixteen, most of the guys at the Rez already made it to third base."

"First, ew, second, kissing you would be like kissing my brother. Gross. You're not going to convince me to let you to stick your dick in me. Not going to happen, ever."

Edward snorted, glancing toward the voices. There she was, the same girl who stopped by the side of the road Friday night. Going toe-to-toe with a giant; he had be over six feet tall, a full foot taller than the ball buster. Edward was right about her height, barely cleared five-five, but the hair was longer than he originally thought, almost reaching her ass. The color was nearly a perfect match to her dark eyes.

The giant caught sight of Edward, his shit brown eyes narrowing. He tipped his chin up, but there was nothing friendly about the gesture. Noticing her friend's attention was elsewhere, the girl turned to look at Edward. The slow smile that spread on her lips made him itch for a taste.

"Hey, slick." The rasp in her voice was sexy as fuck, as was her sassy smile.

"You know him?" Giant crossed his arms over his chest. The man-child even flexed his biceps, but it wasn't as impressive as he seemed to think.

"We got to know each other a little the other night," she said, her lips pursing for a moment. "Is your car outside?"

"Why you asking?" Deciding he wanted a taste, he added, "Want a ride?"

She didn't answer. Instead, her eyes slowly slid over his body from head to toe. He wasn't opposed to doing the same, taking his time on all her curves. The heated looks ended when the giant mistakenly chose to answer for her.

"I'm her ride, let's go." He grabbed her arm, but less than half a second later, he yelped. She went for his shirt and twisted his nipple underneath. "Damn it! Fucking let go, B!" She did, but only when he released her arm. They glared at each other for a solid ten seconds, before the boy smartly turned away. "I'll be out in the truck."

She watched him go; returning her attention to Edward once the asshole was gone. Her eyes appeared lighter under the harsh overhead lighting. "I don't need a ride, obviously. But I might take you up on it soon —would love to see what's under the hood of your Charger."

There was no hint of innuendo in her words, which honestly, both impressed and disappointed him. "You know about cars."

"When you have little money, and assholes like Jake," she pointed toward the parking lot, "and Paul who try to negotiate for sexual favors in exchange for working on my truck, I had to learn how to do it on my own."

Jake and Paul were assholes.

His brow tightened. "You going to be okay with him?"

Her smile widened a little. "Aw, protective."

He only shrugged, not sure that he agreed with her.

"He won't hurt me, since he knows my dad would hang him by his balls if he tried something. Plus, he's been acquainted with my knee on a few occasions."

"Put your tongue back in, Bells, and let's go," Jake called out from the end of the aisle. She flipped him off over her shoulder and walked backward, her eyes still on Edward.

"See you tomorrow at school, slick."

He had no idea why she called him that, not that he cared. She could call him whatever she wanted with her voice. School looked a little more promising at least.