Whenever

Chapter 7

"Does she have a lot of jewelry?"

He closed his eyes for a moment and thought. Then he shook his head. "No, she doesn't. She doesn't really wear any."

I checked that off on my list.

"Okay, well, you can't get her a gift certificate. That'll just mean that you don't know what to get her and it will disappoint her." I looked down at my list. "So . . . does she like music?"

He looked pensive for a moment again, with his pointer finger lightly tapping against his chin. "I think so."

I rolled my eyes. "Douglas, you have to give me a better answer than 'I think so'. Does she or does she not like music?"

He hesitated. "She has a lot of CDs and a CD player and everything..."

"Then that means she likes music, Douggie." God, he was so thick sometimes. "Does she have an mp3 player of some kind?"

He shook his head. "No..."

I jumped up off my bed. "Great! Then that's what you'll get her. An iPod. Great present. Now shoo."

I wacked him on the back with the clipboard in my hand. Not hard, but it got him out of my room.

"Thanks, Jess," he said, as he exited my room. "A lot."

I smirked. "Thanks for not telling Mom."

He scowled. "That's the last time, too," he said and left.

I rolled my eyes and went over to shut my door. I went back and flopped on my bed and stared at the ceiling. Then I looked over at my phone, willing it to ring.

It didn't.

Okay, so its only been a few hours since I last saw him. But I'm in love, so I have an excuse. And maybe I'm a little obsessed, but just ignore that.

- § -

I was skimming through the book that Dr. Krantz gave me later that night.

Wow, some of the guys in here are hot.

Okay, Jess, they are convicted felons. They killed people. Its bad enough that you're going out with a guy that has all ready been in trouble with the law.

That makes Rob sound bad, doesn't it?

Well, he's not like that. He would never break the law ever again. He just did that one thing because his friends did. And, well, that makes him seem like a follower too, but—

I can't win, can I?

Ah, well, whatever.

After I finished flipping through the book, I set it down on my night table. I pulled the covers over me and turned out the light.

Another fun sleep awaits me.

When I woke up the next morning, I knew exactly where these guys were.

I sighed and rolled over. I sat up and reached over, grabbing the phone off the cradle. I pushed the on button and dialed Dr. Krantz's cell phone number and told him the location of the men (and one woman). He thanked me and told me that I had to come back to Crane again on Saturday (which was in two days). I protested, saying that Saturday was Rob and I's time to spend together, but he just told me to be there and hung up.

I flopped back on my bed angrily, instantly regretting it. I hit my head against my headboard. I groaned from the pain.

I was just not having a good morning.

- § -

"So he's making you go to Crane on Saturday?" Ruth asked me again.

I groaned. "For the last time, YES!" I replied.

We were over her house just hanging out, talking about what's happened lately. Normal girl stuff. Well, aside from the occasional psychic remark from Ruth's end.

"God, that is sounfair," she said, seemingly ignoring my frustration.

I laid back on her bed and glared at her ceiling. "Tell me something I don't know," I said.

Of course I was just saying it just to say it, but Ruth usually takes everything literally. So I wasn't surprised by what she said next. Well, I was, but I wasn't surprised that she told me something I didn't know.

"Skip got a girlfriend," she said, awaiting my answer.

I immediately sat up. "Really?" I said. "So he's over me?"

She laughed. "Seems like it."

"Thank God," I breathed out and laid back again. Ruth laughed again.

Right then my cell phone rang. I hoped it wasn't Krantz again.

I sighed and took it out of my pocket. I flipped it open and answered it. "Hello?"

"Mastriani, where are you?" was the first thing I heard.

I laughed. "Well, hello to you too."

If he were standing in front of me, he would probably be rolling his eyes. "Where are you?" he repeated. "I went over your house, but you weren't there."

"Oh," I said in realization. "I'm over Ruth's house."

"What the hell are you doing over there?"

"Uh, she's my best friend," I said. Was he on crack or something?

He didn't say anything in response to that. I was just starting to wonder if he was still on the other line when he said, "what are you doing tonight?"

I thought about it. Probably nothing, but I didn't want to say that. I wanted it to seem as if I was making room in my schedule for him, you know? Play a little hard to get, even if he all ready got me, if you know what I mean. "Hmm," I said. "Well, I was going to hang out with Ruth, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind if I cancelled on her, would you Ruth?" I asked her.

She just looked at me like I was crazy. Of course, I was not even planning on hanging out with her tonight, because I was planning on being with Rob tonight. But he didn't need to know that. "Uh, sure," she said.

Rob heard that and said, "All right then. Well, did you want to go out to eat tonight? Like maybe dinner and a movie or something?"

Dinner and a movie? "Um, sure," I said. "But that's not what we usually do."

"Yeah, well, I figured we'd do something a little more . . . ethical tonight."

I laughed. "Oh? And what we usually do is unethical? I seem to remember you liking it a lot."

"Mastriani," he said. "That was one time, okay?"

"I wasn't talking about that," I said. Because I wasn't. I was talking about us sitting (or laying in my case) on his living room couch and watching a movie. And even getting in a little make-out session before his mom came home from wherever she had gone.

"Oh," he said. "W-well, okay. Just . . . I'll pick you up at eight, all right? I gotta go."

"Okay. Bye." And then I heard him hang up. Then I did as well.

- § -

"So . . . what movie are we seeing?" I asked Rob. We had just gotten in his mom's truck after eating at this little Italian restaurant not too far from his house. The theater, however, was a little farther than that.

I looked at him expectantly. His lips turned upward into a wry grin. "I was thinking about a horror movie."

My eyes widened. "What?" I asked disbelievingly. "Hell no! I'm not watching a horror movie."

He smirked. "But I thought you were a tough girl."

I narrowed my eyes. "I don't care what you thought. I'm not walking into that theater unless we're seeing something that's not scary."

"Fine, Mastriani. Chick flick it is, then."

"NOT a chick flick either. I see them enough with Ruth as it is. How about an action movie or something?" I suggested.

God, first a horror movie, then a chick flick? Is he on crack or something? He knows I don't like those things.

Oh, right, he was smirking. He was probably just teasing me.

He just smiled. "Action movie it is, then."

"Good," I said and leaned back into the passenger seat, waiting for us to arrive at the movie theater.

- § -

The movie was good. We ended up seeing War of the Worlds (A/N: Let's just pretend its still in the theater's, okay?). The kid who played Robbie was kind of hot, but not as hot as my Rob.

Haha, what a coincidence. They both have the same name. Weird.

It wasn't really an action movie, but it was still good. I like the whole supernatural-based-off-of-books movies. They suit me, I guess, since I'll never read the book anyway. I just don't read.

After the movie, Rob and I went back to his house. I didn't have to be home until one o'clock and it was only eleven.

I guess I have plenty of time to spend alone with Rob.

Ahem.

We trudged up the stairs to his bedroom. And as soon as we got in his room, he shut the door and locked it, and pushed me back on his bed and started kissing me like crazy.

Wow. Horny much?

Not that I minded, of course.

But it was when he started removing my clothing that I started getting...uncomfortable. I mean, I wanted to, erm, practice more with him and everything. But lately, it seems that that's all what's been on his mind.

Sex.

I guess it wasn't as big a deal anymore, since we'd all ready done it. But...he was just going too fast for me. I wanted to take it slow and, well, he didn't.

He was unclipping my bra now. "Rob," I said.

He looked up at me and smiled. He kissed my lips and then unclasped it and threw it on the floor.

He was staring at me. My chest. I didn't really think it was all that much to stare it. Its not like I was a double D or something. But whatever.

Then he just looked back up in my eyes and kissed me fervently.

Yep, he was definitely going too fast for me.

I broke away from the kiss almost as soon as he started it. "Rob," I said again.

"Hmm?" he mumbled, nuzzling my neck.

"I don't - I mean—"

He cut me off by kissing me again.

"Rob!" I almost yelled.

He looked at me in shock. "What? Did I do something wrong?"

"Look, I'm sorry, but you're going too fast for me, Rob. I mean, I know we'd all ready done this and all, but its still all new to me. I just, I don't really feel ready to do it again yet, okay? I'm sorry. Really sorry, because I know you want to do it, but—"

He looked disappointed, but he cracked a smile anyway. "No, I'm sorry. You should've told me. I don't want to force you into anything you don't want to do."

"I tried telling you, but you just kept kissing me and I couldn't and—"

He still looked a little crestfallen. "I get it. I'm sorry." He paused. "And I don't blame you if you wanna go home."

I grabbed my bra from the floor and clasped it back on. Then I grabbed my shirt and put that on. "Rob," I said, all the while doing those things, "its not you, okay? Don't think that. I'm just...inexperienced, for lack of a better word."

He leaned over and kissed me as a reassurance. "Inexperienced? You know I don't care about that, babe. Sure, I'm disappointed, but I don't want to make you do anything that makes you uncomfortable."

I smiled and hugged him. "Thanks for understanding."

"Anytime."

I looked at the clock. Wow, time flew. It was quarter to one all ready.

Rob noticed too and said, "Come on, I'll drive you home."

What an eventful night.

A/N: Okay, so the plot will start kicking in the next chapter. I promise, okay? And now you can review for me. It'll make me happy...

1-800-Where-R-You characters disclaimed to meg Cabot.