Love Condemned: Beginnings by Stephanie Brown Read Free Book Online Page A

studied her a little closer. Her long brown hair was well kept and looked beautiful hanging off of her small shoulders. Her colorful headband was in place which kept her hair from falling into her eyes. Adrian studied the outline of her face with his eyes as he took in every feature of this fascinating woman. When he realized that she was not going to speak, he tried to start the conversation again.
    “She was sitting there when I got back. She said that you did not want to sit next to me anymore. If I would have known…..”
    Not so much as a look or a reaction from her. Adrian decided to stop talking and leave Miranda to her thoughts. The bus jerked as the new driver tried to get used to the controls. Adrian settled back into a comfortable position in his seat and absently traced his fingers on his tattoo.
    Truth be told, Miranda had been rather disappointed and taken aback that Adrian was just making conversation with the woman that was sitting in her seat when she got back, looking as if he didn't mind in the least . Apparently, he was enjoying himself with her as much as he had with Miranda. Deep inside, she had been cringing in horror when she thought to have discovered that even Adrian, who had seemed to like her enough, was a bimbo fan like all the other men. But with his next words, she felt like he made it up to her, and proved her wrong. Or at least a little. For now. 
    “She was sitting there when I got back. She said that you did not want to sit next to me anymore. If I would have known…..”  
    Miranda swallowed, already sorry she had judged him so quickly. From the corner of her eye, she saw Adrian looking away from her after he seemed to have been studying her for a couple of minutes. After another few seconds of silence, Miranda turned her head to him, now studying   him . She hadn't noticed before, but she now saw he had changed into a t-shirt, showing that he had a tattoo covering his right forearm. From what she could see, it looked like a lot of different things put together. It was very intricate. Adrian's fingers were trailing the patterns on his skin. His muscles flexed as he moved, causing Miranda to spend more time appreciating his physique. He was thin but muscular. It was obvious to her that he exercised often, but was not too muscular. He had some facial hair from not shaving for a couple days, but she found that to be attractive.
    Miranda left her feet on the ground this time, while her eyes were averted to her hands in her lap, playing with the fabric of her sweat pants. "It's fine," she muttered, while she heard the low whispers behind her back that were obviously about her. Of course, nobody had heard what the blonde girl had said... but Miranda had been standing in the middle of the aisle, and had spoken with a raised, sharp voice. She sighed and slouched back in her chair. 
    "Listen, Adrian..." Miranda started, her voice a bit quiet again. "If you'd rather sit next to her, if... her company is better than mine... feel free to move your stuff there. I know she's... a lot prettier than me, and probably more fun, too. You don't have to pretend to like me if you don't... I'm used to being alone by now. And I'd rather sit next to someone I  know  doesn't like me, than sit next to someone who pretends to like me." She paused for a second, still looking at her hands. "I'm not trying to suggest you  are  pretending. In fact, I hope you're not. But I needed to say it. Just in case you were. And to make sure you know that you don't have to feel sorry for me or anything."
    It almost broke his heart when he heard her speak that way about herself. Adrian could not help but think that this girl obviously did not see in herself what he saw. He was relieved that she spoke to him again. He was afraid that she was done talking to him or was too angry to talk. When Adrian looked over at Miranda, he could tell instantly that she had not calmed down and was still nervous. The first thing to give