Storm by D.J. MacHale Read Free Book Online

eyes.
“Didn’t see anything,” she said with a chuckle. “Much.”
“I thought you went to sleep!” I said as I quickly pulled my scrub top on.
“I couldn’t. I want to talk.”
Standing there facing her was unnerving. I felt as though I was still naked.
She put her hands on her hips and struck a pose.
“Not exactly a stylish outfit.”
It didn’t matter that the scrubs were so plain; she looked great. Her short blonde hair was still wet. She had it combed straight back, which let her bright blue eyes sparkle in the light from the lantern.
“We’ll get new clothes tomorrow,” I said.
“And then what?”
“I don’t know. We should probably stick to the original plan and—”
“I’m scared, Tucker.”
Her voice was shaky. I was afraid she might cry.
“We all are. We’ll find your mother and get you home.”
She gave me a wistful smile and said, “Not so sure about that. I don’t think I’m ever going to see my mother again.”
“Don’t say that,” I chastised. “She probably went back to your home in New York. Or maybe she went to Boston and she’s planning on coming back here to find you.”
Olivia shrugged. She didn’t believe either of those possibilities. Her mother had left Pemberwick to go shopping on the mainland when the attack hit. Odds were that Olivia’s fear was justified.
“What about your father?” I asked.
She shrugged and smiled sadly. “He’s a long, long way from here.”
“So then we’ll get you back together with him. And your mother too.”
“Do you really believe that?” she asked innocently.
“I do,” I said.
I didn’t. I had no idea what was possible. I thought my words would comfort her, even if they were lies, but it seemed as though I was only making things worse, for tears grew in Olivia’s eyes.
“You’re such a good guy,” she said. “None of this should have happened.”
“You get no argument from me there, but it did. You’re not alone here, Olivia. We’re going to watch out for each other.”
She looked up at me with big, innocent eyes.
“Promise?”
“Cross my heart,” I said while crossing my heart.
She walked slowly toward me.
I took a step back and hit the lockers.
She came right up to me and put her arms around my neck.
I looked down into those big blue eyes. It was almost as terrifying as when we faced the black plane in the Old Port.
Almost.
“I really like Kent,” she said.
Odd thing to say at that moment, but whatever.
“Me too,” I replied, though I didn’t like him at all.
“But I can’t depend on him. I mean, it’s not like we’re a couple. Not really.”
“Could have fooled me.”
“It’s true.”
“Maybe you should tell him that.”
“Why? He wouldn’t believe me. Kent only cares about Kent. He thinks every girl is in love with him. You can’t rely on somebody like that.”
She stared up at me, expecting me to say something.
I had nothing.
“Why are you telling me this?” I finally asked.
“Because I want to know if I can rely on you .”
I didn’t know where this was going. Was Olivia being flirty just to make sure I’d take care of her? Or did she really like me?
“I . . . yeah. Of course you can rely on me. So can Tori. And Kent. We can all rely on each other and—”
She put her finger on my lips to stop the verbal diarrhea.
“I don’t mean to make you nervous,” she said.
Sure she did.
“I’m not nervous,” I said nervously.
Olivia laughed. She was flirting all right.
“You’re a good guy, Tucker Pierce. A really good guy. I think you’re going to come out of this okay.”
That was a weird thing to say. A second earlier she’d been acting all confused and scared, then suddenly she was speaking with total authority, as if she could predict the future.
Like I said, Olivia was an enigma. A dangerous enigma.
She stood up on her toes . . . and kissed me.
I was so surprised that I didn’t stop her. Okay, I probably wouldn’t have stopped her even if I wasn’t so surprised. I wrapped my arms