The Curse: Touch of Eternity (The Curse series) by Emily Bold Read Free Book Online Page B

myself, I looked at him again, trying not to be too obvious. There was something strange about the way he was staring at me. His brown eyes seemed slightly glazed, and he had pulled back away from me even more.
    I tried to swallow, but felt like I couldn’t. The wind blew my hair into my face and a whiff of his scent swept toward me. Indescribable feelings flooded me. His face wasscowling, his whole posture unwelcoming, yet I somehow felt inexplicably attracted to him.
    The silence at the top of the tower stretched out. C’mon, Sam, I said to myself. Regain your composure! I had to take a deep breath, and then another, before I could even think about starting a conversation.
    I turned slightly toward him and pointed at Loch Shiel in front of us. The sky and the even surface of the water melded seamlessly, and the surrounding hills seemed to be watchmen.
    “Beautiful, isn’t it?” I asked with a weak voice.
    He looked past me, took a deep breath, and answered with an equally pressed voice. “Yes, beautiful.”
    His intense, unfathomable look held me tight in its grasp, and his voice almost physically touched me. I wanted to ask whether he meant the view was beautiful—or something else.
    He spoke again and seemed to be waiting for an answer, but I was still so dazed by his first words that I didn’t hear what he said.
    “What? Sorry… I… I didn’t hear you.”
    “Payton, I said. I’m Payton. And you?”
    “Sam. I mean… actually, Samantha… but everyone calls me Sam.” I seemed to be squeaking rather than speaking. My knees had turned to chocolate pudding, and my voice was giving up on me. God, I wondered, what would Lisa back home say about such pitiful behavior?
    The embarrassment got even worse. While I was musing about chocolate pudding and squeaking, I’d missed the next thing that he said. Sure, he had a Scottish accent, but that hadn’t given me trouble before. He probably thought Iwas a complete idiot. There I was, standing in the tight quarters of a famous tower with a boy who was obviously getting to me, and although we were speaking the same language, I couldn’t understand a word. Thankfully, I thought, this would soon be over. I seriously doubted he was interested in me.
    His tortured expression as he leaned over the balustrade to check out the view made me think he’d rather throw himself over the wall than lean even a millimeter in my direction. It was too much, and I started to laugh—snort, really. I held my hands in front of my mouth to try and stop, but the laughs just popped out of me, giggles gone crazy. I was laughing so hard I was almost crying. My eyes started to water, and I relaxed my body, letting my back drop down the wall to rest myself on the floor.
    It took a moment, but then Payton’s face changed. It wasn’t a smile, but maybe amusement. Yes, I’d say he was at least slightly amused. He studied me, and then sat down opposite me. He didn’t say a word. I suddenly noticed that my pendant was doing that burning thing, making my skin feel red-hot, but I was far too caught up in the here and now to give it much attention.
    I struggled to regain my composure. Then I gathered all my courage and looked up. Payton was sitting with his legs crossed, leaning against the wall in a way that was meant to look relaxed—and clearly wasn’t. His hands were resting loosely on his thighs, but he was obviously tense. The muscles in his arms looked tight, and his face showed not a bit of levity. To be fair, I was probably more capable of climbing Mount Everest than of appearing cool and relaxed myself.But, slowly, the first shock of hearing him speak was ebbing away.
    All of a sudden I felt scared—if I let the moment pass, he’d get up and go away. The thought was awful. Although I still couldn’t say what made me so drawn to him, I knew something special was happening. Payton was attractive, despite a prominent scar on his chin, but I didn’t think his looks were all there was to