Crave (Harlequin Teen)

team seen me staring at Tristan?
    Maybe he wasn’t the only one gaze dazed around here.
    I managed not to look at him again. But it was a constant struggle.
    Still lost in thought at the end of practice, I didn’t say anything as we walked together back to the dance rooms. He waited in silence as I locked up the sound system in the office closet. When I turned to face him, I found him leaning a shoulder against the doorjamb.
    “About our date tonight,” he began.
    “Tonight? I don’t remember setting it for tonight.” My voice came out as a squeak. I stared at his nose so I could indirectly study the look in his eyes. Nope, he still didn’t appear possessed like the others had seemed.
    “For our date tonight, I was thinking we should dream connect again. Or at least try to.”
    I frowned and stared at the floor. “Tristan, maybe we should just slow down and take a few minutes to really think about this. We’re talking about lying to our parents. A lot. And often. My family is going to know if I lie to them. How long do you really think we could keep this a secret? I mean, I want to see you, too, don’t get me wrong. But…aren’t you worried just the least little bit about the consequences if we get caught?”
    He frowned. “We won’t get caught. Emily can make you a charm to block your parents from reading your mind.”
    It wouldn’t be my thoughts that would give away what we were doing. “Oh, yeah? And is she also going to make a charm that will do something about my face? Because I don’t know about you, but I’m a really crappy liar. They’re going to be able to tell I’m lying just by looking at me!”
    Smiling, he reached out to take my hand and give it a soft squeeze. “You worry too much. Parents aren’t all-powerful. Emily and I get away with stuff all the time.”
    “Maybe you do. But I’ve never broken the rules before.”
    “Which is exactly what’s going to help you now. They won’t be scrutinizing everything you say and do. So just focus on something else when you’re around them and don’t worry about it.”
    The warmth from his hand flowed up my arm, soothing me. Then his thumb started caressing my skin in a small, slow circle, making it tough for me to think straight. Probably exactly as he intended.
    I tugged my hand free and crossed my arms over my chest. “Tristan, be serious here. I don’t want to hurt my family.”
    Sighing, he crossed his arms over his chest, too, and frowned. Rocking back on his heels, he asked, “Do you want to be with me?”
    “I… Yes. But—”
    “And do you think it’s fair for our families or the Clann or anyone else to tell us who we can and can’t be with?”
    “Well, no, I guess not, but they—”
    “No buts. I’m tired of others running my life for me. They’ve kept us apart for seven years. It’s time we take back control over our own lives. Do what we think is right. Their issues are theirs, not ours. It’s not your fault your family got kicked out of the Clann. And it’s not my fault, either. So why punish us?”
    I slumped, feeling his arguments physically wearing me down. Fighting him was hard enough. But standing up against both him and my own heart was starting to feel like an impossible battle. “Exactly how do you expect us to date in secret without someone finding out? Where would we even go on a date?”
    He cocked his head in the direction of the dance room next door. “We’ll always have the dance room. It can be our place. And we can dream connect. Every night if you want to.”
    I thought about his reputation for taking girls to restaurants, to the movies, to parties. He was talking about giving all that up and settling for dates spent sitting on a cold cement floor with takeout or only in our shared imaginations. Not that I’d mind. I’d take any kind of date with him I could get. But what about what he was used to? Wouldn’t he miss all that while dating me? He deserved better.
    I sighed, unable to escape my biggest worry of all. “Tristan, are you sure this is really you making these decisions?”
    His eyebrows drew together in confusion, then he frowned. “Is this about the eye thing again? Savannah, that was over months ago.”
    “No, that was a week ago. In the closet, before we…” My face burned, and I couldn’t finish.
    “So you made eye contact with me again. No big deal. That was just some accidental spell you put on those boys or something. I would have felt it if you’d used any