How many girls used Tristan for status points alone, and not because they cared about him as a person?
I sighed.
Then there was Anne's take. She would be quick to point out how notoriously short Tristan's attention span was when it came to girls. No girl had lasted longer than two months on Tristan's arm before he moved to the next.
Did I really want to fall for someone who would break my heart in a matter of weeks?
Carrie also wouldn't hesitate with her answer. Boys were a waste of time. Focus on getting into a good college.
"Miss Savannah?" someone whispered. "Do you have an extra bobby pin?"
Without even looking, I grabbed a few from my bag and handed them over.
Nanna would scowl and threaten to throttle me for even asking. You know the rules! she would say while shaking a gnarled finger at me.
And my mother-
The referee blew his whistle, signaling the end of the second quarter and the start of halftime. And time for me to get back to work.
For a while, I was too busy to think about anything other than helping the dancers get warmed up and stretched out before their performance on the field. Afterward, when we were all back in the bleachers and I had finished rewrapping dancers' strained knees, shins and ankles, I returned to my seat beside Tristan. He looked worried about something tonight, his eyebrows drawn into a constant frown as he stared out across the field. I yearned to ask him what was wrong, if he was upset about having to watch his former football team playing without him again. He looked so frustrated and miserable; I wanted to hug him, to tell him it would be okay.
What would Mom say, if I asked her for advice?
If I could go back in time and ask her when she was a teen, her answer would obviously be to go for it. What would one date hurt? her teenage self might say. Live a little. Or as Tristan would say, Some rules were meant to be broken.
One date. One glimpse of what it would be like to be with Tristan. Just for a few hours, I could pretend that we were someone else. He wouldn't be in the Clann. I wouldn't be a half-blood outcast. We could just be Tristan and Savannah, two people on a date together.
All I had to do was say yes. One word. Three little letters.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Tristan's hands gripping his knees. I visually traced those fingers, imagined them reaching out to hold mine. To be able to hold his hand for a while...
My gaze slowly slid up to his mouth. I remembered how those lips had felt against mine, the warmth and light that had flooded me, filling me up from the inside out. To be able to kiss him again...
The world around us grew fuzzy and out of focus. But that was okay, because inside my mind everything was crystal clear now, every thought zipping like lightning.
The Clann and the council were only worried that I would try to bite and drain him, right? But I wouldn't do that. I would never, ever hurt Tristan. And, yeah, my body was acting a little weird lately. But only when I lost control over my emotions. I could work harder to keep them under control. I could control myself around him.
I looked down at my duffel bag, still open. Lying right on top was his note, which I had been unable to throw away. And beside it...my phone.
One date couldn't hurt.
Before I could change my mind, I reached down and grabbed my phone. Breathing fast, my heart racing, my thumbs leaped across the keys with a will of their own as if possessed, sending just one text message to Tristan.
Yes.
Then I dropped the phone back into my bag.
I didn't look directly at him, didn't need to. I could still see him out of the corner of my eye as his cell phone buzzed in the left pocket of his slacks. He pulled the phone out, looked at it, and his entire body tensed up.
His thumbs practically flew over the keys as he text messaged me back.
I peeked through the opening of my bag at my phone's lit display. It read, Tonight?
Feeling his gaze on me I gave the tiniest of nods. It had to be tonight. I might come to my senses if we waited any longer than that.
He sent me another message. Meet me back at the school after the game?
I dipped my head half an inch in agreement, my heart pounding against my chest wall.
He put away his phone with a grin. Then his knees began to jiggle, just like they used to do in the fourth grade when he'd been nervous. They didn't stop for the rest of the game.
When the third-quarter buzzer sounded, he got up and disappeared into the crowd at the concession-stand area. I swear it felt like a rope had been tied around the both of us and was trying to drag me after him. The rest of the team soon followed, but I ignored the urge to go and stayed behind instead. After a few minutes, I received a text message from him.
Do you like pizza?
I smiled and typed, Doesn't everyone?
Favorite kind?
Cheese.
He took a while to reply. Someone must have interrupted him. Favorite drink?
Playing 20 questions?
I'm thinking picnic.
Another thrill raced through me, making me shiver. A picnic. At night. Just the two of us. Orange soda, I replied.
OK. Meet you at the school.
I couldn't help it. I sighed. Maybe tonight would be our one and only date. Maybe tomorrow I'd wake up and find that this had only been a crazy dream.
But I would definitely enjoy it while it lasted.
CHAPTER 13
Savannah
Nope, this was no dream. Because in a dream, my date wouldn't be late. Though he would be in a nightmare. And this was starting to feel like one.
I'd spent the past ten minutes waiting in my truck in the school's main parking lot. The longer I waited, the more I wanted to slap myself.
What had I been thinking, agreeing to this date? No way could this be a good idea! I must have gone temporarily insane at the game tonight. Did I have some secret wish to start a war between the Clann and the vampires? At the very least, I must have a death wish. Because if my family ever found out I'd even agreed to go out with Tristan...
Panicking now, I reached for my duffel bag and dug for my phone, determined to send Tristan a text message calling the whole thing off. It was easier to think when he wasn't around; text messaging was definitely the way to go.
But a familiar black truck pulled up beside mine just as my hand closed around the phone. Crap. I'd have to tell him in person instead.
He jumped out of his truck, carrying a pizza box and a plastic bag. My heart shot up into my throat. I got out of my truck on wobbly legs.
"Hey," he said with a broad grin. "Sorry it took so long. They got the order wrong, and I had to wait for them to make another pizza for us. Did you get my text message?"