Read Online Dusk (Young Adult Paranormal Romance) by Amy Durham - Free Book Online Page B

headstone.
    *     *     *
    I felt awareness begin to return, not in an upright bolt the way I might’ve after a nightmare, but in a slow trickle, that amplified the sadness and carried it from my dream into my consciousness.
    In that moment, the weight of my grief choked me from the inside.
    Cool wetness dampened my cheeks, and as I reached up to wipe my tears I opened my eyes, hoping that the sight of the real world would calm the emotions whirling in my soul.
    And Adrian was there. On my lavender beanbag. Arms propped on knees covered by frayed blue jeans. Black tee shirt that matched his hair. His face etched with concern and compassion… and a barely caged anger.
    What the –
    I blinked, clearing away the moisture in my eyes for a better look.
    But there was no one on my beanbag. I was alone.
    I didn’t imagine him. I hadn’t even been thinking of him. So how had my mind conjured him there in my bedroom?
    A crazy sense of déjà vu swept over me, and my mind flashed back to the morning after the crash. Waking up to the nasty effects of the night before, and hallucinating a guy sitting on my beanbag.
    In my mind I pictured the vision from that morning. Blue jeans. Black hair. Biker boots.
    Adrian.
    It wasn’t possible. The idea was absurd. And yet…
    How often had I thought about how familiar he seemed, how familiar it felt to be with him? How many times had I asked myself since meeting him how he had the ability to show up or call or text at just the right moments? He saw me searching for my Pre-Cal book, and somehow it mysteriously appeared. Without asking he knew I’d need help with Pre-Cal homework. He texted to check on me just after a confrontation with Nikki and Courtney. He found me at the horse paddocks after a near fight with mom.
    Then there’s the way that when I’m with him, his presence wraps around me like warm breeze.
    And now I was almost certain it had been him in my bedroom the morning of the hangover from hell. And there was no way I’d placed him there with some sort of wishful thinking. I hadn’t even laid eyes on him yet.
    Something was definitely weird about Adrian Shaw. Probably not in a bad way. At least I hoped. But something weird for sure.

Chapter 13

    I dragged into school that morning, eyelids already drooping from the energy it had taken to get ready.
    Sleep had eluded me after the horrible dream about my father. I just kept playing it over and over again in my mind, wondering if it was my dad’s way of telling me he’d be pissed at me for all eternity.
    Or if it was a manifestation of my own fears that I’d never be able to move on.
    And in the moments when I wasn’t reliving the dream, I’d think about Adrian randomly appearing in my bedroom, twice, and all the questions I had about exactly who and what he was.
    I’d ask him. Though our relationship was still new, I figured we had enough trust between us that I could tell him what I’d seen, what I suspected, and maybe he wouldn’t run screaming in the opposite direction of the insane girl he’d made the mistake of getting involved with.
    Adrian, you’ve magically appeared my bedroom a couple of times, and I’m beginning to think maybe you have some really cool supernatural abilities. Am I right?
    Yeah, it wasn’t a conversation I was really looking forward to having. But honestly, I had enough crap to deal with without wondering if these hallucinations meant I was losing my mind.
    I’d talk to him after school, when Pre-Cal homework was done.
    In the lobby, my mood perked up a bit when I saw the signs Vivian had made for my run for senior class secretary hanging beside the office. The vivid blue and purple colors hung in bright contrast on the industrial white walls.
    I’d told Viv the truth about the accident. She’d been glad I wasn’t hurt, but she hadn’t been shocked. She said she was glad I’d had good reason to cut ties with Nikki and Courtney.
    In the hallway on the way to homeroom, I ran