Read Online Here by Denise Grover Swank - Free Book Online Page A

cheeks and chin. My heart skips as I breathe in his scent. He smells like laundry soap and a hint of autumn leaves. He’s extraordinarily beautiful, although I’m sure he wouldn’t appreciate the adjective choice. But his attractiveness is a reminder there’s no way he can be interested in someone like me without a reason. Sadness seeps into my heart, but I accept it for what it is. Reality.
    He shifts in his seat. I’ve taken too long.
    “
Clear your mind of everything. Your mind is completely blank. Now tell me one word about you. Go.”
    “
Sad.” His eyelids open. I’ve moved far too close to him, our faces a foot apart. Tears blur his eyes and his mouth lifts into a half smile.
    I can’t imagine why Evan is sad. I consider ignoring his response but can’t ignore the dejection on his face. I whisper, “We’re going to fix that.”
    My cheeks burn as I wonder what possessed me to say such a thing.
    His eyes fill with longing and I think he’s going to kiss me, right here in the library. Instead, he swallows. “I think I forgot my pencil in the car.” He looks out the window. “I’ll be back in a minute. Don’t go anywhere.” He stands and disappears before I can offer him my extra.
    I worry he’s going to leave, but his half-opened backpack lays on top of the table. Fingering the zipper on his worn, army-green canvas bag, I wonder what made Evan so upset.
    My gaze lifts to the trees bursting with fall colors. They’re beautiful this time of year, and although I have to admit the view here is gorgeous, his reaction seems odd, along with his sudden interest in me. There’s no denying it’s more than his compulsion to tutor me.
    The chair beside me scrapes the floor and Evan sits, slightly subdued and his face blotchy. He pulls out a notebook and opens to a blank page.
    I almost ask if he found his pencil, but we both know that’s not why he left. “Do you have work of your own?” I ask. “Because I don’t need help with this part.”
    “
Don’t worry. I’ve got plenty of my own homework.”
    We spend the next hour working side by side. When I’ve finished three trig assignments and can’t stand any more, I close my textbook. Evan looks up. “Done?”
    “
With trig, for now. The math portion of my brain is mush.”
    “
Moving onto history?”
    McCarthyism and the Cold War isn’t calling out to me. “No, I think I’ll work on English Lit. I have some stories to read.” I study his face. His eyes are soft and his hand slides closer to mine. My heart melts as my guard flies up. I’m not sure I should trust him. “Tell me a story about yourself.”
    His shoulders jerk and he sits straighter. “What?”
    “
If we’re going to spend time together, tell me something about yourself, other than the obvious.”
    “
Obvious?”
    “
You know like you’re popular, you play football, and date cheerleaders. Tutoring the social outcast doesn’t fit with your M.O., so tell me something to make me trust you.”
    His eyebrows knit in confusion. “M.O.?” He releases a loud breath. “A story, huh? Okay. Hmm…” He taps his pencil as his gaze wanders to the trees then back to me.
    “
It has to be about you .”
    He laughs. “Okay. Once upon a time—”
    I raise an eyebrow with a sarcastic grin.
    “
It’s a story, right? It needs to start like one.” He leans closer, folding his hands together on top of the table as his voice softens. “Once upon a time there was a little boy who loved a little girl. They were in the same kindergarten class. He was determined to make her notice him so he teased her mercilessly, but it only made her hate him. He was about to despair since he knew that this little girl was the love of his life. His life would be incomplete without her.” Evan’s eyes mist.
    “
How could he know that? He was only in kindergarten.”
    He lifts his mouth into a tight grin and picks at the corner of his paper. “Some things you just know. Anyway, one day he noticed another