She’d tried to hide her jealousy. Tried. But it stung. Part of her knew that she would never, could never, have that bit of normalcy. To be touched. To touch. To kiss. Maybe that’s what was at the core of her thoughts about Scott. Maybe it was just because he had something she never could.
The longer she told herself that, the more miserable she grew.
But then Scott totally shocked her by pulling away slightly and, after locking eyes with her, gently laying his lips over hers. She knew it wasn’t meant as anything other than a brotherly kiss, but the moment their lips touched, something strange happened.
It was as if the simple touch supercharged her. She could feel energy pulsing from Scott’s lips through her own, spreading down to her core. And for the first time in her life, everything went white. One minute she was standing by the lake next to Scott, holding her birthday gifts, and the next she was standing on a grassy hillside.
She blinked a few times to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating. Then she saw the girl. She was roughly Selene’s age. But instead of worn jeans, a ratty T-shirt and sweatshirt, and shoes with holes in them, this girl was wearing a dress. A fancy dress. The kind that Selene had seen and drooled over in the teen magazines at the bookstores.
“Hello?” Selene called out to the girl, but it was as if no sound had come out. The girl blinked a few times, then cried out as if in pain as she turned in circles. She threw her arms up in the air as if she was afraid the full moon overhead was going to attack her. Then she sank down into the soft grass and cried.
For the second time in her life, Selene wanted to help someone else. She took a step towards the girl, but just as quickly as she had gone away, she was back in Scott’s arms, his lips still on hers.
“What the…” She jerked away from him and stumbled backwards. Not because of the kiss. Never because of the kiss. But looking into Scott’s eyes, she could tell that’s exactly what he thought was wrong.
How could she tell him what had just happened to her? One more weird thing about her. Great.
“I…” She glanced around and realized she’d dropped the box with the nail polish in it. She bent down and scooped it up, along with the wrapping paper, and without saying a word to Scott, she shot up into the dark night sky.
“Happy birthday, Selene,” she heard Scott call after her.
* * *
Ten years later…
Selene sat in the stuffy office and waited with everyone else. There were three businessmen in dark suits, all wearing shoes that had no doubt been shined just for the day, and shirts and ties that had been pressed just for this occasion. The two businesswomen in the room looked even more nervous than the men.
Maybe it was because they knew that whatever job they were interviewing for, they’d get ten percent less pay than any of the men in the room. It was the south. That’s just the way it was around here.
She looked down at her leather pants, black boots, and leather jacket and smiled. Hell yes, she stuck out like a sore thumb.
She wasn’t here today to apply for some stuffy job. She was here because she had to go somewhere and do something, and she’d made a stupid promise a long time ago.
When the secretary stepped out to call the next name, she stood up. It had been almost five minutes since anyone had come out the locked door, and she was not going to wait another five minutes.
“I need to see Scott Logan,” she said firmly.
The woman ran her eyes over Selene’s outfit quickly before blocking the door and asking, “Name?”
“Selene, I’m his sister,” she said firmly. “It’s a family emergency.” Okay, so she’d gotten really good at lying. It wasn’t as if uptight secretary in heels even cared. No, she’d already put Selene in her who-cares-who-the-fuck-you-are category.
Without waiting for a response, Selene pushed past her and rushed down the hallway towards Scott’s corner office.
When she stepped in, he was sitting on the edge of the desk, his face away from the doorway. There was a very busty brunette woman standing between his thighs. The woman had her hands on his shoulders as if she was leaning in for a kiss.
Selene cleared her throat, and the woman glanced over at her as Scott jumped up from the desk.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Selene said sarcastically.
During all those years that Selene had been the outcast, Scott hadn’t been. He’d been the most popular kid in every single grade and sport he’d been in. He’d excelled at everything. Which had been his big ticket out of the hellhole life they had called home. He’d gone to college in Atlanta and had gotten a high-paying job immediately after, where he, of course, had climbed to a top position.
“Selene,” Scott gasped as she leaned against the door frame.
Damn, he looked good. He was wearing a suit like all those stiffs out in the lobby were. Only his screamed he had money. More than they had ever had. More than she had.
His blond hair had darkened some and was longer on the top than he used to wear it, which allowed the curls she’d always loved to show. His blue eyes searched hers and that sexy little dimple in his cheek flashed for just a moment before it was gone. As if he remembered he was supposed to be mad at her.
The brunette appeared very agitated at the disturbance. Especially now that it appeared that Scott was no longer interested in her.