“Katelyn, it rips my heart out to think of anyone hurting you, let alone your own mother.”
My heart swelled at his words. The fact that we had only known each other a few weeks seemed insignificant. He knew my every secret and his acceptance of my life had created a bond that I had never shared with another person. I pulled him close and rested my lips on his.
“We better get to class,” I finally said, pulling back.
“We could skip,” he said, enticing me with his sexy voice.
“Hmm, that could be dangerous,” I said, confused at the emotions he was able to evoke in me.
“Only if we do it right,” he said huskily, nipping on my bottom lip gently.
My pulse raced, sending liquid fire coursing through me as his teeth pulled gently on my lip.
“Um, class,” I said, finally finding the will to pull out of his arms.
He chuckled and released me. “Okay, class it is.”
We walked through the quiet hallway toward our class. Before I could turn the knob, Max turned me to face him and eyed my injury critically. “If she does this again, it won’t go unpunished. You got me?” he said.
I opened my mouth to argue.
He shook his head to halt my words. “Look, Katelyn, as long as we’re together it’s my job to make sure no one harms you, including your mom. I’ll let this time pass, but it kills me.”
I mulled over his words as he pulled the door open, but any retort was halted when every eye in the room swiveled around at our entrance.
“Max, this is getting a bit ridiculous….” Mr. Graves started to say until he took in my swollen eye.
“Katelyn, are you okay?” he asked, stepping in between Max and me.
“Yeah, I tripped at home,” I said, embarrassed at the attention I was getting.
“Tripped?” he asked, looking at Max who merely shrugged his shoulders.
“Um, yeah, I tripped in my room,” I said.
“Did you ice it?” Mr. Graves asked.
I nodded. “Most of the day,” I said.
“Hmm, maybe your mom needs to take you to the doctor to make sure nothing is broken.”
“I’m sure it’s fine,” I said, trying to imagine telling Lucinda she needed to take me to the doctor. I nearly laughed out loud at the thought.
“Are you sure?” he asked, still not looking convinced.
“Positive,” I said, glaring at Max for leaving me hanging.
He smiled at me and I could see he had been expecting this kind of reaction. I swallowed a groan. I was going to have to be extra careful not to set Lucinda off. It was becoming quite clear that it wouldn't be as easy to hide things from the administration at this school like I had been doing for years at other schools.
Chapter 9
The rest of the week passed by relatively drama-free, with the exception of Max studying me critically each time I climbed into his SUV anyway. By Wednesday, unease had crept in and I could tell Max meant his threat. He would not hesitate to turn Lucinda in. We discussed it endlessly throughout the week and I tried to get him to see my side, but he was convinced that if we were taken away, a judge would keep Kevin and me together. I knew it was highly unlikely, but Max remained optimistic.
Scared of giving Max the incentive he needed, I catered to Lucinda’s every whim throughout the week. She drank up my attention, creating relative harmony throughout the trailer. By the time Max picked me up for the Halloween dance, I was confident with my ability to keep the peace.
Max knocked on the door at precisely six p.m. on Saturday evening. His eyes brightened when he saw me.
“You look beautiful,” he said as he helped me into the vehicle.