10. Nova

Chapter 10

Nova

I . Was. Struggling.

Keeping my traitorous thoughts about my best friend in check was a tougher task than usual. Waking up nestled in Ezra’s arms this morning had been nothing like I had imagined; it was miles better. Miles better. I would have fallen immediately if I hadn’t already been in love with him. I tried to get the memory of it and the feeling of his arm around me out of my mind, but the more I tried, the more I thought about it, so it was counterproductive.

So what if he slept over? I asked him to because I was scared. Plus, it wasn’t like he could have slept on the couch. He was too tall. It meant nothing that he snuggled up to me like a pillow. I snuggle pillows all the time.

I hoped this feeling would blow over, and I would go back to thinking that Ezra sleeping over was no big deal, but now I knew we’d be climbing in bed together again tonight. To sleep, Nova. I reminded myself. We had been together most of the last forty- eight hours, and I couldn’t get the restless thoughts out of my head. I wasn’t sure if I should be thankful that his heat went out or cursing it.

Now, he stood across the island from me and had the audacity to help me…bake?

He loved to eat what I made but always stayed out of the process since he could burn ice cream without trying. I saw him swipe a cookie and slip it into his mouth when he thought I wasn’t looking. My hands and apron were covered with flour from kneading the bread dough a bit harder than I should have, forcing flour into the air and taking out my frustrations. He leaned forward on the counter, palms flushed against the granite, forearm veins protruding, and fingers gripping the outer edge while he watched me.

He just watched me.

I had never been self-conscious around anyone, but I felt naked and exposed under Ezra’s fire-filled gaze. His eyes followed my hands as I kneaded the bread, the shift of my body as I picked up a flour bag, and smiled at me occasionally, partly pained and fascinated—a look in his eyes I had never seen before. I pinned my eyes to the counter and took deep breaths. There was no reason for me to feel nervous. This was Ezra, my best friend, watching me violently knead bread.

Why was he watching me violently knead bread?

His eyes traced the constellations adorning my forearm and up to my collarbone. Over the years, Ezra had tried to talk me out of many things: dyeing my hair blonde, getting a bunk bed too tall for my room, and eating frog legs. But he had never tried to talk me out of my tattoos. I suspected he liked them.

The smell of apple pie crowded my nose as he stalked toward me, leaning inches from my face. I looked up from the abused bread, meeting my favorite color. We were so close that I could lean in and just kiss him. I wasn’t going to, but I could have. And I wanted to. I really wanted to .

“Anything I can help with?” he asked.

The huskiness in his voice startled me, and I backed away slightly. “Can you…uhh…stop the mixer?” I asked. He nodded. “Other than that, once I put this in the oven, we can have fun shaping cookies.”

Hmm, there are other ways we could have some fun. My thoughts betrayed me again, and I tried to shake them off like an Etch A Sketch.

I stuffed the dough into the baking dish, again taking my frustrations out on its bounciness. When I turned around after throwing the baking dish in the oven, Ezra stared at me again . My breath hitched, and I jumped back slightly.

“Are you okay?” he questioned, stepping closer. He probably didn’t even realize he was staring. Sometimes, he stared blankly at the computer, and sometimes, he stared into the distance. I might just be the unintended target of his eyes today.

“Yeah,” I chuckled. No . “Why wouldn’t I be?” Because you keep staring at me.

“You’re quiet. You’re never quiet. You usually hum, sing, or talk my ear off while baking.”

Was I really that chatty? No, Nova. You’re perfect the way you are. Turn this around on him.

“Maybe I’m learning from you,” I teased. “I’m sure you’re tired of hearing my voice day after day.”

“Never,” he snapped. “I never get tired of hearing your voice, Nova.”

Any words that could have escaped my mouth camped in my throat. Was he…flirting with me? Panic rose inside me, and I gulped. No. No, he couldn’t be. I was imagining things. I was losing my mind. I had been hiding my feelings from him for decades, and today was no different. There was no reason for me to be more worked up than usual.

I closed my eyes and took another deep breath. When I opened my eyes, Ezra was about to dip his finger into the brownie batter sitting by the mixer. I leaped forward, and he grunted when I pushed him away from the mixer. My flour-covered hand landed in the middle of his chest, leaving a distinct white print on his dark blue T-shirt.

I knew his chest was hard, but why the hell was it so muscular? When? How? The man hated working out, and his favorite food was pumpkin pie. How was he in such great shape? Must be nice to be genetically blessed.

His mouth dropped open as I let my hand linger. I was already there, and his shirt was already dirty, so I took my chance and left six handprints all over his chest while giggling like a maniac. I should have run away while he was paralyzed in shock at my audacity, but he was blocking my path out of the kitchen. On one side, our coffee cart only left an opening big enough for a mouse, and he stood on the other. Plus, I was momentarily distracted by admiring my handy work. Hah. Get it?

“You did not just cover my shirt in flour!” he gasped.

“What are you gonna do about it, huh, Ezzy?” I taunted him, moving from side to side as I looked for an exit route. I would get myself in trouble, but if it meant Ezra putting his hands on me, I’d be smiling in my mugshot.

Throughout our childhood, Ezra ensured we didn’t get in trouble. When I wanted to jump off the roof into the pool, he threw me over his shoulder and carried me down. When I tried to stay up all night watching movies before a college exam, he forced me to turn the TV off and get some sleep. He was usually so…contained? Yeah, contained is the right word.

But right now, he had a wild look in his eye. He scanned the kitchen, and his eyes quickly settled on the brownie batter. I slowly backed away, but my exit strategy was foiled when my back hit the wall. I wasn’t athletic enough to jump over the island, so my options were reduced to hoping I could crawl past him on the floor.

A smirk spread across his face at caging me in. Why was his smirk so sexy?

Nova, focus!

I had to run away.

We stared each other down, locked in the standstill of waiting for the other to make the first move. As I stared, I officially knew I had lost my mind. His light orange eyes turned bronze for a split second. I must have been imagining things or hallucinating because that wasn’t possible. Only Manipulators’ eyes changed color with their feelings. Outside of today, I usually let Ezra read my emotions through my eyes, but I had to be careful around other people since I had to mask any eye color changes.

But he didn’t need to because his eyes couldn’t change. Ezra didn’t have any powers.

Yep, I’m going crazy.

A noise from the street caused him to look away momentarily, so I tried to run past him. But apparently, my best friend was also a freaking ninja.

Ezra caught my wrist with one hand and pulled me back toward him. Suddenly, my feet weren’t on the ground anymore. I tried to keep moving and wriggle out of his grasp, but he held me tightly against him. His belt buckle pressed into my lower back as he pinned me between him and the counter.

He set me down but kept me pinned tightly, corralling my arms behind me. The counter dug into my stomach, and my thighs were sandwiched between his legs and the cabinets as he straightened me up. His arm grazed up my body slowly until it settled across my collarbone. He held my entire body in place. Why was he so strong? When did he get so strong?

“No, no, no!” I screamed as I saw him eye the chocolate batter. I tried to move my face away, but he flipped me over. My butt was now pressed against the counter, my hands pinned between it and my body. I probably could have moved out of this; I could have forced eye contact with him and manipulated him away, but I sure as hell didn’t want to. I could feel the warmth of his body against mine, and the playful gleam in his eyes intrigued me. I just didn’t want to get a face full of chocolate. He cupped my jaw with one hand, squishing my cheeks and holding my face in place. “Why are you so strong?”

“Why are you so weak?” he laughed. His deep and soothing voice was a sound I wanted to hear on repeat.

I stuck out my tongue at him, and his eyes flashed to my mouth. There it was again. His eyes darkened briefly. Maybe it was his intoxicating smell or how his fingers dug into my jaw, making me see things. Maybe his hand would move a little lower and make its way to my neck?

No, Nova! Gods! What the hell has gotten into you?

Ezra chuckled as his fingers reached past me and scooped up the chocolate batter. His finger slowly swiped down my cheek, leaving a trail of batter behind. Seemingly unsatisfied with the amount of chocolate on my face, he reached for more. A streak found its way to my forehead, and he painted his way down the bridge of my nose. Each pattern he drew on my face left the tingling sensation of his touch on my skin.

He slowly swiped his chocolate-covered finger over my nose and on my lips, slightly snagging my bottom lip until I tasted chocolate. I reacted to the way his eyes flickered with hunger to my lips, and heat pooled in my belly. He had to be messing with my head. Or maybe I had fallen, and this was a concussion-induced dream. This had to be my imagination.

I whimpered involuntarily. The noise seemed to break him out of his trance, and he slowly backed away, admiring his artwork on my face. Laughter broke out as he closed his eyes and threw his head back.

My face was sticky, and I needed to scrub before bed to make sure no chocolate was left behind, but I wouldn’t be outdone. A few flour handprints didn’t compare to a face full of batter. Before he opened his eyes, I scooped up some batter and splattered it on his cheek—rookie mistake to close his eyes around me.

He caught my wrist before I could do the same to his other cheek and pinned me again. I needed to invest in softer counters; the edge would leave a mark. Satisfied I couldn’t move my legs, he let my chocolate-covered finger go.

If he was going to mess with my head, I was too because I was nothing if not petty. I slid my finger into my mouth and tasted the chocolate, keeping my eyes pinned to his as I slowly sucked the batter off. Ezra held his breath as I slowly moved my finger out of my mouth and smiled at him.

The batter was delicious, so I reached for more. As I leaned to go for the bowl, Ezra picked me up and moved me away, caging me against the wall.

“No more batter,” he stated, pinning my hands over my head with his eyes trained on me. I instinctively arched my back, and he groaned. Had Crystal been right about him?

“Nova,” Ezra gruffly warned.

“Yeah?” My tone matched his.

His orange eyes bounced between the dollops of chocolate on my warming cheeks, my eyes, and my chocolate-smeared lips. They lingered, and his face had a slight air of doubt. This was it. Ezra was going to kiss me.

“I…umm…” He fumbled his words long enough for my phone to start ringing. His eyes ripped from me and snapped to my phone on the counter. “Fuck,” he muttered under his breath.

“It’s my mom,” I sighed, recognizing her ringtone as he reached for my phone. “Can you let me go so I can answer? She’ll keep calling if I don’t.”

“Not a chance,” he stated, tightening his grip on my wrists. He pressed the green circle on the screen and put it on speaker. It wasn’t weird for me to talk to my mom on speaker with Ezra in the room, but it was the first time I had done it while being pinned to the wall with my face covered in chocolate.

I cleared my throat, forcing my voice back to normal even though there was nothing normal about how I felt. “Hi, Mom!”

“Hi, sweetheart!” My mom’s high-pitched voice commandeered the silence. “I have good news!”

“Yeah? What is it?” I asked.

“Jed and his mom are coming to the luncheon!”

“Okay? And…” I raised my eyebrow.

“Remember what we talked about the other day?” she asked.

“No.” Nothing was in my brain besides how my skin was lit on fire under Ezra’s grasp.

“Do you really not remember?” she asked. I needed this conversation to be over. “Well, I heard from his mom that Jed is single and looking to settle down. She mentioned that he saw you at the library a few weeks ago and told her he’d be interested in taking you on a date.”

“Oh, yeah. I remember,” I said, clearing my throat. Ezra’s body stiffened, and his eyes flashed bronze again. This time, I knew I wasn’t imagining it. “But I also remember telling you to tell them I’m not interested.” I kept my eyes on Ezra. His grip on my wrist softened.

“Well…sweetheart…you need to give him a chance. You’re twenty-five, almost twenty-six. When I was your age, I was married and pregnant. Creatures are going to think something is off. An unmarried witch over twenty-five, Nova? Come on, Jed’s a nice guy.”

“One, what is this? Old England? Did I wake up in the 1800‘s this morning? No one cares about unmarried witches anymore.” I rolled my eyes but knew it wasn’t entirely true. In our society, it was still looked at with distrust. It was believed only unmarried witches and wizards ever went bad—which was ridiculous. “Also,” I said, “people already think there’s something wrong with me. Remember the whole hidden abilities thing? What’s one more thing?”

“Give him a chance, sweetheart. You never know what could happen when you open up to someone.” I didn’t want to open up to anyone else. The one person I wanted was standing inches in front of me. I just had to be brave enough to tell him.

“I’m not interested,” I stated, hoping the conviction in my voice would get my mom off the phone. “And I want you to stop trying to set me up with your friends’ kids.”

“I will do no such thing,” my mother continued. With every second that this conversation lasted, Ezra’s grip softened. “Going unmarried, as a young witch, is not a good sign, Nova. I know you’re good, but we have to get some interest in you before people start thinking there’s something else wrong with you. You need to start dating, Nova, or —”

“I am dating!” I interjected without thinking.

My mom gave me this speech almost every time we spoke on the phone. I was tired of hearing the same words repeated like a broken record. Ezra’s eyebrows furrowed, and I quickly shook my head. I spent most of my days with him; he would know if there was someone else in my life.

“You are?” my mom squealed. “Who is it? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I…umm…it’s new and…”

“Is he coming tomorrow? What’s his ability? Do I know him?”

Anything else I said would prompt her to ask more questions I didn’t have answers to. “You’ll see tomorrow. Love you, Mom. Bye!”

“Wait, Nov—”

Ezra had loosened his grip enough for my hand to break free. I hung up, throwing my phone over the island and onto the couch. My forehead landed on Ezra’s flour-covered shirt as I groaned. His heart drummed in his chest.

I started laughing. “I’m going to be so busted tomorrow. I’ll never hear the end of it for lying now.”

“It’ll be okay.” Ezra fully let go of me and stepped back.

“Maybe I should call the hotline for a fake date,” I pitched. “People use it all the time. Some nice guys in that service might not be too—”

“I’ll do it.” Ezra stopped me.

“You’ll do what?” I cocked my head.

“I’ll go to lunch with you, and you can pretend it’s me you’re dating.” Oh, how I wished for that to be true. “Half of the town already thinks we’re dating anyway.” He shrugged.

“But you’ll have to pretend to like me.”

“I do like you, Nova,” he laughed, reaching for a kitchen towel.

“I mean…as more than a friend,” I clarified. Saying the words out loud made me nervous.

“I think I can manage.”

He ran a corner of the towel under the faucet and started wiping my face, ignoring that he had me pinned to the wall seconds ago. When he was done, he moved away from me and muttered something, disappearing into the bathroom.

I was left standing in the kitchen, wondering what the hell just happened.