Free Kindred (Book 1 The Kindred Series) by Erica Stevens Page A

stronger sunglasses. Her eyes were killing her; she was exhausted, twitchy, and extreme ly agitated . Her skin felt two sizes to small as she tried hard not to scratch at it with the strange urge to rip it off. The sun seemed to be burning it a nd she tingled with pain and discomfort.
       It was going to be a miserable day and she hadn’t even made it into the school yet. Rubbing the back of her neck, she eased further into the shadows of the giant oak overhanging Chris’s M ustang. “Are you ok?” She glanced over at Melissa, nodding slowly as she hugged her books tighter to her chest. “Cassie…”
       Melissa’s voice trailed off as a strange quiet settled over the student body . The tingling sens ation of her skin increased tenfold, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. She turned slowly, her eyes instantly latching onto the sleek black Challenger that moved slowly past. Her heart turned over, her mouth went dry . She knew instantly who was behind the wheel, even though the tinted windows were to dark to get a glimpse of the driver.
       “Wow,” Chris breathed his eyes so wide Cassie was certain they were about to pop out of his head.
       Cassie took a step back, wishing that she could disappear into the oak as she bumped up against it. Memories of her dreams from last night suddenly assaulted her, flooding her body with heat and making her skin crawl even more. Though t he dreams had just been bits and pieces of him standing by B’s and S’s watching her , they had left her longing for more . T he searing look in his eyes as he had stared at her still left her shaken and trembling with a strange sense of unfulfilled desire and need. She had never experienced anything like these feelings before . A lthough they left her confused , she could not deny that the excitement tearing through her was a wonderfully alive sensation , and something she had not felt in a very long time .
       She watched breathlessly, her heart hammering loudly in her chest as the car slid into a parking spot and Devon climbed out. Though he wore dark sunglasses, she knew the moment when his gaze locked onto hers. Her legs went weak, her body turned to rubber as she felt his gaze burning into her. Trembling, Cassie hugged her books tighter to her chest, unable to move as she stared back at him . She fel t like a fool for being caught staring, no gaping at him, but she could not bring herself to care.
       His gaze was torn from her as Marcy and Susan hurried eagerly up to him. Cassie slumped against the tree, trying hard to catch her breath , and ease the pounding of her heart. She was shaking, trembling like a leaf as the lin gering effects of his gaze coursed through her . Chris was staring at her questioningly, an eyebrow lifted in surprise.
       “What’s wrong with you?”
       Cassie shook her head, trying hard not to completely fall apart. “Nothing.”
       He continued to stare at her, but thankfully Jason and Kara picked that moment to arrive and distract his attention . The game was discussed, plans were made, but Cassie barely heard any of it. Unwillingly her gaze returned to Devon. He was still standing by the car, but he now had a large group of female admirers surrounding him.
       Cassie’s heart lurched, jealousy filled her. She shifted uncomfortably, trying hard to deny the emotions suffusing her. There was some strange connection between them (or at least she believed so), but it was more than apparent that he could have his choice of any of the girls, and that none of them were avoiding him as much as Cassie was trying to. Her anger mounted as Marcy touched his arm, grinning brightly as her hand lingered far longer than Cassie would have liked. All she wanted was to know what he felt like, and now Marcy did.
       “He is wicked hot,” Kara gushed from beside her.
       Cassie started in surprise ; she had been so focused on Devon that she hadn’t realized Kara had moved to stand beside her.