Page 18 of Stardusted

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him tap a button on the console, and the seat warmed beneath me. Heated air surged from the vents, and I began thawing out almost immediately. Some of the tension in my back released.

“Better?” he asked, buckling his belt.

“Yeah. Um, thanks.” I tucked an escaped hair behind my ear, feeling suddenly shy, which was completely ridiculous in the circumstances. He’d just seen me nearly puke up a fishsandwich. And yet here we were. Or I was. Blushing furiously just because I was sitting next to him.

Sky’s eyes met mine. The dashboard’s glow traced the sharp edge of his high cheekbones, the graceful lines of his strong jaw.

Be normal, Rae. Be normal.

“Seriously—thanks,” I said in a rush. “For everything. You didn’t have to do all this. And I’m sorry about earlier, about being in the road. There was…”Oh boy. Where to begin. “I’m not sure…”

That was all I could manage. In another life, this would be a dream come true. On another night, when I hadn’t just had a near collision with a…a…

I may as well admit it, at least to myself.

I’d seen a UFO.

An unidentified flying—no,floating—object. I’d seen an Unidentified Floating Object, which, in my book, still counted. Same acronym.

Even inside my head, though, it sounded ridiculous. Saying it aloud? Forget it. Kelly would die of smug satisfaction. Amelia would question my caffeine intake. My mom would schedule a therapy session. Bob would probably blame it on the government.

But I’d seen something. It’d been real.

And then it’d vanished.

Shaken, I glanced up again—only to find Sky still staring at me. He hadn’t said a word. His eyes appeared nearly black again in the dim light, and his expression was just as impenetrable.

He was watching me so intently, I jumped when he leaned his elbow on the steering wheel and twisted my way. “So what did youactuallysee?” he asked evenly.

Chapter 6

MORTIFICATION AND OTHER POSSIBLE EXPOSURE SIDE-EFFECTS

Thequestion landed like an asteroid impact between us, even with his level tone. He’d trained a stare on me that was so direct and stripping, it momentarily froze me in place.

God, I considered answering him, too.

My lips parted, and the words welled up. Something about the way he was looking at me expectantly—as if he already knew what I was going to say—made mewantto tell him. To spill my guts and all my too-insane conspiracy theories come to life.

I leaned toward the center console.

And then I stiffened.

No. No, I’d already made the mistake of yapping to Sky about UFOs once tonight. I wasn’t about to go two for two. Besides, I wasn’t sure. I wasn’t absolutely, irrevocablypositivethat was what I’d seen.

And if I was going to spout that kind of thing to the man I’d been pining after for the better part of a year, I’d better be pretty damn positive.

Swallowing, I straightened, clutching my apron tighter in my lap. “I’m not really sure. It all happened so fast. Probably just…an animal. Or a trick of the light. I’m tired. Dinner rush was crazy today. And I’ve got midterms. Lots of studying.”

I trailed off, remembering too late how much I sucked at lying.

Amelia always said I advertised my emotions like a walking, talking billboard. I fought hard to meet Sky’s eyes, hoping my poker face was better than usual tonight.

His skeptical expression told me it wasn’t. For a second, I thought he might call me on the meandering lie. His gaze stayed on mine, sharpening slightly. A far-too-astute study that threatened to peel back the layers of my barely-there composure.

There was something beneath it. Something calculating. Something that breathed a ghost of wariness over my nape.

But he only sat back without a word. Didn’t push.