Lust

Chapter 16

The high school gym had been transformed. A diligent team of party planners (culled from a joint task force of student council members, cheerleaders, and some devoted PTA moms) had hung enough multicolored leaves, paper lanterns, and “welcome back” banners to turn the place into an autumnal paradise. Could you even tell that beneath all those decorations lay a dirty, smelly, multipurpose room that, in two days, would once again be filled with sweaty students and the occasional fistfight?

In a minute.

It even smelled the same, Adam mused, looking around in disdain at the tacky setup. He supposed all this crap was some girls idea of romantic-he was just glad it wasn’t anyone he had to date.

“Is her back turned?” Kane asked Adam, who was supposed to be on the lookout for the nearest chaperone. They stood in a back corner, just under the bleachers- the exact spot that, if the teachers had any sense at all, they’d be watching around the clock. Where else would you go to make trouble? Fortunately for would-be troublemakers, common sense was commonly absent among the Haven High faculty-or at least, those unsavvy enough to get themselves roped into chaperoning a school dance.

“Yeah, you’re clear,” Adam assured him. “Not that she’d see you.” (Dolores Martin, the school librarian, was about 140 years old and hadn’t been able to see more than ten feet ahead of her since the Nixon administration.) “What are you up to, anyway?”

“I told you, it’s a surprise,” Kane said mysteriously. “I’ve equipped everyone else, but I had to improvise.” He pointed toward one of the guys from the swim team, who was gulping from a plastic bottle.

“Vitamin water?” Adam asked, peering at the bottle.

“Yeah, new flavor-kiwi strawberry with a little something extra.”

“Extra?”

“Vodka can be very healthy for you, you know,” Kane confided with a laugh. “But for you, my friend, something special. A little more risk-but a lot more style.” He pulled a tiny silver flask from inside his jacket and surreptitiously passed it to Adam. “Just don’t get caught.”

Adam fumbled the flask for a moment, then pushed it back toward Kane. He could see it now-the laser beam eyes of his AP history teacher spotting a glint of silver coming out of his pocket. Getting pulled out of Beth’s arms and hauled off the dance floor in front of everyone. Thrown out, disgraced. Beth would certainly never forgive him for ruining her night over something so stupid. No, he had enough to worry about already.

“Doesn’t seem like a great idea,” Adam explained, as Kane shook his head and slipped the flask into one of his outer pockets. “Especially the way my luck is going. Last thing I need is to get suspended for getting drunk on school property or something.”

“Your call,” Kane said ruefully. “Well, I guess a man in love doesn’t need any other forms of intoxication. Speaking of which, I better go collect my date before your beloved tells her too many lies about me. Or worse”-he raised his eyebrows-“the truth.”

Adam followed Kane’s gaze across the room and, with alarm, saw Beth and Kaia in a corner, deep in conversation.

His heart missed a couple of hundred beats.

“Uh, you’re right, we better go break that up,” he stammered. Kane started off, but Adam grabbed him and pulled him back.

“Changed my mind,” he whispered, slipping the flask out of Kane’s pocket and, checking to make sure no one was watching, downing half its contents.

He felt better already.

“So what did you need to tell me?” Beth asked impatiently, glancing across the room at Adam. She held back a smile as she thought about what they’d be doing later tonight. If he only knew. She just wanted to be with him-and away from Kaia, who’d pinned her in a corner for some mysteriously urgent reason that had evaporated as soon as she’d gotten Beth alone.

“Have I told you how great you look tonight?” Kaia asked sweetly.

“Thanks. Can you just tell me what was so important?” The DJ had just started a slow song. “Take My Breath Away”-a little cheesy, maybe, but one of Beth’s favorites. She wanted to be swaying back and forth to the melody, eyes closed, head on Adam’s shoulder. Not here.

“What? Oh, that was nothing. I mean, I thought you might want to know that Adam-” Kaia cut herself off with a sigh. “Oh… Check out Mr. Powell-doesn’t he look hot tonight in his tux?”

“What about Adam?” Beth persisted. The last thing she wanted to think about was Jack Powell, or how good he looked in his tux. Which, despite her best efforts, she’d already noticed.

“Oh, we can finish this later. Maybe you want to go talk to Mr. Powell?” Kaia asked innocently. “I won’t mind-I know how close you two are.”

For the moment Beth forgot about Adam and whatever secret was about to be revealed and studied Kaia closely. Did she-could she possibly-know?

“We’re not close,” she said coolly, deciding, or at least desperately hoping, that Kaia didn’t know what she was saying. “And if you ask me, he’s not a very good teacher. Working with him on the newspaper sucks.”

“That’s not what I heard,” Kaia said with a sly grin.

“What are you talking about?” Beth asked in a hushed voice. All her breath had slipped away.

But before Kaia could answer, Kane snuck up behind her and grabbed her waist, twirling her around. A moment later, Beth felt Adam’s strong hands around her as he lifted her off the ground and swung her into his arms. She hoped he couldn’t feel her trembling.

“So what’s going on over here?” Kane asked, once the girls had stopped squealing.

“Trust me,” Kaia said, looking directly at Adam. “You don’t want to know.”

Lucky break that Powell was chaperoning the dance.

Luckier still that he was standing amidst a small circle of other teachers. Kaia knew that no self-respecting chaperone could turn down an innocent request to dance with one of his students-at least, not without having a lot of explaining to do.

Kaia excused herself and strode over to the cluster of teachers. Powell, seeing her approach, was already preparing his getaway.

“Mr. Powell!” she exclaimed. “You look so handsome in your tuxedo! Think you could spare me a dance?”

He glared at her, then smiled for the sake of the group. “Oh, Kaia, I’m not much of a dancer-you know, two left feet and all.”

“Go for it, Jack,” urged Mr. Holcomb, from the English department.

“Yes,’cut a rug,’” the librarian added.

The group began to laugh as Kaia led a reluctant Mr. Powell onto the floor. She knew what they were thinking: How adorable, a little crush. Well, let them think what they wanted-she knew what she was doing.

Kaia looped her arms around his neck and his hands found a spot on her waist-he held her rigidly, carefully keeping a half foot of space between them.

“Did I not make myself clear before, Ms. Sellers?” The amiable facade was gone. Good. “You and me? It’s never going to happen. And certainly not in the middle of a crowded dance floor with the whole school looking on.”

“Oh, I know, Mr. Powell,” she said, lowering her eyes and giving him an exaggeratedly chastened look. “After all, it’s your policy not to mix business with pleasure, right?”

“I don’t consort with students, yes, if that’s what you mean,” he said stiffly.

“And I don’t consort with liars,” Kaia hissed.

He stopped dancing and pushed her away.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” But some of the steely certainty had faded from his voice.

She put her arms around him again.

“Better keep dancing, and keep smiling, Mr. Powell-you don’t want your friends over there thinking we’re having