Divine Vices Read Online Free

dressed up, then why
is there no time given in advance to prepare?”
    “Because,
no man wants to come off as needy. If he asks the girl too early, then it gives
us females the upper hand. We know he likes us a lot, and possibly too much. So
if you’re skeptical about him, then his urgency corroborates further doubts
because you don’t want someone clingy. And if you happen to be one of those
clingy girls, then this could overwhelm the situation if the guy’s not as into
you as you thought. In other words, it’s a man’s worst nightmare. In the
meantime, we go out on the prowl for our dream dress and accessories. With our
window shopping completed, we can step up to the plate at a moment’s notice
with a simple run to the store. Crisis averted.”
    “Averted?
That whole logic in itself is a crisis,” I said, already mentally exhausted by Gwen’s
rundown.
    “Well,
then at least appreciate your dodging-timeline being cut in two.”
    “True.”
    The
two-minute warning bell blared overhead, and we parted ways for class.

 
    Chapter
2
    All American Nightmare
    “At
last, we have hope!” declared Gwen, surprising Ian and me from behind as we
left first hour.
    “Did
we step through a portal that has brought us to the last day of senior year?”
asked Ian.
    “Uh,
no. I was talking about hope for Cassie,” Gwen replied.
    “Figures.
At least one of us has chance at relief,” Ian chuckled.
    “Turns
out she’s no longer the newest fish in New Haven’s tank. We just got a
transfer, and according to Trish’s account, he’s obscenely gorgeous.”
    “Yeah,
not my taste,” I said.
    “What?!
You haven’t even seen him.”
    “I
don’t need to. Anyone described that way is already bad news. It practically
screams narcissistic. Besides, Stacy’s fangs will be into this guy’s neck
before I so much as see him.”
    “Just
keep an open mind,” Gwen said. “For all you know, he could very well be your
white knight for Homecoming.”
    “Doubtful,”
said Ian.
    “We’ll
see about that soon enough. From what I’ve heard, they’ll be sharing English
together.”
     
    Social
networking catapulted the news of this stranger’s existence into the school’s
consciousness in the mere matter of the ten minute break between first and
second hour. I was running a little late to English, so I was forced to take a
vacant seat closer to the front of the classroom. Immediately pulling out my
textbook and flipping to our lesson plan for the day, I did what I could to not
pay attention to the commotion arising from the rest of the females.
    The
room suddenly went quiet, clearly indicating that the stranger in question had
arrived. Whether it was from Gwen’s insistency to put myself out there or the
simple dread of her developing an unhealthy infatuation as she was privately
noted for, I didn’t so much as lift my eyes from the book on my desk to take
notice.
    “Class,
please help me in welcoming our newest student to New Haven High, Jackson Matthews,”
announced Miss Tipton.
    “Hi,”
everyone replied in unison as if they were greeting someone at an AA meeting.
    I
covered my mouth to hide the laughter that began rising to the surface.
    “As
if that salutation wasn’t uncomfortable enough first hour,” the stranger
replied with a spark of humor.
    The
comment was enough to catch my attention, so I surrendered my eyes to the front
of the room. There he stood just over six feet tall, lean yet muscular, dressed
all in faded shades of black from his t-shirt, fitted jeans, motorcycle boots,
and leather jacket. His penetratingly sharp, icy blue serpentine eyes were all
the more accentuated by lashes as long and dark as a cow’s. Obnoxiously perfect
bed-head black locks of hair laid tousled across his forehead, framing a
striking face saved for the glossy pages of magazines.
    He
was guaranteed to be egotistical and vain, as shallow as a kiddy pool, and
right up Stacy’s alley. Staring at someone like him should have come with