Chapter One

Adrian

The first time I saw Silas Reid he had a halo of spring blossoms in his hair. His laughter rang in the air like music. I was in the park and caught off guard by the sound and stopped mid-run, trying to catch a Frisbee. He was laying on his back and a girl sat perched on her knees planting more of the pink and white blossoms she cradled in her palm. Silas struggled to keep her from her gardening, but he was weak with laughter, his cheeks a merry red, his eyes, even from the distance from which I watched, sparkled in the afternoon sun. I was enchanted. My feet, on their own accord, stepped in their direction but Archie Mitford whistled and distracted me from my enchantment.

"It went that way." I stared at Archie, oblivious.

"Huh?" I scratched the back of my head and threw a quick glance in the direction he'd gestured and saw the Frisbee shining bright red in the grass. Everything came back to me at that moment, the sounds of the park; the splashing fountain in the middle of the pond, the little kids playing on the swings and the dirty green merry-go-round, the traffic whispering by on the road. It's as if I'd just popped back into reality after slipping into my own little dimension in which only Silas and I existed. Except I didn't know he was Silas then; I just knew he was.

"Adrian! What the fuck, dude."

My shoulders dropped as I headed over to retrieve the Frisbee. My gaze continued to stray unconsciously to this magical creature. He sat up, his legs splayed out in front of him as he leaned back on his arms, his fingers and hands disappeared in the grass. He watched me and the girl laughed and planted more blossoms taking advantage of his distraction.

I felt a blush rise in my cheeks and reddened even more as I stumbled over a gnarled tree root hidden in the grass. I glanced back over my shoulder hoping he'd missed my misstep. He averted his gaze immediately or at least that was my thought. His smile enchanted me; the half I could see revealed a huge dimple in his cheek as he leaned toward the girl and nodded in my direction. Again, the nod was something I perceived, due to my own overwhelming attention on him. I heard a phone ring and watched as he dug into his front pocket, laying back in the grass to make the task easier. He remained prone as he spoke, his voice deeper than I would have thought based on the melodic laughter I'd heard earlier. He spoke quickly and then tucked his phone back into his pocket then jumped to his feet, dusting off his rear. I was riveted as his shirt rode up a little to reveal a flash of pale flesh. I gaped intently, so much so that when he looked back (maybe to see if I was watching) I looked away embarrassed at being caught red-handed. He leaned into the girl again and spoke quietly and she glanced over at me as well. I occupied myself with the Frisbee as if it were the most interesting thing in the world only to look up and find them both walking away.

To say I was suddenly distraught, inexplicably so, would be an understatement. Again, I took an unconscious step towards him, just one before Archie's approach caught my attention.

"What the hell are you looking at?" Archie shaded his eyes with one large hand. He zeroed in on the couple walking away. "Is she hot? I can't tell from here."

I loved Archie. We'd been friends for ages, or so it seemed, and I'd learned; noncommittal was my best approach with him. He was prone to rash behavior. I shrugged. It didn't work. "Let's go talk to her. Check her out."

"Arch… She's with someone. That'd be rude."

"Fuck rude. I want to see what's caught the eye of Adrian Lockhart."

"Nothing caught my eye. I just thought I recognized…"

"Whatever, Lockhart. I know what I saw. You were…"

"I wasn't anything. I thought…"

Archie whistled, one of those whistles that had the verbal equivalent of: 'Hey, look over here!'

I lowered my gaze, wishing the ground would swallow me up. "Arch…" He had no diplomacy or tact. This would not end well.

"What? Look, they're coming over." Archie made a beeline towards the girl, tossing the Frisbee straight up in the air as he walked catching it on the way down without looking, then tossed it up again. I stood my ground. This was not happening. Archie stopped and turned around. "Adrian? You comin'?"

I shook my head.

The girl appraised Archie curiously but Silas eyed me, his eyebrows raised ever so subtly. A tiny smirk graced his lips. He had beautiful full lips and even with the sun at his back, his eyes sparkled. His smirk blossomed into a transformative smile that took my breath away. I fought the urge to turn around to see what or who had caused his smile. He shook his head.

"Hey."

"Hey." The girl smiled, bit her lip, even twirled a lock of her blond hair, all that was missing was the come-hither glance up through fluttering eyelashes. Whoever she was, I knew immediately she wasn't this boy's significant other. More than likely she was about to be one of Archie's latest conquests.

Archie stood straighter nodded his head as if she'd asked a question, shifting from foot to foot. He twirled the Frisbee on his index finger with a casual finesse that belied the fact that he was showing off.

It took a great deal of will power not to roll my eyes or point at him with exaggeration and point out the fact. Fortunately, for me and Archie, I was distracted.

I watched transfixed as two little blue butterflies circled the boy's head. One settled in the crown of blossoms in his hair. Once it landed, its wings moved slowly up and down, signaling the other butterfly that it was safe. The other one fluttered about then circled Silas a couple of times before it too landed on a blossom.

Archie patted my back. "My friend here," Archie gripped my shoulders for emphasis and gave me a sturdy shake. "…wanted to see what you looked like up close." He leaned toward the girl. "I don't blame him." He nodded, looked her up and down and smiled approvingly.

Silas' gaze never left mine, though he quirked an eyebrow at what Archie said. I couldn't look away, even as I spoke. "Arch. We need to…"

"Adrian Don't be embarrassed. It's biology."

I was going to have to kill him in his sleep. "Arch, seriously. Shut up." I shrugged his hands off of me, ducking away from his grip.

"He's a little shy around beautiful girls."

I think she saw right through me, knew where my interest lay, or perhaps she saw the truth of Archie's line. She acknowledged his statement with a nod. "Silas is the same way." She nodded toward her companion, then smiled deviously. Though…"

"Ellie!"

"Ellie," Archie interrupted; his voice raspy. "That's a pretty name." Archie leaned towards her again, invading her personal space.

I savored Silas' name, after she said it, saying it over and over in my head. I felt Silas' scrutiny, forcing me to realize I was staring. A blush warmed my cheeks and ears.

"We have to go." Silas stood straighter, nudging Ellie's shoulder. "We have a thing," he explained.

"Huh?"

"That thing." His eyebrows rose with emphasis.

"Oh. Yeah. A thing. I totally forgot." She tapped her head as if admonishing her forgetfulness.

Silas turned to go, and Ellie turned with him, then turned back toward us. "Hey. We're gonna be at Caffeination later tonight. Maybe… you can drop by?"

"That…" Archie turned toward me, a cocky glint in his eye. Well what do you know, Archie strikes again. "… sounds like a great idea. We love that place."

I'd be surprised as hell if Archie even knew where it was.

"What do you think, Adrian?"

I knew I would pay for this later but said it anyway. "I paid last time. So, it's your turn to buy."

"Yeah. Yeah. No problem." He white-knuckled the Frisbee. Bullseye. That'll teach him.

"Great." Ellie chirped. "Around 8:00."

"Cool. See you there."

I liked to tell Silas that that was our first date. And he was prone to point out that we were but proverbial wingmen in the long-running courtship of Archie and Ellie and that I was just dragged along; kicking and screaming.