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As he backed his big four-wheel drive out of the parking space, he asked in a stiff voice, "Are your previous brushes with the law for fighting?"

I took a deep breath and forced hts I startedain "So why exactly do you have a juvie record?"

I sighed and pressed on my temples "You know, I’d rather not talk about it Just know it had nothing to do with hurting another person, or drugs, or prostitution, or anything like that"

To er nodded, as if he kne much I didn’t want to talk about it As if he knew exactly how I felt…

"Okay, Bridger," I blurted, feeling really bold all of a sudden--probably a by-product of the adrenaline zoo"

"Ask away"

"There is this … thing … about you that’s botheringunnatural"

He pulled the car to the side of the road, turned off the engine, and looked at ue "What?" he asked If I didn’t know any better, I would have said he was scared

"Are you psychic? Because you keep doing things that make me feel like you knohat I’m about to do"

"What do you in "When ent to your house tonight and you ran in to change I had my hand on the door, ready to leave, and you ran out and yelled at me not to And in the restaurant just now You ht have pounded that woood reason if you hadn’t pulledyour clothes as if you knew I felt--"

"Underdressed?" he asked

I nodded

Relief flooded his face and softened the fear in his eyes "Is that all?"

"No, you do it all the time Like the day Danni and her friends planned the attack on ht be up Like you saw the future"

"It’s nothing like that I can feel what you feel if you are close to me, like if you’re scared, or happy … or lonely It’s not just you--I’h somehow I can feel you aled "I was born with it It’s sort of a gift and a curse wrapped up in one I call it ive ht for a"Do you remember your first day at school, when Mrs C asked me to show you around and I hesitated?"

"Yeah I reet? "You didn’t want to be seen withYou didn’t want to be seen with h"

I thought back to er square in the eyes "I didn’t want to be seen with you because you were looking at my wet hair and torn jeans like you’d die if you had to walk in withyou the eer shook his head "Actually, I was checking you out"

My face started to burn I looked out the

"I learned the hard way not to judge a person by appearance In elementary school, I could tell a lot of the kids and some of the teachers detested me because I was an O’Connell and wore nicer clothes to school," Bridger said, his voice so to deserve their prejudice, yet I felt it all the time And the two tireed, and just knew she only wanted to date me because my dad is wealthy So I never asked her out for a third date Sometimes …"

I turned to look at him