Wishful Thinking: Jinn Series, #1

By Belinda Jolley

All Cassia Foster wants is a hope for the future. A hope with a college outside of Missouri and without an alcoholic mother. But a life like that comes with a price.

 

When Trenton Hayes moves to her small town of Amelia, the world around Cassia changes. People become... Happy. Some recieve scholarships, others' lives are made better with shocking promotions for their parents. A lot of people get exactly what they could ever wish for. But for others, their only luck is bad–"accidents" happen. One person is injured in a car crash, another is hurt in a football game. Could cunning and alluring Trenton be behind all of it?

 

Cassia's heart is pulled between the new boy in town–who just might be the reason her mother sobered up and found a job–and her best friend, Brice. Sure Trenton is charming, even magical in his appeal, but when the wishing spirals out of control, when things turn deadly, Cassia must decide if the price of her happiness, and the price of her heart, is worth it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Belinda Jolley
• Release date: Aug 13, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393204169

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

C assia, are you even listening? Larkin waved her hand in front of my face.

Confession time, my attention was on the guy a few feet away from us. He tousled his raved hair with his hand and the strands fell perfectly back into place. His eyes matched the color of two vibrant sapphires. Dark denim jeans hung low on his lean hips and a black shirt fitted to the muscular ripples of his chest and shoulders. Mischief danced in his gaze as his eyes met mine. Oh God. He was looking at me. I smiled. He winked and walked the rest of the way into the school.

A group of girls giggled as he strutted by. Fans already. Not surprising. He was new, which automatically made him interesting. Larkin didn't see him. There was no way. She would have said something.

I shook my head trying to rid myself of thoughts about the mystery boy. What?

I asked how your weekend went? She gave me her signature look with raised eyebrows and pursed lips.

Sorry. I shook my head. You know me. I went to visit wonderland for a little while, took a trip to Hogwarts. The usual. I shrugged.

You seriously need to get your head out of those books Cass, We're juniors now! She twirled around on the lawn of the school, her arms out wide, and her head thrown back. We can be whoever we want to be!

That was easy for her to say. In reality, I couldn't be whoever I wanted to be. I would always be the outcast, the one who didn't fit in. I didn't know how to interact with people, not the way Larkin could. I hadn't tried to put myself out there. What if people didn't like me? The leaves on the trees were already beginning to change, and nothing had changed for me except my bra size, and that could have been wishful thinking.

Larkin, with her blond hair and emerald green eyes, really bloomed over the summer. Her waist shrunk and her chest grew. Not to mention her legs were long, and looked great in heels. Standing beside me, Larkin looked like a supermodel, and I her lowly sidekick. Boys noticed her growth spurt, and her confidence skyrocketed. The fact that she still sat at this picnic table on the outskirts of the building rather than standing in the front of the school with the popular kids just showed me how great of a friend she was. She should've bailed on me months ago, but she stuck by my side. She always said, Friends don't leave friends behind.

Larkin gave me a hopeful look, and I groaned. I'll try.

I guess that's better than nothing. Rolling her eyes, she stood from the table as the bell rang. Promise?

I promise.

Larkin and I parted ways; we knew we would meet up at lunch. I didn't think about the mystery boy until I hurried into homeroom. My breath hitched as I spotted him sitting in the seat directly behind mine. As I approached my seat, I prayed I wouldn't trip. I slid into my chair, putting my binder on the desk. I was fine. I could do this. I needed to stop being a weirdo. Staring at him wasn't an option. A deep breath filled my lungs. I looked around the room, and everyone else was staring. A little peek wouldn't hurt. I casually dropped my pencil. When I bent over to pick it up, I sneaked a glance in his direction.

He was even prettier up close, almost too pretty. Not a freckle or a blemish dared to disturb the perfection. Our eyes locked. A slow smile grew across his face, dimples appeared in his cheeks, and his teeth were dazzling. I spun around and the heat on my cheeks spread down my neck. There’s no way a guy like that would want to look at someone like me.

My mom always told me a little mascara never hurt anyone, and this was a day I wished I had listened. A little foundation would have helped cover the freckles on the bridge of my nose. It was a shame I didn't put any on. My dark hair was pulled up into a messy bun. So basic. My hazel eyes weren't much to look at either. Sometimes they were olive green, other times light brown. Either way, they always reminded me of swamp water–murky and gross looking.

I lifted the collar of my shirt to my nose and sniffed. At least I smelled good. I tried to smooth my shirt out and silently cursed my wrinkled clothing choice for the school day–a navy blue shirt and a distressed pair of skinny jeans. I should have tried to look decent. I didn't care about my outward appearance. I took a deep breath. I definitely should have cared today.

Ms. King entered the room, a Starbucks coffee in one hand and papers in the other. As you can see, we have a new student, she said, motioning toward the mystery boy. Mr., she glanced at one of the papers in her hand, Hayes. How about you tell us a little about yourself?

He stood and looked around the room with a grin that oozed confidence. After searching through the faces of my classmates, his eyes fixed on mine. I'm Trenton Hayes. You may call me Trent, if you want. It doesn't matter to me. We move around a lot. I don't expect to spend much time here, but I can have a good time anywhere. I like sushi, movies, and long walks on the beach. He winked at me while the rest of the room laughed.

The heat in my cheeks made my face redder by the second. I bit my lip. The sound of his velvet voice made me swoon instantly. It had a mixture of accents I couldn't quite place.

Thank you. You may be seated. Ms. King said.

After Trenton's introduction and small speech, everything else about homeroom went by in a blur. My mind wouldn't let me think of anything other than the fact that he was sitting behind me. I wondered if his gaze was on me, or if it was across the room. Of course it was across the room. Why would he even glance in my direction? I don't remember what was said after Ms. King told him he could retake his seat. I hoped I didn't miss some important announcement. My mind raced over all the possibilities of what I should say to him. Introduce yourself. Ask him what he thinks about Missouri. Don't ask him what he thinks about here, that's stupid. Ask him about his schedule. So I could sound like a stalker? No, don't ask him that. Ask him something–anything.  I couldn't get any words to verbalize out of my mouth. My thoughts ran wild, but I was too afraid to make an idiot out of myself. My shyness got the best of me. The bell rang and shook me out of my thoughts. He loped by my desk and out the door.

I jumped when I found him standing in the hall as I exited the room. He wore an easy smile, his dimples barely showing, and was staring directly at me. I checked over my shoulder to make sure I wasn't imagining it was me his gaze fell on. He was definitely staring at me. I needed to do something.

Can I help you? Are you lost? I shifted my books in my arms. What's your first class? Maybe I can help.

My first class is Algebra Two with Mr. Macon. He still hadn't taken his eyes off me. He tilted his head to the side with a furrowed brow. The expression reminded me of a puppy when you spoke to it and it was trying to figure you out. There was no way I would tell him, but I found it quite adorable. I heard a hint of Australian in his voice when he spoke this time. The way certain letters rolled off his tongue captivated me. I wondered how many other accent tones I would pick up later on. If there was a later on.

That's my next class too. I can show you the way, if you want? I pointed toward the hall that led in the direction of the room.

Sounds great, lead the way. He motioned like a gentlemen. As we moved further down the hall, he stopped. By the way, what's your name?

I'm Cassia Foster. I held out my hand. Nice to meet you.

He chuckled and took my hand, but instead of shaking it as I anticipated, he brought it to his lips, It's my pleasure. With a slight curve of his lips he kissed the top of my hand before letting go.

My mouth dropped open. Never in real life had I seen a guy kiss a girl's hand upon meeting them. Especially my own hand. I thought that only happened in movies. 

We are-um, we will be late for class. Spinning on my heel I rushed toward Mr. Macon's class, not glancing behind me to see if he followed.

When we reached the classroom, I took my seat, and Trenton sat directly behind me.

I twisted around in my chair. You know that's someone's seat right? Brice's seat.

He gave me a carefree smirk, as if nothing in the world was important. It didn't appear to bother him that he was new, or that girls were fanning themselves over the close proximity of his hotness.

I'm sure he won't miss it too much. He shrugged.

Brice strolled into the room. He stared at his spot like he knew there was something different about it, but he went and sat in a different seat. He was one of my best friends, but he didn't act as if it was odd for someone else to be in his chair. This went on until almost everyone grabbed a desk, although it may not have been the same desk they had been in since the beginning of the year. Their eyes glazed over and they took a new place to sit. It seemed they didn't mind one bit. There was only one person missing.

When Jade came into the room, I held my breath. I suspected Brice would get a verbal lashing for stealing her spot. I was surprised he sat there in the first place since it was Jade's and she thought she was queen bee. Maybe she was, her dad made a lot of money working as a divorce lawyer. Jade being half-Vietnamese and half-German made her skin a beautiful shade of warm caramel. She was gorgeous, the only problem was, she knew and took advantage of it. She spotted her seat, and an odd expression came across her face. As fast as the expression appeared, it faded away into her normal bored stare, and she took a seat in the back corner. She usually wouldn't sit in the back, ever. That was reserved for the stoners, slackers, and nappers.

What's going on? I whispered as I took in my classmates new places.

Trenton leaned close to me. I told you he wouldn't mind. It seems nobody cares about the musical chairs, he murmured in my ear, his breath brushing against my hair.

It's weird right? I spun in my chair and our faces ended up nose to nose.

His blue eyes danced with mischief. He shrugged.

When Mr. Macon entered the room, I had to put the weirdness of the day out of my head. I wasn't doing great in this class, and my Mom would kill me if I brought home another C on a test. She was a didn't-get-off-the-couch, passed-out-every-day alcoholic, but she was still concerned over my grades. Too bad paying attention with Trenton sitting behind me was more challenging than the class itself.

When lunch came around, my stomach growled. Every day my lunch experience was the same. Laughter and yelling always filled the cafeteria. The aroma of hamburger meat drifted through the air no matter what was on the menu. It always took nose a minute to get over the attack of smells. Today it was a hot-ham-and-cheese sandwich or Beefaroni. I picked the ham and cheese. I grabbed a bag of chips for myself and a serving of grapes for Larkin. She loved them.

Larkin sat at our regular table. Usually Larkin and our group of misfits were already eating. I was one of the last people in the lunch line since my locker was on the far wall of the school. It seemed I was the only person to go to their locker before lunch. They usually went after lunch, but my third class and my locker were on opposite ends of the school. I didn't have the speed not to be tardy.

Brice chomped on an apple. His shaggy copper hair fell over his eyes and ended at the tip of his nose. It needed to be cut, and we voiced this every day, but he wouldn't take our advice. His milk chocolate eyes lit up with his boyish grin. I started to look at Brice differently this past year as he grew into his looks. He was no longer the boy who helped unjam my locker the first day of freshman year. His build became more muscular and it looked good on him. Now he was someone girls swooned over. That he knew how to play guitar helped, too.

Lynn absentmindedly played with her tongue ring. At school she was required to wear a clear one. Outside of school was a different story. That ring changed as much as her hair color, which alternated weekly. That was Lynn though. She came from the most cookie-cutter family, and had to be the oddball. Her parents were still married, she lived above middle class, and she had a beautiful home. Her mom would nag her about the way she dressed, but in all honesty, I thought she looked beautiful the way she was. Her dark smudged eyeliner, and her chunky black leather boots looked good on her.

When I reached my seat, I heard the latest gossip was about Trenton. I wasn't the least bit  surprised; not much went on in our town that was of interest.

We have English together. He didn't say much. Lynn shrugged.

I let him take my seat in Algebra, but I didn't talk to him. Brice bit a chunk out of his apple. Did you talk to him, Cass?

I took a deep breath and blew it through my nose, already bored by the subject. Yes. I walked with him to Mr. Macon's class. He's in my homeroom too.

Don't you sit behind Cassia? Lynn raised an eyebrow at Brice. Why would you let him take your seat?

I'm not really sure. He scratched his head and shrugged. I just decided I didn't want to sit there today. Everyone moved around.

You got to sit close to him, Cass? Isn't he gorgeous? I hear he's going to try out for the football team, Larkin filed her fingernails.

He doesn't seem much like a football player to me. He put out that misunderstood rebel vibe to me, Lynn said, pulling at a strand of her multicolored hair.

I don't know what I think of him yet, none of us has talked to him, Brice took the last bite of his apple, tossed the core on his tray and met my eyes, except you. So, what's the verdict?

I don't know yet. I scrunched my face. He's different.

Well you better figure it out, because he's heading our way. Lynn's eyes widened.

I turned around and watched as he progressed toward our table. Each table he coasted by, the people sitting stopped talking and watched him until he passed. I sympathized. It was nearly impossible to concentrate when he was so close to you. Algebra taught me that.

When he reached our table, he wore a small smile. His lunch tray didn't have much on it–ham and cheese, and a small bottle of water. Can I sit with you all?

Sure! Larkin exclaimed. Sit wherever you like. I'm Larkin Scott, by the way. She sat up straighter, and pushed her breasts out further.

His ocean blue eyes looked so deep, it was as if I could drown in them. I didn't know if I was ready for that. It seemed like a hell I wasn't equipped to handle.

He didn't seem to pay Larkin any mind but was looking at me curiously. Is this seat taken? He asked he reaching out to the seat next to mine.

No, not at all, I said breathlessly. You can sit, I said with more confidence. I didn't usually lose my cool around boy so much. I was always too busy worrying about my school work or what I was reading. Too busy off in another world to care much about this one. I promised Larkin I would try to do better, and be whoever I wanted to be. I just didn't know who that was yet, but it wasn't the girl that fainted over the first guy to ever pay her attention.

Thank you, he pulled out the chair. I don't know anyone else too well. Once seated, he said, I'm Trenton, Trenton Hayes. He introduced himself as if we didn't already know. Everyone knew.

He looked around the table, and noticed Brice. I took your seat in Mr. Macon's class, didn't I?

"It's okay,