Her laughter was nervous, her expression a little guilty as she held out her hand to help him up.
He grabbed it, but didn’t let go when he was hauled to his feet. She looked up with surprise and tried to jerk away. He held fast until she relented, then rubbed his thumb over her knuckles, sending warm licks of flame up his arm.
She gazed down at their connection then up at his face.
“Want to go somewhere?” He spoke softly.
Her eyes flickered with uncertainty and she tried to pull her hand away.
“I know a great spot on the beach. There’s this huge pine tree. When you climb to the top, it’s like you can see Heaven. Up there with nothing but the ocean for a soundtrack, you can believe you’re the only person on the planet.”
“I…”
“It’s also slightly more soothing than screaming German.”
She smiled then caught her lip beneath her teeth. Her eyes traveled down to their hands then over the carpet and up to the screen before settling back on his face. Her pained expression gradually morphed to a nervous smile. Her nod was almost imperceptible and then everything changed.
Whipping her hand free, she stepped away from him. Her eyebrows were bunched together, her expression tormented.
“What’s wrong?”
“I have to go.”
“What?”
Running up the stairs, she collected her bag and threw it over her shoulder.
“Wait a second. What did I do?”
“Nothing. It’s not you.”
She fumbled her water bottle and banged into one of the seats as she stumbled out to the aisle. He strode up the stairs and grabbed her arm as she tried to sail past him. With lightning moves she threw him back into the seats.
Her expression was so anguished he felt his breath catch.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered before dashing down the stairs.
“So am I.” He knew she didn’t hear him—she was long gone.
Rubbing his hands together, he tried to extinguish the fire. It no longer felt warm and inviting.
Stomping down the stairs, Harrison collected his jacket and headed for the exit. He pushed open the door to the strains of final music and turned to glimpse the heroine, dressed in black, sobbing over a gravestone.
Harrison wandered back to the main foyer, his brain a mix of confused disappointment and anger. He was more annoyed with himself than anything. Hadn’t he specifically said no girlfriends? Wasn’t he the one that had gone on about keeping everything casual?
You’re such an idiot.
He never should have asked her to the beach. Pulling on his jacket with a sneer, he shoved his hands in his pockets and made for the escalators.
“Harrison!”
He spun at the sound of his name. Hiding his disappointment when he saw Dana and her posse running toward him was hard work. Darren trailed along behind them, obviously surprised.
“Where were you, man? I texted like three times.”
“Sorry, I got the time wrong. I thought we were going to the late session.” The lie came easy, which wasn’t something he was proud of. “Was the movie good?”
“The ending sucked, but the effects were pretty cool.”
“Wish I hadn’t missed it.” Another easy lie. He crossed his arms and forced a smile.
“We’ll just have to go again sometime.” Dana squeezed his forearm.
Harrison pushed out a half-hearted laugh and uncrossed his arms. Stepping out of reach, he looked over at Darren. “Well, you guys want to do something now?”
“We’re going to Dairy Queen. It’s blizzard time.” Darren’s eyebrows wiggled.
“I’m in.” Harrison turned toward the exit once more, ignoring the thought that the beach and Gemma would have been a thousand times better.
Dana skipped over to him and threaded her arms through his. “Can I ride with you?” Her smile was sultry. “I just love your car.”
“Sure.” He coughed and forced another grin. He really wanted to drop his arm and step out of Dana’s clutches, but he knew that would be rude and didn’t want to make his evening worse by pissing her off. He studied the people around them to distract himself from the feel of Dana’s little fingers fiddling with his jacket sleeve.
Gemma came into view and he nearly stopped in his tracks. A stern frown crossed his face, but it fled. She looked tired. She rubbed her forehead and smoothed back her ponytail, which was no longer braided. Her clothes looked as though they’d been hastily pulled on, but that was probably his imagination. She just looked out of sorts.
Maybe she felt guilty about ditching him. He hoped so, then instantly regretted the feeling. Stepping onto the escalator, he stood five stairs above her. Dana was prattling on about something, but her words were fuzzy. All he could think about was how much he wanted to chase the mysterious Hart girl down, ask her if she was okay… wrap her in a hug.
He shook his head. Was he insane?
Just drive Dana for ice cream, smile, joke, nod, be happy. Take her home and leave before Jordan sees you. You might also want to mention, yet again, that you just want to be friends. At least you have a valid reason now.
Not that he’d tell her that. Harrison winced. In less than twenty-four hours his heart had been captured. He had a feeling the siege would be a long one.
Granger, you’re pathetic.
He stepped off the escalator with a black frown. There was no denying it. A night that was supposed to be fun had taken a turn for the best then a severe downward slide for the worst.
Chapter Five
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida - 2011 AD
The training room felt hot and stuffy. Gemma wiped her brow and brought her fists up to protect her face. Staying on the balls of her feet, she circled Dom, watching his muscles twitch and jerk, trying to predict his next move.
They had been at this since seven-thirty that morning and Gemma was over it before they’d even begun. She usually didn’t mind family training sessions, but not today. Not when images of Harrison’s disappointed expression kept popping into her head.
Dom’s fist shot toward her; she blocked the blow and moved to strike, but he was in the zone and countered her attack. She spun behind him, giving herself space and time to focus.
This sucked! She cringed to think of what Harrison must be saying about her to his friends. He and Darren were probably together right now, playing XBox and laughing about what a freak she was.
A bright pain tore up her jawbone. She grunted and fell to the ground, grabbing her chin.
“Oh my g… Sorry. Gem, are you okay?”
Her brother was on his knees beside her, rolling her to face him.
“Dominic! This is only training!” Alistair Hart shoved his son out of the way and moved Gemma’s hand in order to examine the damage.
“I’m fine, Dad.” Gemma sat up, wiped her chin, and saw there was no blood. At least the bruising would be gone before school tomorrow.
“I was expecting her to block that.” Dom pointed at his sister. “Didn’t you see it coming?”
She rubbed her forehead.
“Gemma, you’re not concentrating.” Her father’s reprimands always stung.
“I’m sorry.”
Smoothing her hair back, she looked up and was surrounded. Dom looked guilty, Ruby looked amused. Her father’s eyes were narrowed and her mother was hovering with that annoying “you better have an explanation for this behavior” look.
“I’m tired. I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“Why? Are you sick? You’re taking your vitamins, aren’t you?”
She nodded at her mother’s barrage of questions, but the woman wouldn’t let up.
“Is something stressing you out at school? What happened last night to make you tense? Is something going on that we need to know about?”
“Mom! Would you give her break. I don’t sleep well after a midnight debrief either.”
At that moment, Gemma would have handed R
uby a platter of stars if she’d been able to. She shot her a quick smile. Ruby’s wink was subtle as she stood up.
“Alright, everyone.” Alistair offered his youngest daughter a hand up. “Let’s take a fifteen-minute break. Go get a drink, take a time out. I want you all back here at ten hundred and we’re going to practice this until we get it right.”
Gemma looked over her father’s shoulder and watched the twins roll their eyes and stifle groans behind his back. She didn’t know whether they were blaming her for the extended training session or not, but she didn’t want to stick around and have their black looks aimed at her. Grabbing a towel, she wiped her face and tore up the stairs to her room.
Slamming the door behind her, she fell on her bed and gazed up at the ceiling. She blinked at the moisture building in her eyes and covered her face with the towel when the door crept open.
It was shut quietly behind her visitor. Gemma didn’t want to look. She felt the bed shift beneath her as she was joined.
“So, what’s up, grumpy pants?”
“Ruby, leave me alone.”
“Not gonna happen, you may as well 'fess up now.”
Ruby pulled the towel from her sister’s face and threw it across the room. Gemma watched it land on the lip of the laundry hamper. Gravity won and pulled the towel to the floor. She resisted the urge to stand and pick it up. Their mother hated mess.
Ruby placed an ice pack on Gemma’s throbbing jaw. She winced at the cold but held it in place.
“I have a problem.”
“No kidding.” Ruby’s mockery made Gemma smile.
“I like a guy.”
Her sister gasped and sat up with bright eyes. “I knew it! I knew you had a crush on someone. You’ve been all weird and moody for months now. Who is it?”
Gemma cringed. “Harrison Granger.”
Ruby looked thoughtful for a minute then grinned. “Yeah, I think I know him. He is cute. A little skinny, but cute.”
Gemma rolled onto her side with a groan.
“So what’s the problem?”
“Ruby, don’t ask me that! You know what the problem is.”
“Not really.”
Punching her pillow with a loud huff, Gemma flicked Ruby’s hand off her shoulder.
“I never expected him to talk to me. I thought if he ever did he’d be as weirded out as everyone else, but he’s…” She turned to look at her sister. “He’s really nice.” Rolling back with a frown, she sniffed. “And I so can’t go there! Why did he have to talk to me? Why couldn’t he leave me alone?”
Ruby was silent while Gemma stewed. She could only imagine what her sister was thinking. She was probably trying really hard not to laugh behind her back. Gemma couldn’t bear to look, so kept her face stuffed into the pillow.
Eventually her sister sighed and placed a tender hand on her shoulder. “Gem, this is high school. You only get one shot and you’re completely wasting it. You need to go for this guy. Have some fun.”
“How? Mom and Dad will see right through me and I don’t trust myself to—”
“You’ve always been the perfect daughter. They won’t expect you to break the rules. Mom even said she wanted you to make a friend.”
“I don’t think she had Harrison Granger in mind when she said that.”
“So what? She’ll never find out.”
Gemma winced.
“Look, sweetie, you need to enjoy the opportunities that are coming your way now. I know you hate lying and that’s why you push people away, but look how miserable you are. You can’t spend the rest of your life trying to make Mom and Dad happy. At some point you need to decide when this life belongs to you.”
Ruby squeezed her shoulder and pulled her around so they were face to face.
“You don’t see Dom and I moping around every weekend. We know we can never get too close, but we can get close enough to have a little fun… and you don’t have to lie to your friends, just avoid the subject of who we are.”
“But I’ve screwed up before.”
“Once! You were thirteen! She was your best friend. It was all new and you were trying to process it.”
“What if she’d believed me? What if she’d told someone else?”
“But she didn’t.”
Gemma’s eyes filled with instant tears. “No, she didn’t.”
She would never forget the look on Zoey’s face after she’d told her. Her best friend’s voice had dripped with disdain at Gemma’s excuse for bailing on her. You know, I never thought you’d lie to me. She’d shaken her head and turned to leave. If you don’t want to be my friend anymore, you should have the guts to say so. Then she’d left and three days later the moving company had arrived.
“I don’t want to hurt him. I don’t want to lie. I want to be in a relationship where I can be myself.”
“Relationship? Sweetie, chillax! We’re talking about a casual fling here. And stop putting such a negative twist on the whole lying thing.” Ruby lay down, one arm resting behind her head. “Do you remember the legend that Mom used to tell us when we were kids…about the electus?”
“The chosen ones.”
“Yeah, well, you know how their mother was killed and then they faded to gold dust, but returned and everything was back to normal? Lucia was alive again.”
Gemma nodded.
“Well when they told Lucia about it, she knew right away that they held a powerful gift that needed protecting. So the village made an oath to guard their skills…and it wasn’t just any oath, it was a blood oath. Secrecy was paramount to their survival.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because I’m trying to make a point.” She turned to face her sister. “Secrets are not always a bad thing, Gem. The oath needs to be honored or people get hurt.”
“You’re talking about Decimus, aren’t you?”
Ruby nodded at Gemma’s referral to the seventh member of the electus. According to legend, the seven babes had simply appeared on earth around 150BC. As they had grown, the three girls had fallen in love with the three boys. Decimus was the only one left without a mate…the black sheep that Gemma dreaded becoming.
“I don’t want to make that same mistake he did.”
“But you won’t. You’ve had years of this stuff shoveled down your throat. Your first instinct is to protect your family…and that’s what you’ll do.”
Gemma gazed up at the ceiling, tortured.
“Do what I do, Gem. Don’t think of it as lying. Think of it as protecting the ones you love.”
“That’s why I push people away, Rube, because I love you guys.”
“Yes…and we love you too, which is why you need to stop hiding and go enjoy your life. It’s not like you’re proposing marriage. We’re just talking a couple of dates and a few kisses. Go to the movies, make out a little. Enjoy it.”
Gemma felt a smile tugging at her lips. She shuffled her body and swung her arm around her sister. “Thanks, Ruby.”
“Girls! Break’s over!”
They both groaned then giggled as they sat up.
“Ready to go kick Dom’s butt?”
“Always. I heard Dad mention pulling out the weapons later too. We can broad sword his ass.”
This sent them into fits of giggles as they wove their way through the house and down into the basement for another round of training.
*****
Gemma felt lighter when she woke the next morning. She took her time getting ready, choosing her skinny jeans and brown leather boots for a change. She tied her hair back into its usual ponytail and ignored Ruby’s suggestion of a little makeup. There were still lines that needn’t be crossed.
She felt confident that the day would go well. Everything had been planned. She would find a way to casually bump into Harrison, then she’d smile, say hi, and maybe even throw in a comment about seeing him in History. This small exchange would win his forgiveness and they could begin one of those smile-and-wave friendships that would
slowly grow. It would be perfect.
She drove through the school gates and spotted her heart’s desire getting out of his Stingray. He pulled the shades off his face and tossed them onto the dashboard. Reaching back inside, he grabbed his book bag, flung it over his shoulder, and ran a hand through his waves of thick hair.
Gemma let out a dreamy sigh, caught herself, and frowned, knowing she had spent the morning in la-la land. Have fun with this guy? Was that some kind of joke? Not even a whole movie spent together and she knew the prospect of falling for him was inevitable. An unconscious smile spread over her lips as she remembered his Jackie Chan moves.
She watched him ascend the stairs with an arm wrapped around his stepsister’s neck. He must have been hassling her about something because she wiggled free and gave him a firm punch in the arm. He laughed and made some other comment that revealed her two neat rows of braces.
The metal smile disappeared when Dana and Chelsea called Harrison’s name and rushed up the stairs toward him. Gemma knew how Rosie felt. Pulling her key from the ignition, she got off her bike and grabbed her bag. The bell was ringing as she snuck in the back door and headed for homeroom.
*****
The whole casual bumping into Harrison thing was going to be harder than Gemma thought. She knew he had Italian second period so scuttled through the halls hoping to catch him coming out, but she was too late. As she neared his locker, she saw him surrounded by Darren and the girls. She’d rather die than draw their attention.
She stood watching them for a moment then saw Harrison’s head turn in her direction. Taking the chicken’s way out, she whipped through the bathroom door and made a beeline for the back stall. Five minutes should be enough time for them to disperse. She didn’t care if she was late to class.
With a huff of self-disdain she plonked down on the lid of the toilet and dropped her face in her hands, resisting the urge to scream.
“It was so pathetic. I swear he was checking her out. He was supposed to be driving me home, but he couldn’t keep his goo-goo eyes off the freak show.”
Gemma recognized Dana’s voice. Her muscles tensed in response.
“She was walking right in front of us. It was kind of hard not to spot her. Anyway, who cares if he was checking her out, it’s not like you guys are dating. What’s the big deal?”
The tense pause as Courtney’s question hung unanswered in the air was physically painful. Gemma knew exactly which freak show they were talking about.