awake as long as you can,” Blake said, looking nowhere
near as groggy as I did. “What day is it?”
I paused for a second.
“Sunday?”
“ Sunday,” Blake agreed.
“Ok. So we’ll lay low for a few days and then see what’s happening
later in the week.” I had a feeling he didn’t mean what was
happening at Columbia. He grinned, and his excitement was
infectious. “Case, this is going to be a blast. There’s one thing I
have to set up, and then maybe we can go walk the
beach?”
I nodded, feeling like a kid in a
candy store. Blake was right — everything in L.A. was going to be
perfect.
But... one little doubt lingered. L.A.
was also where my life had gotten turned upside down last summer. I
couldn’t forget the fight with Blake that had sent me back across
the country, completely broken. And all because of what happened in
L.A.
This time is
different , I told myself, watching Blake
through the glass doors as he made a call on the porch. We know where we stand now. There aren’t any more
lies between us.
Or were there? I still hadn’t told
Blake about Tanner, not really, and I thought back to the
photographer’s question at the airport. What did Tanner have to do
with any of this? Was it because someone had seen us together, at
the concert?
And what were Blake’s meetings, right
before we left school? And, for that matter, what was this phone
call that was so important it had to be out of earshot?
No matter what we did, it seemed like
there were always secrets.
As if on cue, Blake clicked off his
call and headed back into the living room. “Sorry about that,” he
grinned. “We’re all set.”
“ Who was it?” I asked,
suddenly curious.
“ You’ll see,” Blake
grinned, and let’s face it: when Blake was happy, I was happy.
“Let’s go to the beach.”
“ Blake, I’m basically
naked,” I reminded him, gesturing down to my tee-shirt and bare
feet. “I don’t think I can really go out like this.”
Blake grinned. “Fair enough,” he said.
“Give me ten minutes, and I’ll be back with something for you to
wear.”
I sighed, but smiled. “Fine.
Go.”
“ Be right back,” he said,
slipping his phone into his pocket and stepping through the door,
into the driveway.
“ Hey,” I called to him,
just as he slid into the driver’s seat of his car, a silver BMW
convertible that seemed way too nice for a twenty year old to be
driving.
He turned around, the breeze already
catching his hair. I wished I could take a photo, to remember him
just like that. Happy, relaxed, ready for anything.
“ Thanks,” I said, and he
pulled the car out of the driveway. “I love you,” I added, after he
was gone.
Chapter
Sixteen
Blake was back in no time, carrying
with him a bag that didn’t look anywhere big enough to be a full
outfit for me.
“ What’s that?” I eyed it
nervously.
“ Your bikini,” Blake
winked. “Go try it on.”
I tried to give him a disapproving
look, but he was in too good a mood. And when I opened the bag, I
found a black bikini with little flecks of gold on the edges — no
g-strings or creepy cutouts in the fabric or anything that I would
have balked at. I actually really liked it.
And I liked that Blake knew me well
enough to get the right one. That, actually, was the thing I liked
the best.
“ Ok,” I stepped out of the
bedroom, modeling the swimsuit as I walked down the stairs. “You
did good.”
“ Well,” Blake corrected
me, and then raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you going to be an English
major, Casey?”
I took the last two stairs in a jump,
and punched Blake in the arm.
“ Please,” I said. “My
parents were, like, Lieutenants in the grammar police. I was trying
to be cute.”
“ See, that’s the thing
about you, Case,” Blake murmured, pretending to nurse the spot I’d
punched him in. “You don’t even have to try.”
I blushed, looking down. “Yeah, well,
then I guess I’m sorry I punched you,” I said. “Am I
near as groggy as I did. “What day is it?”
I paused for a second.
“Sunday?”
“ Sunday,” Blake agreed.
“Ok. So we’ll lay low for a few days and then see what’s happening
later in the week.” I had a feeling he didn’t mean what was
happening at Columbia. He grinned, and his excitement was
infectious. “Case, this is going to be a blast. There’s one thing I
have to set up, and then maybe we can go walk the
beach?”
I nodded, feeling like a kid in a
candy store. Blake was right — everything in L.A. was going to be
perfect.
But... one little doubt lingered. L.A.
was also where my life had gotten turned upside down last summer. I
couldn’t forget the fight with Blake that had sent me back across
the country, completely broken. And all because of what happened in
L.A.
This time is
different , I told myself, watching Blake
through the glass doors as he made a call on the porch. We know where we stand now. There aren’t any more
lies between us.
Or were there? I still hadn’t told
Blake about Tanner, not really, and I thought back to the
photographer’s question at the airport. What did Tanner have to do
with any of this? Was it because someone had seen us together, at
the concert?
And what were Blake’s meetings, right
before we left school? And, for that matter, what was this phone
call that was so important it had to be out of earshot?
No matter what we did, it seemed like
there were always secrets.
As if on cue, Blake clicked off his
call and headed back into the living room. “Sorry about that,” he
grinned. “We’re all set.”
“ Who was it?” I asked,
suddenly curious.
“ You’ll see,” Blake
grinned, and let’s face it: when Blake was happy, I was happy.
“Let’s go to the beach.”
“ Blake, I’m basically
naked,” I reminded him, gesturing down to my tee-shirt and bare
feet. “I don’t think I can really go out like this.”
Blake grinned. “Fair enough,” he said.
“Give me ten minutes, and I’ll be back with something for you to
wear.”
I sighed, but smiled. “Fine.
Go.”
“ Be right back,” he said,
slipping his phone into his pocket and stepping through the door,
into the driveway.
“ Hey,” I called to him,
just as he slid into the driver’s seat of his car, a silver BMW
convertible that seemed way too nice for a twenty year old to be
driving.
He turned around, the breeze already
catching his hair. I wished I could take a photo, to remember him
just like that. Happy, relaxed, ready for anything.
“ Thanks,” I said, and he
pulled the car out of the driveway. “I love you,” I added, after he
was gone.
Chapter
Sixteen
Blake was back in no time, carrying
with him a bag that didn’t look anywhere big enough to be a full
outfit for me.
“ What’s that?” I eyed it
nervously.
“ Your bikini,” Blake
winked. “Go try it on.”
I tried to give him a disapproving
look, but he was in too good a mood. And when I opened the bag, I
found a black bikini with little flecks of gold on the edges — no
g-strings or creepy cutouts in the fabric or anything that I would
have balked at. I actually really liked it.
And I liked that Blake knew me well
enough to get the right one. That, actually, was the thing I liked
the best.
“ Ok,” I stepped out of the
bedroom, modeling the swimsuit as I walked down the stairs. “You
did good.”
“ Well,” Blake corrected
me, and then raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you going to be an English
major, Casey?”
I took the last two stairs in a jump,
and punched Blake in the arm.
“ Please,” I said. “My
parents were, like, Lieutenants in the grammar police. I was trying
to be cute.”
“ See, that’s the thing
about you, Case,” Blake murmured, pretending to nurse the spot I’d
punched him in. “You don’t even have to try.”
I blushed, looking down. “Yeah, well,
then I guess I’m sorry I punched you,” I said. “Am I
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