Destiny Ever-Changing (15 page)

I knew that Jacqueline was a real piece of work, but I had never suspected that she was capable of such a grand scheme . . . and only for her love of money. Even more surprisingly, Brooks's dad apparently possesses that same intense greed. I have never heard of a parent that was willing to sell their child's happiness the way that his father has. After hearing his story, I completely understand why he seems so distraught and moody.

"That sounds like something out of a movie!" I say astonishingly.

"But usually a movie like this has a fairytale ending," he rebuts. "I'm almost certain that my movie is a horror story."

"Well, at least we can easily distinguish who the villainous psycho is in this story," I comment, trying to encourage a smile from him.

"Now, Laura," he says with a serious look, "you shouldn't say things like that about yourself."

I gasp and try to appear offended, crossing my arms tightly around my chest.

Brooks laughs heartily as he reaches over to ruffle my hair. "Oh, you meant Jacqueline! I'm sure you can understand my confusion . . . the two of you seem
so
similar."

"Oh, some friend you've turned out to be. I'm glad that you think so highly of me."

His face suddenly softens. "All jokes aside, I think very highly of you . . . much more than I should."

"Ditto," I say faintly, feeling slightly embarrassed.

Not knowing what to do or say next, I glance up to the red heart on the rough, gray stone—scrambling for anything to look at other than Brooks. Seeing those two initials reminds me of the reason I came here in the first place, and I lean back against the cool rock wall and close my eyes to imagine my mom and the elusive "Joe" sitting here on the cave floor, just as Brooks and I are doing now. When I decided to shadow every move she made in her journal, I never fathomed the possibility of an exact replication of events. The whole thing is just eerie.

"Are you okay?" Brooks asks, startling me.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine. This is just . . . weird."

Brooks leans in toward me. "What's weird? Being here with me? What I said?"

"Well, actually, I was talking about the fact that my mother once sat in here with a man other than my dad, but if I'm being completely honest, being here with you is a bit strange for me, too."

"I know what you mean," he says solemnly.

After a few moments of silence, I glance outside. "It will be dark in a couple of hours. I really should head back."

Brooks chuckles. "I'm so glad you're enjoying my company."

I just smile at him and shake my head as I stand to dust myself off. He doesn't budge.

"Well, are you coming?" I ask, moving toward the cave's opening.

"If you're going to twist my arm, I guess I have to."

I understand his hesitance. "You're dreading it aren't you?"

"Dreading what?"

"Going home," I say sympathetically.

"A little, I suppose," he says as he rises to his feet, pulling up his sagging shorts. "Will is there, so Jacqueline will be on her best behavior. You know how it is, though . . . everyone needs some solitude every once in a while."

"How can you consider this solitude if I'm here?"

"I guess you're right about that. What I'm saying is that everyone needs a distraction at times. You know, to forget what is going on in your life and just breathe."

"That's exactly why I came to Rock Cove."

He smiles. "I'm glad you did."

We exit the cave and begin descending the maze of rocks. Somehow, going down proves to be more difficult for me than going up was. Brooks, on the other hand, is extremely nimble in his descent, but he keeps looking back at me, noticing my clumsy ambling. I am concentrating so hard on my foot placement that, when I look up to find him again, he has disappeared. After a second of panic and disappointment, he suddenly appears to my right.

"Let me help you," he says, breathing a little harder than normal.

"Am I that pathetic?" I laugh.

"Not at all. I have climbed up and down these rocks a million times, but you haven't. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Oh, alright," I sigh, hating feeling so needy. "Lead the way."

He holds out his bronzed hand, and I hesitantly put mine in his. As he leads me down, I am much more aware of his hand touching mine than I am of the rocks. The warmth of his skin seems to radiate into my cool fingers. His grip is firm but gentle, and his palm is slightly calloused, not completely soft like Alex's was. This man is obviously not afraid of physical labor.

"Earth to Laura," Brooks chuckles.

"What? What do you mean?"

"I've been talking to you, and you were lost in outer space somewhere."

I cover my face with my free hand. "I'm sorry! What were you saying?"

"I was asking if you trust me."

I don't know how to answer that loaded question. "Should I? What is going through that mind of yours, Brooks Tucker?"

A sly grin stretches across his face. "I want to take you somewhere before we head back, but I have to know that you trust me first. I promise you won't get hurt."

"You won't give me any hints of what I'm about to get myself into?"

"Okay, two questions. Can you swim well and how do you feel about getting your clothes wet?"

Now, I am getting nervous. "Very well, and I don't mind. Why?"

"Again, do you trust me?" He flashes a brilliant smile.

Fine. I'll bite. "Yes, I will trust you until you give me a reason not to."

He leads me over to a large rock, turns his back to it, and releases my hand. "Get on my back. We're going back up."

"I can walk!" I exclaim.

"The trail gets a little treacherous, and there may be snakes. You said you trusted me, so get on."

I silently step onto the rock and wrap my arms and legs around him. He immediately begins climbing back up, and I cling on for dear life.

"Laura, you're nearly choking me. Close your eyes. I promise you'll be fine."

"Okay," I whisper.

I reluctantly close my eyes and begin to concentrate on his muscles contracting beneath me with every step he takes. I didn't realize how broad and strong he is; he doesn't appear to struggle with my extra weight at all. Fighting the urge to peek at where we are headed, I bury my face into his shoulder, and I am instantly sorry that I did. As I inhale, I am overcome by his scent—an intoxicating fusion of soap, cologne, and fabric softener. His body unexpectedly tenses as my escaping breath tickles his neck, and his hands grip my thighs a bit more firmly. I am suddenly thankful that I remembered to shave my legs.

"I'm going to put you down now," his soft voice cracks. "You can open your eyes."

I open my eyes as my feet touch the ground, and I cannot believe what I see. We are standing at the edge of a cliff, which juts out about twenty feet above the ocean in a cove.

"Ready to jump?" Brooks asks as he takes off his shirt and shoes.

I take a step back. "No way! I'm not jumping! I don't know how deep the water is!"

"But I do. I have jumped off here at least a couple hundred times, I'm sure. You said that you trust me, remember?"

He steps over to the edge of the rock, so close that I am certain a slight breeze would send him hurdling toward the water. He faces me and holds out his hand as he looks directly into my eyes. I finally kick my sandals off and place my hand in his, feeling the butterflies invading my stomach again; although I am unsure whether the butterflies are caused by the impending jump or his delicate touch. He mouths the words "trust me" as he pulls me to him. My heart is racing as I peer at the rolling swells below.

"We're jumping on the count of three. One . . ."

"Brooks, I don't know if I can do this."

He smiles and wraps both arms around my waist. "Two . . ."

"Oh my goodness," I squeak.

Brooks locks his gaze with mine and pulls me tightly against his chest, and I can feel it heaving against mine. His mouth so close that I can feel his moist breath on my cheek.

"Three." he whispers as he bends slightly to pick me up, and we take flight.

I thought I would be scared, but I feel perfectly safe in his arms. We fall for what seems like an eternity, and the feeling of the wind whipping around me is exhilarating. Just before we reach the water, he releases me, and I hold my breath. The cool, salt water engulfs me, and as I slightly open my eyes, I see a school of fish scatter. As soon as I break the surface of the water, I begin laughing hysterically and swim toward the shore.

"That was amazing! I haven't ever done anything like that before!" Expecting a reply of some kind, I turn around to look for Brooks and am shocked to find myself alone. After looking in all directions, I dive back underwater to search for him. If he is playing a joke on me, drowning will be the least of his worries. At first, I struggle to open my eyes in the stinging salt water, but I force them open anyway. I still can't see him.

My foot grazes something behind me, so I turn around, hoping I touched a tiny fish rather than a ferocious shark. However, what I saw was not a fish or a shark, although it was much more shocking. The unexpected sight causes me to let out the breath I was holding, sending me scrambling back to the surface. Just as I take in my first gasp of air, I hear Brooks doing the same.

"Where . . . are . . . your . . . shorts?" I ask in an uneven, ragged breath.

"Ugh . . . I was hoping . . . you didn't see that."

"Hard not to see . . . when it was . . . right in my face," I begin to giggle breathlessly.

Brooks closes his eyes and sighs, obviously embarrassed. "I lost them after we hit the water, and I've been trying to find them. I realized, a little too late, that I ran right into you."

"You were only wearing shorts?" I ask, trying not to let on to the fact that I just watched his boxers wash up onto the shore.

"No, boxers, too. Also, gone."

With a devilish smile, I swim toward the shore, secretly scoop up his boxers as I emerge, walk out to some dry sand, and plop onto the ground.

"What are you doing?" Brooks yells out.

Still smiling, I say, "Oh, just waiting for you to come out."

"You don't play fair, do you? Well, fine. Here I come."

He begins to swim toward me with determination. When his feet are able to touch bottom, he slows once the water reaches just to the top of his narrow hips.

"What are you waiting for?" I joke.

"Come on," he laughs nervously. "You could at least find me some fig leaves or something."

I pull the wet boxers from behind my back and whip them around over my head. "Sure you don't want these instead?"

"You're enjoying this, aren't you? How long have you had those?"

"Just long enough to enjoy your torment."

Brooks crosses his arms and grins. "Are you paying me back for laughing at your panties? We're even now. Please throw them to me."

"No, we're not even yet." I say as I stand, tossing his boxers onto a bush and walk around the cove. "I'll see you when you catch up."

As I walk away, I hear a roar of laughter along with sloshing water as he emerges from the water. Fighting every urge to peek behind me, I am wondering what consequences I have coming to repay me for my antics. Where did all of that flirting come from? I am normally more reserved, but he is bringing out a side of me that I have never seen before.

As I begin wringing out my hair, Brooks swiftly scoops me into his arms and runs toward the water. No amount of shrieking stops him from tossing both of us into the incoming swells. Once we both surface, the war is on. I jump on his back, causing him to lose his balance and fall back into the water. Twisting me around, he picks me up as high as he can and throws me a few feet away. Then, of course, we splash and wrestle around until we finally end up lying on the sand, laughing, and trying to catch our breath.

He rolls onto his side to face me. "Now, we're even."

I turn toward him and nod.

"Hold still," he says softly as he scoots closer. "You have something in your hair."

Once his face is a mere six inches from mine, he pulls a pea-sized shell from the hair at my temple. Yet, he doesn't back away; his gaze meets mine, and I get lost in his aquamarine eyes for a moment. He gradually moves closer, and I feel his breath quickening as he takes my hand and places it on his smooth chest. I feel his heart pounding forcefully, and mine may be pounding even harder.

Brooks suddenly drops my hand. "We have to go." He jumps up and looks down at me apologetically, holding out his hand to help me up.

"Thanks," I mutter.

We walk in silence for nearly half an hour until we have almost reached the wooden stairs leading up to his house. The setting sun is casting a red glow upon the sky, water, and sand, so I will be walking in the dark again tonight, and to make matters worse, I forgot my keys.

I glance over at Brooks, who is solemnly gazing at the ground as he walks. He has not even looked in my direction since we began walking back. I can't tell if he is upset with himself, or me, but I know I am definitely disappointed in the turn of events this afternoon. What started out as harmless fun, nearly ended tragically. That innocent touch could have led to big trouble, and I still feel trouble brewing.

I can't stand the quiet anymore. "Well, here's your stop. Thanks for hanging out with me this afternoon."

He just nods and pauses at the base of the stairs. Looks like he has changed back to his stoic, detached self.

"Okay, then," I say. "Maybe I'll see you around sometime."

"Laura, wait. I don't want you to walk all the way home in the dark. It's my fault you're out so late, so let me take you home."

I shake my head. "No, I'll be fine. But thanks anyway."

"I insist. Please."

"Are you going to ignore me the entire way like you have the last thirty minutes?"

He winces. "I deserve that, and I'm sorry. Just let me take you home, so I know you're safe."

"Fine. What about Jacqueline and Will? Are they going to ride along, too?"

"I'll take care of them. Come on."

We walk up the stairs, and, as we pass through the gate, Brooks turns to me and places his finger over his mouth, signaling me to be quiet. I look up at the crisp white, grandiose villa as we make our silent approach; it is lit up like a Christmas tree. Brilliant golden luminescence shines through the superfluous arch windows, gleaming like dozens of beacons in the impending darkness. Only I want to get away, not get closer, since I am expecting to see Jacqueline in one of the windows, awaiting our return. Nonetheless, I see no one.