Hopeless For You (2 page)

Red flag number two. No one could hold down a job while handling a premed course load, not unless they planned to spend the next fifteen years in school. This Ash Jensen definitely came from a privileged background.

She definitely wouldn't be interested in someone like me.

Good.

I abandoned the stalker girl on the track with some lame excuse about getting back to my friends. I was too preoccupied to flirt with her.

My brother Jed was in the weight area, already working out with Blaine. I knocked fists with him in distracted greeting.

"How's my big brother this week?" Jed said. He was a slightly taller, slimmer version of me, minus the tattoos. People always thought he was way younger than eighteen.

"Never better," I said.

Blaine was at the other bench press just beside me, logging his progress with some workout app on his phone. I could hear Daft Punk blasting from his earbuds—a mindless, lyric-less song perfect for the gym. Ordinarily I would have been listening to the same stuff but I wasn't in the mood today. Though maybe some mindless tunes would've help me forget that intern's face.

I did my usual light warmup at the bench press. Then I stacked on the forty-five
pound plates and psyched myself up for my core set.

The instant I lifted the barbell, I knew something was terribly wrong. The bar shifted to the left and the weights slammed to the floor. I had loaded three forty-fives on the left side but only two forty-fives on the right.

Jed was doing curls nearby and he hurried over to help me re-rack the bar. Blaine came, too.

"Someone's distracted today." Blaine wrenched out one of his earbuds. "I'd let this pass if there were some sweet treat walking around but the only hotties are on the other side of the gym. What's wrong?"

I shrugged. "Just tired, I guess."

"That girl really got to you this morning, didn't she? What did she say?"

I shook my head. "It's not her."

Jed patted me on the back. "Kade's just depressed because it's time to leave the city behind for the center." He was joking, of course. Jed knew there was nothing I wanted more than to go back to the center.

"Nah," I said. "Just got some interns I have to process for Rebecca later."

Blaine pursed his lips. "Okay. I'll help you with them when we finish up here."

"Sure, that'd be great." I glanced at the floor-to-ceiling windows. Between the towering condos outside, I could make out the thickly wooded mountains.

I took a deep breath.

One more week until I was back at my summer job out there. My
real
job, where I made a difference.

One more week until I met Ash Jensen.

It looked to be an interesting summer.

I stared out the window as the plane made its final descent. Vancouver was a city enclosed by the sea on one side and mountains the other. It was totally unlike anything I'd ever seen before, even on TV.

I was embarking on my first real journey in life, leaving my home behind, and I wasn't sure I was ready. I'd never really been outside of Tennessee before except for a short trip to Mexico with my mom and stepdad.

The plane thumped down and taxied along the runway. When we stopped, I gave Gina a nudge. My best friend had borrowed my noise-canceling headphones. She wasn't listening to music though—she was too scared for that. She'd kept her eyes shut tight for most of the flight.

"We're here." I grinned as Gina took off the headphones.

"Thank God." My best friend rubbed a palm over her pale face. "I'm not sure I can do that again. As in ever."

I squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Just one more flight, Gina."

She closed her eyes and exhaled, then gave me her bravest smile. "Okay. But only for you, babe."

Gina and I pulled down our bags from the overhead compartment and shuffled out of the plane with everyone else. After passing through the Canada Customs line
—the official was a flirtatious guy who couldn't stop chatting with Gina—I spotted a sign with our names on it, held by a petite but powerful-looking curly-haired woman dressed in a jean jacket and matching denim pants.

Steering Gina toward her, I smiled and held out my hand. "I'm Ash Jensen."

"Rebecca Mills." She shook my hand, then Gina's. "And you must be Angelina?"

"Call me Gina."

"Gina it is. Ordinarily I'd just send the pilot to come get you—it's not in my job description to fly all the way out here to pick up interns—but I had an errand to run in the city. Lucky you."

We collected our baggage and then took the five-minute courtesy shuttle to the south terminal where, according to Rebecca, all the small aircraft were located.

We went through a sliding door and found ourselves in a tiny terminal. There were a bunch of small counters offering charter and air taxi services. Rebecca went to the Pacific counter and we followed. The attendant greeted her warmly, then weighed our luggage. Gina's barely met the requirements.

"Don's waiting for you at the usual gate," the attendant told Rebecca. Since all our baggage was carry-on, we got to skip security, which was a nice change. Have fun doing that in Tennessee or anywhere else in the US. Welcome to Canada.

We got to the gate and sat down. Above us, a paper-mache seaplane about the size of a small car hung from the rafters, which did nothing to calm Gina's nerves. Or mine.

"Don't worry, we're not taking a seaplane," Rebecca said, sensing our concern. "Ours has wheels and landing gears. Usually." She winked at Gina, who moaned softly.

After a few minutes, the gate employee arrived. She went straight to Rebecca and shook her hand. "Good to see you again, Rebecca. Don's ready for boarding."

We walked through the gate. There was no Jetway bridge or anything, we just followed Rebecca right onto the tarmac.

"You've got to be kidding me." Gina groaned as we approached the tiny plane.

Rebecca glanced at her and a reassuring smile played on her lips. "Never flown in a small plane before?" Both of us shook our heads. "Don's a great pilot. You two don't have to worry about a thing."

The man she indicated waved cheerfully and came forward to help us stow our baggage.

The passenger section of the plane only had seats for four people. Gina and I settled into two of the seats while Rebecca surprised me by climbing into the copilot seat.

"Wait— where's the copilot?" Gina said.

Rebecca looked over her shoulder and smiled reassuringly. "We left Don's usual
copilot up at the center. Don't worry, I'm fully qualified."

Gina fastened her seatbelt with shaking hands. She leaned in close to me and said in a hushed voice, "If I die I'm going to kill you, Ash."

"You're the one who wanted to come up here so badly," I said.

"Yeah, but that was before I realized we'd have to take a bi-freaking-plane flown by
an administration lady!"

I exhaled, blowing a strand of hair from my face. "Oh, come on, it's not a biplane. And she said she's fully qualified."

The engine started.

"Oh, shit." Gina grabbed my hand. The little plane was already starting forward.
"Ash, give me those headphones! Ash!"

I shook my head. I was feeling anxious, too, but I didn't dare show it. I had to put on a brave face for my friend. "They're stowed in the baggage compartment. Sorry, Gina. Unless you want me to get up and make the plane wobble?"

Gina's fingers dug in. "No!"

The plane gained speed and clawed into the air. Gina shut her eyes.

I didn't move my hand because I wanted to give my best friend whatever comfort I could. She truly hated flying. But while I pitied her, I had a hard time keeping the grin off my face. All my original concern about taking such a small plane had vanished. I could feel every gust of wind buffet the small craft and sense the shudder of each turn of the engine and I found the experience exhilarating.

Outside, green forests occasionally broken by open meadows dressed the mountain flanks. It was a beautiful, sprawling landscape, and I felt the urge to grab my phone and snap photos. Too bad it was locked away in the baggage compartment along with everything else.

Gina's grip alternated between loose and tight, depending on the severity of the turbulence. During one particularly bumpy stretch, Gina squeezed so hard, I thought she might break my fingers.

"Gina!" I said.

She finally let go of me but shut her eyes even tighter. With her forehead wrinkled like that and crow's feet spreading from her eyes, I got a hint of how she'd look as an older woman. She'd make a pretty grandma.

You know those movies where people are sitting in a plane that's about to crash
and they start to bare their souls to each other? That's what Gina decided to do—with her eyes closed, of course.

"Ash, since we're going to die, there's something I need to tell you. There's a selfish reason I hang out with you."

"Gina, stop. We're not going to die." She had me curious, though, and I couldn't resist adding, "But what's the reason?"

"I hang out with you because you're short. I feel insecure around tall people."

I had to stifle a laugh. "What are you talking about Gina? Just relax and try not to think about the flight."

"No it's true, and I'm a selfish bitch for doing it. I always have to be the tallest girl in the room. I can't stand being near a girl who's taller than me. Guys are okay. In fact, tall guys are perfect. But girls. No way."

Gina continued babbling and when she got to the part where she begged God to let her live, promising she'd never pass a homeless person without giving them money ever again, I leaned my head against the glass and hoped the flight would end soon.

After an hour, the plane finally began to descend. Ahead, I picked out a little airstrip that seemed practically cut from the trees. As we drew closer to the ground, I saw a couple of Jeeps next to a small log cabin that seemed to serve as the 'control tower.'

I held my breath as we landed. The plane bounced a few times before stabilizing on the teensy strip, and only when the plane finally came to a complete stop, with the forest a mere fifteen yards ahead, did I inhale.

As soon as the pilot opened the door for us, Gina relinquished her death grip and hurried outside. She knelt and kissed the dirt runway. Poor girl.

I stepped outside the plane and glanced toward the log cabin. My jaw dropped.

Beside me, Gina scrambled to her feet and started wiping the dirt from her dress. She hadn't yet seen what I had.

"Gina," I said. "Gina."

Finally, she looked up. I heard her quiet gasp.

Two perfect examples of the male species strode toward us from the Jeeps parked in front of the cabin.

My attention was immediately drawn to the taller of the pair. He was easily six feet and towered over me. Tattoos were clearly visible on his arms and neck, and his dark hair stood up in violent, tousled spikes. The upper tip of his pecs bulged from the top of his V neck and his biceps struggled to stay inside the confines of his sleeves. He oozed raw sexuality and he definitely gave off a bad boy vibe.

His sea-green eyes caught hold of mine and held me. There was a glint of danger in those eyes, and promise. I felt like a deer caught in a wolf's gaze. A reciprocal sense of want welled up inside me, despite my apprehension, and as I gazed deeper into those eyes, I thought I saw something else layered beneath the lust: fear.

I had the strangest sensation then, as if everything that had come before in my life had been a buildup to this moment. I was meant to meet this man out here on this dirty runway in the middle of nowhere. It was crazy, but I couldn't shake the sensation.

"Glad to see you two managed to be on time!" Rebecca's cheerful voice broke the spell and I jerked my head toward her, feeling my face flush.

"No thanks to him." The wolfish look had gone from the eyes of the tattooed one and he jabbed his thumb toward his companion. "Blaine took forever to get ready."

Blaine was only a little shorter than Mr. Tattoos but still taller than Gina. He was clean-cut, with blonde hair and the face of a male model. He had a really nice smile but compared to Mr. Tattoos, he was a tiny candle sputtering beside a raging bonfire for all the effect he had on me.

Rebecca smiled patiently. "No worries. You made it." She turned toward Gina and me. "Gina, Ash, this is Blaine and Kade, two of our summer wardens. They help with pretty much everything around here. You'll be partnered with them."

I glanced at Gina. My friend was smiling widely.

"Awesome!" Gina extended her hand toward Blaine. "I'm Gina."

Blaine took her hand, curling his fingers around hers and lifting her palm slightly so that for a second, I thought he might lift it to his lips. When he only shook it, Gina seemed a little disappointed.

"Nice to meet you," Blaine said. "Gina's a cute name."

She perked right up at that and laughed, a beautiful sound I'd always envied. His warm, rich chuckle sounded pretty good, too.

I hung back as Gina greeted Kade next.

He shook her hand. "The ground around here has an interesting taste, doesn't it?" He had a big smile on his face. "Don't worry, I'm not the biggest fan of flying myself."

I felt a twinge of jealousy at Gina's delighted smile. "Good to know I'm not the only one."

Blaine offered me his hand. "Ash, right? Welcome to the funhouse. We got tricks and treats."

"Thanks." I smiled shyly. When he released me, I turned toward the man whose
hand I was most interested in shaking, but Kade was already walking toward the plane. I bit my lip in disappointment.

Without a word, Kade grabbed three pieces of luggage and hauled them toward the Jeep. Blaine grabbed the others.

I started toward the two men. "It's fine, I can carry my own—"

Gina put an arm around my shoulders.

"Enjoy the chivalry for once, Ash. It won't kill you to let them carry our bags. Besides, I have a feeling it won't last long. The chivalry, I mean."

"Just wanted to get my phone to take some pictures," I mumbled, saying the first lame excuse that came to mind.

"You girls are really lucky to be interned to Blaine and Kade," Rebecca said. "These two know the center and the surrounding woods better than anyone else." Rebecca smiled at Gina's enthusiastic nod.

I stared at Kade, watching his arm muscles ripple while he carried the bags. I started to have all these naughty thoughts about those muscles but then he looked back at me and I saw that hungry look again.

I immediately lowered my gaze, blushing. What was I, some schoolgirl meeting guys for the first time? I had to remind myself I hadn't come out here to find a man.

I tried to convince myself he wasn't into me, that I'd imagined the wolfish looks. Maybe he was just hungry because he hadn't had his Canadian pancake breakfast or something.