Lingering Echoes (9 page)

We charged through the canyon, flying around curves.
The wind tore at our clothes and tossed the ends of my hair. I felt almost buoyant as we shred through the wind, not caring that we were surpassing the speed limit. I smiled, relinquishing myself to the feeling of freedom.

Too soon, Damien slowed the bike, pulling onto a dirt road. Leaving a cloudy trail behind us, I held on tightly as the path gradually inclined.

“You really need to hold on!” he called over his shoulder. I could feel my body slipping backwards, reminding me that the seat really wasn’t intended for two. I clung onto Damien as we ascended up the trail. He leaned forward to control the jolting bike. Finally, the trail evened out and I could see some man-made jumps ahead.

Pulling up beside the jumps, Damien let the bike idle, while I pulled the helmet off my head. I shook out my hair.

“Wow,” I breathed. “Not a bad drive.”

Damien smile, as though satisfied.
“The real fun is the jumps,” he explained, eyeing the ramps.

“So you’re pretty good then?” I asked, a little wary
of where this may lead.

“No, not really.
These jumps aren’t that big. They just take some practice.”

I looked at the run. The highest ramp was about four feet. It looked scary enough to me. “Well, let’s see you in action then.” I slid off the back, handing the helmet back to Damien. He pulled it over his head before revving up the engine once again. He drov
e back the way we came, rotating around so he faced the ramps.

Damien kicked the motor into full gear. The bike sped along the flat part of the trail, speeding towards the first and smallest ramp. He easily popped over the jump. I held my breath as he rushed towards the next ones, landing each one effortlessly.

When he finished, he pulled up beside me, handing me his helmet. “You want to drive?”

I envisioned myself spinning out of control and crashing with zero grace. Adamantly, I shook my head. “No. No, I don’t think so.” I’d already had an emotional meltdown in front of Damien. I didn’t need him to see me in a physical wreck, as well.

Damien laughed at my apprehension. “Here, give it a try. I’ll help you.” He slid back on the seat. Ignoring the sounds of my protest, he wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me close. “Come on, sit in front.”

I obviously had no choice in the matter. Tentatively, I threw my leg over the bike.
Lightly placing my hands on the handlebars, I tested the rubbery texture. I felt Damien lean in behind me. He put his arms around me with his hands resting on top of mine. He squeezed my hands into a tight fist around the bars.

“Feel that? You need to have a firm grip on it, or you’re going to lose control. You got the break right there.” He tapped the lever along the right handlebar. “You know how to drive a stick?”

I shook my head. “I know it’s sad, but I rely on automatics. Someone tried to teach me once, but it was a disastrous failure.”

“Ok, that’s not a problem,” Damien said. I was aware of the closeness of his face to mine. I could feel the
scratchiness of his day-old scruff scratching lightly against my cheek. I tried to focus on what he was saying, but the proximity of his body was distracting.

             
“We’ll just keep it in first gear,” Damien continued. “You ready?”

“I guess so,” I said. Damien removed the helmet from his lap and slid it over my head.

“
Now
you’re ready,” he corrected. “Ok, she’s all yours. Just gently pull back on the throttle and give it a little gas.”

I twisted my right hand
delicately, and the bike slowly gained momentum, shaking awkwardly while I tried to find balance.

“Don’t be afraid to give it just
a little more.”

I overestimated the rotation of my wrist. The bike heaved forward unexpectedly.

“Whoa!” The handlebars wobbled in my grip. Damien, still holding on, easily compensated for my mistake.

“Sorry!” I said. “
I told you I’m no good at this.”

“Just keep going,” Damien encouraged.

Nervous, I took a deep breath and then tried again. In moments, we were riding smoothly once more at a slow, even speed. Damien removed his hands from the handlebar and placed them along my sides. His hands pressed more firmly around my waist.

With growing confidence, I pulled back on the throttle. I laughed aloud, enjoying the acceleration. The cool air felt crisp against my skin. Silently, I noted the contrasting warmth of Damien’s body against my back.

The morning passed by too quickly, and my stomach’s low growl gave the time away. Not wanting to sound overeager, I didn’t resist when Damien offered to drive me home.

Pulling into the lodge parking lot, I slid off the back.

“So, was it worth it?” he asked, wiping a hand across my cheek.

I could feel
dust caked on my face and embedded in the cracks of my lips from our drive through the dirt trails. “Absolutely. Thanks for the ride and the lesson. I’m glad I didn’t wreck your bike or anything.” I cringed, envisioning the almost-crash that ensued. Glancing behind me, I was startled to see Nick staring at me from a short distance away. He seemed to be returning from the lake and headed to the cabin, but now he watched me with what appeared to be critical curiosity.

“
I better go,” I said to Damien. “Oh wait. Let me get your clothes for you.” I turned towards my cabin to retrieve the plastic bag, but Damien grabbed my forearm.

“Keep them for now. I’ll get them next time.”

I made a mental note of the words
next time
. “Ok,” I said, retrieving my arm from his hold. “Thanks. So, I’ll see you around then?”

Damien released an attracti
ve smile, but he didn’t answer. Instead, he put the helmet over his head, revved the engine, and spun his bike around. I watched him drive off with an uncertain smile on my face.

Nick was leaning against the side of our cabin, watching me. I squinted
at him as I approached.

“What are you up to?” I asked, noting the scrutiny in his eyes. I hoped my cheeks didn’t look as flushed as they felt.

“Should I be asking you the same thing?”

I folded my arms. “Now, why would you say that?”

Nick ran a hand through his brown hair, looking over my shoulder at the parking lot. “Oh, no reason.”

I stared back at him for another mome
nt. “All right. Well, I’m just going to go shower then.” I started to walk past him to our front door.

“I wonder though,”
Nick’s voice sounded behind me. I stopped in my tracks, noting the familiar callousness to his tone.

“What would y
our dad say if he knew his little girl was riding around on a motorcycle with a strange, older guy? And from what Aaron tells me—a guy that took you to his private cabin yesterday. What could be going on there?”

I spun
around. “What do you care? Just mind your own business, Nick!”

“Oh. Found a sensitive spot, have I?
”              

“
What
is your problem? Why are you trying to cause trouble?”

Nick put his hands up in innocence. “Me? Cause trouble? I’m just trying to work on my role as a good older brother. I’m sure our parents would be quite pleased with my efforts.
”

I
gritted my teeth together and lowered my voice. “How many times do I have to tell you? You are
not,
nor will you
ever
be, any brother of mine.”

“So, you’re giving up?
” Aaron asked.

H
aving threatened Nick to stay out of my way, and with Brooke working the day shift, it was just the two of us walking through the path of trees. I scrunched my eyebrows, not liking the mild hint of criticism in his voice.

“
Nick’s a jerk. He goes out of his way to make life difficult for me, and we barely know each other.”

“Well, do you ever think that’s
why
you both give each other a hard time? That maybe it’d be easier if you did get to know each other?”

Disbelief caught in my throat.
“Oh, please. Now you sound like my dad, who wants everything to be just peachy, simply because
he
decided to get married again.” I threw the question back at Aaron. “Did you ever think that I
am
getting to know Nick, and
that’s
why I don’t like him? Makes sense to me.”

Aaron was look
ing at the ground as we walked, keeping his thoughts to himself for the moment.

“Why do you care, anyway?” I asked.
“No offense, but it’s not any of your business.”

Aaron sighed
. “Because—Nick is my best friend. We’ve been friends since the seventh grade. Just because I’m a guy, doesn’t mean I don’t care about my friends’ feelings.”

“That’s what I don’t get,” I interjected. “How did someone like you become friends with a grumpy kid like him?” For a full minute, the only sounds between Aaron an
d I were the crunching of pine needles beneath our feet.

“Nick’s had it a little tough growing up,” Aaron started. “You know much about it?”

“Just that his dad left him and Clara when he was little.”

Aaron explained further.
“When Nick showed up in seventh grade as a new kid, he didn’t make the easiest transition. He was bad tempered and an easy target for some of the guys. Then he got himself into worse trouble. But once I got him to hang out with me after school playing sports and stuff, he turned around ok. And we became good friends from then on.”

“What kind of trouble
are you talking about?” I asked, my curiosity getting the better of me. Aaron shrugged.

“Why don’t you ask him about it some
time? Might give you something to talk about.”

“Ha. Or fi
ght about,” I corrected. “Never mind. Basically, you’re saying he has a sob story and I should be more sympathetic.”

Aaron stopped walking. I took another step or two before I turned around.

“What?” I asked, noting the disapproval in his eyes.

Aaron looked confused. “You know, for someone that seems to have a
sob story of her own, I’d expect a little more compassion or something.”

I tried to bury the small mound of guilt growing
inside me. “Yeah, well, maybe you should tell your boy the same thing. He’s not winning any awards of empathy these days either. But to be honest, I don’t think either of us cares about you playing the mediator between us, so you may as well stop wasting your time and energy. We’ll survive the summer and then it’ll be months before I need to worry about seeing him again.”

Aaron looked at me with disappointment.
“So that’s it, huh? You’re not even going to make an effort?”

I sighed, hating the way I
felt, but unable to stop myself from continuing. “Some relationships are not worth the effort.” I stared down at the ground, scraping at the dirt with the bottom of my flip-flop. I didn’t dare look up at Aaron, and I wasn’t sure he was still there.

But
behind me, I could hear a motor growing louder as it approached. My stomach fluttered as I turned around towards the river. In the distance, I could see a figure approaching on a black and silver dirt bike.

“Is that him?” Aaron asked, moving to stand beside me. I could detect a shadowed hint of discontentment in his voice.
I didn’t answer. Instead, I watched Damien drive across the bridge and pull up alongside the river. Rather than approach us any closer, he waited and watched us from fifty feet away, without saying a word. The motor of his bike continued to drone, while Damien’s eyes beckoned.

I took a step towards
him, but Aaron grabbed my left arm.

“Allie, what are you doing?”

I looked up at Aaron in surprise. “I think he wants to talk to me.”

“What—he
doesn’t have the decency to come over here to you? And why is he just looking over here like that?”

I met Damien’s eyes, flushing as I note
d the intensity of his gaze. “I don’t know. I’m going to go talk to him, ok?” I didn’t wait for a response, taking a few hesitant steps towards him.

“Allie—”
Aaron began again, his voice a little more cross. “Remember what we talked about?”

“
Remember how I said I didn’t need a big brother?” I countered, without turning around. “It’ll be fine.” I continued to walk to Damien. His dark features were daunting at times and I felt self-conscious knowing Aaron was examining our interaction. At last, I stood just a foot away from Damien. He still didn’t say anything, though his eyes didn’t stray from my face.

“H
i,” I started. “What are you doing over here?”

Damien leaned back on his seat. “I came to get you.” His eyes flickered towards Aaron. “That guy isn’t going to have a problem, is he?”

I looked over my shoulder at Aaron, who hadn’t moved, except to cross his arms across his chest. His blue eyes glared over at us.

“No. We were just talking but
...that conversation is over.”

Damien handed me
his helmet and I accepted it with two hands.

“So where are we going
today?” I asked.

“Hop on and see.” Damien revved the engine
and scooted as close as he could towards the handlebars.

“Always one for mystery,
” I murmured, but I slipped the helmet over my head, enjoying the excitement of uncertainty. I slid behind Damien, wrapping my arms around his waist. With a swift pull of the throttle, the bike took off. I took one second to look back at Aaron’s thoroughly disgruntled face. A moment of guilt passed through me. Still, I couldn’t help but smile as I wrapped my arms tighter around Damien’s torso.

Neither of us spoke over the wind and roaring engine. Instead, we whipped over the bridge and throug
h the trees, coasting next to the eastern shoreline of the lake.

Damien and I
stood beside the water, surrounded by trees and a couple of solitary cabins in the distance. Across the water, I could just make out our cabin and the busy shore full of sunbathers and children playing on the water edges, as well as the usual Jet Skis.

“So what are we do
ing out here?” I asked.

“Does there need to
be a detailed program? Because I can go home and create a brochure if you want.”

I laughed.
“No, but it seems like you have something in mind, even though you’re trying to hide it.”

“
All right,” he admitted. “I might have something in mind.” He grabbed my hand and led me towards the water. I was so distracted by the feel of his warm fingers wrapped around mine that I didn’t notice where he was taking me, but when we stopped moving, I realized that we were standing beside a canoe tethered to a tiny dock.

I pulled my hand away
, staring at the canoe with a guarded expression. I looked over at Damien, who awaited my reaction.

“We’re not going out on that
, are we?” my small voice managed to say. I felt the habitual response from my body—my muscles tensed and my breathing became shallower. I could almost feel the ground becoming shaky beneath me.

“Why not?”
Damien asked, grabbing my hand again and stepping into the canoe. I pulled my hand away.

“You know perfectly well why not,” I stated wit
h irritation, digging my heels into the ground.

“I didn’t say we’re getting in the water,” Damien explained. “We’ll just stay in the canoe. I promise I won’t tip us over.”

“There’s no guarantee in that,” I argued. “Canoes are unstable and can’t be trusted.”

Damien laughed. “Well, peo
ple say the same thing about me but here you are.”

I opened and closed my mouth, struggling with a defense.
Aaron’s disapproving expression resurfaced to my mind. For a moment, I wondered why I resisted heeding his warnings.

“See, you got
nothing. Come on over here,” Damien coaxed. He moved to the rear of the canoe, bracing his arms along the edges. Heaving a sigh of frustration, I took a step into the canoe. The boat trembled beneath me and I stepped back.

“It’ll be ok, Allie,” Damien said. “I won’
t let it tip over. Do you believe me?”

I shook my head. “It’s out of your control. You can’t make promises like that because you can’t control what the lake or people around us are going to do, or something
I
might do that would prove otherwise.”

“Well, then you’re just going to have to take a risk then, aren’t you?”

Risk
.

Something about his word c
hoice made me hesitate further, but with nothing left to back up my argument, I put another foot into the canoe, bending over to hold onto the edges. The canoe rocked back and forth, threatening to tip. I slipped my other leg inside and turned around on the bench so my back was facing Damien.

“Ok, grab your p
addle,” Damien instructed. I stuck it in the water while Damien untied the rope. He pushed the canoe off the dock. We glided along the smooth water with the initial wobbling ceasing, but the further we ventured from shore, the more anxious I became. This felt worse than the other day on the speedboat. I didn’t like being so low to the water, vulnerable to the waves that rippled our way from the motors in the distance.

Damien’s voice broke t
he silence. “So, is that guy a potential boyfriend?”

I laughed out loud.
“Hardly. He’s a friend of my stepbrother, who likes to pretend he has to look out for me. He has a bunch of younger sisters and seems to think it’s his duty.”

“He seemed a little more concerned than the brother-type.”

I looked over my shoulder. “Well, he’s not. He’s sort of into my friend Brooke. Although, I think he’s into just about any girl that walks across his path, but don’t tell
her
that. He’s just kind of like that.” I laughed again. “And so is she when it comes to guys, so I suppose they’re perfect for each other?”

Damien didn’t comment
, but I could tell there was something on his mind. Wasn’t there always? And I never seemed able to pry it out of him.

“What
about you?” I asked. I turned around in my seat so I was facing him, laying the paddle across the canoe. Damien seemed wary.

“What
about
me?” He stroked his paddle through the water to keep our momentum.

“You haven’t told me a
nything about yourself. I’ve seen you enough times that you’d think I’d know something about you. But I don’t. Including why you keep showing up.”

Damien seemed taken aback by my statement. “Why I keep
showing up?
I didn’t realize that was in question.”

I was thrown off by the wa
y his eyes ran across my face but, for some reason, it only added to my sudden crankiness. “Well, it is, actually. I feel like you have some secret agenda to carry out, like you’re hiding something.”

Damien shook his head
, his eyebrows pinched together. With thinning composure, he asked, “What do you want me to say?”

“I want to know more about you. You know more personal details about recent events in my life than even my own family knows.
Yet, any time I ask you something about yourself, I get stonewalled. Why is that?”

Damien put his own paddle down in the canoe. “
I’m just kind of a private person. I don’t like to talk about myself.”