Reason to Breathe (27 page)

“We have another commitment,” Evan stated
flatly.

“You will come back to visit me, won’t you
Evan,” she demanded, rather than questioned.

I couldn’t contain myself any longer. As Evan
slid the coat over my arms, I started laughing. At first in spurts
- because I was trying to hold it in. But then there were tears in
my eyes, and I couldn’t stop it from erupting.

“Are you laughing at me?” she asked.

“Actually, yes I am,” I stated with my eyes
watering. My face reddened as I covered my mouth to capture another
bout of laughter.

Evan smiled wide and said, “Good night,
Catherine,” before escorting me out.

Once the door closed behind us, I couldn’t
hold back. I laughed so hard, I had to bend over to support myself
with my hands on my knees. I couldn’t see through the tears that
were streaming down my face. I tried to compose myself, wiping the
moisture from my cheeks, and took a couple steps forward.

Then I thought of her whine and giggle, and
lost it again. I collapsed onto the top stone step, holding my
stomach as I convulsed with laughter. After it was too painful to
laugh anymore, I took a deep breath and wiped my cheeks again. Evan
stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching me with an amused
expression.

“I’m glad you found that funny,” he observed
with his hands in his pockets.

“Please don’t mention it,” I groaned, trying
not to laugh. “I can’t laugh any more. It hurts. Let’s just say
we’re even.”

19.
Not Laughing

“Ready for Jake’s party?” Evan asked from the driver’s seat, easily
releasing the formal disposition I’d witnessed most of the
evening.

“After that, I’m ready for anything.”

“We’ll see,” he grinned. “Maybe I’ll be the
one laughing at the end of the night.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked,
suddenly nervous.

“Nothing,” he replied, continuing to
grin.

When we pulled into Jake’s driveway, there
were already a dozen or so cars lining it, making us the last
vehicle to fit before the street. Evan kept watch outside the car
while I changed into a pair of jeans and more manageable shoes.

“So much better,” I breathed when I stepped
out of the car.

“You still look good,” Evan remarked with a
half smile. I ignored him.

I kept the same guard while he changed from
his suit into a pair of jeans and a sweater.

“Whenever you want to leave, we leave,” Evan
told me as we approached the front door. “Don’t feel bad either. He
invited you, this isn’t for me. I’m just here because you are.”

“Okay,” I agreed, trying to read into his
warning. He’d been acting strange about this party since I’d
mentioned it. But I couldn’t figure out why.

I rang the doorbell since it seemed more
appropriate than just walking in. It wasn’t the loud scene we
encountered at Scott’s party. Jake answered the door with a huge
smile.

“Emma! You’re here! Sara said you’d be here
soon,” he said opening the door wider for us to enter. His
welcoming smile faltered when he found Evan behind me. “Oh, you
brought Evan.” Evan gave him a quick smirk.

“Nice to see you, Jake,” Evan said, patting
his hand on Jake’s shoulder as we passed him to enter. Jake shut
the door and turned to Evan.

“Sorry, man. You may be outnumbered tonight,”
Jake informed him with a snide grin.

“I’m not worried.”

I had no idea what they were talking about,
but could definitely sense a little tension. I studied Evan’s face
for a sign, but he just smiled at me.

“You can hang your coats in the closet.” Jake
pointed to the door next to the entrance.

The small foyer led down a hallway. As we
followed Jake, I noticed an entrance on the left that opened into a
living room with an overstuffed couch and a large flat-screened TV.
To the right was another room with a long leather couch and a desk,
presumably an office.

The rooms were dimly lit by flickering
candlelight. There were only a few people in each room, quietly
conversing. A soothing jazz tune with a soulful trumpet blaring
carried throughout the house. The end of the hall revealed a set of
carpeted stairs and then it opened up into a kitchen. The kitchen
was bright with the overhead lights gleaming off the white
surfaces.

Sara was leaning against the island laughing
at something Jason said. She looked up when we entered the
room.

“Drinks are downstairs,” Jake offered. “Relax
and have a good time. I’ll be right back.” He disappeared down a
set of stairs that connected with the stairs leading up.

“Emma, Evan!” Sara exclaimed. “How was
dinner?”

“Filling,” I replied, with a quick laugh.
Evan pressed his lips together and scowled at me.

Sara examined us with her brows pulled
together, trying to decipher our exchange.

“I’ll tell you later,” I said quickly, still
grinning. “When did you guys get here?”

“We haven’t been here that long,” Sara
admitted. “I was going to give you a few more minutes before I
called.”

“Where is everyone?” I asked, looking around
then picking up on the small grin that Evan wasn’t doing a very
good job of hiding.

“I honestly don’t know,” Sara confessed,
looking around too. “We really did
just
get here. I think
everyone must be downstairs, but I don’t think there’s a lot of
people here.”

We were interrupted by the ringing of the
door bell. Jake bounded up the steps and strode down the hall. Six
more people I didn’t know entered the house – they looked like
seniors.

“I think everyone’s here,” I overheard Jake
tell one of the guys when they neared the kitchen.

“Emma Thomas?” the guy whispered, in shock. I
tried to pretend I didn’t hear him.

“Don’t even think about it,” Jake whispered
firmly, leading the group down the stairs.

Evan pressed his lips together to keep from
laughing. I narrowed my eyes, knowing something was up. He raised
his eyebrows and shrugged, looking away to avoid my glare.

“Do you want to go downstairs?” Sara asked,
as it was obvious we were the only ones upstairs, except for the
few people in the front rooms.

“Might as well,” I agreed.

Sara and I walked down together, while Jason
and Evan followed behind us discussing a football game or
something.

We entered the shadowy basement with its low
ceilings. At the base of the stairs was a long dark bar, with tall
black leather chairs pulled up to it. There were a few people
sitting on the chairs, talking. When I scanned the wide “U” shaped
space, I estimated about fifteen people dispersed throughout
it.

Besides those at the bar, there were others
sitting on a sectional couch in front of a suspended television.
The rest were clustered around a pool table across from the stairs
or sitting on the black leather sofa tucked in against the wall. I
was surprised that no one was playing pool or watching TV. The same
sultry soulful music piped through the speakers down here

“Want a drink?” Jake offered as we
congregated at the end of the bar.

“Do you have soda?”

“Sure, it’s in the fridge on the other side
of the basement. There’s a door over there - help yourself.”

I cut through the sectional area, through the
door he indicated into the unfinished side of the basement. Against
the wall was an old white refrigerator filled with bottles and cans
of a variety of sodas. I grabbed a bottle and returned to Evan,
Jason and Sara, who were still standing at the bar.

“What do you think?” I whispered to Sara, who
was sipping something red from a glass. “Does this feel weird to
you?”

“I have a feeling I know what’s going on,”
she admitted. “I’ve always wondered what Jake’s parties were all
about, but I had no idea. Guess he never wanted to invite the
judge’s daughter for a reason.”

Before I could ask what she was talking
about, Jake approached again.

“Evan,” Jake beckoned, “I want you to meet a
couple of people I don’t think you know.”

Evan looked at Jake curiously. He hesitated
to say, “I’ll be right back,” before walking away. I nodded, not
really concerned. I had no idea why he was acting so weird, but
this party wasn’t nearly as intimidating as the last. I wasn’t
worried about being left alone. There really wasn’t much going
on.

“I wish we could play pool or something,” I
told Jason and Sara. “It feels strange just standing here.”

“It’s not that kind of party,” Sara whispered
with a knowing grin.

“What do you mean?” I was so confused and
kinda bored to be honest.

“Hey,” a small brunette exclaimed walking
down the stairs. Sara turned toward her and smiled.

“Hey Bridgette!” Sara returned
enthusiastically.

Bridgette was followed closely by one of the
guys from the soccer team. She greeted Sara with a quick hug.

“I didn’t know you were going to be here,”
the petite brunette said to Sara in surprise.

“We came with Emma,” Sara explained. “Emma
this is Bridgette.”

“Hi,” I said softly. She smiled politely,
casually eyeing me. The guy’s hand slid around the Bridgette’s
waist, resting low so it was practically holding her ass. I looked
up at her face, pretending not to have noticed.

Jason started talking to him, apparently they
knew each other too. The entire time, the guy’s hand remained
attached to Bridgette. It was almost as if he were claiming her or
something.

“Did you just get here?” Bridgette asked.

“Not that long ago,” Sara replied.

“I didn’t realize you were interested in
Rich,” Sara whispered, nodding to the guy with the branding
hand.

“I figured, why not?” Bridgette declared with
a shrug.

Sara tightened her eyes at the response but
didn’t inquire further. Instead, she and Bridgette began talking
about their mothers, who apparently knew each other, and other
subjects they had in common that I knew nothing about. I pulled out
one of the black leather bar chairs to sit and half listened as I
fiddled with the soda bottle.

“We’re going upstairs,” Sara said after
awhile. “Will you be okay? I promise I’ll be right back.”

“Sure.” I nodded with a reassuring smile.

“Don’t go anywhere,” she warned, leaving me
even more confused.

I scanned the room but couldn’t locate which
group Evan was in with the lights so low.

“Left alone?” a voice asked from behind me. I
turned to find a dark haired guy with vibrant bluish-green eyes
leaning against the chair next to me. I recognized him as one of
the guys who arrived after we did.

“For now,” I said with a small shrug.

“That’s not good.”

“How do you know Jake?” I asked.

“We’re friends – we’re both seniors,” he
explained. “You’re Emma Thomas, right?”

“Yeah,” I said slowly, trying to figure out
if I should know who he was.

“I’m Drew Carson. I realize you probably
don’t know me.” But something made me wonder why I did. His name
sounded so familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it.

“But you know who I am?”

“Of course.” He laughed. “That was a great
game last night. I heard you have scouts looking to pick you
up.”

I blushed. “Yeah. So you were at the
game?”

“Who wasn’t?” His sincerity made me
smile.

“Why do I recognize you? I know I’ve seen
you,” I struggled, “but I can’t place it.”

“Basketball probably,” he offered. That was
it. Drew Carson, captain of the guys’ basketball team this season.
That made sense with his lean built frame. How had I not noticed
him in school? But then again, it seemed I didn’t notice anyone in
school unless they threw themselves in front of me.

“That’s it. Sorry.”

“That’s all right. I should have tried to
talk to you before tonight,” he admitted. “But I’m glad you’re
here. I’m surprised you’re here, but whatever.” He revealed a
sparkling smile as his cheeks creased with deep dimples. Honestly,
how did I not notice him before - he was beautiful.

“I like your sweater,” he said, after a few
seconds of silence.

“Thanks.” I blushed again. I was searching
for anything to say that wouldn’t sound forced. “Do you ski?” I had
no idea where the question came from, but it was the first thing
that came out of my mouth. Could I be any more pathetic?

“Yeah, I’m going to Vermont next weekend with
my family. Do you?”

“Actually, I don’t.” We both looked at each
other and started laughing at the awkwardness. Our laughter was
loud against the murmuring voices, invoking a few annoyed
stares.

“Oops.” I smiled, covering my mouth. “I
didn’t realize we were
supposed
to be quiet.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, smiling
back. “They’re just taking this way too seriously.” I was confused
by what he meant, but most of tonight seemed confusing. I’d figure
it out eventually, hopefully.

“Do you do anything else besides play
basketball and ski?” I asked, still trying to keep the conversation
alive, but not as stressed after our outburst.

“I surf and try to go white water kayaking
when I can.” Then he continued to talk about the best waves he’d
ever surfed – in Australia. I listened and was soon engrossed in
his story.

We continued back and forth until it occurred
to me that it had been a long time since Evan, Sara and Jason
disappeared. I glanced around casually while contributing to the
conversation but was unable to make out any of their faces in the
dark corners.

“I’ll be right back,” I announced. “I’m going
to get another drink.”

“I need to run up to the bathroom,” Drew
said, pointing up the stairs. “Meet you back here?” He actually
wanted to keep talking to me?

“Sure,” I agreed.

I walked through the space with the
sectionals again, discretely trying to look at the faces to find
Evan or Sara. I was shocked to walk in on a few couples kissing -
heavily. It didn’t seem to bother them that I was there or that
there were other couples next to them doing the same thing. I kept
my eyes to the ground until I heard the heavy breathing and walked
faster.