Renewed (The Fractured Series Book 3) (7 page)

Chapter
Twelve

Jennifer and the girls delivered quite a reaction the first time I drove to school in the coupe. Squeals filled the air
, and they all had to sit inside and learn what every gadget was. And, of course, they all needed a ride around the block. They were very impressed, and I was bumped up in status in the group. After that, Rob and I took turns driving to school.

“Aunt Rachel invited us for dinner tonight,” Rob said. “Eric’s cousin Chelsea is coming. She’ll be staying with them the whole summer.”

“You don’t seem thrilled about her visiting.”

“I guess it really doesn’t matter. I’m sure Aunt Rachel will keep her very busy with all the excursions she’s planned.”

Reading Rob’s body language, I picked up that he wasn’t telling me all about Eric’s cousin. “Is there something about Chelsea you don’t like?”

“Well, she’s always had a thing for me.”

“A thing?” My protective claws started to emerge.

“Yeah. She tried to get me to ask her out. She even tried kissing me a few times.”

“And you didn’t because…”

“I didn’t because she’s Eric’s cousin, and Eric is my cousin, so it would have been weird.”

“Oh.” I looked down at my hands.

“And, because I didn’t really like her like that.”
Was he throwing that in because he saw I was upset?

I didn’t say any more on the subject, but I was no longer happy about Eric’s cousin Chelsea coming to visit.

When school was done for the day, I was thrilled to see Rob, but less than thrilled to be going to meet Chelsea.

Mrs. Bowman greeted Rob and
me at the door, her embracing self, as usual. When we walked in, Chelsea was standing in the living room. No one bothered to tell me beforehand that she was gorgeous. I thought Jennifer was beautiful, but Chelsea made Jen look like a cave woman.

Chelsea’s very long auburn hair was held back in a clip, but the curls at the bottom of the ponytail covered one shoulder like a beautiful shiny fabric. Her deep brown eyes were large and mysterious. Lip
gloss highlighted her full mouth. A pretty, pink lace top showed off her femininity. Tight blue jeans did little to hide how curvy she was. My spine straightened, and my guard went up. I felt very unattractive and threatened.

Chelsea looked at Rob. Her face shifted from the obligatory smile, to a grin filled with ill intentions.

“Oh my. Rob? I don’t think I’ve seen you for… how many years now? Two, three?” She walked right up to him and gave him a very suggestive hug. I didn’t like it.

“I think it’s three,” Rob said, returning the hug.

I didn’t know what I was angrier at: that she hugged him, or that he hugged back.
Be nice, Mandy.

Mrs. Bowman made the introductions. “Chelsea this is Mandy
; Mandy this is John’s niece, Chelsea.”

I smiled and said, “Hi.” She did the same.

“Why don’t you all sit in the living room until dinner is ready?” Mrs. Bowman said. “I’m sure you have a lot of catching up to do.” She looked at Rob.

I made sure I sat next to Rob on the couch. Chelsea took one of the seats across from him. She leaned back into the emerald chair and crossed her long legs.
Her posture conveyed her confidence.

She leaned over her knees and reached for Rob’s hand. With it sandwiched between both of hers
, her expression shifted from elated to somber. “First, let me say how sorry I am about your parents. I wanted to come to the funeral, but I got caught up with school. If you ever want to talk, I’m always available.” She switched her persona to a more casual nonchalance. Dropping Rob’s hand, she leaned back and reclined in the chair. “So, what have you been up to, Rob?” She was waiting for a lengthy discussion.

“School, work, you know.” Rob fidgeted with his hands. “You?” He was trying to be polite.

“College has been keeping me busy. You’d like college, Rob. Too bad you had to make up some classes in order to graduate.” She continued talking about things I had no knowledge of – people she and Rob both knew, places they both had been to, chemical theories that were way over my head.

“Mandy’s good in science, too.” Rob tried to include me in the conversation.

Chelsea turned her head toward me. “So, Mandy, what grade are you in?”

“I’m a senior, too.”

“Isn’t that nice?” But from her tone, I could tell she didn’t really think so.

Several silent, awkward moments passed between us before Mrs. Bowman announced dinner was ready.

I raced to the seat next to Rob’s, almost crashing into him. Everyone else filled in the rest—Mr. and Mrs. Bowman sat at either end. Eric took his usual place. And Chelsea was left to sit next to him. Unfortunately, it was across from Rob. She seemed upset by the seating arrangement, but swallowed her disappointment as she fixed her gaze on my boyfriend.

Mrs. Bowman served the salad, while Mr. Bowman passed around the entrée.

“So, how was your first year at college?” Mr. Bowman asked.

“I loved it,” Chelsea answered. “There is so much freedom on campus. You’re really forced to grow up
. I’ve become so responsible.”

“Well
, that’s wonderful,” Mrs. Bowman said. “What classes have you been taking?”

“During my first semester I took all of the regular academics. I just wanted to get my feet wet with it being my first college experience.” She glanced around the table to make sure she held everyone’s attention. “But this past semester, I took chemistry and physics.”

“Wow!” Mr. Bowman said almost choking on his food. “Both in one semester? That must have been difficult.”

Wearing her smugness with pride, she said, “Oh no, I have a natural ability to understand and remember lots of scientific information. I remember Uncle Rick teaching me all kinds of things in the lab.”

“He wasn’t your uncle,” Rob said with distaste.

“Well, it felt like he was my uncle,” Chelsea said. “We all used to spend a lot of holidays together.” Her tone was very
evocative.

Mrs. Bowman tried to diffuse a potentially volatile conversation. “Do you have a lot of girls in your dorm?”

Chelsea put her salad fork down. “Yeah. Boys, too.”

Now
, Mrs. Bowman put her fork down. “Boys, too?”

“Yeah. I’m in a co-ed dorm. My roommate is hardly there. She’s usually in her boyfriend’s room. It’s all good.” Chelsea flashed a grin at Rob. He didn’t seem to notice. I was happy about that. “If you would have been at this college this semester, we could have shared a room, Rob. I mean, we’re practically family.”

I looked at Mrs. Bowman. She didn’t seem to agree with Chelsea’s philosophy. I didn’t agree with Chelsea flirting with my boyfriend.

“It’s okay. My roommate’s careful.”

It was Mr. Bowman’s turn to change the subject. “Um, so why didn’t you want to travel with your mother and her new husband?”

“Uncle Jo-
ohn,” Chelsea used a more immature tone of voice, “it’s like their honeymoon. I can’t be the third wheel.”

After dinner, Mr. Bowman helped Mrs. Bowman clean up
, while the rest of us went into the den. Eric asked Chelsea a lot of questions about college campus life, mostly about the parties and girls. Every time Chelsea answered, she directed her attention toward Rob, who was also captivated by the fun offered by college.

They kept the conversation going with memories of past moments they had shared.
Remember the time this happened? What about when that happened?
Of course, I couldn’t participate and I ended up being ignored by everyone. I shrank back into the cushions of the couch and watched the clock move backward.

“Hey, remember the time we played hide-and-seek and we found you and Rob in his clubhouse?” Eric asked.

My ears perked up.
What? Rob told me only he, his father and Eric were ever in that clubhouse. When was Chelsea there?
Suddenly, I was very interested in hearing the rest of this memory.

Chelsea must have read the discomfort on my face. She fanned the flame. “Oh yeah. That was at the surprise party your parents threw for Uncle John’s birthday.” Again, she stared at Rob.

Rob said nothing.

Eric laughed. “Uncle Rick and I looked all over for you guys. We never thought of looking in the rocket ship. Mandy, you should have seen the looks on their faces when we caught them.”

“Yeah, like the cat who ate the canary,” Chelsea said. “Remember, Rob?” This time she looked at me. I understood what she was saying.

Eric realized  I was a member of the group. “Oh, sorry, Mandy.”

Finally, it was 9:30. Time to go.

“It was nice meeting you, Chelsea,” I said. “Thank you, Mrs. Bowman
, for a lovely dinner.”

Mrs. Bowman and I hugged
, and then Rob drove me home. I didn’t say a word during the entire ten-minute ride.

“Mandy, are you all right?”

“Fine. Why?”

“Well, you were very quiet tonight.”

“I didn’t think you noticed.”

“Of course I noticed. I love hearing your voice.”

“Well, you seemed preoccupied with catching up with Chelsea.” I think my tone might have given away my insecurity.

“Why
, Amanda Stewart, you’re not jealous, are you?”

“No,” I quickly defended.

A smile spread across his lips. “You have nothing to be jealous about. I love you. She’s not even a thought in my head.”

“But she was once… playing hide
-and-seek… in the rocket ship…”

“We were hiding. We were kids.”

“And what were you doing to pass the time?” He was speechless.

“I thought you said you never liked her.”

“What was I, twelve? I was in a closed space with a pretty girl. She kissed me first.”

“Oh, so do you always kiss girls who kiss you first?”

“Only when they’re you.”

Nice try, but you aren’t going to get out of this so easily.
“Save it.”

“Mandy, why are you so upset? I’m with you. So what if I had my first kiss with Chelsea.”

“She was your
first
kiss?”

“Yeah, so what?”

Now I felt even more upset.

“You know I had to have a first kiss somewhere down the line.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think I’d ever meet her, much less find out how incredibly beautiful she is, or that she still has a crush on you.”

“She does not.”

“Yes, she does. I know how to read another girl.”

“Well, I don’t care about her. You are the only one that matters to me.”

When he walked me to the door, he showed me that I did matter to him – a lot.

From that point forward, I made sure Rob was too busy to spend time with the
Bowmans while Chelsea was around.

***

The school year was almost finished. Soon, I’d be a graduated senior and ready for college – the college of my choice, not my convenience. I handed in my last two term projects and had one more to work on, which I did when Rob was working at the supermarket. In the middle of writing my final essay on the effects of American government across the world, the phone rang. The clock said 9:05.

“Can I pick you up five minutes earlier tomorrow? I have to ask you something.”

“You can pick me up right now if you want to.” I hoped my voice sounded playful.

“Well, I don’t think Matt would like that very much, but you’ve given me a reason to be distracted now.”

I laughed. “I’ll be ready. I can’t wait to see you.”

“I can’t wait to see you
, either. Dream of me. Good night. I love you.”

And I did dream of him.

With a small box of chocolates nestled in my arm, I approached the door. It wasn’t closed all the way, but I knocked. With no answer, I eased it open. Stepping into the Bowman’s living room, I looked around at its emptiness. A noise came from the kitchen. I clutched the box of chocolate tighter. Small steps brought me toward the sound.

Peering my head around the wall, I saw a man and a woman lying on top of the kitchen table. They were fully clothed, but locked in a passionate kiss. The woman was on top, her auburn hair hung like a curtain over the man’s face. Curiosity propelled me closer. They were too busy to see me. I angled around them until she heard my footsteps, and their activity stopped. I saw the wild mane of auburn hair flip back as she looked up. The identity of her lover was revealed.

Rob was on his back, his lips searching for hers. When Chelsea’s attention wasn’t on him, he turned his head to see her distraction. His blue eyes locked onto me. I watched with disbelief. Shock held me in place for a few seconds. My grip on the box of chocolates loosened. It fell out of my arm. Truffles and cream-filled bites tumbled across the floor as I bolted for the door.