The Secret (17 page)

“For the first time
since I was a kid, I felt like I was getting another glimpse into my future,” I continue my confession. “Just now, when I looked over at you? I saw how your skin is glowing, the way your eyes sparkle when you smile? You just continue to take my breath away.”

Her expression is one of love and surprise. I’m not a man of many words when it comes to my emotions, but I’m also not a man ignore the obvious. I’m in love with
Analise and I’ll never feel what I feel for this woman for anyone else.

Taking a quick glance at the clock in the dash, I see that it reads eleven forty-seven
.

“I’m sorry we’re in the car and in the middle of the street,
Love,” I smile to myself as I face her. “But Christmas Eve is nearly over and I have something I want to give you before midnight.”

The small, ve
lvet ring box that’s been hidden in every jacket I’ve worn for the past two months fits into her hand perfectly. I watch as realization sweeps over her features before her eyes find mine.

“
Drake?” she whispers, her eyes watery with fresh tears.

“Open it up,” I tell her, my voice quiet
and even as I watch as she brushes her fingers over the velvet with shaky hands. As she slowly begins to push the lid open, she surprises me by snapping it shut almost immediately as her eyes snap forward out the windshield in front of us. “What’s wrong? Do you not like it?”

“I don’t know,” she admits as she turns to face me. “I didn’t look at it yet.”

“Well, look at it, Baby,” I tell her, unable to hide my smirk.

“Not yet,” she says, hold
ing my eyes. “Drake, there’s something I have to say before I open this box.”

“What is it?” I
say, the unfamiliar feeling of nervousness coursing through my veins.

“If I’m wrong, I’m about
to be so embarrassed, but I have to say it or else I might regret it forever,” she admits as she takes my hand into hers and holds my eyes. “I know it’s not something we’ve talked about, but I’m not stupid, Drake. Your house is ridiculous and the watch you’re wearing right now costs more than my Jeep,” she admits nervously. “If you’re about to ask me…
something
… I don’t want you to think that any of that or whatever is in this box matters or has anything to do with my answer. I don’t care about any of it. My answer is going to be yes because of my feelings for you, nothing more.”

“Come here,” I whisper, pulling her towards me with the palm that’s still resting possessively on the side of her neck. Leaning over the console that separates us, I press my lips to hers, kissing her de
eply. Swallowing a small whimper, I savor the taste of her tongue sweeping against mine. Slowly, I pull away from her, hovering over her lips and searching her eyes before placing another chaste kiss on her lips. “Open the box, Baby.”

Still leaned over the console, she pushes the box back open and this time,
looks at the six carat, oval cut diamond ring I’d chosen for her the day we’d gotten back together.

“Oh my God,” she says, covering her mouth with her hand and crying as she meets my eyes again.

“Analise,” I whisper, gently wiping the tears from her perfect face. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes, Drake,”
she says with a wide smile, pushing herself up to meet my lips.

After another long, deep kiss, she pulls away and gives me another smile and lets out a small chuckle.

“Now
that
was a proposal!”

“I love you,” I beam
, recalling that morning in the hotel room before Emily’s wedding.

“I love you, too,” she says, kissing me again when I slide the ring onto her finger. After looking down at it for a moment, she looks over at me with a grin. “Man, I’m glad you didn’t get me earrings! That would have been awkward!”

Jack

“Jesus, Sophie! How the f
uck are you running so fast?” Chase pants as he tries to catch up with her.

Once he makes his
way out of the cleared area we’ve been at the majority of the night, he won’t be able to see shit. I’ve taken that run more than a few times and with the exception of the faint reflection of the moon, it’s pitch black out there.

Aside from
her loud laughter, the only response he gets is her black tube top flying off behind her, her jeans coming off next. She won’t actually jump in though. Not when it’s this cold outside.

I slowly make my way over to the edge of the clearing, watching the scene unfold and making sure he can get her out if she actually jumps in this time.

“Sophie, stop!” he yells after her, the panic clear in his voice.

I almost feel sorry for the guy as I take a long pull from my beer.

Almost
.

“It’s
fucking freezing!” she laughs in Charlotte’s direction, completely ignoring him for a moment.

“Hurry,
Soph!” Charlotte yells in excitement. “They’re coming!”

Hearing Chase and Dusty gaining on them, she turns slightly and I get a full glimpse of her perfect, bare body in the moonlight. The only body I’ve ever taken, the only body I’ve ever craved… the
same body that still owns every piece of me.

I’m staring, my beer hovering less than an inch from my lips, when he re
aches the edge of the dock, blocking my view of her.

“I can’t believe you actually thought I was going to jump! I’m a shitty swimmer and it’s freezing in there!”
Sophie snickers, covering her bare chest as she stands in her pale panties at the other end of the short pier.

“
Dammit, Baby!” he pants, coming to a stop a few feet in front of her and resting his hands on his knees. “Put some fucking clothes on!”

Sophie’s
giggling, huddled into herself and walking towards where’s he’s waiting at the end of the dock. She’s nearly there when Charlotte runs past him.

“Cannon ball!”
Charlotte shouts, grabbing Sophie and pulling them both into the freezing lake.

“Sophie?” he yells
out.

When she doesn’t answer immediately,
I break out into a full sprint towards the dock.

When she
emerges, she’s obviously struggling.

“Chase, I can’t,” Sophie manages, her teeth chattering and body trembling
as she attempts to keep her head above the water.

Betw
een her poor swimming skills, the low temperature of the water and her drunken state, I don’t see how she’ll make it out on her own. I’m reaching into my pockets to toss out my keys and phone when I see Chase jump in after her, fully clothed.

Before I can even reach the
edge of the dock, he’s swimming to where she is in the middle of the lake. As he pulls her head above the water, she lets out a sharp gasp, struggling for air.

“Hang on to me, Baby,” he tells her
as he swims to the dock, positioning her onto his back before pulling her with him.

“What the hell woman?” Dusty says to Charlotte as he pulls her onto the dock
and directs her towards her discarded clothing.

“Sophie, I’m so sorry,”
she calls to her through chattering teeth as Chase pulls them both up by the stairs on the side.

When she continues to choke on the water that had just threatened to fill her lungs, he rolls her slightly and lightly smacks her in the center of her back, forcing the water from her.

“Breathe, Baby,” he says quietly shaking from the cold.

Sophie coughs sharply before inhaling the air she desperately needs, the sound of her breath causing a collective sigh of relief.

“Soph, I didn’t mean to pull you in with me,” Charlotte continues. “Everyone knows we never really jump in, I just didn’t realize how close to the edge we were.”

“I-it’s ok-
kay,” Sophie eventually manages, shivering Chase pulls her close to his chest.

“Are you okay?” he asks her quietly, ignoring the exchange completely as he moves her face to look her over. “
Jesus, you scared the hell out of me.”

“I’m s-sorry.”

“Come on, Princess. I’ve got dry clothes in the truck.”

Picking her nearly bare frame up
, he pulls her up in his arms so that her front is covered and he’s carrying her.

“Here
Soph,” I tell her pulling the light jacket I’m wearing off and placing it over her shoulders. “You weren’t supposed to actually jump in, crazy girl.”

She
raises up slightly, just enough to slip her shaking arms into my coat and pulling it around her body.

“
Th-thank you, J-Jack,” she manages, giving me a grateful smile as she rests her head back against his chest.

“You’re welcome, Babe,” I tell her quietly
before facing Chase. “I’ll grab her clothes and follow you to the truck.”

“Thanks,” he says as he starts in that direction.

Chase

“We d-don’t have to l-leave,” she slurs up at me, the ridiculousness of her words almost stopping me in my tracks. “We weren’t d-done having f-fun.”

“Oh, we’re definitely done,” I
tell her, shaking my head. “I’m getting your little ass in this truck and we’re leaving.”

“Why d-do we have t-to leave?”

“Are you serious right now, Sophie?” I ask her as I pull the door open on my side.

“Why are you f-freaking out, Ch-Chase? I’m f-fine!” she argues, her teeth still chattering as I set her down on the seat.

“Baby,” I start, freezing and honestly irritated that she’s being so defiant. “You just stripped off all your clothes and jumped into a freezing fucking lake causing me to have to jump in after you. We are
leaving
.”

“I d-didn’t ask you t-to jump in the lake, Ch-Chase!” she shouts back as I turn the heater on
and reach for my bag in the back. “And I c-can’t go back to my aunt’s like th-this anyway! My m-mom would f-fucking f-flip!”

“
I’m not taking you back to your aunt’s,” I tell her as Jack walks up with her things and I throw them into the seat and pull a hoodie out of my bag. “Turn around,” I tell Jack, ignoring the way he rolls his eyes at me.

“You know, I’
ve seen her naked, right?” he chuckles.

“
Fuck off, Jack!” I snip at him childishly, making him laugh harder before I face Sophie again. “You’re coming back to the hotel with me.”

“Chase,” she starts, pulling the jacket off and putting her head through the
hoodie I’m holding open for her. “I c-can’t! My mom’s going to f-freak out!”

“I don’t give a shit.
Come here,” I tell her and she hooks her arms around my neck, letting me help her into her jeans.

“Chase, I’m
n-not that drunk anymore,” she argues. “Now that I’m changed, I can sneak b-back in the window.”

“No,” I tell her, nudging her across the seat and
quickly changing into dry clothes. “Jack, do you need a ride?”

“Nah,
I can get a ride just get her inside. I was just screwing with you before,” he admits. “She’s never actually jumped in,” he offers, nodding as I wave him off. “Soph, you gonna be okay, Babe?”

“Yeah,” she says
in a soft voice, finally warming in front of the heater. “Thanks for b-busting me out. S-sorry we have to leave.”

“It’s cool,” he says with a smirk as she hands his damp jacket back to him. “Go
get some rest.”

“Okay,”
she says quietly with a wave as I pull the door shut and back out.

For a while, I say nothing. I’m still so shocked by the way our evening turned out that I honestly don’t
even know what to say. When I take the right turn towards the hotel instead of the left towards her aunts, she breaks our silence.

“
Babe,” she starts. “Aunt Debbie’s is the other way.”

“
I already told you I’m taking you to the hotel, Sophie.”

“My mom-”

“Sophie,” I cut her off, my voice quiet. “I’m not arguing with you about this. I don’t care who it pisses off, you included. I’m taking you back to our hotel.”

Sophie

“Chase,”
I begin quietly. “Are you going to talk to me?”

Glancing down at me, he looks at me for a moment before slowly shaking his
head. Turning into the lot of the hotel, he pulls into a spot and shuts the truck off.

“We’ll talk
upstairs,” he says in a short, quiet tone, opening the door and waiting for me to follow.

Catching his gaze, I feel my nerve
s but slowly scoot towards him and let him help me down. I’m sure I scared him, but aside from being cold, I’m fine. I can’t understand why he’s still so upset.

“Chase, it was an accident,”
I say quietly. “I wasn’t really going to jump in and Charlotte…”

“
Upstairs, Sophie,” he repeats, taking my hand and silently leading me through the lobby to the elevator. I want to say something more to defend myself, my friend, but as he rubs his hand over his face in exhaustion, I think better of it.

As we m
ake it to our room, I follow him in and watch as he begins pulling his still wet shirt off. His phone is completely destroyed, his wallet drenched as he places them on the dresser. I can tell he’s pissed, so I say nothing as he leads me to the shower.

After spending fifteen minutes under the hot water together in silence, he shuts it off and steps out. Wrapping a towel around me before grabbing his own, he
walks away towards the bedroom. When I find him, he’s standing at the foot of the bed.

“Do you have any pajama
s with you?” he asks me quietly as he reaches over to turn the heat on high.

“Yes
,” I say as I quietly begin dressing while he sets one of his thick hoodies on the edge of the bed for me.

He stays close
to the heater, securing the curtains and reaching into his bag. He’s still being oddly quiet as he pulls his mp3 player out and tosses it over onto the table.

“Chase,” I finally break the silence when it’s too much to take anymore. “You know it was an accident, don’t you?”

“I know,” he says simply, facing me as he pulls the towel from his waist and tosses it onto the pile of wet clothes in the corner.

“Well, then will you please talk to me? If you know it was an accident, why are you so upset?”

“Sophie,” he says, pulling a dry pair of boxer briefs on as he stands straight to face me. “What were you talking to Jack about?”

“What do you mean?
When?”

“Earlier tonight, I saw him pull you away from your friends and you followed him. The two of you were talking and I want you to tell me what it was about.”

Immediately, I feel all the color draining from my cheeks. I know right away what he’s talking about, but I can’t tell him. Not yet.

“Nothing,” I try, hating the lie. “It wasn’t anything, Ch-”

“Don’t lie to me, Sophie,” he cuts me off, meeting my eyes.

I can’t do this yet
.

“Chase,” I
start, the desperation in my own voice obvious. “I can’t… I can’t tell you.”

“
Why?”

“I just can’t. I promised I wouldn’t say anything to anyone.”

“Who did you promise?” he asks, folding his arms over his chest.

“
Chase,” I begin reluctantly, knowing the answer will only make things worse.

“
Who did you promise, Sophie?”

“Jack,” I admit quietly.

Nodding his head silently, his blue orbs hold my gaze and I see the internal war he’s having. I hate myself for putting him through this, but I know I can’t tell him the secret I’ve been hiding.

“Sophie, I’ve been pretty good to you, haven’t I?”

“Yes,” I tell him immediately, stunned he would even ask.

I know I don’t deserve him. I’m about to tell him as much when he cuts me off.

“I know I’m not perfect. I’m jealous, I’m possessive, I’m hot-tempered and I’m overprotective,” he starts, ignoring me when I shake my head at him. “I know my faults, but I also know that I’ve been extremely patient with you.”

“You have…
”

“I’ve not
pushed you on anything,” he cuts me off again, still staring down at me. “And I never will. I will always be as patient with you as I can because I love you. I love you more than my own life, Sophie, but I want you to listen to what I’m about to say to you. There cannot be any confusion on this, okay?”