With This Heart (10 page)

I veered away from him and started to take in the exhibits. The front kiosk had definitely foreshadowed the quality of the rest of the park. I had no clue what to expect, but it was about one-tenth the size of a normal zoo. There were cages set up with animated dinosaurs inside, but most of them had stopped working long ago. The ones that did work moved painfully slow and their growls came out sounding like distorted garbles.

It took us hardly any time at all to lap around the entire place, but we couldn’t leave yet. It didn’t feel like we had done everything the park had to offer. I was measuring my foot in one of the “Compare Your Footprint to a T-REX” displays when Beck came up with his brilliant idea.

“
I think you should sneak into one of the cages and climb onto a dinosaur,” he whispered quietly, as if the kid up front could hear us all the way back there.

“
Great idea,” I beamed before dryly adding, “No.”

“
C’mon, Abby! The kid said it was against the rules, don’t you want to do it?”

“
Not in the least,” I answered, acknowledging that my footprint was in fact MUCH smaller than that of a T-rex.

He stepped in front of me and blocked my path with his hands on my shoulders. “Abby. Someone has done it before, that’s why there’s a rule. Don’t you want to be that person? Don’t you want to have memories of this summer that don’t include measuring your freaking footprint?”

I hated him for calling me out on the fact that I really was a goodie-two shoes, but living my life didn’t mean I had to break rules. Though I wasn’t sure how else I would feel alive. I’d never done anything like that before; maybe I didn’t know what I was missing.

“
Shit. Fine, I’ll do it.”

You wouldn’t have said no to those greenish hazel eyes either. It really wasn’t fair.

We picked the Triceratops in a cage near the back of the park because it was lowest to the ground. Beck laced his fingers together and I wedged my Keds inside his cupped hand so that he could help me over the fence. He couldn’t come in with me because he was acting as my lookout and documentarian.

“
Don’t look at my ass.”

“
Wouldn’t dream of it,” he answered with a smug grin as I pushed off the ground and grabbed the top of the fence.

“
Oh, please,” I called as I hopped over and landed with bent knees in the mulch.

Holy crap. I was officially breaking the law. Right? Wasn’t this trespassing or something?

“
Move, Abby. You look like a deer caught in headlights.”

I flipped him the bird, then crouched low and ran toward the dinosaur. I didn’t want to be out in the open when I attempted to mount the damn thing, so I ran around to the other side. A couple of thumps on the dino told me that it was made of thick plaster; at least the thing would hold my weight while I was up there.

“
Hurry!” Beck called.

I wiped my hands on my jeans shorts and tried to get a good hold on the back of its skull where there was that giant frilly curve. I stepped up onto the back of its bent knee. Then, with a giant grunt, I pushed off the knee and pulled myself up.

“
Woohooo!” Beck called as I repositioned myself on top.

I knew I had less than a minute before the pimply kid looked up from his Nintendo DS, but I couldn’t move. My heart was pounding a mile a minute. Adrenaline was shooting through every vein and I sat there reveling in the feeling of being wholeheartedly
alive
.

I looked over to Beck and saw him holding up his phone, ready to snap a picture. “Do something!”

I threw my arms in the air and squealed louder than I ever had in my life.

“
Get down! Get down! Why did you just scream? The kid’s coming over!”

I didn’t want to get down. I threw my hands back into the air and pretended to ride the dinosaur like I was trying to rope cattle. Beck just stood there laughing hysterically and snapping photos. I leaned back and laid down, then bent my knee up like I was posing seductively. I looked right at Beck and bit my lip.

“
Oh my God, Abby.” He wasn’t snapping photos anymore. He was looking at me like he wanted to devour me.

“
HEY! GET DOWN!” The kid had finally arrived. I screamed and scrambled into action. My survival instincts kicked in and I jumped down and hopped the chain link fence with unusual dexterity. Once I was on the other side, Beck and I took off like we were sprinting for our lives. I’m not even sure if the kid chased after us, but we had a mission. We were the law-breakers, delinquents, and rebels without a cause trying to fight the man and get away with it. We kept
sprinting through the exhibits, out of the park, and toward our car before Beck pulled my arm and stopped me.

I was at the passenger door, leaning against the glass. He was supposed to go to his side so we could finish our getaway, but he wasn’t following protocol. He pushed me against the passenger door and pressed his lips to mine. It was a soul-stealing kiss, the kind that lifts you off your heels and makes your spine curl. I wrapped my arms around his neck and moaned into him. Our hearts were already beating rapidly from our run, but they blended together as Beck gave me the best second-first kiss anyone has ever had.

And that, future kids, is why in an old brown box tucked deep within my closet, you’ll find a photo of me attempting to mount a Triceratops.

Abby
: Hey C. We just arrived in Corpus Christi. We’re staying in a hotel on the beach for the next two days. Kiss number 1: horribly awkward, I’ll give details later. Kiss number 2: best experience of my life, details also to follow.
PS.
I sort of broke the law today!

Abby
: Hey Mom! Sorry I haven’t answered your calls. I wasn’t at my apartment this morning because I was visiting Caroline. Don’t worry. Love you and I’ll call you later.

Caroline
: What?! First & second kiss already AND breaking the law? I’m so proud. If I don’t answer later, I’m probably napping-don’t worry.

Mom
: Oh, alright. Well that makes me feel better. I know we’ve been hounding you lately, but it’s hard not to worry. I love you.

“
Earth to Abby,” Beck called as we parked the car in a spot outside of the beachfront hotel. We were splurging for the next two days; after camping last night, we felt like we deserved a shower and a real bed.

“
Sorry, I was texting my friend Caroline,” I replied, slipping my phone back into my purse.

“
Is she a healthy friend or a sick friend?”

I wondered how he would even know to ask something like that. I guess being sick for so long meant that most of the people in my life would have also been sick.

“
Very sick friend,” I answered quietly. “She needs a liver transplant.”

“
I thought those were one of the easier organs to get?”

I looked out toward where I knew the ocean was. I could barely make out a thin layer of blue waves beyond the horizon. “Not if you still have cancer.”

I couldn’t see his reaction, but I could feel his gaze on me. He never said anything, because really what was there to say?

“
Do you think we have time to go swimming?” I asked, narrowing my eyes and trying to fight the feelings of sadness looming just a few blinks away.

“
Probably not tonight,” he answered wistfully. “What if we went first thing in the morning?”

I glanced back toward him. “Sounds good. Can we order pizza and eat it on the bed while we watch a movie?”

He nodded, giving me a small smile. “After running from the law, we should probably lay low for the night,” he joked, making me smile once again.

Our hotel room only had one bed. I pretended like I didn’t care, as though I’d casually shared a bed with dozens of hot guys in my past, but inside my organs were flip-flopping around like crazy.

“
Abby, please try and keep your hands to yourself tonight,” Beck joked the moment we walked into the room.

Normal-Abby would have offered a witty comeback, but the alien inside my brain at that moment could only mumble awkwardly and evade eye contact at all cost.

We fought over both the pizza
and
the movie. We ended up just having to order two pizzas: one small vegetarian with pineapple and one medium supreme. Beck thought we should rent
The Conjuring
and I thought we should watch
Man of Steel
. I nixed the horror, he nixed the overdone superhero plot.

“
I’m going to take a shower before our food gets here, but so help me if you purchase
The Conjuring
I will throw your pizza into the ocean.”

“
As if your miniature arms could fling it that far.” He eyed me skeptically.

I gathered up my shampoo and floral scented body wash. “I will fling it as far as I can. If it lands on top of your grandfather’s Camper, then so be it.”

“
I’m pretty sure
The Conjuring
is taking place in this room right now,” he said with a hint of a smile.

“
Are you saying that I’m possessed?” I asked, heading toward the restroom.

“
If the devil-like-tendencies fit…”

I tried to come up with something as equally funny, but I couldn’t stop the laughter from ruining my plan.

“
I think I hate you as much as I like you,” I admitted before shutting the bathroom door.

He mumbled something, but I couldn’t hear it with the door closed. Instead, I imagined him saying that I was the funniest, prettiest girl he’d ever met. That was probably dead on.

After turning the water on to warm up, I pulled out my thermometer and my various pill bottles. My temperature was still normal, thank God, and the pills were swallowed quickly with the water muffling most of the noise as I stuffed the rattling bottles back into my bag.

Fifteen minutes later, feeling one hundred times better than I had with all that residual lake slime dried on my skin, I pulled on my pajamas and carried my stuff out of the bathroom. Our pizzas still hadn’t arrived yet, so Beck was sitting on the bed with his back against the headboard, focusing on a text. I took the opportunity to look at the pieces of him I hadn’t yet inspected: his long jean-clad legs, his broad shoulders, the sexy five o’clock shadow he would most likely shave soon.

I started brushing out my damp hair before asking, as casually as possible, “Who are you texting?”

He looked up, his hazel eyes locking onto mine, and grinned. “Mary Beth.”

I huffed nonchalantly, “Sounds hot.”

“
Hmmm,” he said, drawing his gaze down to my bare legs and then back to his phone.

“
Are you guys dating?”

His grin widened, but he didn’t look up at me. “It’s not like that.”

“
Oh.”

“
You seem overly curious about me texting another girl.” He quirked an eyebrow.

I shrugged and shifted slightly so that I could look at the hotel mirror propped above the desk. From my vantage point, I could see Beck watching me brush my hair. “Not in the least,” I answered.

“
Alright,” he answered confidently, running a hand through his now disastrously-messy hair.

“
How do you know her?”

He narrowed one eye, tilting his head back in thought. “Let’s see… she made me a baby blanket when I was little, but I don’t really remember our first meeting.”

I loosened my hold on the brush, only then realizing I’d been tensing every muscle in my body. “Oh. Is she your grandmother?”

Cue the adorable half-smile that made my heart skip a beat. “The one and only. Grandmother aka Grammy.”

I scrunched my nose. “Hah. So you aren’t sexting?” I thought I’d win with that comment, but Beck never let me win.

“
I didn’t say that.”

I laughed and shook my head. He wiggled his eyebrows playfully and tossed his phone down onto the bed. A second later, he started tugging his t-shirt off and I was left gaping like an idiot. The way his muscles stretched as he lifted his arms…the hard lines of his six-pack.

“
I’m going to shower. If the pizzas get here will you pay with the cash I left out on the desk?” He walked away and I was left gaping like a sad guppy.

“
Mhmm,” I murmured dumbly. I wish I could say that seeing him strip didn’t faze me, but it was so unexpected. We’d gone swimming together, yes, but being half naked in a hotel room felt much different.

I was still sitting there on the edge of our bed, with my hand wrapped loosely around my hairbrush, when a knock sounded at the door.

“
Coming!” I yelled as I clambered off the bed and reached for my wallet. Like hell I was going to use Beck’s cash with him not around; it was finally my turn to pay for something.

Ten minutes later, the shower cut off and I heard Beck drying off. My body was relaxed against the headboard with my pizza box propped on my lap. It felt scandalous to be eating on the bed, but just as my first bite was an inch away from my mouth, Beck walked out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel around his hips. It was sitting just under his stone-hard abs and angled dangerously low.

Ahhh
.

“
Seriously?! Seriously. Who just walks around like that?” I commented, dropping the slice back into the box and clapping my hands over my eyes.

He laughed and my fingers parted so that I could peek through them. I wasn’t being subtle. There was just so much to look at it. His shoulders were impossibly broad and I could smell his body wash, clean and woodsy, from across the room.