After Alex Died (12 page)

“Your hands are so warm and so soft,” he muttered.

I placed both of my hands on either side of his face and held him for a moment until his breathing was slow and steady. Then I brought my lips to his and gently placed my mouth on his.

When his eyes opened they were
filled with emotion. He swallowed, as if he was trying to gulp back the tears that were threatening to surface.

“It’s okay,” I whispered then kissed him again. This time he responded and deepened the kiss.

He pulled me close and ravaged me with his hungry lips and tongue. He didn’t stop until we were both breathless.

“We still have to take the kids to dinner,” he said as his eyes searched the room for the clock. “Two minutes ago.”

We both jumped from the bed in a panic.

“I’m surprised there were no hungry kids knocking on the door,” he joked.

“And what about Sofia and Antonio?” I asked. “They’re never late.”

He gave me a sly grin. “I have a feeling they were probably doing the same thing we were doing.”

***

Dinner was at an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet on the edge of China town. The kids loved the idea of all-you-can-eat and I was so hungry the idea was appealing to me as well.

When we sat at the large table with the other counselors, I noticed that Antonio only had spareribs on his plate.

“Eating light?” I asked.

He looked up from his plate and glared at me. “Chinese isn’t really my thing.”

“You could be the first person I’ve ever met who doesn’t like Chinese food,” I replied.

“I know right,” Sofia agreed. “It seems un-American.”

Cameron laughed. “How can it be un-American not to like Chinese food?”

Sofia gave him a look like he was insane. “We were just at Ellis Island and you have to ask that question. We’re a nation of immigrants.”

Cameron nodded. “I see your point—I guess. Even though it’s
vague at best, it’s still a point.”

“Whatever,” Sofia chided. “Dee
Dee knew what I meant.”

I shook my head. “Don’t put me in the middle. I don’t want to have to take sides.”

“I would have been perfectly content going to Subway again,” Antonio huffed.

“Poo
r, baby,” Sofia teased as she placed her arm on his shoulder. “He gets cranky when he doesn’t get his Subway fix.”

I felt a hand rest on my thigh. When I glanced over at Ca
meron, he gave me a sly grin.

I leaned over and whispered, “What are you doing?”

“What do you mean?” he said in mock innocence.

I grabbed his hand in mine and held it. “That’s a little better.”

“But not nearly as much fun,” he quipped.

***

After we did a final bed check and saw that every kid was in the right room and accounted for, Cameron and I made sure no one was looking before we both snuck into my room. Sofia had already made it clear she was
spending the night in Antonio’s room, so I had Cameron in mine by default. I wasn’t sure exactly what Cameron was thinking but the room did have two double beds, just in case.

But what was I thinking? Was I actually considering having sex with Cameron? It was a big step. The only guy I had ever been with was Mason, my high school boyfriend. Cameron had been with
Rachel just a couple of weeks ago. It made me wonder how many girls he had been with. I assumed quite a few considering his history in high school. I didn’t want to be another check mark on what could have been a long list of them.

Cameron bent down next to the nightstand and turned on the radio. He fiddled with it until he found a classic rock station. “Let’s see if they play any of your Top Three favorites,” he said.

He flopped on to the bed closest to the door and rolled on his side, his head propped up with his elbow. “Care to join me?” he asked.

We were both fully clothed, so I didn’t think things would go too far
, but I got extremely nervous anyway. A big part of me wanted to be with Cameron but a small part of me was still afraid of fully engaging.

I crawled onto the bed and lay next to
him. His stunning green eyes were filled with tenderness. “I could just look at you all night and it would be enough.”

Small shivers ran through me as he softly caressed my face the way I had caressed his earlier. He leaned down and placed his mouth on mine. His first kiss was tender and sweet. He tasted like spearmint gum. Then he pulled me closer, so our bodies were touching, and his kisses became more intense and filled with desire.

As he pulled me close and our bodies met, only our clothes separated us. I could feel his erection growing hard against me and it both excited and scared me.

“I want you, Dee
Dee,” he whispered in my ear. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted you.”

I was lost in a torrent of emotion as he kissed me and c
aressed me and his desire for me grew.

“Yes,” I whispered so softly, I wasn’t sure the word had act
ually come out of my mouth.

“Tell me what you want, Dee
Dee. Do you want me?”

“I want you,” I said, this time with more conviction.

He looked into my eyes. “Are you sure? You really want me? You have to be sure.”

I gulped. “I’m sure.”

His eyes glistened with that glorious sparkle that I adored and a small smile formed in the corner of his mouth. He kissed me, then began to slowly unbutton my shirt. He followed each button with a butterfly kiss, first on my collar bone followed by kisses all the way down my chest. With each light kiss, shivers ran through me until every nerve ending in my body was aroused and on high alert.

Just as he was about to undue the top button of my jeans, we heard a blood-curdling scream from the hallway followed by several doors slamming.

We both jumped from the bed and I quickly buttoned my blouse. Talk about bad timing. I tried to compose myself and when I looked over at Cameron, he was in even worse shape, as his full arousal was difficult to hide. He put his hands in his pockets in an attempt to tame the beast in his pants and I tried to do the best I could to tame my hair.

When we heard another series of loud voices and doors slamming in the hall way, we knew we had to get out there to see what was going on.

Antonio and Sofia were already knocking on doors when we arrived at the end of the hall. Antonio gave us both the once over and grinned.

“Like you weren’t doing the same thing,” Cameron scoffed.

“A gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell,” Antonio joked.

Sofia apparently found something amiss in the room Grace and Savannah were sharing because she stormed in there with her hands flying in the air.

“What do you all think you’re doing?” I could hear her scream. I scurried into the room after her and Antonio and Cameron followed.

The room was a disaster. There were empty beer cans strewn about; chips and cheese doodles were everywhere including several crushed into the carpeting; and the non-smoking room reeked of cigarettes.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Grace cried on the verge of tears. “The boys brought beer and cigarettes into our room.”

Sofia’s face was turning red with anger. “What were the boys even doing in your room?” she spat.

Grace turned into a sobbing heap and Savannah started sniveling behind her.

“Who were the boys in your room?” Sofia demanded.

Neither of the girls spoke. Were they really going to protect the boys who supposedly caused the mess?

“If you don’t tell me, you’ll be the ones in trouble,” Sofia continued. I was so proud of her. She was just like a mini Dr. Jones.

I noticed a small crowd of other kids had gathered outside the door to watch the show. Ryan and Hunter both looked like cats that had swallowed canaries.

The group of kids parted like the Red Sea when Dr. Jones marched through them and into the room. It was like all the air was sucked out of the small space when Dr. Jones glanced around.

“To say I’m disappointed would be an understatement,” she stated. She made a show of inspecting the strewn beer cans and the junk food in the carpet. “This is disgraceful and completely shames you and the school.”

She glared at Grace and Savannah, who were now sobbing. “You both need to pack your things. You’re out of the program.”

Both girls gasped at the same time.

“Please don’t do this,” Destiny pleaded as she entered the room. “It’s not their fault.”

Dr. Jones narrowed her eyes and glared at Destiny. “Were you are part of this?”

Destiny looked traumatized. She shook her head slowly as if she was unsure of the correct response.

“I warned you all that anyone who broke the rules would be immediately dismissed from the program.” She moved her arm around the room. “Several rules were broken here.”

When I looked at the kids in the hallway, they were all wide-eyed.

“What are you waiting for?” She eyed Grace and Savannah. “This place needs to be cleaned up and I’m phoning your parents to pick you up.”

The two girls gasped again.

“But it’s the middle of the night,” Savannah pleaded.

“My dad’s going to kill me,” Grace moaned.

“Can you at least wait until morning to call them—please?” Savannah looked like her world had just ended and from her perspective, it probably just had.

Dr. Jones shook her head. “You are no longer participants in the College Bound program, so I can no longer take responsibi
lity for you, nor do I want to.” She made a point of glancing around the room again at all of the evidence of wrong-doing.

Then Dr. Jones turned to the kids still standing in the hall way. “Does anyone else want to join them? Do any of you want to admit to being a part of this?”

I saw Lyle start to make a move, like he might confess, he caught my eye and I slowly shook my head and mouthed no. He put his head down.

When I glanced over at Dr. Jones, I breathed a sigh of relief that she hadn’t seen the interaction between
Lyle and I. Cameron had, though, and he was looking at me with a strange expression on his face.

Dr. Jones stared intently at Ryan and Hunter but neither of them was budging. All of the kids were now staring at the floor and wouldn’t even look Dr. Jones in the eye.

I had the feeling that if all of the kids responsible for the party gave themselves up, Cameron and I wouldn’t have anyone left in our group.

“Fine,” Dr. Jones said. “I want all of you to get back to your rooms. We’ve got a big day ahead of us with the Museum of Natural History and the Planetarium.”

Cameron and I made sure all of our kids went back to their rooms while Dr. Jones stood over Grace and Savannah while they cleaned and packed.

I noticed Destiny was crying as she headed back to the room. I wanted to see if she was okay so I stopped her.

“Is everything alright?” I asked.

Her eyes were red and filled with tears. “Not really,” she r
eplied.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” she repeated.

“I know it’s late. Let me know if you want to talk.”

She nodded then turned and headed down the hallway.

Cameron touched my arm and I turned toward him. I’ll see you in ten
minutes, he mouthed then went into the room that he was supposed to be sharing with Antonio.

Sofia grabbed my elbow and pulled me into our room. As soon as the door shut, she flopped down on the unused bed. “That was intense,” she declared.

“We could have lost our entire group,” I stated.

“At least we don’t have to worry about the kids having any more parties when we go to Washington for three days.”

I flopped on the other bed. “Those kids may not have another party until they graduate from
college
.”

“Lyle was going to turn himself in and I persuaded him not to,” I admitted.

“Dr. Jones was harsh. I probably would have done the same thing.”

I propped myself on my elbow and faced her. “Do you think she was too harsh?”

Sofia turned to face me. “I believe in giving people second chances. And I think you do, too.”

“Are we still talking about the kids?” I asked.

“Everyone makes mistakes. Bad choices. Especially when they’re young. Hopefully we learn from them. Believe me, I was no saint when I was in high school.”

“And what did you do that was so bad?” I thought she would say she drank and partied.
Typical high school stuff.

Instead, her expression turned serious. “I was a wild child. I didn’t follow any of my momma’s rules. I started dating older guys when I was 14 years old. By the time I was 15, I was pre
gnant by a guy who was 25. He was married and had kids. He wouldn’t accept responsibility. He said I got around and the kid could have been anyone’s but he was the only guy I had been with in months. I was in love with him, or so I thought. My mom wanted me to get an abortion but I didn’t feel right about it. She finally talked me into it and there were complications. The doctors say it may be difficult or even impossible for me to have kids. So I could have had a kid when I didn’t want one but when the time comes and I want one, I probably won’t be able to have one. That’s a mistake with some pretty heavy consequences.”