Becoming (5 page)

What the hell?

“Done,” he said after another moment. His
voice still sounded strained.

“Thanks,” she replied, startled that her
voice sounded rather similar to his. She cleared her throat. “I,
um, I’ll be ready in another minute. Meet you in the kitchen?”

She caught his gaze over her shoulder. They
stared at each other for what felt like a full minute. He opened
his mouth to speak, his eyes intense. Her breath caught in her
throat.

Then he swallowed hard and looked away.
“Sure. Sounds good,” he said.

And she suddenly knew with a great deal of
surprise and certainty as he turned and walked out that there was
much more that he wanted to say, and that it wasn’t at all along
the lines of him thinking of her as a freak.

Heaven help him, he was making a huge mistake
escorting Amber to the pool party.

Gabriel eased the ZX into the makeshift
parking area beside Devon Brewer’s house while praying he could
keep his tongue in his head. Amber sat quietly beside him, gazing
out the window and seemingly oblivious to his inner turmoil. He
knew he had made a complete fool of himself when he first saw her
in her swimsuit. She had looked at him like he was demented as he
stood there without speaking. But for the life of him, he hadn’t
been able to command his brain to return to its fully functioning
state once he saw how undeniably hot she looked.

Unfortunately, her ensemble had only gotten
sexier when she tied the cover-up/skirt thingy Mrs. B had given her
around her slim waist. The slit up the side just drew even more
attention to her well-defined legs and backside. And, dear
Lord…those black, strappy sandals. How footwear from Walmart could
be so provocative, he truly had no idea.

Combine all of that with the stylish new
haircut and some judiciously applied makeup and he was pretty sure
his libido had hit the stratosphere.

The fact was, he’d had many years to learn
how to control himself when it came to his feelings for Amber. He
was being put to the test today, yes. But what concerned him more
was the reality that she was about to open the eyes of the many
males of Newnan High School. It would almost certainly generate
attention toward her that would make her highly uncomfortable, and
it would be entirely his fault.

“Nice digs,” she said as he cut the
engine.

Devon Brewer’s family lived in the Platinum
Point Historic District of Newnan on nearly two acres of property.
The house was Victorian in style with beautifully landscaped
gardens and a magnificent pool complete with a natural stone water
slide, making it ideal for the party.

“Yeah,” he agreed before he got out of the
car.

After six years together, Amber no longer
attempted to open doors for herself if she was with him. He enjoyed
being the gentleman. Mrs. B had instilled those manners in him from
the time he was old enough to understand them. He walked around the
car and opened Amber’s door for her. When she shifted and one of
her long, sandal-tipped legs emerged, he forgot to breathe.

“Well, guess it’s time to get this over with,
huh?” she asked as she stood beside him, adjusting her sunglasses
on her nose and tightening the knot on her cover-up.

“Am.” He paused, then sighed. “I’m sorry I
dragged you into this.” When she looked up at him with raised
eyebrows, he added, “I know you’d rather be anywhere else. I
thought it’d be nice—”

“Oh, stop beating yourself up,” she
interrupted, elbowing him in the side. “Geez, you’re such a martyr.
If it wasn’t for you, I’d be a hermit. A happy hermit, maybe, but a
hermit’s just one step away from a Scary Cat Lady. So you’re merely
doing your part to keep me from ending up the subject of a
CSI
episode where I get eaten by my own pets.”

He stared at her for a minute. Then he burst
out laughing. And just like that, the tension was gone. Swinging a
companionable arm around her shoulders, he started toward the
house.

“The Happy Hermit would make a great pub
name,” he said as they followed the sounds of the party,
maneuvering past the other vehicles already in the parking area and
walking around to the back of the house.

“Hmm. Not bad. Not as good as The Toasted
Ferret, though.”

Because he held his arm over her shoulders,
he felt the tightness building there as they got closer to the
party. Careful to keep his tone level, he said softly, “You’ll let
me know if you experience anything?”

Her shoulders somehow tensed up even more.
She nodded. It was the only direct reference he’d made to the surge
she experienced the day before. But he definitely remembered the
incident from three years ago, and he could safely say he wasn’t
looking forward to going through that again. He hoped by being
vigilant that they could avoid it.

Whatever
it
was.

The noise grew much louder as they entered
through the back gate. A number of colorful lounge chairs had been
positioned in the shade of an arbor by the back patio, with at
least twice as many situated around the pool out in the hot
sunshine. Tables for drinks were strategically placed to prevent
spills around the pool deck. Two large propane grills hissed with
the sound of cooking meat, filling the air with mouth-watering
aromas that managed to blend perfectly with the scents of suntan
lotion and freshly-mown grass. It seemed every teenage boy and girl
in Coweta County had put in an appearance, and with loud music
pumping through a fancy sound-system and voices raised to
compensate, even the great outdoors managed to feel like some
energetic teen’s dance club.

“Hey, Gabriel!”

Looking to the left, he spotted his friend
Ethan waving at him from a group standing beside a volleyball net.
Ethan was a good guy and fun to hang with. Gabriel gave him a grin
and a wave. His grin faded a bit when he realized that Ethan and
the group around him were now staring at Amber.

“Come and play a game, man,” Ethan
encouraged.

Just as he opened his mouth to say he wasn’t
interested, a female voice said, “Yeah, Gabriel. Go play. That way
I can hang out with Amber for a while, just us girls.”

He glanced next to Amber and caught the
friendly gaze of Alicia Stephens, the sociable cousin of their BJ’s
co-worker and fellow senior, Cornelius Stephens. They had all hung
out as a group a few times over the years. She and Amber got along
relatively well, probably because Alicia liked to talk and Amber
listened to her without comment or complaint.

“We just got here—” he began.

“Which means you’ll be here for hours yet,”
she interrupted. “Go on and leave us be.”

Amber tilted her head to look up at him.
“It’s cool. Go play. I’ll sit with Alicia for a bit.”

He didn’t even get the chance to ask if she
was sure. Alicia promptly snatched Amber’s arm and pulled her over
to a couple of open lounge chairs by the pool, chattering away the
entire time.

Unable to stop himself and feeling guilty for
it, he watched the movement of Amber’s hips and backside as she
walked away. Only when he turned back to his friends around the
volleyball net and realized their interested gazes were also on her
did he get irritated. Deciding there was little he could do about
it, he walked over to join the game.

“So, who’s the chick?” Ethan asked when
Gabriel approached. There were many ears tuned into their
conversation.

Gabriel raised an eyebrow.
“What—seriously?”

“Yeah, man.” Ethan glanced back at Amber.
“She’s smokin—” He cut himself off. Tilted his head. Stared harder.
“Holy—is that—?” Now he looked stunned. “No way.”

Ignoring the comments around him, Gabriel
glanced to his right and spotted Jason Harrison among the would-be
volleyball players. Giving the other guy a nod, he said, “Hey,
Jason, can I run something by you?”

Shrugging, he said, “Sure.” He looked wary,
though.

They stepped away as the others began
selecting teams. Staying within sight of Amber but out of hearing
range of anyone else, Gabriel stopped beside a neatly-pruned rose
bush. When Jason stopped beside him, he said without preamble,
“Michelle dropped by yesterday.”

Jason frowned. His eyes were less friendly
than usual, as was his tone. “Yeah. She already told me.”

“Told you what, exactly?”

Jason’s face flushed. Crossing his arms over
his chest and shifting his gaze to Amber, he muttered, “Amber told
Michelle she, uh, didn’t want to come to the party with me.”

“Michelle said that, did she?”

Perhaps gleaning something from Gabriel’s
tone, Jason caught his gaze. He hadn’t been class valedictorian for
nothing, and realization was quick to enter his eyes.

Gabriel continued, “I imagine she said that
Amber laughed at the idea of coming to the party with you or
something?”

Jason uncrossed his arms, running one hand
across the back of his neck. “Essentially. She said Amber told her
that she wouldn’t go out with me if I was the last guy alive—crap
like that.”

“You know Amber,” Gabriel said, indicating
their years together on the high school track team. “You know she
isn’t like that. Everything you just said is complete B.S.”

Jason nodded in understanding and looked
again toward Amber. “Damn. What a bitch.”

Knowing he meant Michelle, Gabriel smiled
dryly. “You have no idea.”

“Guess I should’ve known better, considering
the source. I imagine you didn’t ask her to ask me to get Amber off
your hands, right?”

Gabriel just raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah. Figured. Well, screw it. At least I
know. Thanks, man.” Now, he grinned. “Come on. Let me at least kick
your ass at some V-ball if you get the girl.”

“You’re sure welcome to try.”

Amber’s gaze moved around the teeming
backyard as Alicia rambled. She certainly didn’t want to ruin
Gabriel’s good time by keeping him glued to her side throughout the
party, but she had to admit that she hadn’t expected to be on her
own so soon. She couldn’t avoid a sense of panic as she realized
she was going to have to socialize. Her hands trembled slightly as
she adjusted her chair and she prayed the physical reaction was
merely nerves and not…
more
.

“I love your hair,” Alicia said. “Where’d you
get it done?”

Struggling not to bring her hand to her head
in discomfort, she replied, “Lulu’s.”

A puzzled frown darkened Alicia’s pretty
face. “Lulu’s? Huh. Don’t know that one,” she said in a tone that
indicated she thought she should.

“Hi, ladies,” came a deep voice, and Amber
glanced up as a shadow large enough to cover both their chairs fell
over them.

Alicia’s cousin, Cornelius, had stopped a few
feet away. His impressive build was nicely displayed as he went
shirtless with his light blue swim shorts. Although used to
defending against aggressive offensive linemen as one of the high
school football team’s best players, he couldn’t have been a
calmer, nicer guy. Amber had always liked him.

Now, a remarkably bright grin split his dark
face as he said, “Amber, girl, you’re sizzlin’ today. Wow.”

She flushed to the roots of her hair.
“Uh…thanks.”

“And what about me?” Alicia demanded, tossing
her long, dark hair over her shoulder and striking a pose in her
hot-pink tankini. Amber thought she could have been a model.

Cornelius made a buzzing sound with his lips.
“Please, cuz. Don’t gross me out here.”

Alicia jerked her head and sucked air through
her teeth. Well-used to the byplay between the cousins, who loved
each other dearly for all their arguing, Amber remained wisely
silent.

“I wanted to know if I could get y’all lovely
ladies something to drink,” he said.

Alicia grinned cheekily. “I’d love one,
thanks.”

“I shoulda known you’d say that. Amber?”

“Uh, sure.”

“Watered down fruit punch or watered down
Coke?”

“
Diet
Coke,” Alicia said. “Girl’s
gotta watch her figure.”

Fighting back a chuckle, Amber shook her
head. “I’ll have the punch, thanks.”

When he turned with a small salute to go get
their beverages, Alicia adjusted her sunglasses and then groaned.
“Lovely. Michelle Moron just arrived. Can’t wait to see who she
decides to target today. It’s never a party until she makes an
idiot of herself.”

Shifting so she could follow Alicia’s gaze,
Amber spotted Michelle as she made her way through the yard. She
was trailed by her best friend, Cynthia Ridley. Both of them had
heads turning in their tiny bathing suits.

“Seems Michelle couldn’t nab a date even with
being willing to sleep with anything that walks,” Alicia said.
“Guess by that suit she’s wearing, she hopes to change her luck
today.”

Amber snorted.

“Does a Kleenex held together with dental
floss even constitute a bathing suit?”

That made Amber laugh. Then she realized that
Michelle and Cynthia were headed in their direction. Knowing that
she was going to be the “target” that Alicia mentioned, Amber
squared her shoulders.

“Uh, Alicia, I’ve got to excuse myself for a
minute. Be right back.”

Alicia started to speak, but Amber quickly
got up from her chair and started walking in the direction of the
volleyball game. She didn’t want Alicia involved in this nonsense.
And since the tremors in her hands were progressing into her arms,
she knew she needed to get to Gabriel. There was no way this was
just stress.

“Running to your
brother
, Hopkins?”
Michelle called out then, causing several conversations to cease
and people to turn and stare. “Might as well. You’ve got him so
cowed he’ll do anything for you.”

Amber stopped walking. Slowly, she turned to
face Michelle.

“Well, she
is
having sex with him,”
Cynthia said loudly as they got closer.