Part 16 (1/2)

”You look happy in this one,” he observes.

”I was two,” I say, flipping my hair out of the collar of my jacket. ”A cardboard box could make me smile.”

”Yeah, you're probably right.” He turns away from the photo and opens the front door. ”After you.”

I walk outside and frown at the empty driveway. Raven's silver car is still parked in her driveway next door. I wonder if they really left together. This bothers me. A lot. Maybe more than anything in my life.

Chapter 13.

The first half of the drive with Cameron is awkward, but mostly because Cameron's dad calls and chews him out over the phone. I don't know what for, but it's none of my business.

By the time he hangs up, we're at the mouth of the canyon that encircles the lake. The heat is on, but it's hot out and a layer of sweat coats my skin underneath my leather jacket.

”So your friend finally found someone interested in her, huh?” Cameron tosses his phone into the console.

I crack the window and suck in some fresh air. ”Asher's not interested in her that way. They're just friends.”

He turns down the heat. ”Hmm... that's not what I saw. It looked to me like they were both happy to be leaving with each other.”

”I don't agree with you,” I say through gritted teeth. ”And Asher's not really her type.”

”It seems like everyone's her type if you ask me,” he comments, downs.h.i.+fting. ”Ember, is something wrong? You seem mad at me for some reason.”

I encounter his gaze and the hurt in his eyes makes me feel bad. ”Sorry, I just didn't sleep very well last night.”

The pain in his eyes subsides. ”Well, you could have always came down to the cemetery and kept me company.”

”Why were you there?” I lighten up. ”Were you looking for the family jewel again?”

”No, I gave up on that,” he says. ”I was actually there, hoping you'd show up again.”

”Sure you were.” My tone is cheerful, but I fidget unnervingly. Unlike Asher, Cameron is making me feel uneasy, in both good ways and bad. ”And now you're going to tell me that you can't stop thinking about me.”

His expression intensifies and his voice lowers to an intimate level. ”Actually, I was going to tell you how much I like that s.h.i.+rt on you.”

I glance down at the lace-up s.h.i.+rt Raven gave me that I've never worn until now. I don't even understand why I chose to wear it. Maybe subconsciously to live up to Cameron's flashy standards, and if it is, I'm disappointed in myself.

He reaches over and fiddles with the ribbon on the front. ”You're so much different from the other girls I've dated.” He curls the ribbon around his finger and pulls on it. ”There's so much substance to you.” He gives it another tug and it loosens the s.h.i.+rt slightly. ”And innocence.”

My black bra is starting to show through. I lean away and quickly tie the ribbon back up. ”I'm not innocent.”

He glances down at the ribbon and then inclines his eyebrows. ”Really.”

I hug the jacket to my chest. ”Don't pretend like you know me.”

He sighs and flips on the blinker. ”Look, Ember, I'm sorry. I can be kind of c.o.c.ky sometimes, but I promise I'll try to tone it down for today.”

I sigh, slip off my jacket, and ball it on my lap. ”No, I'm sorry. I'm acting rude again and I don't know why.” Because I want to be with Asher.

”Because I make you nervous,” he says simply and slows the car. He turns down a b.u.mpy, dirt road that inclines to the sh.o.r.e of the lake. The steep, rocky hillside is covered with debris. My dad's Challenger. This is the exact spot where the accident happened.

”What's the matter?” Cameron silences the engine.

I rip my gaze from the lake. ”Nothing. So what are we doing here?”

He points at a fire pit in the center of the sh.o.r.e. ”Some people told me this was a good place to go.”

”Yeah, to get wasted and have s.e.x,” I say, thinking of all the lake parties Raven has dragged me to.

He shoves open the car door. ”You say that like it's a bad thing.” He slams the door and walks toward the lake.

I think I might be in over my head. I slip on my jacket and hop out of the car. The silver pieces of the Challenger glimmer in the sunlight like nickels. The biggest one is about the size of a tire. I pluck a piece from the rocks and turn it in my hand.

”Looks like someone had a bad accident.” He takes the piece of metal from my hand. ”They must have been driving really fast to shatter the car so bad.”

”Yeah, probably.” I walk to the edge of the sh.o.r.e where the water meets the sand. Is the necklace still down there, trapped in the car?

Cameron comes up behind me and whispers in my ear, ”Tell me what you're thinking.” He uses the same purr as he did in the cemetery, the one that pulled me to him, that begged me to touch him.

I feel lightheaded. ”I'm just sad...” I murmur.

”Tell me why,” he purrs. ”Maybe I can help.”

It feels like I've drank a gallon of wine. ”I was the one who wrecked... and my car, it's at the bottom of the lake.”

”There was something important in it, wasn't there?”

I nod absentmindedly. ”A necklace my grandmother gave me.”

He moves to the side of me and tugs off his black Henley. He discards it on the ground and the sun glistens against his tan skin. He wades into the water until it is waist deep.

”Cameron, what are you doing?” I call out. ”You can't-” He swan-dives in and vanishes under the water. I stand on the sh.o.r.e, searching for a glimpse of him resurfacing. Too much time ticks by for a normal person to breathe underwater. I pat my pockets for my phone. ”Dammit. I left it at home.”

I race for the Jeep to grab Cameron's phone he had tossed in the console to call Search and Rescue, but something darts behind the Jeep and I freeze. I glance back at the lake and then at the car. Dark boots stand behind the car.

I'm not alone.

”s.h.i.+t.” I dither and then sprint for the car. I scoop up a long, sharp stick as I cautiously open the pa.s.senger door. Without taking my eyes off the rear end of the Jeep, I feel around the inside of the cab until I snag Cameron's cell phone.

I flip the screen off lock and search for the dial pad. A tall figure steps out from the back of the Jeep. He's dressed in his usual back cloak that s.h.i.+elds his eyes, but I know he's looking at me.

”I told you to go away last night.” I back away from the Grim Reaper with the stick out in front of me. ”And you have to leave because I told you to.”