“Just sit and watch a movie with me,” she said. “That’s it. I thought we could just chill. Hang out. I even snuck a bottle from your father’s cabinet. You always drank whiskey when we were together. Thought we could have a couple drinks, eat popcorn, put on a movie. Just waste time together, Elijah. Get to know each other. Talk about everything. Whatever happens here, we have a daughter together. That won’t change.”
“I know that,” I said. “But you fucking lied to me. Do you have any idea how freaked out I was? That something was wrong with her?”
Rory half smiled with tears in her eyes. “I’m a good mother but I’m still a selfish bitch, I guess. And honestly…” Rory stepped toward me. “If I asked you to hang out, you would have said no. You would have told me to fuck off. I know it. You know it. But I wanted you here. With me.”
She got even closer.
I put my hands to the bed and shook my head. “We have a lot to talk about, Rory. A lot. And before that I need to know what your intentions are here. You want to just see me in pain? You want money? What do you want?”
“I think it’s pretty clear what I want,” Rory said.
She slowly put her hands on my shoulders.
She was way too close to me.
For both of our own good.
I kept my eyes up to her eyes.
I felt her knees bounce against my knees.
Then her legs started to open, inching closer to me, wanting to straddle me.
I shook my head.
I moved my hands from the bed and grabbed her by the waist.
As I stood up, Rory put her hands to mine.
“Yes,” she whispered. “It’s okay, Elijah. We can make this work. We already have a baby together. This is meant to be.”
I pushed Rory away and showed her my hands.
“No,” I said. “That’s not how it works.”
“Fuck you then, Elijah,” she yelled. “You fucking used me and left me.”
“I had no idea that you were pregnant,” I yelled back. “Are you crazy?”
“Crazy…” Rory laughed. “Yeah… let’s do crazy then…”
She jumped to the bed and swiped the bottle of whiskey. Then she ran to the bedroom door.
I chased after her as she left the room.
She stopped at Cecily’s door and looked back at me.
With an evil look on her face, she made a fist and pounded on the bedroom door about ten times.
“That’s crazy,” she said.
Cecily let out a loud cry.
Rory strutted away with a bottle of whiskey in one hand and her other hand throwing me the middle finger. If there was ever a picture as to why I had once been attracted to her, that was it.
She was cruel, cold, and rotten.
Cecily cried even louder.
I shut my eyes and pictured Nova sitting on the stairs. My lips kissing hers.
From heaven to hell.
And everything in between.
Chapter 7
Nova
I chased away all the ghosts the only way I knew how.
In the ocean.
I was the only one surfing but I didn’t care.
It kind of irritated me that Britt wasn’t in the water with me, but she was taking the time and effort to get to know everyone in our group, so I just went with the flow. Plus, I didn’t really need to hear her telling me what to do. Or what not to do.
The waves were active and I couldn’t get enough of it.
I straddled my board and stared at the shore.
Britt sitting in between Aira and Kailey. They were captivated by Britt’s wild beauty and her willingness to say and do anything. It was the same reason I wanted to be close to Britt. She didn’t fuck around. Of course Flynn and Charlotte were cuddled together on the corner of the large blanket. And then there was Emma. Standing like a badass, looking left to right as though she were a security guard for everyone. Leo, Wes, Walker, and Ryker were huddled up together, talking.
It was all so normal.
Almost quiet even.
It reminded me of after Ryland’s funeral.
When the shock of his death wore off and everything felt calm.
Aira had all of her shit settled over her parents. She was staying at HCH and living with Julia. She and Wes were madly in love, not a care in the world.
And I just did my thing like always.
And it all changed the day I stood on the beach and looked back and saw Elijah staring at me.
Fuck.
A wave pushed by me and I slapped the board as I watched it crest.
I missed a good one.
I made damn sure not to miss the next one though.
When I got to the shore, I walked out of the water just to make my presence known. My board under my arm, water dripping off me, standing at the edge of the giant blanket, looking around at everyone.
Britt looked up at me and winked. “I was just telling them the story of when we convinced those two losers to skinny dip.”
I snorted. “And we stole their clothes.”
“And the one guy had a picture of his mother in his back pocket,” Britt said.
“Wait, what?” Kailey asked
“Oh yeah,” Britt said. “Tell them, Nova.”
“Yup,” I said. “These surfer hotties would not leave us alone. So we wanted to get back at them. It was Britt’s idea.”
“It was my idea to get them back,” Britt said. “But you came up with the plan to steal their clothes.”
“So Britt is the brains and you’re the muscle,” Aira said to me.
“I guess,” I said.
“So what’s with the picture?” Kailey asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “We never found out. We emptied their pockets and left their stuff in the parking lot. That was it. Never saw them again.”
“We did take a twenty to go get something to eat,” Britt said.
“That part I felt bad about,” I admitted. “We totally committed a crime.”
“Look at this side of Nova,” Kailey said. “How interesting.”
“I guess we all have our secrets,” I said to Kailey with a wink.
“Speaking of secrets,” Britt said. “We’ve got a crazy hot guy about twenty feet away. And he’s eye humping Nova so hard she’s going to need a cigarette soon.”
Everyone looked at the same time.
Including me.
My first thought was I wanted it to be Elijah.
But it wasn’t Elijah.
It was somebody that only Britt knew.
I hated her for making the comment she did about him being crazy hot.
“Oh, shit,” I whispered to myself.
If Elijah was my Summer Boy…
… then Dex was my Winter Thing.
* * *
Dex left HCH just before spring last year. His father took some high-profile lawyer job in Baltimore. I didn’t cry when he left, but I did feel a little shitty that he was gone. That I was alone. That I had a few months to kill before Elijah came back.
If I talked about him, it made me look like a slut.
So everything I thought and I felt I kept to myself.
With the exception of a bon fire at a beach where Britt fed me too much vodka to get me to talk.
Bitch.
Dex had the same boyish smile, the same perfectly slicked back bright blonde hair, and the same athletic, cut, toned body. He lived to be shirtless and rightfully so.
If there was an ex on my list of ex’s that could do what needed to be done because of what Elijah had done…
Dex was it.
Holy shit, Novalee, what are you thinking right now?
“Fuck me,” Kailey said.
“He will,” Britt said. “Dex likes to spread the love.”
I looked at Britt and curled my lip.
“I thought he was gone though?” Kailey said. “He moved away, right?”
“I guess we’re going to find out,” Britt said.
&
nbsp; She climbed to her feet and elbowed me.
“Stop it,” I said.
Dex closed right in on us and nodded with that cocky grin. Like his you know what didn’t smell.
“Look at you,” he said to me. “Still surfing, huh?”
“You’re carrying a board, too,” I said.
“That I am. Nice observation.”
“Hey, what are you doing here?” Kailey asked. “You moved away.”
“Don’t mind her,” Britt said. “She’s a little tongue tied over you, Dex.”
“Is she now?” Dex asked. He looked at Kailey and winked. “I bet I can get tongue tied over you too. Or inside you.”
I rolled my eyes.
Okay, fine. The ‘D’ didn’t stand for ‘Dex’ … it stood for ‘Douchebag’ … but I had made my peace with that a long time ago.
Kailey turned red.
Dex turned his attention back to me.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Came back for you, Nova,” he said. “Just couldn’t stop thinking about you. My mind… my heart… I ran away. Well, I left. But here I am.”
“Shit, girl,” Britt said, “what is your hoo-ha made out of? They lick it once and they can never taste anything else again.”
Now my face turned red.
Dex started to laugh. “Fuck, Britt, I missed you.” He shook his head. “Shit. I’m here for a week. Little family trip. Came back out to visit some old friends. So I decided to hit the beach and see who was still hanging.”
So everything he just said about me was just to fuck with me.
Because that’s what Dex did.
He was perfect at that. And for that. To kill time with. He could be stupid, funny, serious, or just his normal douchebag self.
“But you are happy to see Nova, right?” Britt said.
“You, sit back down,” I said to Britt.
Dex reached for my hand. “And you come surf with me.”
I backed up. “No, thanks.”
“Well, I’m going into the water.”
“So am I,” I said. “But, not with you.”
“Oh, okay. You’re going to go find your own ocean, huh?”
“No. This is my ocean. I live here. You can go find some touristy spot and get a keychain when you’re done.”
I turned away from everyone and walked back into the water.
I mouthed ohmygod to myself.
As I paddled my way out into the water, I felt someone near me. Like right behind me. I knew better than to look back and give Dex any attention. He was like a dog. If you looked once, he would be all over you.
So I ignored him.
That proved just as wrong because he paddled up next to me.
“I guess I should have called first,” he said. “Thought the surprise would have been nice.”
“Bad timing, Dex,” I said.
“Ooohhh,” he said in a goofy voice. “Novalee with the drama in her life?”
“I just want to surf alone. In peace. In quiet.”
“Sure,” Dex said. “I can do that. You want me to shut up?”
“Yes. Please.”
“Stick your tongue down my throat and I’ll shut up,” he said.
I made a disgusted face.
“What?” he asked. “You and I used to make out like crazy. Remember? Damn, Nova, I thought you were going to wear my lips out.”
My face burned hot again.
The only reason I did that was because I never wanted it to go anywhere else, but I didn’t want to lose you because I needed to use you to get to my time with Elijah.
“I don’t remember,” I said.
“Yeah right,” Dex said.
“No. I’m serious. You’re completely forgettable.”
Dex grabbed my knee and pulled himself toward me and me toward him.
I let out a yell and slapped his arm.
“You know I can’t be hurt, right?” he asked. “So if you tell me I’m forgettable, that’s fine. Now my job is to make sure I’m not forgettable. You should have just said you remembered kissing me. All night long.”
I kicked to get away from him.
I thought about what to say next.
But there was nothing I could say to him.
He was right.
He couldn’t be hurt.
Nothing bothered him.
Ever.
Dex just kept smiling. Then he puckered his lips and kissed. “I’m going to catch this wave and then go for a walk. Find my own spot. Peace. Quiet. You know? Seeing you just makes me feel all kinds of things, Nova. For the record, I’d rather ride you than ride this wave.”
Dex laughed and paddled forward with speed.
He jumped up on his board and rode the crashing wave perfectly.
I secretly hoped to see him fall off the board. Or get hurt. Or something.
But he was as slick and cool as ever.
He walked off his board, picked it up, and walked out of the water.
He walked over to Aira, Britt, and Kailey.
He said something that made them all laugh.
Kailey’s cheeks turned red again.
I watched as Wes kept a close eye on Aira.
Wes took one step and Leo grabbed his shoulder.
Dex then gave a wave to everyone.
He was such a fucking douchebag.
Yet I watched him walk away until he was out of sight.
* * *
I wrapped a towel around me tight and caught my breath.
My body was officially done. Dead. Tired.
The ocean had kicked my ass, which I wanted it to do.
Walker and Ryker left to go to Pop’s shop to work.
Charlotte and Flynn left too, heading to the movies for a date.
Date. Right.
“Is it wrong that I can’t stop thinking about Dex?” Kailey asked.
“Yes,” Emma and I both said at the same time.
I looked at Emma. “You know Dex?”
“Who doesn’t know Dex?” she asked right back.
“You slut,” Kailey said.
“Slut?” I asked. “Wait…”
Emma shrugged her shoulders.
I laughed. “That’s just great. You and Dex. Wow.”
“What? Were you married to him or something?” Emma asked.
“No,” I said. “Believe me, I didn’t even like him all that much.”
“Neither did I,” Emma said.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Aira said. “When did this happen?”
“A long time ago,” Emma said.
“I don’t even want to know,” I said.
“Yes you do,” Kailey said. “And if not you, I do. Give me the details. Be detailed and disgusting.”
“What is your problem?” Emma asked Kailey.
“I want to do things to him,” Kailey said.
“Do I need to pour water on you?” Aira offered.
I felt my blood rising in temperature. There was no reason for it. Everyone knew Emma enjoyed herself. And a guy like Dex fit her description of one night and nothing more which was basically written across Emma’s forehead. And as far as Kailey went, she always talked a big game. She’d get all horny and worked up but never do a thing about it. If she was even remotely serious she could just go track down Dex, tell him what she wanted, and then POOF! it would happen.
Even still… I was angry.
And it didn’t help matters when I saw Ashley and Lacy climbing out of Ashley’s super fancy white car.
I pointed. “Look at that.”
“Oh, fuck that,” Emma said.
“She drives a white car?” Kailey asked. “Nothing about her is as innocent as white.”
“Maybe the white stands for something else,” Emma said. “Something she’s been smothered in before…”
“Gross,” I whispered.
Ashley and Lacy stopped at the edge of the beach and looked right down to us. They both waved. Right on cue, Emma, Kailey, and I all threw up our m
iddle fingers.
“Who are we flipping off?” Aira asked, as she peeled herself away from Wes.
When she looked and saw Ashley and Lacy, she put up her middle fingers too.
Ashley laughed.
Lacy then pretended to cradle a baby.
Then she pretended to drop it.
They pointed and laughed.
“Fucking cunts,” I whispered.
They walked away, knowing better than to come down to the beach.
“I hate them,” Aira said. “They’re like if Mika was cut in half.”
“I’d like to cut them in half,” I said.
“They’re puppets,” Kailey said.
“Slut puppets,” Emma said.
I laughed. “Slut puppets… I like that.”
“I think it’s time we bail out of here,” Wes called out. “We need food and then… I don’t know what. Come back out when it gets dark out. Build a fire. Cause some trouble.”
“The usual,” Aira said.
“Something wrong with that?” Wes asked. “I think we all need the usual right now.”
I opened my mouth to agree with Wes when something caught the corner of my eye.
I slowly turned my head and covered my mouth.
Everyone looked again and this time there was a collective gasp.
“Is that…,” Kailey started to ask but drifted off.
“Yeah,” I said.
It was Rory.
With the baby.
Cecily.
Elijah’s baby.
At the top of the beach, right where the sand began. A stroller behind her. The baby in her arms. Holding the baby against her chest, the baby turning her head to look at the waves.
I felt my eyes desperate to fill with tears.
All the thoughts hit me again.
Elijah and Rory together. Together, together. Making the baby in Rory’s arms.
“I can’t believe she has the nerve to come out here,” Emma said.
“I feel like saying something to her,” Aira said. “Remind her where she is.”
“Don’t,” I said. “She’s holding a baby. Just don’t.”
“We can yell something at least,” Kailey said. “Make the message known.”
Rory playfully bounced Cecily and tickled her little stomach.
Then Rory looked right at me.
HIDDEN CREEK CRY: a hidden creek high noval Page 8