by Ally Mathews
“Where is the company you want to join?” he asked.
“In New York.”
“That’s pretty far away from here.”
She shrugged. “That’s kind of the point, but I chose it because they’re the best.”
“And if that doesn’t work out you’ll go to a college with a good dance program? Which are your top choices?”
“Julliard, Fordham, NYU. There are a few others that aren’t in New York City, but they have to have a good business administration program, too, because I’m going to double major.”
“Wow. So you have it all planned out.” He squeezed her hand. “I have no idea what I want to study. Of course, my future hinges on getting a football scholarship. Otherwise I’ll be working here full time.”
“Do you have any offers yet?”
“Not from any of the places I really want to go. It’s still early, though. Coach said schools don’t want to tie up one of their slots with someone who isn’t going to accept. He thinks I’ll have no trouble getting a full ride to UT or A&M, which are both fantastic schools and programs, but I want to get out of Texas. I’ve never been farther than Arkansas and Oklahoma.”
Her stomach twisted. Garret had never been on a plane or gone farther than a neighboring state. Yet another reason their situations really were different, and she’d been acting like an ungrateful brat. No wonder they called her The Untouchable. “If you had your choice of any school, what would it be?”
“Michigan University, Ohio State, or Notre Dame, maybe Penn State or Syracuse. Someplace with a great program that’s in the North, where they have snow and all four seasons.”
“Somehow, I think at least one school up north will offer you a scholarship, so you better start thinking about what you want to study.”
He squeezed her hand and let go. “Here we are.”
He led her into a warehouse that was full of odds and ends like house wares, boards, and all sorts of metal pieces.
“Are you going to give me the grand tour?”
“Of course, my lady.” He held out his arm, and she laced hers through it and leaned into him. “Where would you like to go? We can skim through the warehouses, or try to find treasure in the piles of steaming trash outside.”
“Such difficult choices. Let’s go outside before it gets any hotter. We can check the buildings when we finish.”
Izzy moved down one side, looking for usable furniture. There was an upholstered chair that would work, but she wasn’t sure they’d be able to dig it out from under all the junk and metal scraps. She turned to ask Garret about it, but he was studying something a few yards away.
“Izzy, can you come help me?”
She jogged over. “What’d you find?”
“I think this is a panel from a 1965 Mustang.”
O-kay. “It’s very pretty, but I don’t think it’s something we can use.”
He gave her the side eye. “I own a 1965 Mustang with a missing quarter panel.”
“Oh!” Now she understood. “Then let’s dig it out.” She reached for the edge of a big sheet of metal on the top of the pile.
“Wait!” Garret pulled a pair of leather work gloves out of his back pocket and handed them to her. “You need to be careful or you’ll cut yourself.” He pulled his own pair on and they each took a side of the large sheet and moved it onto another stack of junk. Five minutes later, after moving all sorts of unidentifiable stuff, they had it uncovered.
“Is it what you thought it was?”
He grinned. “I think so. We’ll find out for sure when I try to attach it to my car. Now, if I could only find a driver’s side mirror I’d be all set.”
He set down the panel and came over to her. “I have you to thank for finding it. I never would’ve looked out here if you hadn’t come.”
“As much as I’d like to take the credit, I bet you would’ve found it eventually.”
“Probably not. I try to look around when new stuff comes in, but a lot of it gets bulldozed or buried under so much stuff we’ll never see it again. You’re my lucky charm.”
Her breath hitched. “That’d be a first.”
“I’m serious, Izzy. It’s not just the panel. Since you started helping me, I’ve been getting a lot more attention from scouts.”
“I’m glad, but that’s not luck. Your hard work is paying off.”
He moved closer and her pulse raced. “It’s more than that.” He slid his fingers over the hum of her pulse and into her unbound hair. She stretched toward him and their lips met. Flames leaped in her chest. They fit together perfectly, like two pieces of a puzzle.
He pulled away. “Gosh, this is romantic, kissing in a junkyard.”
She giggled. “So this is how Garret Mitchell puts the moves on the ladies.”
He blew out a long breath. “For your information, I’ve never dated anyone.”
“That can’t be true.”
“I usually find someone to take to the school dances, but I’ve never dated anyone. But lately, I’ve been thinking there might be something between us worth exploring.”
Placing her hands on either side of his face, she pulled him down to her until their lips met. The kiss was soft and quick and perfect. A reassurance they felt the same way. They both pulled back at the same time and their gazes met. After a few seconds she looked away. He wasn’t saying anything. What if she’d done it wrong, or he thought she was being too aggressive?
“I…I’ve never dated anyone, either.”
He squeezed her hand. “Then I guess we’ll have to figure this out as we go.”
“If I forget to say it later, I had fun today.”
“What a glamorous life you must lead.”
She laughed. “Shut up. I can see why you’re not excited, but for me it was fun to search for hidden treasure. I always have fun when I’m with you.” She hoped he was also thinking about things that had nothing to do with the junkyard.
Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. It was Garret’s dad.
“Dad, this is Isabelle Oster. She’s a friend from school, and also a dancer. She needed some props and stuff for her fall ballet production, so I invited her to clear out some of this junk for us.”
“It’s nice to meet you, young lady.” He stared at her fake nose ring, then shifted his eyes to her ear. Judge much?
Mr. Mitchell looked at her and scratched his chin. “How did you and Garret meet?”
“Oh, we’ve been going to school together since kindergarten.”
He raised a brow. “I would’ve thought the senator’s daughter attended St. Mary’s.”
She shook her head. “No, sir. We’re very happy with the public school.”
“How come I’ve never seen you around before?”
“Oh, well Garret only recently started taking lessons with me—”
He crossed his arms. “Lessons?”
“Yes, the football coach at school sent him to our dance studio for his lessons.”
“Darlin’, you’re not making any sense. Why would a dance studio have anything to do with football?”
It was then that Izzy noticed Garret standing completely still. Crap.
When he’d asked her not to tell anyone about the dancing, she didn’t think it would include his family. Of course, she also had never expected to meet them.
“What’s she talking about, Garret?”
“Coach suggested I take ballet lessons to increase my flexibility.”
“You don’t say. My son, the ballerina.” The look in his eyes was feral.
Izzy tried to catch Garret’s eye, but he was focused on the ground in front of him, jaw clenched.
“How are you paying for these lessons?”
“I’m giving Garret free lessons in exchange for his help with our fall ballet production.”
“Izzy!” Garret hissed.
She was making a mess of things for him. Stop talking!
Finally, he spoke up. “Remember, I told you she w
as coming today to look for some things for their performance? She’s taking some plywood and pieces of furniture. I’ll help paint the sets and build props and things like that in exchange for the lessons.”
“So this is why you’ve been taking fewer shifts. You’re still set on going to college instead of taking your place here.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “Have fun with your dancing. When you drop out and come crawling home, there’ll still be a place for you here.” He turned and strode back toward the office.
When he was out of sight, Izzy turned to Garret. “I’m so sorry. I thought your family knew about your dance lessons.”
A muscle in his jaw twitched. “My mom and sister know. I didn’t tell my dad because, well, I knew how he’d react.”
There were a lot of bumpy patches in her relationship with her dad, but she usually didn’t keep things from him. He eventually found out about everything, so it was easier to just square off with him and fight for what she wanted. Despite their differences, she had a feeling her dad was a lot easier to talk to than Garret’s.
Her chest tightened. “Garret, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to mess everything up.”
He sighed. “I’m not mad at you, Izzy. C’mon. Let’s get this stuff over to the studio. He’ll want the truck back soon.”
They started toward the truck, uncomfortable silence blanketing them like fog. Then Garret reached over and clasped her hand, the pad of his thumb caressing her knuckles, and it was like the sun popping out after a thunderstorm.
Chapter Fourteen
It had been Izzy’s idea to have them practice lifts in her swimming pool, which was probably going to turn out to be a very bad idea. Especially if her dad was home, because Garret planned to kiss her. A lot. It would be really hard to keep his hands to himself. Last night, he had dreamed about her wearing a bikini, but surely she wouldn’t wear one today. Of course, he’d still like to see her in one, but not while they practiced lifts. Too many things could go wrong with that.
He followed the circular drive to the front of the house and parked his car off to the side. The front door opened before he’d even gotten out of his car.
Izzy rushed down the stairs. “Is that the new panel?”
“It is.” He was surprised she remembered, since it was really only a big deal to him. No one else would know if the panel was original or not unless they were into antique cars.
She frowned. “Why didn’t you get it painted?”
“Now that I finally have that panel, I’m saving up to have the whole car repainted. I have to find somebody who works on vintage cars and will use one of the original colors.”
“Wow. I didn’t realize it was that complicated. Is there actually antique paint, or do they just match the colors?”
He bit back a laugh. “They match the colors.”
She nodded and turned back to the house. “C’mon, I need to tell Anna Maria what we’re doing so she doesn’t get suspicious, then we can get to work on the lifts.”
He followed her through the front of the house and into the huge kitchen that looked out over the gigantic pool that had a built-in slide disguised as a waterfall and a diving board. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have other friends who lived on the rich side of town, but this house stood out from all of the others in size and extravagance. A part of him wondered what the heck he thought he was doing with Izzy, but the other, larger part didn’t care as long as he got to keep spending time with her.
“Garret, it’s good to see you again. I’m glad Izzy hasn’t scared you off yet,” Anna Maria said.
He laughed and Izzy made a disgusted noise. “Of course I haven’t. I have to string him along at least until we’ve performed the fall production. Duh.”
She opened one side of the built-in refrigerator and grabbed some bottles of water and a tray with fruit, vegetables, cheese, and crackers. He grabbed the tray from her and followed her toward the door.
“I’ll be watching you,” Anna Maria called after them.
“You’ll be spying on us, you mean.” Izzy shoved the door open with her hip, and he shifted the tray to his left hand so he could hold the door. They placed the food and drinks on a large table that sat on the covered patio.
“I think I came up with a solution for your costume.”
He cringed. “Will I like it?”
“We’re going to have an extra-long tunic made. It’ll have to have slits in the sides so it doesn’t restrict your movement, but is should keep your…err, keep you covered when you do lifts and leaps.”
“Why can’t I just wear my football pants? I’ll even buy a new pair so there aren’t stains on them.”
She shook her head. “No. This is a serious production and we need everyone to wear real costumes. Please.” She rested her chin on her hands and batted her eyelashes at him.
“I’m not making any promises, but we’ll see how it goes during dress rehearsal. If everything is covered then I’ll wear them, okay?”
She grinned. “Okay.”
Izzy removed her shirt and grabbed some towels off a shelf then headed toward the water. After a moment of disappointment that she wore a one-piece suit, he agreed it was a good call. A wardrobe malfunction while they were doing lifts could easily turn into an extremely awkward situation for both of them. Besides, the suit she wore showed off her curves just fine. His fingers ached to touch her.
At this time of year in Texas, most pools were usually the temperature of bath water, but this one was much larger and deeper than most, so it was only slightly warm when he stuck his hand in. “So, what’s the plan?”
She shrugged. “We’ll get into the water and then practice lifts. You can experiment with hand placement and how you’re holding me and stuff like that without having to worry about dropping me.”
That was an invitation to dump her in the pool if he’d ever heard one. He pulled his T-shirt off and jumped into the deep end. When he surfaced, Izzy was glaring down at him.
“Do you have sunscreen on?”
“Yes, Mom, but my grandfather’s Cherokee. I never burn anyway.”
“Well, I do.”
“Most people who glow in the dark do.” He dove under before she could splash him and swam underwater to the other end, then surfaced under the diving board. From this angle, he had a great view of the grotto behind the water slide. This whole setup probably cost more than his house did.
He hated that he kept thinking about how rich her dad was, but he couldn’t help it. There was such a huge difference between their situations. Izzy could have or do anything she wanted, but his only shot to leave this town was to earn a football scholarship. There were no other options for him. It still seemed a bit unreal that he was at her house. In her pool.
Izzy sat on a ledge in the shallow end. “Are you ready to get to work yet?”
“Sure.” He dove under and swam until he popped up in front of her. Goose bumps rose on his skin, not because he was cold, but because she was so close. “Are you going to wear your pants in the water?”
“They’re leggings, and trust me, it cuts down on the awkward factor if your hand slips or something.”
He tried not to picture that in his head. “So what are we doing?”
“Let’s try the arabesque lift. Remember to keep your arms in like Lauren showed you, and let me balance on your hands.”
He followed her out to where the water came up to his waist.
“This should be deep enough to keep me from hitting the bottom if you drop me, but not so deep that I’ll be too hard to lift.” She did her arabesque, or at least he thought she did, since she was mostly under water, and he lifted her up. There was a lot more resistance in the water, and he overcorrected and nearly dropped her.
“Remember your arms,” she said calmly, stretched out on his hands like a Greek goddess statue.
His skin tingled everywhere they touched. He rotated his arms slightly and suddenly it was a lot easier to support her. “How are you planning to get
down?”
“You’re supposed to set me down just like you would in the studio.”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
She glared at him, so he tabled his plan to dump her in the water, but didn’t entirely rule it out.
He set her down and waited for the next instruction. She had that look, like she was plotting something. Something that wouldn’t end well for him.
“What nefarious plan are you hatching?”
“I still think we need to add another lift.”
“Okay. Which one?”
“Let me think about it for a few minutes.” She climbed out and wrapped a towel around herself, then grabbed her phone. “Try doing some leaps off the diving board. It’s a great way to practice because you’ll get more height.”
She was focused on finding a new lift to do, so he took her advice. He didn’t want to look like a moron during the performance. There were so many places to get out of the pool he could hardly decide. There was a built-in concrete ladder near the diving board, so he climbed out there. Since he wouldn’t have the help of a springboard during the performance, he decided not to use the board much. The added height alone would help him sort things out.
“Hey, Harley Quinn. Are you going to watch and give me some pointers?”
He jumped off the board and tried the one where he went straight up with his legs out to the side and his feet crossed. It was easy with the extra spring of the board. He popped up and swam toward the ladder.
“Use the board to get more height,” Izzy yelled.
Since she was absorbed with whatever was up on her screen by the time he climbed out, he tiptoed over to her and shook his head, showering her with water.
“Garret!” She grabbed a towel and dried off her phone. “What was that for?”