Summer's Last Breath (The Emerald Series)

by Kimberly James

  “Hey, Erin. Congratulations.” This from Charlene Goodson, accompanied by a smile before she gave Noah a slow once over.

  “Thanks,” I said and kept walking, my spine tingling with awareness under the eyes following my progress to my locker.

  The feeling never went away. It only intensified as I sat in my desk during geometry and then during history, and I swore I could feel the touch of everyone's eyes on my skin.

  And Noah, it seemed, had taken it upon himself to act as my bodyguard. On most days, I'd run into him a few times in the hall, but today he'd shown up everywhere I turned, making it a point to walk me to my classes. He’d sat with me at lunch and now, as I made my way to art class, he’d come up behind me, walking so close I could feel his body heat. He was taking his brother-in-law duties very seriously. It made me wonder if Jamie had asked Noah to look after me. I made it a point to find out and, if he had, insist he call Noah off. His hyper-defensive countenance was drawing stares.

  “I don’t think the bodyguard routine is necessary.”

  “Well, I do. I don’t like what I’ve been hearing today.”

  I sighed at his doggedly determined tone.

  “I’m not the first girl to get knocked-up this year.” I was the second. People had talked about Tory Holbrook too. And the gossip had quickly run its course. “They’ll talk and they’ll get bored and move on.”

  Most of what I’d endured today had been bearable. A few sly whispers, condensing smiles, and judgmental looks, but I figured those were par for the course in Dealing With Teenage Pregnancy 101. If today was as bad as it would get, I’d proven I could deal.

  “She gives a whole new meaning to the word whore.” This comment was spoken rather loudly and strictly for my benefit as we passed Dylan Wallace's locker. A group of guys huddled three lockers down snickered. And then the hallway slowly quieted as those within hearing waited for a response.

  "Jealous much, Dylan?" I tossed my hair over my shoulder in a devil-may-care gesture. "You not getting much yourself? And no, your hand doesn't count."

  Those same three guys hooted and Dylan's cheeks flamed and his jaw clenched.

  I pinched Noah's elbow with the intention of dragging him onward. I might have succeeded if Dylan had kept his big mouth shut.

  “What a waste,” Dylan said, emboldened by all the attention centered on him, as if the whole school had been waiting for someone to have enough nerve to voice what everyone was thinking. Dylan snorted and his eyes narrowed on me in delight like he'd just figured something out. “Are you doing both of them? Whose kid is it anyway?”

  There was no holding Noah back. He was on Dylan in a blink, slamming him against his locker with his forearm pressed against Dylan's throat.

  "Noah!" Despite my perverse satisfaction at Dylan's bulging-eyed expression as Noah's fist slammed into his stomach, too many witnesses were looking on with unfettered glee. The last thing I wanted was for Noah to get into trouble over a reckless comment. This was just the kind of altercation Noah went out of his way to avoid. To say that the slam of his fist packed a punch would be a severe understatement.

  Noah shook off my attempt to pull him away and punched Dylan again, doubling him over even more. Dylan was now wheezing and spit fell from his gaping mouth onto the speckled tiled floor.

  "Noah!" Before I could intervene further—and I needed to before he did any real damage—Jax and Derrick muscled me out of the way. They grabbed Noah by both arms and hauled him off Dylan, who stumbled forward and nearly fell on the floor.

  "Back off, man." Jax put a placating hand on Noah's heaving chest. "Not a good idea."

  Noah's hair had come loose and his eyes were still focused on Dylan with wild intent, but he stayed put.

  "You cool?" Jax asked, prompting me to wonder where all this good will was coming from. I would have thought he'd be happy to watch Noah suffer the repercussions of fighting in school. Mr. Russell, the principal, had a strict policy when it came to fighting. Noah had already been suspended once during freshmen year. Also my fault.

  "Yeah." Noah pushed Jax's hand away and stepped back.

  "Good," Jax said. "This makes us even. Wouldn't want you hurting anybody, would we?"

  “Jacobs,” Mr. Russell's voice shot over the crowd and everyone that had gathered hoping to see a fight scattered like agitated ants. "Is there a problem here?"

  "No, sir," Noah said.

  "Dylan?" Mr. Russell prompted.

  Dylan managed to stand all the way up and replied in a strained voice, "No problem."

  "Then get to class." Mr. Russell nodded to Jax and Derrick. "Jacobs and Shaw, you stay with me."

  Noah and I had no choice but to obey as we waited out the shrill ring of the bell and the emptying of the hall.

  "Are you all right, Erin?" Mr. Russell asked in a quiet tone. He and my dad were friends, and it wouldn't surprise me if my dad had asked him to keep an ear out for trouble.

  "Yes." I glared at Noah.

  "You have art with Mr. Foley, right?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "Go on to class and tell Mr. Foley Noah is with me." Mr. Russell took Noah by the elbow and escorted him down the hallway toward his office while I went to art class without him.

  The stares continued through class, the whispers coming louder, which made the hour pass at an excruciatingly slow pace. When the bell finally rang, heralding the end of the school day, I gathered my things and headed for the Bronco, thinking Noah was probably waiting for me. He wasn't. I spent the next fifteen minutes offering causal nods and half-hearted smiles to my classmates as they paraded from the building, and it seemed almost normal until a group of freshmen flocked out, chatting loudly. But then they spotted me and their conversation fell to low whispers like maybe they could sneak past me and not get noticed by the pregnant girl as though slut and whore were contagious.

  "I got pregnant. I got married. Deal with it," I said, resisting the urge to kick the last of them in their judgmental little virgin asses. Clearly Noah was rubbing off on me.

  A familiar laugh drew my attention. Ally was walking toward me with a face-splitting grin. I needed to see a friendly face.

  "You remember that time Uncle George came to visit in the lunch room and I was wearing white pants?"

  "And you squirted catsup between your legs as camouflage." We'd been in the eighth grade when boys were especially obnoxious and immature.

  She leaned against the Bronco next to me, hugging her notebook to her chest. "Yes. That day. Shallow, meaningless, pathetic people will talk and laugh, but they'll get bored and move on to their next victim. I give it a week, tops."

  About that time, Jax pulled up in his Land Rover, nodding his head through the open window. She responded immediately like a puppy that had just been tossed a treat.

  "Gotta go." Ally jumped in the front seat and hanging out the window yelled, "Tell that hubby of yours I expected more out of him. You don't seem to be having any trouble walking today."

  They sped out of the parking lot, music blaring from the car stereo. I felt better about the day and my chances of surviving the school year. I had Ally. I had Noah. I'd never been the type of person who needed lots of friends, believing if they were true friends a handful was enough.

  A few minutes later, Noah finally came out of the school with a decided spring in his step, which led me to conclude the meeting with Mr. Russell had gone in his favor.

  "You got suspended." That was hardly punishment for Noah.

  “Three days.” He flashed a smile as he reached for the door to the Bronco. "It's more like a suggested few days off. They're letting me do my school work at home. Since you know, I didn't really do anything."

  Figured. He'd gotten in a fight, received three days suspension and he was happy. Bully for him.

  “You should have let it go." Honestly, I wasn't upset that Noah had gotten in a fight. I was used to that, but today was probably only a taste of what the rest of the school year would be like. I didn't share
Ally's optimism that people's interest would die-off quickly. While I was ready to deal with the snide remarks, obviously Noah wasn't. He'd keep defending me until someone ended up seriously hurt.

  “Like I was going to stand there and let him talk to you like that.”

  “Dylan was goading you on purpose.” I stopped short of pointing out that if Noah weren't always so quick to fly off the handle, people might lay off trying to get him to.

  "He won't make that mistake again, though I hope he does." He cranked the engine and I settled into my seat.

  "Did Jamie say something to you?"

  Noah's smile faded at the mention of his brother.

  "No. He didn't have to, and I'd be more excited about getting three days off of school if he weren't gonna kick my ass for leaving you to fend for yourself. Not to mention the hell my mom's gonna give me. Mr. Russell was calling her when I left."

  "Has it occurred to you I can take care of myself?" I crossed my arms in front of my chest. He wouldn't get any sympathy from me. "I want to make this work, Noah. Stay in school. Keep things as normal as possible. I can't do that if I'm worried about you going off half-cocked every time someone looks at me funny or says something you don't like."

  "Well, you won't have to worry about it for the next three days." He pulled from the parking lot and onto the highway, the breeze stirring in my hair.

  "Promise me when you come back no more following me around. No more fighting. It's freaking embarrassing." I bit my lip to keep from smiling. Asking Noah not to defend me was like asking the tide not go out or the sun not to rise.

  "I'll try. Now quit being mad at me. If I'd really wanted to hurt the asswipe, I would have." He reached for my hand and wrapped it in his, holding it to his chest. "What can I do so you won't be mad at me anymore?"

  I pulled my hand back. Staying mad at Noah was useless and pretty much impossible.

  "Ice cream with sprinkles would probably work."

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  "What's that?" I asked a few days later as I walked into mine and Jamie's bedroom, tossing my backpack on the bed. Jamie was coming out of the bathroom dressed in a pair of boardshorts, looking and smelling shower fresh.

  "It’s a wetsuit." He dropped the towel he'd been using to dry off, and I hurried into his open arms, snuggling close to his bare chest. Since we now shared a bathroom, I'd learned Jamie refused to use soap of any kind. He'd rinse off under the shower, but he never washed his hair with shampoo or used soap on his skin. He said he didn't like the idea of having all those chemicals from the shampoo so close to his brain and that the soap further dried out his skin. I'd certainly never noticed that it made a difference. He always smelled like heaven to me.

  "I know it's a wetsuit, but what's it for?"

  "It's time to return the sea star and I want you to go with me."

  "We can't just toss it back in from shore?" My gaze lifted to the window. The sun was out and the temperature was in the lower sixties, but the water was cold, too cold for me. Still, the idea of swimming with Jamie was too much to resist, so I pulled my shirt over my head and discarded my jeans. It surprised me sometimes how easy it was to get naked in front of him probably because he seemed to appreciate it so much. He made me feel beautiful. He made me feel wanted.

  "No. It has to be taken to the Deep," he said with a hint of understandable regret, pulling me back into his arms.

  We'd been using the sea star as a nightlight as it provided just the right amount of mythical light to make his room feel intimate and slightly magical. Jamie had done magical things to me by the light of that sea star. With me standing in front of him in the pair of bathing suit bottoms I'd slipped on, I guess he couldn't resist trying some of those magical things again, and I certainly wouldn't refuse him. I'd learned a few things myself, learned what he liked, which was just about anything that involved my hands and mouth on him. It was immensely gratifying the way Jamie responded to my touch. The way he shook with need. The way he whispered my name. The way he never seemed to get enough of me, always wanting more.

  "Booties too?" I asked thirty minutes later as I pulled the wetsuit over my hips and up my arms.

  "Booties too." Jamie zipped me the rest of the way up and bent to kiss me, those sweet lips lingering, still greedy for more.

  "I feel like a frog man," I said once I put the booties on.

  "You don't look like a frog man." Jamie's hands ran over my hips and around to my stomach, the smile that broke over his face mischievous. "What's this?"

  The tight suit hugged my sprouting baby bump. I looked down disconcerted. "I doubt I'll be able to zip my jeans much longer."

  Jamie took my face in his hands, the look in his eyes expressly tender. "Nothing much has changed for me and it's just hitting me what you're giving up to have our baby. I know there are girls in your situation that would have chosen differently, and I guess I want to thank you."

  "It wasn't anything I had to think about. I've told you that. I'm having a baby with the man I love, how can I regret that?" I leaned up on my toes and kissed him on the mouth and his arms swallowed me as he hugged me close.

  "All right." He released me though he kept hold of my hand. "Let's go. We want to do this while the sun's high. Even in a wetsuit it will still be cold for you."

  The sky over the water was a crisp blue, and I shivered slightly when Jamie led me into the surf. The waves were small, and I jumped on Jamie's back, fitting my cheek next to his.

  I held the sea star cupped gently in my hand, and the sounds of land faded the further away from shore we traveled, replaced with a peaceful quiet. Jamie moved silently and gracefully, and I fell into a trance-like state watching him and feeling the way his muscles worked. Muscles I was now well-acquainted with.

  At one point, he turned over, threaded his hand around the back of my head, and pulled me down for a kiss, the evidence of his continual want for me pressed between us.

  "If you were—" he started then stopped himself, something shining in his eyes I couldn't decipher.

  "If I were what?" I was sure he'd been about to say if I were like him and I felt a stab of regret that I wasn't.

  "Nothing," he said and claimed my mouth in another kiss that had me longing for summer. I'd almost brave the cold water and the risk of hypothermia for the chance that he'd unzip this wetsuit and show me what it was like to be with him out here.

  He ended the kiss and turned back over, securing my hands on his shoulders.

  "Don't you get cold?" I struggled to keep my teeth from chattering while his skin under my hands was still so warm.

  "Well, it's not the same as in the summer months when the water is eighty degrees. We prefer it warmer. It would get uncomfortable out here after a few hours, but we aren't likely to stay out that long this time of year, especially in the deeper waters where it's colder."

  After a few more minutes he stopped, and I gazed back toward shore, surprised how far away we were. Taking note of the choppier waters, I waited to feel a sense of alarm but it never came. I knew it wouldn't, not with Jamie here.

  "This should be good. I don't want to keep you out here too long."

  I held the sea star in my hand palm up, and I could see now that the light was beginning to fade. "We didn't wait too late, did we?"

  "No." Jamie hugged me from behind, wrapping his whole body around me, giving me as much of his heat as he could. He brought his hand up underneath mine and cupped it with his. Then he slowly turned our hands over, and the sea star dropped into the water, falling like a penny dropped in a wishing well or a star shooting across the sky. I followed the light, wanting to watch its glow for as long as possible, my heart turning heavy when I could no longer see it.

  "Do you think it's still shining?" My heart sank as an unexplained sadness stole over me. I already missed its light.

  "Yes." He nuzzled my ear, his arms tight around my middle.

  I turned my face into his.

  "Go check." Something inside me neede
d to know it was still shining.

  "What?"

  "Go check. Please. I want to make sure."

  "You'll be all right by yourself for a few seconds? You won't be scared?"

  Land was so far away it was only a thin, white line on the horizon.

  "Why would I be scared? I'm with you."

  He pressed warm lips to my cheek. "I'll be right back."

  Jamie dove and within the space of a breath it felt as if I were all alone in this vast space with a whole world beneath me that I would never be privy to, that I had no way to be a part of. I almost felt like an intruder, as though Jamie had brought me to a forbidden place. The waves chopped angrily around my shoulders as if she, the Deep, didn't want me here. Before my thoughts could grow more morose, Jamie resurfaced in front of me and his lips immediately found mine, allaying any doubts that I didn't belong here with him.

  "It's still shining," he said.

  "I love knowing it's down there. I wish I could go down there with you."

  He studied me for a moment, a longing building in his eyes. "Take a deep breath and hold on."

  As soon as I did, he dove, taking me with him.

  We didn't go all the way to the bottom. The water was too deep for that, but he took me just to the point I felt the pressure of the water building in my head. He put his mouth to mine and my lips parted. I took his breath, and when my lungs were full, he held us suspended in tranquility where nothing else existed but the two of us. I could see the sea star shining out of the depths beneath us. The star's light grew brighter, piercing the darkness, touching my feet and spreading upward, slowly illuminating Jamie's face. Ignoring the sting of salt in my eyes, I smiled. Jamie placed his hand under my chin and tilted my face to his and breathed into me again. I took the air he offered greedily. He ran his fingers through my hair as it ribboned in the current. He took my hand and with a slight flick of his feet, we were coasting. He spun us in a slow, spiraling circle, his hands at my waist, mine on his shoulders. We danced to the muted silence of the Deep, a tune I could somehow hear. Jamie was sharing his world with me. Things had been so normal for us lately, so mundane, I'd almost forgotten what he was. Being here with him as close to his world as I was likely to get, it was so patently obvious he was so much more than I'd known, and I marveled at the magnificence of him, wanting to prolong this beat in time. The burn in my lungs dared to ruin what was otherwise a perfect moment. Jamie pulled me into his chest offering me the air I needed. We began our ascent, floating slowly upward, lips and tongues melded together, bodies entwined.