by Erin Danzer
Chapter Twenty Four
Ronnie stumbled as they walked out of the In Between into her bedroom and Gavin automatically reached out to steady her. His arms came around her and she stared up at him, his sister’s words about love ringing in her ears. She blushed as she stepped away.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized, obviously trying to hide how uncomfortable the moment was. Ronnie sighed and shook her head.
“No, don’t apologize, we need to talk about this,” she declared and pulled him over to sit with her on the edge of the bed. She kept his hand in hers, running her fingers over and around his, embarrassed by the words running through her mind. I love you seemed too intense, especially since she already loved Shawn, but the L-word kept replaying in her mind along with all the emotion she saw in Gavin’s eyes after his sister’s comment. She knew at least some of that emotion was mirrored in her own eyes. Gavin shifted and cleared his throat.
“Okay, if you won’t start, then I will,” he began and Ronnie looked up. Her eyes met his as he continued. “When I first saw a picture of you, I knew you would mean something to me. I was attracted to you even before I met you. And then I met you. Seeing you outside homeroom was like a kick in the gut; you knocked the air right out of me. But I could also see you had your eyes and your heart on someone else. My mission was to bring you back to Kalearnia as one of the chosen recruits, not to make you fall in love with me. So I locked up my emotions and tried to spend that week distancing myself from you, which was impossible with how much we were thrown together.
“Last night when I apologized for almost kissing you, I didn’t mean it. I wouldn’t apologize if it happened again and I wouldn’t stop before it happened. You’ve invaded every aspect of my life, my dreams and my waking self. But I know that’s not what you need right now. I know you need a friend and I’m trying to be your friend, but what kind of friend ruins the best relationship you ever had?”
Ronnie stared at him when he stopped talking, her mind whirling with everything he said. It basically came down to the fact that he had loved her since he met her despite the fact that she practically hated him the first few days. Then she realized the last thing he said and her paralysis broke. She shook her head.
“But it’s not your fault,” she told him and continued before he could argue. “No, listen to me. Even though we almost kissed last night, we didn’t. We did nothing wrong—how is falling asleep with a friend a crime? Because you are my friend. God, Gavin, yes, I’m attracted to you; I think you’re cute and cocky and if Shawn wasn’t in the picture, you are the guy I would fall for. But Shawn is around. I just need to get him to understand that nothing happened.”
“If he’s not man enough to listen to you and believe you, he’s not worth it—and I’m not saying that because I know I’m next in line. You deserve someone who treats you right.”
“Someone who treats me like a princess?”
She grinned at him. He laughed, she laughed and the tension broke between them. Ronnie knew she would always be attracted to Gavin and she could admit that in some ways she loved him, but she wasn’t in love with him. She had to try to fix things with Shawn and deal with the fallout before she entertained the idea of another relationship. Her good mood disappeared and she sighed. She could only think of one way to fix things with Shawn and she wasn’t sure how he would react to it.
“Uh oh, what’s wrong now?” Gavin asked, his tone still playful.
“The only way I’m going to get Shawn to believe me is if I tell him the truth about you,” Ronnie replied sadly. “But I don’t want to do that to you.”
“You do what you think you have to,” he instructed, all playfulness gone. “Maybe by telling Shawn and even Andi, it won’t seem so much like we’re sneaking around behind everyone’s back.”
“Yeah, maybe.” She took a deep breath and forced a smile. “Okay, enough drama for one day. Let’s go out and enjoy the afternoon. But first, how long do I have to decide whether I’m going to Kalearnia?”
Hope lit up his eyes. “You would do that?”
“I don’t know. I liked it there. It was really pretty and I liked meeting your mom and sister. That’s why I need to know how much time I have. There’s a lot here I have to deal with before I leave everything behind.”
“Okay, well, the queen gave me a month and I got here a few days before school started, so you have about two and a half weeks.”
“Guess that means I better get to work on repairing my relationship.” She grinned as she took his hand and pulled him to his feet, much like he did to her at his house.
“Come on; take me for a walk while I don’t have to be afraid.”
“You never have to be afraid.”
“I know, it’s one of the reasons I keep you around.”
She laughed at his appalled expression as she pulled him out of her bedroom. They were still holding hands as they left her house a moment later.
“First things first, I need to get my car,” Ronnie said as they started walking away from her house. Gavin nodded.
“So, you did all those annoying things because you like me? What are you, eight?” she teased as they wandered down her street towards town. His cheeks pinked.
“I started training when I was ten. I didn’t have much chance to date until my initiation. Even now, I defend more than I date.”
Ronnie frowned as she realized he missed out on most of his childhood. “That’s sad,” she said and sighed. The tattoo between her shoulder blades tingled. “How old were you when you got your tattoo?”
“Sixteen. Most Defenders are between sixteen and eighteen when they get initiated.”
“So technically, I shouldn’t have this tattoo yet.” She grinned at him when he nodded. “Guess that means I’m just super special.”
He chuckled and nodded. The sound died in his throat when Ronnie continued to smile at him. “You know, Princess, you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to get the wrong idea.”
Ronnie’s smile faltered. She hadn’t even realized she was flirting. She was just enjoying her time with him. “I just want to feel loved,” she admitted in a small voice.
“You are loved. If Shawn didn’t love you so much, he wouldn’t be so mad.”
“Oh, how sweet. Now you give advice on love, too, Lieutenant Clearwater,” Rick spoke up behind them. Both of them spun around and Ronnie’s eyes widened, her heart pounding, as Gavin dropped to one knee and put his right fist over his heart as he bowed his head. Ronnie wondered what he was doing until she remembered that Rick was Commander of the Spiral Defenders, Gavin’s boss.
“I didn’t know you were there, Commander Goodyear,” Gavin declared still not looking up.
“Obviously,” Rick sneered. “Get up; you don’t need to do that here.”
Gavin straightened and kept his expression neutral as his gaze met Rick’s. Ronnie’s stomach trembled from the tension between the two of them as she wondered what Rick was going to do. He continued to glare at Gavin.
“I see you’ve met another recruit,” Rick commented, his eyes flicking to Ronnie. She flinched. She didn’t want him to be around her or even look at her. She knew he lied in the book store and now he was going to use that to his advantage.
“Yes, sir,” Gavin replied. His hands were clasped in front of him but Ronnie knew he wanted to reach out for her, to protect her from whatever Rick was up to.
“Well, she’s no longer your concern. From now on, any questions, concerns or communications Miss Lambert has concerning recruitment will go through me,” Rick declared. Ronnie shook her head.
“No,” she argued. Rick’s glare shot to her. She trembled but stood her ground. “I hate you,” she declared. “I want nothing to do with you. If I can’t be with Gavin, I don’t want to be recruited at all.”
“That’s the thing, dear. Once you’re in Kalearnia, you can’t be with the lieutenant. There’s to be no fraternizing among the ranks.”
Ronnie saw anger flash in Gavin�
�s eyes and wondered if this rule was one Rick just made up to satisfy his current needs. Unfortunately, she didn’t get a chance to ask because Rick continued talking.
“Run along now, Lieutenant. Go back to Kalearnia and tell Queen Alina you’ve done your job. Miss Lambert will return to Kalearnia with the rest of the recruits from Earth,” Rick instructed. Gavin’s eyes met Ronnie’s and held for a long moment. She wanted to reach out to him, to keep him by her side. She couldn’t face Rick alone. But if Rick was Gavin’s boss, he was surely hers since she was a new recruit. It was then that Ronnie decided going to Kalearnia and becoming a Spiral Defender was what she needed to do. Not only to see Gavin again, but so they could figure out what Rick was up to and find a way to stop him. She put her determination in her eyes and nodded at Gavin, hoping he understood.
“Go. I’ll see you soon,” she whispered to him and he nodded. With one final look at Rick, Gavin turned and walked into the portal Rick created behind them. Ronnie’s heart clenched as she watched him disappear into the inky darkness and prayed they would see each other again soon. The portal disappeared and Rick turned to Ronnie, his gaze menacing as he looked down at her.
“I know everything that goes on,” he hissed. “If you contact him, I’ll know and he will be stripped of status and powers. I assure you, it’s a very painful process.”
Ronnie swallowed audibly as she nodded. “I have no way to contact him,” she whispered.
“Good. Make sure it stays that way.”
Ronnie’s heart pounded and she trembled as she watched Rick stalk away down the street. Forgetting her car, she turned and headed home, feeling more desolate than ever before. Gavin was gone and Shawn wanted nothing to do with her. Even Andi hadn’t tried contacting her. She was all alone and she knew she would have to face Rick again.