“Sure,” she says. “I do some singing. I’m not great, but I love to do it anyway. If it makes your ears hurt, I promise I’ll stop.”
It turns out she does, in fact, have an amazing voice, and my shyness starts to fade as we sit at a picnic table and I play some of her favorite hit songs and she sings along. I try not to stare at her, but it’s hard not to. She’s one of the prettiest girls I’ve ever seen, and the fact that we both have a passion for music is a surprise bonus I wasn’t expecting.
“I thought I heard you twanging over here, man.” Asher’s raspy voice breaks into my daydream of asking Ember out to a movie this weekend.
“Hey,” I say as he approaches us. “Do you know Ember? She just moved here last month. Ember, this is Asher Valentine.” Asher is way more outgoing than I am, so maybe he can help us break the conversation ice.
“Actually, we haven’t met yet,” he says, giving her his full attention. “Wow, you’ve got some gorgeous eyes. Shit. There goes my heart.”
“Nice to meet you,” she giggles and gives her dazzling smile over to him. “Are you guys brothers?” she asks.
Asher laughs. “Nah. Everyone thinks that, but we’re just friends.”
“You guys look a lot alike. I actually thought you were the same person when I first saw you in the halls. It took me a few days to realize you weren’t.”
“It’s definitely not on purpose,” I say. “Just a weird coincidence. Ash has a younger brother that looks like him, too. And I guess, a lot like me.”
Asher flashes a grin. “God thought I was so perfect he wanted to make some backups of me,” he winks at Ember. “Just in case.”
She giggles again, and I can feel myself slipping into the background. “You’re that perfect?” She asks.
“Yup.”
Her head tilts and she can’t seem to take her eyes off him, and he’s staring right back at her like I wish I had the courage to before he showed up. Suddenly, it’s like I’m not even here, and my daydreams wither away.
Defeated, I put my guitar back in its case and snap it shut. “I should get going.”
“Oh…” Ember says, looking from me to Asher, like she’s torn between us.
“I’m going to hang out here for a while and then go over to the diner for a burger,” Asher says, still holding her attention. “You want to stay and talk for a while? I’ll buy you dinner and walk you home.”
“I’d love to,” she turns to me. “You don’t mind, do you Toren?”
I shake my head and force a smile. “No, not at all.”
But the truth is, I did mind. I minded a lot.
Kenzi
Tor’s texts have me aflutter. That’s the only word I can think of to best describe this new feeling. I think my Gram would be impressed with that word. My insides are shaking, rattling and rolling all about, and I can’t get my heart to settle back down into normal, calm beats. I’ve been lying in bed for an hour since we said good night, but I’m too afluttered to sleep.
I quietly slip into the hallway and pad down to Aunt Katherine’s small kitchen to make myself a cup of tea. It’s odd how at home I only drink coffee, but when I’m here I drink all sorts of assorted teas and don’t go near coffee at all. I’m not sure why this is fascinating to me at one a.m., but it is. With the steaming ceramic cup in my hand, I go back to my room and close the door behind me with a soft click.
Before I made my tea, I spent a half hour re-reading the entire text conversation. Tor’s reactions to my photos and then his detailed description of what he wanted to do to me was definitely a surprising eye-opener.
Tor has an erotic side.
And that just ramped up his yum factor even more.
If his words are true – and I have zero reason to doubt him – he wants to show me that side of him, even though he’s struggling with it because of all the alleged wrong’s involved.
I stare out the window at the moon and its neighboring stars casting a shimmering reflection on the water, contemplating as I sip my tea. Is it really wrong for us to feel this way? If we care about each other, love each other, and want each other…is that wrong? And if it is, then why? Because of our ages? Because he’s my dad’s best friend? Because he’s taken care of me?
Do those things make it wrong…or do they actually make it more right? Why is it acceptable to get involved with a total stranger, who could do any number of things to hurt you or betray you, but not get involved with someone who has cared about you since the day you were born?