Shattered Ties(34)

Me: Sorry, I’m debating. You know I have NO extra cash to pay for tickets or anything like that.

Emma: My dad will fly us out on the label’s private plane. All you need to do is get a passport. I’ll cover food while we’re there.

This just kept getting better and better. I didn’t like the fact that Emma would be paying for me, but I couldn’t pass up a chance like this. I’d never be able to afford something like this, even in my wildest dreams.

Me: Okay, I’m in. I have to clear it with my mom, but normally, she doesn’t care if I go somewhere.

Emma: Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. I’m sure she doesn’t care if you go to the beach, but another country might be a different story.

Me: I’ll talk to her tomorrow about it. She’s pissed at me right now for what I said to Mark and because I took off.

Emma: I suggest sucking up for a day or two, and then ask her. Just use that charm of yours, and she can’t say no.

Me: I have charm? :-D

Emma: You’re impossible. Night, Jesse. <3 Me: Night.

I smiled at the little heart that she’d put at the end. I knew it was stupid, but I couldn’t help it. It wasn’t like I’d ever admit to her that it made me happy. I still had some guy pride after all.

I didn’t know where things between us were going, but I wanted to find out.



I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to act around Emma at school. I knew that we had to keep our friendship quiet from her mother, so I assumed that we had to act like nothing had changed over the weekend. It sucked, but I understood why she needed to keep things quiet. She was trying to protect both of us from her mom. I’d never met the woman, and I didn’t want to. Emma was the type who liked everyone, and the resentment she had for her mother told me all I needed to know about her.

I pulled into the parking lot and stepped out of my Jeep right as Emma was pulling in. I started walking slowly toward the school, giving her a chance to catch up to me if she wanted to. Sure enough, I heard footsteps behind me a few seconds later. I looked over at her as she caught up to me.

“Hey.”

She grinned. “Hey. How was your weekend?”

“Kind of boring.”

“Oh, really? Nothing exciting?”

“Nope, just the usual. I took some hot girl to the beach and tried to teach her how to surf, but she was just like all the others. She kept getting distracted by my abs, so she kept falling off the board. It was actually kind of funny just how clumsy she was. She did have one thing going for her though.”

“And what was that?”

“She looked way better in a bikini than most girls.”

“Well, I’m glad to hear she had that at least.”

This teasing was fun. I was always stressed with school or my mom’s money situation, and Emma could make all of that disappear with just a smile.

“So, how was your weekend?” I asked.

“It was fun. I met this hot surfer guy, but he ended up being this egomaniac who I couldn’t stand. He even kissed me without my permission.”

“What a douche bag.”

“He was.”

I pulled her off the sidewalk to a spot where it wasn’t so out in the open.

I looked around to make sure no one was watching. When I was sure that we were safe, I leaned in closer and whispered into her ear, “It’s too bad that you think he was a douche bag.”

“Why is that?” she whispered back.

I ran my tongue along her ear, and she shuddered.

“Because if you liked him, he could do that and so much more.” “What else does he have in mind?” she asked breathlessly.

I stepped back and grinned. “He can get pretty creative when he wants to.”

I wasn’t one of those guys who was with a different girl every night, but I did have experience when it came to sex. I’d been with a handful of girls since I started high school, and I’d learned a lot about girls and what they wanted. I had no idea how experienced Emma was, but I knew that I wanted to find out.

“Emma! What are you doing over there?” a voice shouted from a few feet away.

I stepped away from Emma just as Lucy was walking up to us. Her eyes widened as she noticed me standing there, too.

“Oh, hi, Jesse. I didn’t see you there.”

“Hey, Lucy,” I said casually. That girl has the worst timing.

“We were just...talking,” Emma said lamely.

She needed to learn to lie better if she planned to keep me as her dirty little secret.

Lucy grinned. “What were you talking about? It must have been something good because you’re blushing.” “Uh...” Emma started.

“I was asking Emma if she could help me with an assignment Ms. Mason assigned to us,” I lied flawlessly.

Lucy studied me carefully. “You know, you’re an excellent liar. If Emma wasn’t six shades of red, I would have believed you.”

I grinned. “Maybe she was blushing because she was nervous around me.”

Emma snorted. “Ego much?”

“We’d better get to class.” I stepped back onto the sidewalk and started walking toward the school.

Emma and Lucy followed behind me, and I could hear Lucy whispering to Emma.

“When we’re alone, you’re so telling me what just happened.”