A Glimpse of the Dream (5 page)

I sat on the front steps of Raven’s Peak, my attention on Kane as he walked to his car with his friends. He was seventeen now and had worked a bunch of odd jobs so he could afford the car. It wasn’t much to look at, but he was convinced the heart of a panther lived in his dilapidated blue Camaro. I wanted to go with them to the movies, but I was only fifteen and felt uncomfortable.

His black hair was messy, even though I knew he had just been to the barber and it had grown out almost overnight. He used to be only a few inches taller than me, but now he was at least a head taller. He had a bar in his room where he did chin-ups. It mesmerized me, watching his muscles move under his skin; he had a lot of them. I couldn’t do it. I’d tried but couldn’t even get my chin to the bar.

The leather jacket he was wearing had been a gift from me. Mrs. Marks had helped me buy it; it suited him and his collection of faded jeans. And even with all the changes he’d been through the past year, his crystal-blue eyes were still my favorite; I saw my Kane in them. But at the moment, those eyes were staring down at Camille.

Camille had started coming around the house a lot asking for him the past year. I had thought she’d gotten over her crush on him but apparently not. She walked around the place like she owned it. You could see her thoughts: She was imagining living with Kane in the house that overlooked the town. Her family came from money, lots of it, and they had the fanciest house in town. Actually, it was the second fanciest house after Raven’s Peak, and that burned her ass. She wanted Raven’s Peak as much as she wanted Kane. I didn’t like that he was going to the movies with her. He claimed they were just friends, but the way she looked at him was anything but friendly. Regardless, he was my Kane. But I looked like a boy with my flat chest and nonexistent hips, and she looked like a woman. I hated Camille.

“Want me to bring you back an ice cream?” Kane called. I knew he was trying to be nice, but it only made me feel more like a kid.

“No.” I jumped from my spot at the door and ran to my room. I didn’t stop running until I reached my bed, threw myself on it, and cried. I didn’t even really understand why I was crying, only that seeing him go off without me really hurt.

Later that night, Kane came to my room. Sitting on the edge of my bed, I rolled to face him, my hands under my cheek.

He brushed my hair from my eyes. “Are you still mad?” he asked.

“I wasn’t mad, I was upset.”

“Okay. Are you still upset?”

“I guess not. Did you have fun?”

“No. Camille tried to put her tongue in my mouth.”

My muscles tensed, and I tried to tell myself it was just a reaction to the idea of her tongue in his mouth—gross—but I knew there was more to my response than that. “You didn’t like it?”

“It’s not that. I just didn’t want a kiss from her.”

“Why not? She’s pretty.” Why was I encouraging this? I’d been secretly jealous of Camille for years, so why was I almost telling him to kiss her? Clearly I was insane.

“I guess, but I wasn’t into it.” He lowered his head and I knew he had something on his mind.

“What are you thinking?” I asked.

“I wanted a kiss, just not from her.”

Oh. He liked someone. I understood, he was really cute and sweet, but I kind of always hoped that one day he would like me in that way. He was my friend, though, so I tried to be his.

“If there’s someone you want to kiss, you should just kiss her.”

His head snapped up at that. “Seriously?”

“Well, yeah, but she better be deserving of you.”

A strange look passed over his expression, like he wasn’t sure if I was teasing him. “I want to kiss you, Tea.”

I understood the expression “fluttery heart” in that moment; mine felt as if it had wings. “Me?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.” Sitting up, I tucked my hair behind my ears as I attempted to calm down, because I was equal parts nervous and excited. I’d fantasized about Kane kissing me for years. To know that he’d been thinking the same made me feel giddy. He shifted so we were facing each other.

His finger touched my cheek before running down along my jaw, and goose bumps immediately appeared on my skin. It felt different, the way he touched me—unlike the countless times he had before.

“Are you sure? This isn’t just a kiss. It’ll be different between us.”

“What do you mean?” I didn’t want to lose him; he was my best friend.

“I don’t want to just kiss you, Tea. You’re not ready for the rest, so I’ll wait, but I feel different about you. And I think you feel it too.”

“I do. Have for a while.”

“So when I kiss you, I’m not just kissing you. You’re mine. I want you to be mine.”

My heart moved into my throat; his words mirrored exactly how I felt. “I want that too, I really want that.”

His eyes turned dark, and the sexiest look swept his face. Fearing I was about to faint—I felt so lightheaded—I sought to ease some of the intensity. “Okay, you can kiss me now. Wait, did you brush your teeth? Maybe you should rinse your mouth with disinfectant.”

And then his mouth was on mine, despite my joke, his lips brushing mine lightly. My eyes closed on their own and my heart sighed. His hands framed my face before his tongue ran along my lips, just the tip tracing the curve. Wanting to taste him, my mouth opened and he pushed his tongue in. It was awkward at first, I wasn’t sure what to do with my tongue, and then it was as if our bodies took over, fueled by the emotions we were both feeling. His tongue swept my mouth as my tongue sought his. It felt incredible, stirring feelings that I had felt before around Kane, but heightened. When Kane pulled his mouth from mine, he looked hungry.

“Are you okay?” I asked, because he looked a bit like the Big Bad Wolf at that moment.

“Yeah. You should probably get some sleep.” He stood and started from my room.

“Was that bad?” I asked, because he’d sounded almost curt.

His head turned to me when he reached the door. “No, Tea, it was not bad. It was perfect. You’re mine. Remember that.”

“Forever, Kane.”

“Good. See you in the morning.”

And then he was gone, his words still rolling around in my head. He’d kissed me. He’d liked that he’d kissed me. Take that, Camille.

In the morning, I woke with butterflies in my stomach. Kane had kissed me. My fingers unconsciously brushed over my lips, the memory of his mouth on mine caused chills to shoot down my arms. My feet didn’t quite seem to touch the floor as I walked to the door. He was standing there, like normal, but the look in his eyes was anything but. He moved to me without speaking a word, his fingers threading through my hair as he tilted my head for his kiss. Unlike the night before, there was nothing awkward about the way his mouth claimed mine, his tongue stroking my own. Reaching for him, I fisted his shirt in my hands to keep myself upright. My scalp tingled, as did the rest of me. Clearly I wasn’t the only one who had spent the night thinking about our first kiss.

“Good morning,” he whispered.

“It really is a good morning. That was a great way to start off the day.”

He chuckled. His thumb brushed over my lower lip, his eyes tracking the motion. His gaze lifted and he whispered, “Mine.”

My heart skipped a beat.

After the last bell rang, I headed for my locker. Kane was in my thoughts, as he had been for every second in the weeks since our relationship had started. I loved him, had for a long time, but I realized it wasn’t just love, not like you’d love family. I was
in
love with him. The tragedy that had sent me to Raven’s Peak had also given me Kane. Talk about a silver lining.

“Tea.”

Chills raced down my arms. Turning, I watched as Kane made his way to me. His legs were clad in faded denim and the Henley shirt he wore so perfectly hugged the muscles of his chest and arms. He walked right into me, his mouth fusing to mine. Fear accompanied my joy, because Kane was graduating soon and I worried over what was next for us. He must have seen something in my expression when he pulled away.

“What’s wrong?” He tilted his head and really studied me. “Not here. Get your stuff, and we’ll go somewhere to talk.”

It was uncanny how well he knew me. Swapping my books to his other hand, Kane reached for my hand as we walked to his car. He drove to the docks, a place we often visited, sometimes together and many times alone. It was a great place to think.

We walked to the end of one of the piers. Pulling me into his arms, he turned so my back rested up against the railing. His focus was completely on me. “What’s going on?”

“You’re graduating.”

“Yeah. So?”

“Are you going to college?”

His focus shifted to just over my shoulder, his expression thoughtful. “I don’t think so.”

I couldn’t help the joy I felt, since I wanted him with me, but I was also curious. “Why not?”

“Maybe I’ll feel differently in a year or two, but right now, I’m just not interested. I want to work, want to start putting money away, so when we’re ready we can start a life together.”

Happiness filled me, so intense it brought tears to my eyes. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah. I meant it, Tea. You and me forever.”

Burying my face in his chest, I felt the worry that had weighed me down instantly lift. He touched my chin and forced my focus on him. “You thought I was going to leave you?”

“I did.”

“First, I wouldn’t make that kind of decision without talking with you. Second, even if I did go to school, there are places close enough to home that I could commute to.”

And that thought brought back my fear, because I still wanted Boston University, had been working really hard to get the grades that would get me in. If he had a life here, how could I ask him to give it up? As was his way, he read my thoughts perfectly.

“If you go to Boston, I’m coming with you. There was never a question.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“And you would be okay with that, even if you had a job?”

“I can always find another job.”

“And if you’re in school?”

“I can transfer. Jobs and schools are plenty, there’s only one you.”

“We’re young. You might feel differently in a few years.”

His expression turned serious. “I’ve known you for six years, Tea, and my feelings for you have only grown deeper in that time. A few more years and I’ll really be sunk.”

Love for this boy washed over me for how easily he spoke those words. “That’s a good answer, Kane.”

His grin was adorable. “You good?”

“Yeah.”

“Time for ice cream.” But instead of releasing me, he moved his body closer and bent his head for a kiss that turned my bones to goo.

Kane had been right. In the two years that we’d been dating, we had grown even closer, and not just romantically. There was something to be said for dating your best friend. He had started working full-time at the boatyard and, though he wanted to get his own place, he would only consider actually doing it if I moved in with him. As much as we wanted to take that step, I was only seventeen, and we suspected that Mrs. Marks wouldn’t approve. I finally learned how to swim, and we swam out to our island every week. Kane usually beat me, since he was a much stronger swimmer, but I held my own. That day, we took the boat so we could bring a picnic. After eating, we went to play in the water, and Kane tried to dunk me against my will. The only way I could stop him was by wrapping my arms and legs around him and squeezing tight. He went dead still.