Covering the Carolinas (9 page)

As I reach the stands, I can see how nervous she is
while she tries to remain calm and get Brett and her sisters to
hurry up. Carleigh and Tinleigh vanish from the stands quickly, but
Brett is in a conversation with one of his teammates.

“
Mar!” I shout. She tries to ignore me, but I
don’t allow her. Taking two bleachers at a time, I come face to
face with the girl who stole my heart and never gave it
back.

“
Marleigh, when did you get here?” I question
as Brett looks at me confused as hell.

“
Mar, you know GC?” Brett questions as she
confirms she knows me. “It’s obvious you need a minute, so I’ll
meet you at my car.” he says as if he knows something I
don’t.

“
Brett, everything okay?” I
question.

Brett gives a half laugh, “Oh, it’s totally not
okay.” Then he walks away without another word.

As I look at her, she looks terrified.
Why is she so scared of me?
I try to
touch her arm and she pulls away. “What did I do, Mar? Just tell
me, please?” I beg.

“
It’s not you; it was me.”
I hate that fucking line.
“Look, Brett’s waiting
on me and blondy over there is shooting daggers at me. I gotta
go.”

She steps away from me and I close my eyes
feeling like I’m losing her all over again. “Meet me, Mar.
Please
. That’s all I’m asking. Just
to talk. You name the time and place.”

She pauses and turns. “Tomorrow, two o’clock at
Coastal Java.” Then she walks away.

“
What the hell was that?” Summer questions as
soon as I walk out of the locker room.”

“
She’s here, and I had to talk to
her.”

“
When are you ever going to let it go? If she
wanted you, she wouldn’t run so far away. Besides, you have me, and
I love you, Del Valle.” God, I hate a girl calling me by my
nickname. Then it hits me, she’s running, she never runs so what
did I do to make her run from me? “Del Valle, hunny, did you hear
me?”

“
Sorry. I got distracted. Whatcha want to do
tonight?”

As she gives me a wry grin, I know exactly what she
wants. I kiss her briefly. “Let me stop by my apartment then I’ll
be over.”

Chapter 18

MARLEIGH

Breathe, Mar, breathe.
I tell myself as I press my body against the lobby wall.
After a few deep breaths, I make my way outside. I can see Brett
standing at his car and my sisters are nowhere to be found.
Great.
Walking toward him, I hold my
head high and smile as if he’s all that matters.

“
Marleigh, do you think I’m an idiot?” he asks
as soon as I reach the car.

“
No, can we please go and talk?”

He opens his car door and gets in. I do the same.
During the entire ride back to the beach, my heart is pounding. I
want to talk, but I’m afraid. When we arrive at his house, we walk
toward the sand. Once we are looking into the waves of the ocean, I
start to speak, but he cuts me off.

“
Why didn’t you tell me?”

“
Tell you what?” I still continue to play as
if he doesn’t know.

“
Don’t play dumb. It took me about two seconds
to know
how you
know
him.”

Tears begin to pour down my face, “I was going to
tell you. I promise I was.”

“
Don’t lie to me. You had no plan of telling
me. Hell, what have we been doing for months? The fact you told me
about Gunner is one thing. You had me thinking this whole time he
was some guy who left you to raise him on your own but the GC I
know is a really good guy, I don’t understand. He looked completely
shocked to see you. Like you were a ghost.”

“
Because I am. When I found out I was
pregnant, I broke it off with him. He doesn’t know about Gunner.”
As Brett starts to interrupt me, I cut him off. “Look, I know you
don’t understand. It was my choice and why I’ve steered clear of
him, school, and any place that might cross paths with him. I did
what was best for
him
.”

“
That’s bullshit. In fact, that’s the most
selfish thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”

I pull the necklace from my pocket as tears begin to
stream down my face. I show him GC and Gunner’s inscriptions. “I
brought this with me tonight to tell you about everything. GC
mailed this to me after I broke it off with him. It was the last
thing I ever got from him, and when Gunner was born, I added his
name and birthday on the back.”

Brett runs his hands through his hair, irritated.
“Marleigh, why? Why keep his kid from him?”

“
Because he has a dream!”

“
So do you! You should have worked on this
together or at least given him a chance.” He grips his fingers in
his hair in frustration. “I’ve been falling in love with you, but
how can I love someone who can’t be honest?” He begins to walk
toward the water and I follow.

As he looks into the deep blue sea, he asks me
a question that I’ve never wanted to be asked. “Do you love him?” I
pause because the words won’t come.
Do
I?
“That’s all the answer I needed. He turns toward me
and closes the distance as he kisses my forehead and walks away.
Looking at the necklace in my hand, I grasp it tightly then unlock
the clasp and place it around my neck, stand with my feet in the
sand and cry.

Chapter 19

GUNNISON

“
Dude, who was that girl? I thought it was
Tinleigh, but then it looked like three of them.”

“
It’s her, Wade.
The
girl is their sister.”

“
Holy fuck. Dude, I’d hate to be you when you
break Summer’s heart.”

“
Yeah, well she wants Brett, not
me.”

“
Don’t kid yourself. I saw her after you went
in the locker room. You had an effect on her. They might have left
together, but Brett was pissed.”

I’m not really sure what to say next, but I know
that no matter what Summer has planned tonight, it’s going to
change. Regardless of what happens with Marleigh, I know I don’t
love Summer. “What are you guys doing tonight?”

“
There’s a party down the road if you want to
go.”

“
Summer wants me to come over.”

“
I bet she does. One more round before she’s
not Del Valle’s girl. I’d watch out for her. She’s liable to get
pregnant on purpose just to keep you.”

“
Shut up! That shit’s not funny.”

I make my way into my apartment, grab a beer before
showering, and get ready to go to Summer’s.

Arriving at Summer’s, I make my way inside and find
her waiting for me on the couch. It’s obvious what she has in mind,
but I just don’t know if I can go through with it. As I approach
her, she takes a step towards me.

“
Summer, we’ve got to talk.” She pouts her lip
and it takes every ounce of courage for me tell her the truth about
us. A much as I hate to hurt her, I’ve got to be honest.

As we sit back down, I turn to her. “Summer, you’re
a great girl and…”

“
Don’t say it, Del Valle. I already know. The
moment you ran to her, I knew we were finished.”

“
Here’s the thing. I don’t know if I even
stand a chance with her, but it’s not fair to you. You’ve been the
perfect girl for me here, but you’re not Marleigh. As much as I
want us to work, I just know I’m not over her.”

She begins to laugh, and I’m not sure what’s so
funny. “You think I didn’t know you weren’t over her? You talk
about her in your sleep, but I didn’t care. I thought you’d come
around. Just know the next time she leaves you, I can’t promise
I’ll be here.”

I stand as she does. She hugs me and kisses my
cheek. “What do you say, Del Valle? One more time for old time’s
sake?” She winks. Placing my forehead on hers, I close my eyes and
debate what I should do. Opening them, I look in her eyes and they
are begging for me. Placing my lips on hers, I control our
movements. As she tries to move things further, I realize that I’m
not this kind of guy.

“
Summer, we can’t,” I say as she tries to kiss
me again. “Stop, I said! I won’t let you be that girl or me that
guy. We’re better than this.” She takes a step back and I see her
wipe her eyes discreetly.

“
You should go, Del Valle,” she says as she
turns away from me.

“
I’m really sorry, Summer,” I say as I walk
out the door and don’t look back.

Chapter 20

MARLEIGH

After Brett is long gone and the tears have ceased,
I stand there watching the tide begin to crash further and further
up the beach just as my past has crashed back into my present. I
think about my life, and if what Brett said is right. I thought I
was doing the right thing, but the pleading look on GC’s face made
me doubt my decision. He was completely shocked when he saw me
before the game. He thought I didn’t notice, but I did. It doesn’t
matter how long we’ve been apart, when he’s near me my world stops
and begins to revolve around him just like it did they day I met
him.

I’m not sure how long I stand there, but at some
point my sisters are at my side. As the moon rises higher in the
clear sky, they guide me back to the house and my anxiety grows as
I imagine a conversation with the boy who stole my heart and gave
me the most precious gift without even knowing.

“
Come on, Mar. Let’s go home,” Carleigh says
as we make our way back to the house.

When I wake up I realize it’s already lunch
time, which is crazy because usually Gunner calls me in the
mornings waking me up. When I try to Facetime him, he doesn’t
answer, then I realize they are probably eating lunch after church.
The house is super quiet and it doesn’t take long for me to realize
it’s empty.
Weird.
I make my
way to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee when I notice a note
from Tinleigh saying they were going grocery shopping, but would be
back after while. Taking a few minutes to enjoy the quietness and
relax, I take a sip of my coffee. Coffee! Shit! I’m meeting GC in
two hours! Jumping up, I hurry to my room and take a shower.
What the hell am I going to wear?
What am I going to say? How will I tell him about
Gunner?
All my thoughts are jumbled as I prepare to
see him.

Deciding I don’t want to look too polished, I
wear a pair of jeans and an embellished top. Taking a few extra
minutes to apply my makeup and style my long dirty blonde hair, I
stare at my reflection in the mirror as I finish.
I wonder what he thought when he saw me? Did he
think I was still as pretty as the last time he saw me?
Trying my best not to get myself too worked up, I exit my
room and leave my sisters a note that I’m at Coastal
Java.

GUNNISON

Waiting for Marliegh at Coastal Java is like waiting
on water to boil. Just as I think she’s not going to show, I hear
the bell ring as the door opens. I’m speechless when she smiles as
she walks toward me.

I stand when she approaches. “Hey,” is all I can
manage because she is absolutely stunning.

“
Hey,” she says sweetly.

“
Caramel Coffee?” I ask.

A perfect smile escapes her lips when she realizes I
remember one of her favorite flavors. Did she really think I could
forget the ice cream shop? “Yes, that would be fabulous,” she says
as she takes a seat. I make my way to the counter order two caramel
coffees and realize my hands have become clammy.

Once I’m seated, I can’t help but start with the
questions. “Marleigh, I’m so surprised to see you. I don’t know
where to start. How are you?”

“
Pretty good I guess. What about
you?”

“
School and basketball have been just like I
dreamed they’d be.”

“
That’s great! Are you still planning on going
back to run the farm?”

“
Yeah, well unless the NBA comes calling,” I
say with a laugh.

“
NBA really?”

“
Yeah, I mean, it’s highly unlikely that will
happen, but with the coverage we’ve been getting, it does put eyes
on us. I’m not banking on that though. That’s like a one in a
million chance.”

“
Still, that’s awesome.”

Unable to hold back the questions I want answers to
I just blurt it out. “How long have you been here?”

“
I’ve been here since August, but I’m only on
campus Tuesday through Thursday. I’m not around much other than
that. I’ve been going home a lot.”
Why
would she go home?

“
I guess that’s why I haven’t seen you. When
I’ve run into your sisters they usually avoid me and quite honestly
I have no idea why. I mean, what happened? We had our plan and you
just gave it up without notice or an explanation? Why would your
sisters avoid me? I really don’t understand?

“
Yeah.” We don’t say anything for a few
minutes. As we sip our coffee in silence the bell rings again and I
glance over my shoulder to see Summer walk in. Our eyes meet and
she gives me a smirk before heading to the counter. I quickly turn
back to Marleigh to let her know we broke up.

“
Marleigh, we aren’t together anymore, and
before you say anything, hear me out.” She nods. “I don’t know
what’s going on, but I need you to know I’ve never gotten over you.
I mean you just called us quits with no warning or explanation so I
figured I had to try to move on. When I got to school and your
sisters confirmed I needed to let you go, I decided to see if
dating would help. Summer was here. She’s a great girl, but she’s
not the girl for me. Last night when I saw you, I realized I had
never gotten over you and I knew I couldn’t be with Summer anymore.
But here’s the problem, I don’t understand. I thought we had a plan
and I don’t know what changed it. I didn’t do anything to you, did
I?”