In My Father's Shadow (2 page)

“I don’t know anyone here, Cole,” Ally said, sidling
up to him, pressing against his arm. “I thought maybe a few of them
had gone to Woodsedge Academy last year or something but I don’t
think so.”

He draped a casual arm around her shoulders and
placed his lips near her ear. He grinned when he felt her body
shudder beneath him. “I’m sure the people here from Woodsedge
Academy are ones you don’t recognize because they aren’t the type
of people you would hang out with, princess.”

She punched him weakly in the stomach and fought a
smile. “Great. What kind of party did you drag me to?”

“Hey, you’re the one who insisted on coming,” he
pointed out, sipping from his can. He sighed. “We won’t stay
long.”

“Where did Jamie and RJ run off to?” she asked, a
touch of worry in her eyes.

“They’re fine, you know that. They won’t get up to
anything they shouldn’t.”

“I know,” she said, wrapping an arm around his
waist.

“Cole! There you are!” Randy Roman announced, his
eyes a little bloodshot. He slapped Cole on the back and grinned at
Ally. “And who is this?”

Cole tugged Ally closer to his side. “Ally Jones.” He
left it at that, hoping Randy would get the point and stop leering
at her.

“Do you want a beer?” Randy asked.

Cole shook his head. “Nah, man. We can’t stay long.
Curfew and all that you know.”

“Sure, sure,” Randy said. “Well, help yourself to
anything you want. I need to go mingle.”

“Thanks,” Cole said, holding tight to Ally’s
shoulders.

They stuck around, mingling with some of the guests
but when a couple of boys who’d had far too much to drink starting
arguing and pushing and shoving, Cole deemed it time to go.

“Where are Jamie and RJ,” Ally said, her concerned
eyes sweeping the room.

“We’ll find them,” Cole said, latching onto her hand
and leading her through a set of sliding glass doors. He winked at
her when they heard RJ’s raucous laugh riding the light wind. Cole
quickly gathered his friends and they piled into Cole’s car and
headed back to school.

That night, as Cole lay in his bed, staring at the
ceiling, he pondered the conflicting feelings swirling inside of
him. He couldn’t lose control of them – he needed to keep them
neatly filed away and locked up. He couldn’t allow them freedom. He
had too much to worry about – too much work to do to engage in any
sort of romantic relationship with the girl he considered his best
friend. There was too much at stake.

He flopped on his side and squeezed his eyes shut. He
would concentrate only on school and his band - that was all.

Chapter Two

Cole was digging into his scrambled eggs and RJ and
Jamie were engaged in an animated discussion when Ally dropped her
tray on the table. Jumping, they gawked at her, equal looks of
surprise on each face.

“Morning, boys,” she said as she slid into her
customary seat next to Jamie, her favorite cousin. She lifted a
fork and paused as they each continued to gawk at her. “What?”

“You sound awfully peppy for being a self proclaimed
Monday hater,” Cole said, smiling at her from across the table as
he scooped up a forkful of eggs.

She stuck her tongue out at him while her heart
performed a series of gymnastic moves. She sent a strong verbal
warning to her heart, telling it to knock off the idiocy – it was
only Cole. “The first day of school doesn’t suck.”

“Just the second. And the third. And the fourth,” RJ
said. Cole, who was sitting next to him, bumped RJ’s shoulder with
a laugh.

“I won’t argue that,” Ally said as she nibbled on her
toast.

“Look at this schedule, Ally,” Alec, Ally’s younger
brother, complained as he slid his tray on the other side of Jamie.
He was a freshman and starting his first year at Woodsedge Academy.
“They have me running all over the place.”

Ally reached across Jamie and took Alec’s schedule.
She sighed and rolled her eyes. “All the buildings are close
together. You have it made.”

“Are you in any of my classes this year?” Jamie asked
her, digging his schedule out of his backpack.

“I don’t know but if I am, that doesn’t mean I’m
doing your homework for you,” she said in a haughty tone.

“Maybe he’s offering to do yours for you,” RJ said
flashing a brilliant smile.

She threw her crust at him. “Whatever.”

“Ally,” Jeana called, stopping briefly at their
table, tray in her hands. “You don’t always have to sit with these
guys. Come sit with us.”

Ally looked over at the table Jeana pointed out and
shook her head. Most of the girls Jeana sat with were huge gossip
mongers and Ally had no desire to listen to it. Besides, a couple
of those girls had only tried to befriend Ally her freshman year
when they found out her father was Jay Jones, lead singer for Tight
Control. “Nah, I’m fine. Besides, these guys are more feminine than
you think.” Cole grunted as the others threw various pieces of food
at her. She laughed, ducking and swatting, then slung her backpack
over her shoulder and grabbed her tray. “I am out of here. See you
guys later.”

“Ally,” Alec pleaded. “You said you’d show me where
my first class is.”

“I got your back, cuz,” Jamie said, bumping Alec’s
shoulder. “She tries to play like she’s all tough and stuff but you
know she wants to hang out with other girls and gossip about
boys.”

Cole chuckled and Ally sent him a glare. “Laugh it up
but those so called girls I gossip with are the ones you three want
to date.” She grinned wickedly and leaned closer. “I can tell them
things.” She wiggled her fingers at them and marched out of the
cafeteria, her long ponytail swinging behind her.

“She’s evil,” RJ said, watching her. “I pity the guy
who tries to tame her.”

***

Ally slumped in her chair, listening to her History
teacher drone on about classroom rules and what was expected of her
that semester. It was the same old spiel every year and in every
class. Picking up her pencil, she doodled idly on her new notebook,
drawing little hearts and stars in the corners as her mind
drifted.

Something was definitely off with Cole – she’d sensed
it when she’d met up with him again Friday night at the bonfire.
That carefree, easy friendship that had existed between the two of
them since birth had been strained – almost forced. She was quite
certain she knew the cause but she wasn’t ready to fess up just
yet. She wanted to explore it a little more, see if it had any
merit. And especially see if it was something she wanted to pursue.
As much as she loved Jamie and RJ and cherished their friendship,
Cole had always been the closest to her – even though Jamie was her
cousin. As a matter of fact, Cole was the first person she’d called
when she’d received her acceptance letter into the elite softball
camp she’d attended most of the summer. And she was the one he’d
called through their younger years as his father battled his mother
to gain custody of him.

She sighed, blowing air at the minute strands of hair
hanging in her eyes and glanced at the dry erase board behind her
teacher. They were only on rule number seven. The class was going
to take forever. She wanted school to end so she could hunt down
Cole in the music room and feel him out – see if he was sensing the
change, too. She wanted to look into his muddy brown eyes and see
that familiar affectionate look he always flashed her when she was
around him. She just wanted everything to be like it used to be
before that….event early that summer.

A shimmer of excitement shimmied up her spine but she
pushed it away. She couldn’t get all ga-ga over it- Cole was her
best friend. She just needed to handle it like an adult and not
like some little lovesick school girl. Cole’s friendship was far
too important for that.

***

The music room was quiet and dark when Ally entered
and it took her a few minutes to locate him near the drum kit in
the corner, drum sticks poking out of his back pocket. He was
handsome, she had to admit, with his shaggy dark hair, his tall,
hard frame, and his big brown eyes. Quite a few of her classmates
had expressed an interest in him and had even asked Ally to
intercede on their behalf. She hadn’t though, claiming that his
love life was his own problem and she wasn’t stepping into that
mess.

He brushed his fingers lightly over the cymbals and
she smiled, knowing he was probably taking a trip down memory lane
– thinking of all the lessons his father had patiently given him.
The only thing he loved more than playing the drums was his father
and nothing had made Cole happier than when Nate Crawford had
finally been awarded sole custody of his son. The entire custody
battle had been ugly and Ally still shuddered when she recalled the
pain in Cole’s voice when he’d call her, trying his best not to
cry.

She watched him now, smiling proudly at how he’d
turned out, even after spending much of his childhood with his
bitter, drug abusing mother. It hadn’t taken him long to open up
and become the easy-going, smiling person he was now once he’d
moved in permanently with his father and Ally hoped she’d never see
the sullen, unhappy Cole again.

“Thought I’d find you here,” Ally said softly,
ripping Cole from his thoughts. “Are you okay?”

He nodded and smiled as he tapped the snare drum.
“Just wonderful. What’s up?”

She shrugged and sat on the piano bench, her eyes on
him as he continued to inspect the drum set. She ran her fingers
softly over the keys. “Where’s everyone else?”

“RJ went to hunt Ren down,” he said as he spun around
and slid on the bench next to her. “Don’t you have volleyball
practice?”

“Doesn’t start until next week,” she murmured. “Have
anyone in mind to take Steve’s place?”

Cole sighed and she could practically see the wheels
turning in his mind, flipping through the files on the people he
knew at school that’d be talented enough to take the vacant spot in
his band. “No. RJ wants to put a notice up in the Student Center. I
imagine we’ll get all kinds of freaks if we do that.”

“Parker Milten plays,” she suggested. “At least
that’s what I heard.”

Cole smirked, a teasing glint in his eye. “You got
the hots for him, don’t you?”

Gasping, she punched him lightly on the arm. “I do
not!” A slight twinge touched her cheeks and she ducked her head to
hide it. Sure, at one time she’d harbored a secret crush on Parker
– he was adorable in her opinion – but that crush had fizzled out
before she’d ever made up her mind whether she’d wanted to act on
it or not. Now, she thought as she peeked at Cole through her
eyelashes, his cute face and charming personality paled in
comparison to Cole.

“Whatever, you liar,” Cole said, laughing. He grabbed
her hand as she swung to punch him again and pulled her closer. A
tiny smirk toyed with the edge of his lips and his breath brushed
across her check. She shivered in response. “Have him give me a
call.”

She nodded, staring into his laughing brown eyes.
“Cole?”

“What?” he asked softly.

She didn’t know if she was mentally ready to have
this discussion but since her mouth jumped out ahead of her brain
again, she figured she didn’t have much of a choice. And she was
never one to back down from a challenge. “Why are we not friends
all of a sudden?”

“What the hell are you talking about?” he asked, a
spark of irritation flashing in his eyes. “We’re still
friends.”

She yanked her wrist out of his grip and placed her
hand on his thigh. “You didn’t call me all summer while I was at
camp and you’ve been sort of…tense…around me since school
started.”

He raised a brow and wagged a finger at her. “You
didn’t call me either.”

She looked away from him and studied a poster of
Mozart hanging on the wall near the door. “Was it because we…you
know. Was it because of that?”

He grabbed her chin, forcing her wide eyes to meet
his. “We kissed, Ally. It’s okay to say it. And it was just one
kiss -it’s not like it meant anything.”

Pain shot through her heart as she pulled out of his
grip. She stood quickly and stepped away from the piano, eager to
put some space between them. “You’re right. It didn’t mean a
thing.”

“Al,” he groaned as he got to his feet and cautiously
approached. “I didn’t mean it like that.” He made an attempt to
take her hand but she snatched it out of reach and folded her arms
across her chest.

“I know what you meant, Cole,” she said through
gritted teeth. “And I’m sorry I brought up the whole mess. I’ll get
out of your way so you can practice.”

“No, not until you hear me out,” he said firmly. He
yanked her arms loose and closed his hand over hers. His eyes
softened as his voice took on an edge of desperation. “Al, I only
meant that just because we kissed, it didn’t mean we had to jump
into some kind of relationship -neither one of us wants that. And
besides, we’re best friends. I don’t want us to let that one kiss
ruin our friendship.”

She wasn’t the type to cry so she grew irritated when
she felt tears building behind her eyes. She sucked in a breath,
hoping to chase them away. She didn’t want them to fall in front of
Cole and betray the nonchalant mask she was working hard to keep in
place.

“Yeah, okay,” she said, avoiding his eyes as her
heart crumbled in her chest. She wasn’t sure what her reaction
meant and wished she could stop the hurt. Cole was right – they
didn’t need to jump into a relationship. She didn’t want to ruin
their friendship, either.

“Al? We’re on the same page here, right?” he asked.
Sighing, she nodded so he loosened the hold he had on her hand and
gave it an affectionate squeeze. “Why don’t you stick around and
listen to us play?”

“Sure,” she told him with a weak smile. “I’m curious
to see if you still suck.”