Pushing Limits (3 page)

“Well, that is sweet of you.”  My aunt
smiles. 

“It’s no problem at all.  I enjoyed
meeting y’all.”  His devilish smile fails miserably to match his gracious
words.  “I’ll drop you at the hotel so they can check you in, and drive
you over to the school so Ms. Turner can settle in.”

The car pulls up to the hotel in downtown.  Tommy gets out, crosses
around to open the door for us, and I notice several hundred people crowding
along a bridge.  “That’s strange.  What are they doing?” I ask. 
“It’s too early for fireworks.”  Staring up at the sky, the sun is
beginning to set as a dark cloud slowly descends from underneath the
bridge.  “What are they?  Are those birds?”  Thousands upon
thousands of some kind of bird fly for several minutes from underneath the
bridge, a black ribbon set against a blue and orange sky.

Tommy chuckles.  “Nope… bats.”  His twinkling smirk is all the
response we get to our shocked expressions. 

“Bats?  Are you kidding?”  My aunt asks. 

“That is the coolest thing I have ever seen,” I mumble to myself,
forgetting to continue the bratty behavior I have used as a shield all
day.  Staring at the bridge in awe, I’m mesmerized by the sea of black,
and the shocks of the tiny bat cries.  “There’s thousands.  Have they
always been here?”

Slipping off his glasses, Tommy takes a moment to watch this spectacular
sight.  Looking down at me, his crystal blue eyes shine. 
Wow, his
eyes are fucking dazzling
.  A boyish glee lights his face, politely
waiting for a few moments as I stand fascinated.  “The bats have been
coming here since I was a boy.  They fly in formation.  Pretty cool,
huh?”

“Yeah.” I breathe.  “Do you miss living here when you’re in Nashville?” 
I smile up at him as he towers over me. 

“I miss my family, sure.  And, there’s a lot of good music being
made here.  But, I like Nashville, too.  Its pure country and I’ve
made some good friends.”  His face clouds over with a wistful look. 
“Do you miss Chicago?”  He stares at me with an intense interest.

I can’t help but blush at his attention.  I scoot my boot through
the grass.  How can I answer that?  I’m sure he doesn’t want to hear
about all my crap.   I’m not used to guys this hot, hell any guys,
paying me any attention.  I feel his eyes on me, and I can’t think. 
I glance up, and our eyes lock.  He smiles at me as his eyes
twinkle. 
He’s so out of my league
. 
Look at those eyes
.
His mouth curves into an impish grin.  “Uh, I’m sorry – what?”

He leans in closer, making an exaggerated show of speaking louder so I
can hear him.  “Do…you…miss…Chicago?”  He smells like fresh air, hay,
and soap.  I want to nuzzle in closer so I can inhale. 

Blushing, I chuckle, “Sure, my whole family is there.” My eyes trail back
up to the bats in a vain attempt to keep from rolling my eyes at the lie. 
I can’t get into the whole why of what brought me here. 

“Why do I get the feeling there is more to that story.”  His eyes
narrow as his mouth curves into a skeptical smirk.

“Nah, I’m an open book.”  The retort pops out before I can
think. 
Open mouth insert fucking foot, Amber.  God, that was so
lame.
   I glance around and murmur, “Well, I guess we better get
going.”

“Sure, let me take your aunt’s bags over to check-in, and I’ll drive
y’all out to the college.”  He smiles, apparently choosing to put me at
ease and not press me for info.  Grabbing my aunt’s bags, he rolls them
over to the valet, handing them off to the hotel staff.   “Did you
ladies want to head up to the room or grab a bite in the restaurant before I
head you over to the college?”  Waiting expectantly, He clasps his hands
in front of him.

“I’d like to head over to the college,” I say.  Glancing at Aunt
Patty, her face drops as I squash yet another opportunity for us to talk.

As Tommy holds open the door, I climb in, I look back to see his eyes
not-so-discreetly checking out my ass.  Settling in, I laugh and give him
my best “busted” look.

“I am merely a great admirer of beautiful things,” he drawls with a sly
wink.  Closing the door, he climbs into the driver’s seat, flashing me a
wicked grin.  My stomach clenches as I feel my mouth involuntarily
drop. 
My God, he’s so hot
.  I turn away, searching out the
window so I can hide the heated blush crawling up my face. 

The school is nestled down a winding road
outside of town.   Luxurious lawns and flowers cover every inch of
campus.  The college consists of an administrative tower, several
classroom buildings, and dorms.  An athletic field is on the edge of
campus with a swimming pool.  It is quite impressive for such a small
college. 

Tommy stops the car in front of the dorm and circles around to open the
car door.  My aunt climbs out.  Placing her hand on his chest, she
looks up demurely, “Thanks, Tommy.”  Her hand pushes money in his
palm.  Fighting the urge to throw up in my mouth, I roll my eyes and place
my hand on her elbow, attempting to pull her to the entrance of the dorm.

“Thanks, Ma’am.  But I can’t accept this…against school
policy.”  His smile is friendly as he hands money back to her.

 Aunt Patty’s disappointment covers her face.  “Are you sure?”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Kennedy.  Ms. Chadwick would have my hide. 
She’s serious about the rules at Texas College.  She’s quite the
stickler.  But…thank you.  I enjoyed the ride.”  He nods
politely to her and turning to me, he grins.  “Ms. Turner, you let me know
if you need any information on the local trails.  If you aren’t having
your motorcycle shipped here, I can certainly arrange for you to use one. 
Just let me know.”

“It’s Amber.”  I glance up shyly.  “Thanks...I will.”

Pulling off his shades to gesture to the hills, he says, “You can open up
a bike and ride for hours, lots of open road.  You can go for miles and
hardly pass even one person the whole way.”  He turns to me, and I get my
second look at his deep blue eyes. 
Wow.
  “Let me know if
you’re interested in a ride.  I would love to show you around.”

My mouth gapes open, and I feel the blush rush over my cheeks. 
“Thanks.”  Glancing at my feet, I smile. 
Shit!  Speak,
Amber, speak. Ugh.  What’s the point?  Most definitely too cute for
me.  He’s not serious, I’m sure.   
I turn, taking my bag.

As we walk in to the entrance of the dorm, Aunt Patty glances back,
whispering, “He’s watching us.”  Giggling like a girl half her age.

Rolling my eyes, I say, “I doubt it.  He’s making sure we get
inside.” 
I
so
want this conversation to be over.

“Bye.”  Aunt Patty waves and whispers conspiratorially, “You should
take him up on his offer.   You might as well have some fun while
you’re here.  He’s really dreamy.”

“Can we just get inside?” 

The girl at the front desk greets us, and I explain that I’m here to
check in.  She shows us to the top floor.  My room is at the end of
the hall.

The hallway is quiet, but I’m only cautiously optimistic that will
continue after classes let out.  Most dorms are boisterous, loud, and
buzzing with constant activity.  The two person suite is larger than I
expected while still being a typical dorm room. 
At least I’ll get to
decorate it myself since Aunt Patty would be the only one venturing down here
to see me.
  As I swing my bag onto the bed, the bag sinks into the
mattress as it lands, and a fresh linen scent drifts upward.  That’s my
idea of the perfect bed, cool and inviting.  I’m so tired, it practically
calls to me.  It’s a double at least, bigger than what you would expect in
a dorm.

“Am I sharing a suite?”  I ask gesturing to the other bed.

“Not at this time, but sometimes girls ask for reassignment so that could
change,” she says.  Walking to the bathroom, she continues with her guided
tour.  “This suite has its own bathroom.  No tub, but the shower is
bigger than a traditional single stall.” 

Thank God for that.
  After so many boarding schools, I am
totally over the communal bathrooms.  Its standard white with a shower and
a cute pedestal sink with a cabinet against the opposite wall.  The shower
has a door with scalloped glass and swirls etched in the glass.  The whole
bathroom shines and sparkles with a hint of lemon in the air.  It’s much
prettier than I would expect in a dorm. 

“Let’s see.”  She refers to her iPad.  “Amber is scheduled to
see Ms. Chadwick later today at three o’clock.  Amber, you can either stay
here tonight or out in town…your choice.” 

“I’ll stay in the dorm.  If you can call her a cab to take her back
to the hotel, I would appreciate it,” I reply, noticing out of the corner of my
eye, the completely dejected look on Aunt Patty’s face.  A slight pang of
guilt hits.  Straightening defiantly, I grimace, silently imploring the
chick to get on with it before my aunt makes a scene.  Aunt Patty turns to
face me and says briskly, “Your mother insisted that I meet Ms.
Chadwick.”  Turning back to our guide, she says, “I’ll stop at the front
desk when I am ready to leave.  Thank you.” 

“Certainly.  Amber, I’ll leave your orientation packet here. 
If you have any questions, you can call the front desk or speak with your
resident director, Ms. Maria Gonzalez.  She’s in room 352.” 

“Thanks,” I say with a polite smile.  The resident attendant leaves,
closing the door behind her. 

Turning to my aunt, I say curtly, “Really, Aunt Patty?  What am I
twelve?  You’re going to escort me to the meeting with the ‘School
Principal’?”  Using air quotes to drive my point home. 

Aunt Patty grimaces but stands her ground.  “It’s what your mother
wants.  I am responsible for you now.  If you screw up, they are
going to call me.”  She sneers with a sigh.  “Then Amber, I will have
to deal with your mother.  Believe me when I say, I don’t
like
dealing with your mother...
ever
.  In fact, I try hard…not to ‘deal’
with your mother.”  Giving me air quotes with more than a slight sarcasm
tone, “So, why don’t you get over this spoiled brat routine?  Give it a rest,
ok?”

“Now you have a fucking backbone?  Now.  Seriously.  With
me?” I say in disbelief.  “You know I don’t deserve to be shipped off
again.  I did nothing wrong.  Where is that backbone when you deal
with Mom?  She treats you like shit, and you ask for more.   For
once, couldn’t you stand up to her and back me up?”  My body feels jittery
with all my pent up frustration.

“You know why…Like it or not, she’s your mother.” Her pale green eyes
well with tears.  “When she started making noises about kicking you out, I
couldn’t let her put you in a position like she put me in.  You deserve
better than that.”  A quiet rage settles into her features.  Her sea
green eyes flash as she clenches her fists.  “Your mother took everything
from me.  She worked at getting our mother’s favor…and the
inheritance.  It was an added bonus.  When she called me to ask me to
look into a college for you, I jumped at the opportunity to get you away from
her.”

“But I am an adult.  Why do I need a guardian?  I’m nineteen
years old…I’m not a child.  Isn’t that against the law since I’m over
eighteen?”  I ask, pleading for some type of help, some way I won’t be
under her thumb.  I sink onto the bed.

Sitting beside me, she sighs.  Her eyes weary.  “Nothing is
impossible if you have a good lawyer, Amber.” 

“So she wins again?”  I ask snidely.  “And, you go along with
whatever she asks.”

Resting her hand on mine to reassure me, she says, “I was trying to
protect you the only way I could think of….I found you a school, one that was
far away from her, with a strong music department.  I offered to take care
of everything.  I still can’t believe your mother agreed to it.” 
Shaking her head in disgust, she narrows her sharp eyes as she says, “But,
that’s your mom!  Why do any of the heavy lifting when you can always hire
someone to do your dirty work, right?” 

She’s right.  Elise raised me, not her.  She couldn’t be
bothered.

With a deep breath, she pats my hand, and “Suzy Sunshine” is back. 
“I’m not going to hound your ass like she did.”  Her face lights, her eyes
bright and enthusiastic.   “You can, finally, be a kid.  Do what
you want!  Make sure your grades are acceptable and keep me in the
loop.  That’s all I ask.”

She seems so sincere.  I am tempted to believe her.  That she
actually cares about me. 

“I trusted you once, and you told her everything.”  I purse my lips
in an unforgiving glare.  “Do you know what kind of shit storm she rained
down on me after she found out about Angela?”

“I know I screwed up.  I was chatting with her and before I knew it,
I opened my big mouth.  I was actually happy for you…that you had
someone.  I had no idea your mother was going to react that way.”

“Have you met my mother?”  I ask sarcastically, my brows pop
up. 
She is so naive
.

“I know…I know.  I don’t know what I was thinking.”  Her
exasperated eyes stare back at me.

I smirk, saying, “What makes you think my mother, of all people, would be
happy her daughter was hanging out with a girl from the projects?”

“I know it was stupid,” she says with a sad expression.  “I’m so
sorry.” 

I say nothing and glance around the room, ignoring her apology.

She grips my hand, her face bright.  “This is a new start for
you.”  My aunt’s impish green eyes sparkle as her mischievous grin breaks
free, like a small child gleefully devising a plan.  “I’ll sell it to your
mother.  The perfect daughter, one who has turned her life around, an
excellent student, is making all the right connections.”  With a broad
smile, she says, “Consider your life, as of today…your own.  A new
beginning!  You are a smart girl.  I know you can make the grades,
and I’ll take care of the rest.”  Her eyes filled with hope.  “Have
fun…this is college!”