Ever: The Ever Trilogy, Book One (Volume 1) (12 page)

E
ver, Ever, wake up.”

With a gasp, I woke up to Frankie leaning over me. I was terrified. My eyes darted around the room, trying to make sense of my surroundings. I was vaguely aware I had been desperately searching for Frankie in my dream again. My heart thudded loudly in my ears as my eyes adjusted to the darkness. At the sight of Frankie’s face, relief slowly pushed its way to the surface; the fear subsided, securing itself back into my dream world.

I sat up and reached out to hug him, so thankful he was there.

He quickly jumped back, away from the bed. I stopped myself mid-reach, suddenly realizing my mistake. I couldn’t hug him. I would have fallen forward—
through
him—and off the bed. I leaned back against my headboard, disappointed once again that I couldn’t touch him or reassure myself of his safety by holding him.

I was soaked with sweat, my pillow a wet, crumpled mess behind me, and my sheets scrunched up into a tangled pile again. My hair was plastered to my back.

After a few long seconds, Frankie sat down on the edge of the bed and slowly took in every inch of me. Looking down, I realized I must have stripped out of my cover-up sometime during the night. I was still in my bikini from yesterday, having been too exhausted earlier to change out of it. I looked around and found my cover-up in a ball on the floor next to my bed. I reached for it quickly, throwing it on over my head. Not that it covered anything.

Frankie smiled at me, amused by my haste, before his face turned serious. “Are you okay, Doll?”

“I was searching for you. But … but I can’t remember why.”

“Yeah, you were calling my name again.”

“I can’t remember anything about my dreams. It’s really weird.”

“It’s okay, Doll. They’re just dreams. You’re safe … and look … I’m completely intact and right here.” Noticing the slight tilt of my head and raised eyebrows, he realized the irony of what he’d said. Chuckling quietly, he stood and splayed his arms out as if saying
voilà
.

“Well, not
intact
, exactly, but
here
nonetheless.”

His smile faded, and his tone became serious once more, “And I’m not going anywhere, Doll.”

I smiled at him, finding comfort in not only his promise, but again in just his presence. It seemed everything was all right in my world when Frankie was around.

He sat down on the bed again, and I found myself wanting badly for him to lie with me. I wanted to wrap myself around him and never let him go. I’d never felt so safe with someone or so drawn to them—Frankie had been my entire world for so long. My safe place.

I was surprised to realize that I was simultaneously feeling that same strong pull toward Toby. I was either becoming totally
boy
crazy or totally
crazy
crazy. Either way, at that moment, my new feelings for Toby aside, I wanted nothing more than to be able to lie with Frankie, reassuring myself of his safety.

Somehow, as if he could read my thoughts, Frankie looked down, waved his arm over the bed, and raised his eyebrows as if to ask, ‘
you gonna make some room?
’

I scooted back against the wall like I had before, and Frankie lay down next to me. He didn’t say another word, just stared into my eyes. I drifted off to sleep, knowing he was watching over me.

I woke up freezing cold from sleeping in nothing but a bikini and my scant cover-up, my sheets still in a tangled mess on the floor where I’d left them during the night. But sleep had come, and like the other times, something about having Frankie there was so soothing I’d slept soundlessly.

My bed was empty, and I quickly discovered that my room was as well. I felt an ache of disappointment that I quickly tucked away. What was I going to do with myself?
I can’t keep having these feelings for Frankie, cannot be in love with him.
Next door lived a real flesh and blood guy—and super-hot flesh and blood at that—who actually wanted to take me out, and who could actually, potentially—
possibly?
—become my boyfriend.

Hopefully.

It was obvious that
something
had to shake me of the impossible feelings for Frankie.

I glanced at the clock.
Shoot! It’s already ten!
I had a date with Toby at eleven. That left me with only one hour, which normally wouldn’t be a problem, but I was so excited, I knew it was going to be another
What’s in Ever’s Closet? Fashion Show
kind of day. I decided to call Jessie to ask her to come over and help me find something to wear. Truth be told, her complete obsession with fashion could occasionally prove helpful.

As I dialed her cell phone, I started to pull possible outfit choices from my closet and lay them on my bed. I heard her phone ringing down the hall—if it could be called ringing. It wasn’t actually a ring though. As usual, it was one of those musical ringtones that she was constantly changing to suit her mood—which was getting louder as it got closer to the other side of my door. This week the song was something about being sexy. It figured. She answered right outside my door.

“Finally! Geez, Ev. I thought you were going to sleep all day!”

“Jess? How long have you been here?”

“Oh, you know, Susan woke up and started her vomiting session around six this morning, so when I couldn’t fall back asleep out of pure annoyance, I came over here instead.” Jessie always tried to sound flippant about her mom’s drinking binges, but I knew her well enough to know that she was here 24/7 because of how hard it was on her. Or because her mom had some random, equally drunk, guy at home. “I mean, I knew at least your mom would be awake, even if you weren’t, but I don’t think she’s here. But judging by the way your kitchen smells right now, she made the most
sinful
banana bread I’ve ever imagined—”

“Wait, Jess? You’ve been here since
six?”

“Of course not, Silly! First, I showered. Then, I got ready. Then, I went to Starbucks. Then, I met the most
amazing
guy waiting in line. Then, we exchanged numbers. Then, I came here.”

I tried to calculate how long each of those things probably took, and I realized she hadn’t been at my house all that long.

“So, you’ve been here, since … .”

“Just walked in the door,” she said with a giggle. “And um, Ev? Why are we still talking on the phone? I’m coming in. I hope you’re decent!”

The door opened just a second later, and Jessie’s playful smile was almost instantly replaced with a look of utter horror as she noticed the bikini and cover-up from yesterday.

“Um, eew. So much for decency. Please tell me you aren’t
still
in yesterday’s bikini, Ever Van Ruysdael.” She handed me a coffee, and I took a long drink before responding.

“I know, I know, I’m about to take a shower. I fell asleep in this last night.” Jessie had probably already gone through three or four outfit changes since she’d left my house yesterday afternoon.

“Speaking of last night, what’s up with you and Frankie? I mean, obviously I know what’s up on
your
end, but he’s acting pretty strange lately. And the way he was looking at you … care to tell me what
that’s
all about?”

As she waited for my response—which would be a very
long
wait since I had no idea what to say—she looked around my room, surveying the mess I had already made of my clothes. I could practically see the light bulb flash on above her head when she put two and two together and realized I was getting ready to go somewhere. Luckily, that realization saved me from trying to put the weirdness between Frankie and me into words—I didn’t actually
have
any words for it.

Also, knowing me as well as she did, she knew it wasn’t just
anywhere
I was going. Not with such a large mess showing my indecision in choosing an outfit, and the flush of red on my cheeks when she looked at me with a question in her eyes.

“Oh my gosh, Ever! You have a date! Spill! Is it with Toby? Oh, of course it is, I mean, what am I saying, obviously it couldn’t be with Frank—” Jessie paused when her eyes swept across the clothes on the bed. “—oh,
heck no
. Absolutely not. Please tell me you aren’t planning on wearing
that
?”

She pointed at the outfit I’d settled on, making a disgusted face at my leggings and burn-out tank top and tossing them into my closet. After setting her purse and Starbucks cup on my desk, she turned back to the closet and rolled up the sleeves of her sweater, ready to get to work.

“Seriously, Ever, people are going to start thinking you’re depressed if you don’t start adding some color to your wardrobe. Never mind. It’s clear I’m seriously needed here. Go shower, and I’ll see what I can come up with”—she glanced doubtfully at my closet—”though I wish I would have known and brought reinforcements from my own wardrobe.” She glanced down at her pink, satin mini-skirt and back to me with her eyebrows raised expectantly.

“Uh-uh. Not gonna happen, Jess.”

“Suit yourself.”

I started to close the bathroom door behind me when Jessie yelled after me, “Wait! How much time do we have?”

A quick glance at the clock told me we had less than an hour. Forty-seven minutes to be exact.

Deciphering the look on my face, she knew the answer. “Never mind. I don’t even want to know. Just hurry up!”

When I got out of the shower just a few minutes later, Jessie had returned all my clothes to my closet, and it looked as though she’d completely rearranged it by clothing types. First tanks, then short sleeves, then long sleeves, and so on. I shook my head. She responded with a shrug.

”Since I have no choice other than black, black, or black—”

“Or gray,” I said, pestering her.

She ignored me as if I hadn’t even spoken the words out loud.

“—I did the best I could and came up with this.” She waved her hands out over the outfit on my bed like Vanna White would showcase a prize on Wheel of Fortune.

A black tube top—price tag still intact—was paired with my stonewashed skinny jeans, a gray-cropped sweater, and my beat up old boots. I was nothing short of surprised to see them there since it was no secret how Jessie felt about them.

“My boots?”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. But he seems to have the same horrible taste in fashion that you do,” she said with a wink, “So, I figured you might as well be comfortable. I’m sure he’ll like the boots, and I skipped the leggings for obvious reasons.”

Obvious to whom?
I wondered. Not at all obvious to me, but I didn’t argue. Why risk making her change her mind and forcing me wear something horrible, like … high heels?
Ugh. No thanks.

“And you know what those jeans do to your J-Lo booty, Ev. He’ll be putty in your hands by the time I’m done with you.”

Jessie glanced longingly at her own butt in the mirror and sighed. I’ve always been self-conscious of my fuller figure, and she’s always been envious. I guess the old saying is true; people really do believe the grass must be greener on the other side. But seriously, what I wouldn’t do for smaller boobs and a much smaller butt.

I dressed as quickly as I could, tucking the sweater into my purse since it was too warm to need it just yet. Jess loosely braided my wet hair, and demanded that I put on more make-up than usual. I gave in to appease her since she’d given in and was letting me wear my boots. Fair is fair.

Jessie called the guy she’d just met at Starbucks and planned a little date of her own. I always thought you were supposed to wait awhile before calling a guy, but normal dating rules never seemed to apply to Jessie, and we knew my dating knowledge was limited at best. Listening to her on the phone with him, I wondered if I would ever come across as confident and sure of myself as she did. With a quick peck on my cheek and a huge smile, she was out the door, heading home to do her own primping. I promised I’d call her after my date with Toby so we could exchange details. This elicited a slight glare from Jessie because I’d forgotten to do it the last time I’d gone out with Toby.
Never living that down
.

Within a few minutes, I was ready and waiting by the door. It wasn’t even eleven yet. As I watched Jessie’s car turn the corner of my street and disappear out of sight, I noticed Toby was watching me from his perch on the hood of his Mustang in the driveway next door.
Damn.
And there I was all proud for being early.

When our eyes connected, he smiled, and my heart skipped a beat. Or two. Possibly more. He slid down the hood of his car and started walking toward my front door.

I was secretly thankful I hadn’t seen Frankie. Or my parents. I was in a
really
great mood and didn’t want anyone dampening my spirits by trying to talk me out of seeing Toby. I also wanted to avoid any guilt-ridden feelings that seeing Frankie would most definitely induce.

Unfortunately, a quiet exit wasn’t going to happen. The sound of my parents coming in from the garage stopped me as I was about to run out the door to meet Toby.

I groaned in defeat … inside my head, of course.

“Oh good! You’re up!” Noticing I was about to leave, my mother continued. “Ever, honey, before you go … we’ve decided we’d like to meet Toby. We didn’t give either of you a chance, and we’re very sorry.”

“Um, well, can it wait? We’re about to go somewhere.”

“It really won’t take long, Ev, we’re not going to interrogate the boy, are we Love?” My dad flashed an evil grin, but began laughing unabashedly when my eyes widened.

“Ever, relax,” he said around bouts of laughter. “Mom and I promise we won’t embarrass you.
Too
much.”

“Oh geez. Okay. Let me at least give him some warning before you pounce, alright?” I started to turn for the door when I realized something. “Hey, guys? Please make sure Frankie stays out of sight!”

Toby was waiting for me on the porch. He didn’t say anything when he saw me; he just put his arms around me and pressed his face into my neck, inhaling deeply. Though I was completely overjoyed to be in his arms, I was a bit uncomfortable knowing my parents were on the other side of the door. I imagined them with their noses pressed against the wood, fighting over the tiny peephole.