Hidden Gem (3 page)

“Nothing. I like hearing you talk like a mom.
 
It’s funny. And cute,” he said, making Mira snort in response.
 
Gemma smiled.
 
It was sweet that Hudson obviously had a crush on Mira, and funny that Mira seemed to have no clue whatsoever.

After saying goodbye to them and finishing as much as they could of their sumptuous meal, Gavin collapsed in a food coma on the couch while Gemma paced around in hopes of feeling less bloated.
 
Without her nightly dance practices, she could already feel her body growing sluggish.
 
Her choreographer often ran their vigorous sessions for three consecutive hours, keeping every inch of her figure outrageously toned.
 
First step of being normal,
Gemma thought to herself sarcastically.
 
Losing Queen Bee’s physique.
 
She wandered out the front door and gazed down the long road, perfect for a run.
 
Unfortunately, running was not an option because of the sore ankle she was still suffering from, courtesy of
Manolo
Blahnik
.

She wandered onto the back porch, the breeze blowing the soft knit cloth of her
Missoni
dress against her legs.
 
She kicked off her sandals and walked barefoot to the plush green hammock hanging between two skinny trees.
 
She crawled into it, luxuriating in the way it enveloped her, hiding her and lulling her into a light sleep.
 
With her eyes closed, Gemma could see the stage
clearly,
practically feel the weight of the pearls on her body.
 
The smell of the breakfast that was delivered to her hotel suite every morning wafted through her nose, making her badly miss Le
Meurice
and their lovely arrangements of fresh fruit and croissants.
 
She could vividly see the
Champs
-
Élysées
, the Cartier store that closed for two hours so she could shop for relatives privately, the gorgeous Parisian heir who had pulled all his connections just to get to her security team and ask for a chance to speak to her.
 
He couldn’t muster up any words when he did get the chance, so Gemma smiled gently and kissed his cheek before being rushed away from the gathering paparazzi.

When she opened her eyes, the feeling of Queen Bee quickly disappeared.
 
It felt as if a formidable energy had been sucked out of her body.
 
She worried now.
 
She hoped that her parents were okay, that her grandmother was feeling better.
 
She wondered why Gavin didn’t seem worried about college applications at all.
 
But most of all, she wondered if she would fit into public school when all she had ever known was private and home schooling.
 
Movies painted a fairly vicious picture of high school, and Penelope seemed to have confirmed that portrayal.
 
Entering as a junior just had to add to the difficulty of it all.

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud splash.
 
She was glad to be snapped out of her melancholy trance – until she heard a tiny yelp of distress.
 
She sprang up in the hammock and squinted.
 
Far off towards the back of the lake, a black and white object struggled to stay above the water.
 
Gemma tumbled out of the hammock, ignoring the sharp pang in her ankle as she ran towards the water.
 
The small object started barking.

“Oh my God!” Gemma swam towards what she could see was a puppy, eyes wide and stricken with fear.
 
She tried to rush to it but the material of her long dress clung to her legs, slowing her and forcing her pained ankle to work even harder.
 
When she finally got close enough, she treaded slowly so not to scare what she saw was a little Border
Collie
puppy.
 
Its collar had caught onto the boat dock at the edge of the water.
 
To her surprise, the puppy reached towards her and swam straight into her arms, burying his head under her chin.
 
She
pet
his matted fur, soothing him as she untangled the stray rope from his collar.

“Who do you belong to, little guy?” Gemma cooed.
 
Just as she turned the silver tag on his collar to read it, she felt a sharp shooting pain in her ankle.
 
“
Ouch!
” She clutched the startled dog tightly, trying to swim towards the sand despite how much it hurt to.
 
“It’s okay, pup. Everything’s okay,” she whispered, though she was more so trying to comfort herself.
 
With the puppy in one arm and her ankle relentlessly throbbing, she felt herself getting slower and sinking deeper in the water.
 
“Gavin!” she yelled as loudly as she could, despite knowing what a notoriously deep sleeper her brother was.

Her energy was completely zapped by the time she was just a few yards from the lakeside.
 
Really, Gemma?
she
thought to herself incredulously.
 
Just when her mind began to picture the worst-case scenario, a strong arm reached around her.

“Oh, thank
God
,” Gemma panted as she let herself get pulled from the water.
 
In an impressively short amount of time, she was back on the ground of silvery sand and pebbles.
 
“Gavin,” she coughed, letting him pull her to her feet.
 
“I didn’t even see you jump in.”

To her surprise, the boy standing in front of her wasn’t her brother.
 
Definitely not.
 
The puppy happily ran in circles around his ankles.
 
The boy bent over to pick it up.

“I’m Lucas,” he said, offering his free hand to shake.
 
Gemma swallowed in embarrassment but extended her hand anyway.
 
She didn’t say anything in
response
as she looked Lucas over.
 
He smoothed back a mess of his dark, wavy hair and wiped his hands over his face to get the water out of his eyes.
 
“Are you okay?” he asked, his strong jaw clenched slightly as he gazed at her with brows knit in concern.
 
Water dripped from his wide shoulders and from the hem of his “Beauford Warriors” T-shirt.
 
She averted her eyes skyward in an effort not to stare, but he was almost as tall as Gavin so it meant looking into his warm, hazel eyes.
 
Gemma blushed immediately, realizing how long it had been since she had last uttered a word.

“Oh! Fine. I’m fine,” she managed lamely while gathering herself. “I’m sorry, I’m just…recovering.
 
I’m Gemma.”

“Gemma, right.
 
Mira told me Gavin and his sister would be here,” he said, furrowing his brows some more as he recalled.
 
“I’m helping her remodel the back porch so I came in today to take measurements.”

“Oh yeah? Cool,” Gemma said, slowly regaining her regular speaking voice.
 
She still felt nervous and self-conscious about how insane she probably looked.
 
For the past few days, she had fantasized about her first day at Beauford and the impression she would make on the kids there.
 
In her head, she exuded sophistication and an effortless cool.
 
Now, in her true first impression with a fellow Beauford high schooler, she felt absolutely ridiculous.
 
It didn’t help that he was hot.

“So,” Lucas smiled to lighten the mood.
 
“Did you save Leo or did Leo save you?”
 
He
scruffed
the happy puppy’s head.

Gemma laughed.
 
“He was stuck to something so I jumped in to help.
 
It’s just that I hurt my ankle last week, so I couldn’t swim as well.”

“Oh.
 
Wow, thank you for doing that,” Lucas said, lightly brushing flecks of duckweed off Gemma’s shoulder.
 
She hoped that he didn’t feel her
goosebumps
.
 
“I could tape up your ankle if you want.
 
I got pretty good at it after spraining mine last season,” he offered.
 
He was so sweet.
 
Gemma wondered who he was at Beauford High.
 
Definitely popular.
 
Definitely athletic – I mean obviously. Definitely… not single. Or maybe single? Please, let him be single.

Again, Gemma realized that she had gone far too long without speaking.
 
“Oh! My ankle. No, it’s okay,” she looked down at her wretched ankle, realizing that she was standing crookedly from putting all the pressure on one foot.
 
Way to look more ridiculous.
 
What is wrong with you?

Nerves.
 
She chalked it up to that.
 
It wasn’t often that she interacted with boys and when she did, she always had on some elaborate designer costume – the around-the-clock Queen Bee disguise.
 
She liked the unusual colored contacts.
 
She felt girly and otherworldly with those lavender eyes.
 
Not that she disliked her own emerald eyes – it was one of the last physical traits she shared with Gavin.
 
But with the lavender eyes, costumes and make-up, she possessed an unmatched confidence.
 
She was Queen.
 
She had everyone at her beck and call.

But here, in her soaking wet dress, matted brown hair and duckweed-covered skin, Gemma didn’t feel like she could carry a conversation for much longer.
 
Not with a guy like Lucas.
 
She was out of her league – a feeling that had been entirely unfamiliar to her all summer.

“I better go,” she murmured, almost to herself.

“I’ll walk you,” Lucas quickly said.
 
“Since your ankle hurts.
 
I mean it’s the least I can do since you saved Leo.
 
I owe you.”

“No, no.
 
I owe
you
, really.”

He only smiled in response, planted before her as if to say that he wouldn’t be taking “no” for an answer.
 
“I’ll walk you,” he said again.

Rather than have him watch her limp away pathetically, she let him.
 
He offered his arm for her to link hers in, and it felt wonderful.
 
As if he were escorting her somewhere.
 
Through a crowded ballroom, perhaps.

But once she was back in the house, in the quiet of her room, all she felt was an unfamiliar and swelling insecurity.

~

The remainder of the stay at the lake house involved Gemma dancing around her desire to pry and ask Gavin details about Lucas.
 
Lucas had left before Gavin woke up and Gemma refrained from divulging details of her little mishap – she knew Gavin would never let her live it down.

In her room at night, she lay in bed daydreaming of their next encounter and how she would wow him.
 
It would be her second chance.
 
She walked down the hall in her favorite red sweater – one that cut about two inches lower than it should and hugged every curve and dip of her body.
 
It was a soft cashmere that no one could resist running their hands over.
 
Her jeans hugged at her hips and highlighted her tiny waist.
 
Her hair would be blown out, flowing behind her.
 
Her heels clicked confidently along the floor.
 
Girls would look at her with envy as their boyfriends’ heads turned and jaws dropped.
 
Lucas would be the last to notice, turning to see what all the fuss was about.
 
She’d walk past him and he’d be unable to resist following her when she had stopped all else dead in their tracks.

“Have we met before?”

“I’m not sure, have we?” she would tease, smiling coyly with her full, glossed lips.

“I could’ve sworn…”

Gemma sighed, burying her face in the pillow.
 
She couldn’t complete her fantasy without thinking of what she actually looked like the day Lucas pulled her out of the lake.
 
In her mind, she had been somewhat of a sea monster.
 
Maybe I should just hope I don’t see him again.