Tell Me a Secret (7 page)

“What are you doing?” she asked.

He replaced the item and turned to face her. Still sleepy-eyed, her hair was a tangled mess. She raked fingers through it, then adjusted her shirt. Jace smiled. He liked the way she looked in the early light streaming through the window. “Did you collect all this?”

She sat up and swung her feet to the floor. “Yeah, weird right?”

He smirked. “No, not at all. Every girl I know has a collection of rocks and birds’ nests.”

“You think the collection is weird? Check this out.” She joined him, opened a drawer and produced a notebook. Inside, she revealed the shape of each rock traced onto a page with the location, date and its story.

He thumbed through the pages, stopped at random and tried to match a rock to the drawing. “This is like a puzzle.”

She pointed to the page number, then chose a stone and turned it over in her palm. “You see the number written here on the back? It corresponds with the page number in the book.”

He reached for a rock and flipped it over. “Go to page thirty-four.”

She fanned the pages, stopped, and pointed to a drawing.

He laid the pebble within the outline and began to read.

Found July 4, 1999. We’ve had a particularly dry spring, which has allowed me to explore the creek bed behind Rose’s house. Today, I found this rock in the shape of a heart. Since it’s July fourth, I think it signifies the heart of our country.

He bent with laughter.

She jerked the notebook from his hands and swatted him with it. “Stop! I was ten years old.”

He tried to straighten. “I’m sorry, but this is funny. Really now, don’t you think it’s funny? You were cataloging
rocks
and writing deep, insightful shit about them.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t find anything funny in your room left from your childhood?”

He struggled to get control of himself. “No-o-o-o, not at all.”

“Oh, excuse me, I forgot. Your room is probably filled with tons of trophies from every sport you ever played. Mr. Superstar. Mr. Super Handsome. Mr. Super Jock.”

“You think I’m super handsome?”

She swatted him again, jerked the drawer open and put the book inside. “Oh, hush.”

He stopped laughing and got serious. “I’ve been thinking about your dad. What if he doesn’t know about you? What if your mom never told him? That would explain why there was no contact.”

“Not possible.”

“Why not?”

“Believe me. My mom was not the kind of woman to keep that news a secret. It wouldn’t have mattered if he was married or not. She would have used it to her advantage. No, whoever he is—he knows. He probably paid her off. That’s what she would have wanted.”

“I don’t care what you say. I’ll bet he doesn’t have any idea. Even if he gave her money, he’d still be curious. Any man would. Right?” Jace took her hand in his and she didn’t pull away. He liked the way it felt. Soft and warm.

“What do you mean?”

“You should try to find him. And I’ll help you.”

Attraction is beyond our will or ideas.

~Juliette Binoche

Jace sat at the red light and watched a West Texas dust devil dance across a bare cotton field. The sun beamed, but the weatherman forecasted snow. Since Abilene, he thought more and more about Maggie, the quirkiest girl he’d ever met.

“Hey man, the light’s green,” Sam said.

“Oh, sorry, I was thinking about my test.”

“You probably aced it. You’ve been studying like crazy. The virgin princess made sure of that.”

“Stop calling her that. She pushes me to do better and I want to prove I’m more than just a jock. Besides, it counts as twenty-five percent of my grade.”

“You ever going to tell me if you nailed her in Abilene or not?”

The question caused Jace’s chest to tighten. He could have
nailed
her. Especially after learning she’d been starved for love.
Love
. That’s what she deserved and he wasn’t the man for the job. “No, I didn’t nail her.”

“Isn’t that why you went? You know, catch her while she needed consoling.”

“Yeah, but after we talked, I couldn’t do it. She’s had a rough time. Her mother didn’t give a shit and her dad may not even know she exists.” Jace clenched his jaw. He wasn’t sure why he cared one way or the other, but he did. “I may be a self-centered asshole, but I’m not cruel. It would have been wrong to take advantage of the circumstance.”

“Well, you should get back to the plan. It’s been two weeks. She’s had time to recover, so you should get on with it.”

“There is no
plan
. Not anymore.”

“Have you forgotten your big brother’s interested?”

“He’s not going to sleep with her either. I’ll see to it.” Jace didn’t know how he’d prevent Jared from pursuing her, but he would. He had to.

“I’ll be damned. You’re falling for her.”

Jace ignored the remark and directed his attention to the parking lot. He spotted two girls. One he’d slept with.
Sherry. No. Shelley. No. Damn. I’ve screwed her and can’t remember her name. I’ve not even kissed Maggie and can’t get her out of my head.
 

“You are, aren’t you? You’re friggin’ falling in love with her.
Unbelievable
.”

“Love? I don’t know. I’m not sure how it feels. You’re the expert in that area.”

“Dude. It’s like a fart. You don’t even know you need to do it, but all of a sudden, it crawls up the crack of your ass and then the stink hits you.”

“You just compared love to a fart? Why do I talk to you about this stuff?”

“Hey, I’m just saying it happens before you know it.”

“Well, sex is out of the picture. She’s had enough people disappoint her. I don’t want to be added to the list. I care about her.”

“This talk is too girly. I’m not used to discussing feelings with anybody but Sarah. But let me give you some advice. For God’s sake, don’t tell Maggie you
care
. Women are nuts. You say that and they translate it as one step below saying you love them.”

 
~~*~~
 

Three hours later, Maggie stood by the window and watched snow fall, its flakes soft and delicate, silently frosting everything in its path, making the world one big birthday cake. Unlike other areas of the Lone Star State, West Texas had winters and sometimes they arrived early.

She piled the last log on the grate, lit the match and waited for the flames to engulf the stack. Within minutes the wood crackled and spit. Aphrodite hissed.
 

Maggie reached down and picked up the cat. “That old fire scare my sweet baby?” The tabby settled in her lap, licked her paw and began to wash her face.

Maggie’s cell phone chirped. She smiled when she heard what the caller said.

“It’s Dr. Adams. Since Jace signed for you to have access to his anatomy grade, I wanted you to be the first to know his score. He made ninety-one.”

“Oh my gosh. He’ll be so happy.”

“Your hard work is getting results. Thank you again for agreeing to help him. Have a good evening.”

“You too, Dr. Adams, thanks for calling.”

She looked at Aphrodite. “Jace made an A on his test. What do you think about that?”

The cat got out of Maggie’s lap and stretched out on the sofa. “Oh, so you’re not impressed? You should be. It means I’m an excellent teacher.”

She grabbed her phone and texted. Friday night, Jace was probably out with some big breasted bimbo. His evening would be filled with wild, hot, sex, while Maggie’s consisted of a bubble bath and a cucumber facial.

The doorbell rang and brought her back to reality. She peered through the peep-hole and yelled. “Sarah, Sam’s here!” She opened the door and he stepped inside stomping snow from his boots. “Hey, Sam, what are y’all’s plans?”

“Man, it’s cold out there.” He dusted ice crystals off his jacket. “Go for pizza, then come back here. I have early curfew. Big game tomorrow. You?”

“Nothing, just a quiet evening at home. Are you sure you want get back out in that mess? You could have one delivered.”

“The roads aren’t that bad. It’s supposed to be clear by game time tomorrow. You want to go with us?”

“No, thanks. I have some reading to do.”

A few minutes later, Sarah and Sam left. Maggie started a bath, then studied the assortment of CD’s and tried to decide which type of music fit her mood. She glanced over at Aphrodite asleep on the sofa. “What’s your suggestion? Rose’s favorite, Etta James?” The cat didn’t move. “Okay, Etta James it is.”

She started the tunes, returned to the bathroom, sank into the tub and considered her schedule for the next few days: Tomorrow, the game with Sarah, weather permitting. Sunday, campus church services, and then work the evening shift. On Monday, study with Jace.

Fifteen minutes later, she slathered on lotion, slipped into a pair of silky lime green pajama bottoms and tied them so they skimmed the top of her hips. The fabric felt good against freshly shaved legs. Since Sam would be returning with Sarah, Maggie put on a bra and layered a snug pink and green tank top over it.

Spreading the cucumber cream across her cheeks made her smile. The color matched her ensemble.

Back in the living room, she stoked the fire and added another log, then slouched on the couch. Pink sponge separators went between her toes, and while she waited for the polish to dry, she danced into the kitchen. She took out a carton of Rocky Road ice cream, removed the lid and hip swayed back into the living room.

Someone to Watch Over Me
played as she sunk back into the couch. She closed her eyes and a flashback of Rose and Edward dancing came into view. God, she missed them. She swirled the spoon and sinful satisfaction curled into it. “Too bad you can’t have ice cream,” she said to Aphrodite. “You’d love Rocky Road.”
 

She closed her lips around the spoon and held it there. Cold chocolate melted against her tongue. As a child, ice cream had been her favorite treat and even though her mother never allowed it, Rose always kept some.

Chocolate, Etta James, and a cozy fire, what else could a girl ask for?
She’d barely finished the thought, when the doorbell rang again. She looked through the peep hole. Jace stood shivering, hands fisted together, puffing breath into them.

Her heart rate kicked up a notch.
Oh, no. No, no, no.
She attempted to gather her wits and spoke through the door. “What are you doing here?”

“How about you let me in first? It’s freezing out here.” His breath fogged the air with each word.

Damn, damn, double damn.
“Uh—okay—uh—I wasn’t expecting company. I’ll unlock the door, but then I’ve got to wash my face. I’ll be right back. Okay?”

“Sure. Whatever. C’mon, I’ve got icicles hanging off my ass.”

She twisted the latch. He entered, grabbed her and spun her around. “Holy shit! What is that?”

Aphrodite jumped off the couch and hopped under it. Maggie threw her hands over her face and squirmed to get away. He lifted her off the floor. Her feet dangled mid-air. “Let me go!”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Stop laughing and put me down or…”

“Or what?”

“Or, I’ll do this.” She wiped some of the cream from her face and smeared it on his frozen cheeks.

He released her, jumped back and threw his hands in the air. “Stop it!”

“Now who’s laughing?”

Swiping at his face with the back of his hand, he flashed a smile and in his best feminine voice said, “Hey, wait a minute girlfriend, this is refreshing.”

“Okay, that’s enough. We’d better get ourselves cleaned up. Sam and Sarah will be back soon.”

She started toward the bedroom, and noticed he wasn’t behind her. “Are you coming?”

He trailed after her.

“In here.” She took two cloths from the cabinet and turned on the water. Testing the temperature with her wrist, she watched his reflection in the mirror. He stepped closer and appeared spellbound by the stream as it pooled in her palm. She squeezed the cloth, handed it to him and he began to wash his cheeks. After splashing warm water onto hers, she took a towel from the rack and blotted her face.

“There, that’s better.” She stepped around him and started back toward the living room. He stopped in the doorway.

“What?” she asked.

“This is the kind of room I imagined you’d have.”

“You’ve thought about my
bedroom
?”

He offered her a wicked smile and she wanted to kiss him.

“Yeah, it’s like you. Orderly.”

“You’re saying there’s something wrong with me because I like order? I get it. You don’t have to point out how different we are. I’m aware we’re polar opposites. You’re popular and perfect. I’m orderly and plain.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what?”

“Just like your rock collection you organize your life nice and neat. I bet if I check your closet, there won’t be anything out of place. ”

She moved to block his way.

“Let’s see.” He caught her waist, lifted and moved her to one side.

She folded her hands as if praying and smiled. “Don’t look in there.”

He opened the door and shook his head. “Oh, God. It’s worse than I thought.”