The Reverence of One: Book Three of the Shadow Series (31 page)

“I’m sorry, Nicole, for raising my voice to you.”

Nicole, wiping the tears before they could fall from her eyes, turned slowly to the strange woman. As if defeated, she replied as she looked to the table top. “I’m sorry too. I’m really not as much of a b
rat
as you think I am.”

Jenz giggled. “I don’t think that at all. I just think you have a lot to deal with and I would like it very much if you would let us help you.”

Nicole took a step back and,
not realizing that Test had once again positioned himself
behind her, stepped on his foot. He
grabbed
by
her
the upper arms
before she could fall
and steadied her.

“Sorry,” said Nicole as she glanced over her shoulder.

“It’s fine,” replied Test
, as he caught Alyssa’s stare
.
It was obvious that she was uncomfortable with him touching Nicole. Unable to deal with anything more than the task at hand, he t
urn
ed his attention to Jenz and
asked, “So what are we talking about here? I think she’s ready to listen.”

Jenz looked to Nicole’s pained face
,
and as the young girl nodded in agreement, carefully spoke her thoughts. “There is a center in
Salem
that could help you. I would be happy to take you into town and help you in whatever capacity you may need.”

A new wave of concern washed over Nicole’s face. “A rehab center?” she asked.

“Yes,” replied Jenz.
“Without their help, your body will continue the withdrawal process, and we are just not capable of giving you the care you need to get through it.” She watched Nicole as her haggard mind sorted through the possibility. “What are your thoughts?” she asked.

Nicole chewed vigorously on her bottom lip, her head ticking to the right every few seconds.

From behind her, his arms still clutching hers, Test spoke in a very soft voice. “Do it, Nicole. It’s the only wa
.
…”
H
e stopped himself for a moment, choosing a different word. “It’s the best way.”

She turned into him and leaned her head back to speak. “Okay,” she replied simply
in an exhausted tone
.

Test smiled down on her, suddenly seeing a glimpse of the girl he once knew. Pulling her into him, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. “Atta girl,” he said tightening his hold on her. He stood motionless as Nicole buried her face into his chest, finally releasing all of the pain that she’d kept pent up for so long.

Everyone in the room watched with heavy hearts as Test held Nicole, keeping her fragile body from falling
to the floor. Everyone breathed a shallow sigh of relief; everyone accept Alyssa.

Lauren approached Prim with her eyes to the ground. She was afraid to look at him. She didn’t know what it was about him that made her heart skip a beat when he spoke
, or
what it was that made her flush when he spoke to her. All that she knew was she’d never felt what she was feeling.

“Too crowded in there for you?” he asked.

She
felt a moment of panic as her eyes met his, and
unable to keep
what she feared was an awkward
smile from
appearing
;
she hurriedly looked back to the ground.
Shooting him a nervous look, she replied.
“Yeah, something like that.”

“Yeah, it’s a little hard for me, too,” he replied. “It’s just been Jenz and I for so long
that
I don’t feel very comfortable in a crowd.”

Lauren stopped about five feet away from him, glancing up and down
anxiously
as she kicked at the grass beneath her feet.

A moment of awkward silence went by before Prim asked, “Would you like to help me
clean out
the
coop
?”

“Sure,” replied Lauren cheerfully. “That sounds nice.”

“
That sounds nice
?”
she thought to herself.
“
Cleaning a chicken coop sounds nice? Idiot
.”

Prim raised an eyebrow and replied. “Have you been around chickens before?”

Lauren could feel her cheeks flushing red, though this time it wasn’t due to Prim’s presence. “Yeah,” she replied shakily. “We had them on our farm when I was little.” She felt an unexpected pit in her stomach as her mind reminisced for a brief moment. “But that was a very long time ago.”

Sensing that her mood had suddenly taken a down-turn, Prim spoke light heartedly. “Well, I’m sure they haven’t changed since then. They still eat anything, lay eggs, poop a lot, and the roosters’ crow in the morning.” He watched happily as she peered up to him with a grin.

They walked to the coop door, a rickety wooden frame with chicken wire stapled to it, with Lauren walking slightly behind Prim. The chickens all came running, around fifteen total, and anxiously waited for him to open the door. As he lifted the latch, the chickens came pouring out.

“No!” shouted Lauren, bending down to try and herd them back in.

With a subtle laugh, Prim responded. “It’s fine, they can run. We usually let them out for a while each day; gives them some exercise.”

Feeling embarrassed once again, Lauren stood without saying a word and began to wave her hands towards the chickens. “Go free!” she exclaimed, trying her best to sound playful while feeling completely awkward.

“You can relax, you know,” said Prim, standing with his hand atop the coop door.

Lauren’s face tensed as she replied. “What do you mean?”

Prim looked to the ground and then glanced up while holding his head at an angle. “I just mean that you don’t have to be nervous around me.” She looked at him with a blank and horrified stare. “Like that.” He said with a playful inflection.

Lauren lowered her head and let her hair hang around her face. “Am I that obvious?” she asked bashfully.

“Kind of,” replied Prim. “I’ve got a confession to make, too. I can feel your energy change when I walk into a room—or when I talk…
.
”
H
e paused for a moment as he looked at her admiringly. “Or when I look at you.”

Barely able to contain herself, Lauren tucked her hair behind her right ear and felt her body tingle with attraction. “I
guess I can’t help it,” she replied, exchanging glances between the ground and his eyes.

“Do you want to know another secret?” he asked. He waited until her eyes caught his before continuing. “I feel the same thing—whenever you walk into a room, or talk, or look at me.”

The two of them stood feet apart from one another while the attraction tugged at them like opposite ends of a magnet. Giving in to the urge, Prim stepped towards her and reached out his hand.

“This is all new to me, Lauren. I’ve never felt this way about someone, especially after such a short period of time,” he said sincerely.

Lauren looked at his hand as it reached for hers and her mouth went suddenly dry. She swallowed deeply and then wetted her lips as she placed her hand into his. “You just said everything that I’ve been thinking in my head since the moment I saw your face.”

With her hand in his, Prim pulled her closer and took her other free hand into his. “So
,
what do we do now?” he asked naively.

Squinting against the mid-morning sun, Lauren replied. “We get to know each other a little better.”

Prim
watched Lauren’s
eyes
fill with a lustful glow and
t
hough he’d never kissed a girl before, everything inside of him screamed for him to seize the moment.
He moved in closer to her, bending down just slightly, and held his lips away from hers by only an inch. “Do you still want to clean the coop?” he asked in a distant voice.

Lauren ran her tongue across her bottom lip, anxiously awaiting his touch. “I don’t think so,” she replied
breathlessly
.

“What would you like to do then?”

She found herself falling forward, centimeter by centimeter, until their lips touched softly.

It was a simple kiss; a simple pressing together of the lips with eyes closed; a short exchange of breath—and then they parted.

Prim opened his eyes first and witnessed the blissful expression on Lauren’s face. With her eyes closed and her head angled back slightly, her hair fell down her neck and shimmered in the sunlight. She opened her eyes, and he watched as a single tear fell from the
right
. He gently wiped it away, relishing her soft skin as his fingertips touched it, and bent down to whisper in her ear.

“Was that okay?”

An involuntary giggle erupted from within her as she replied. “Yes.”

The two parted and Lauren bit her bottom lip, wishing that he could read her mind to know that she wanted more. “What do you want to do now?” she asked as she played with the color on his shirt.

“How about a walk in the garden?” he asked as he
continued to
caress
her cheek.

“That sounds nice,” she replied.

With a
twisted
grin, Prim answered. “That’s what you said about cleaning the coop.”

With a dirty look and a playful slap on his chest, Lauren took his hand from her cheek and began to lead him away from the coop. She glanced up to him as he stepped quickly to her side. “That
wasn’t nice,” she spoke with an
exaggerated frown.

Prim bowed his head
,
and with the same expression replied. “
Please accept my apology
.
”

“And what if I don’t?” she asked coy
ly
as she squeezed his hand tightly in hers.

He felt a rush of pride
as her skin touched his.
“Whatever could I do to make it up to you?”
he replied.

Without a response, she looked to him with a raised eyebrow. Not knowing exactly what she meant didn’t matter. He looked to the sky, inhaling a deep and cleansing breath, and relis
hed the moment as never before.

***
*

The decision to take Nicole to the rehab center in
Salem
having been made, the group was quick with the decision to take her immediately. Allowing only Test to go with her, Nicole retrieved her belongings from the basement and quickly walked out the front door of the house to Jenz
’s
Lexus
,
which sat in
the driveway ready and waiting. As she descended the stairs, the sidewalk was lined with those who were, only a few minutes ago, sitting around the table discussing her fate. The scene struck her as odd. Test walked by her side while
gently supporting
her
by her elbow
. To the casual witness, it
c
ould
have looked like a wedding rehearsal—the bride and groom gliding down the concrete stairs as the family watched
. The only difference was that as she looked at her “family’s” faces, each wore a look of pity that made her feel as though she were being marched to the gallows. They passed them by one by
one
;
each of them looking at her intently, all except one—Alyssa’s gaze was focused on Test. She glanced up to Test, catching his eyes locked on the young girl’s as he flashed a loving look. A sudden jolt of jealousy ran through her body as she suddenly understood the reason behind their exchange. Though she’d spent the last year or more trying to get over him, and convincing herself that he was the reason her life was in shambles, her heart wouldn’t let him go.

As they stepped off of the sidewalk and on to the driveway, Test walked ahead and opened the rear passenger door for her. She stepped into the open door and turned to see that Alyssa had come forward, standing slightly behind Test.

“So,” began Nicole in a brash voice, pointing back and forth between Test and Alyssa. “Are you two
…?
”

Answering quickly as she grabbed Test’s arm, Alyssa replied in a soft, yet firm voice. “Yes, we are.”

T
est placed his hand on hers and
,
nodding his head, confirmed Alyssa’s response
while
he watched Nicole
’s face twist as she tried to bite the inside of her cheek
.

“Good,”
Nicole
replied
,
patting Test on the chest, unable to look at either of them. “That’s good.” She quickly turned and sat in the car,
not knowing that Maggie had quickly placed herself invisibly by her side
, and
slamm
ed
the door before anyone could say anything more to cause her pain. She listened as Te
st placed her bags in the trunk and
forcefully
slam
med
the lid.
Her vision blurred from emotion, s
he glanced up to see Jenz
hidden behind a large pair of sunglasses.
Though she couldn’t see the woman’s eyes, Nicole knew she was being watched.