CHAPTER 3
They'd won their game, and were all in good spirits as they waited outside of the party. Eric was still sitting behind the wheel. Angel, who was standing outside of the car, leaned in the driver side window. “Pass me a water.”
Eric grabbed one from the ice chest and took one for himself.
“C'mon, let’s go in,” Romero stood in the middle of the street.
Angel made a face. As good as he felt about the way the game had gone tonight, he was tired and not really in the mood for partying. He’d never admit it to anyone but the only reason he was there at all was for the possibility of seeing Sarah. He’d been thinking about her ever since the day they had talked. Hell, he’d thought about her during the game. He kept glancing up at the stands every chance he got, prompting several disgusted hollers from his coach of, “Get in the game, what the hell’s the matter with you, Moreno?”
He hadn’t seen her at the game, but then she did say she had to work. There was still a chance she’d make the party. Looking across the street at the lights coming from the DJ in the backyard, anxiousness crept up his spine. “Hold on, give me a sec.” He downed some of his water.
“Just take it in with you,” Romero said. “I’m ready to get my groove on.”
Angel turned to Eric who shrugged. He took another long swig. “Alright, I’m ready.”
Romero did his famous violent pelvic thrust a couple of times. “Let’s do this.”
Angel and Eric laughed. Angel grabbed what was left of the twelve pack of beer in the backseat. “You’re a moron,” he chuckled.
They went down the long driveway and turned the corner. There were a lot more people than they'd expected. They started making their way through the crowd. Angel was just beginning to scope the place when he saw her. He had to do a double take, because he almost didn’t recognize her. The second he turned away though, it hit him. His body was suddenly overheating.
Angel gulped hard. Her long hair flowed more than halfway down her back. It was darker than he remembered, and it curled at the bottom. Her jeans hugged her body and she wore a pair of strappy heels. Her black blouse tied around her neck, and was backless except for the bottom part that draped delicately around the small of her back.
He reached for a beer and could feel how clammy his hand had become. For God’s sake she’s just a girl. He cursed under his breath. He intentionally placed himself facing Sarah’s direction. He took a short swig of his beer, but was careful not to drink too much. Romero was a perfect example of how he might act if he drank too much, and that was the last impression he wanted to make on her.
Romero had walked away for a while to talk to some of the regular girls. He came back to announce they had after party dates. Usually Romero got high fives all around, but tonight both Angel and Eric seemed out of it.
Angel just nodded his head and half smiled. Eric hadn’t even heard. He was staring out into the crowd but at no one in particular.
Romero frowned and tapped Eric. “Hey, man, did you hear what I just said?”
Eric quickly came back to earth. “Sorry, man. No, what was that?”
“I said Stacey and her friends are down for later tonight. We get dessert, and hey, Natalie is over there,” he winked.
Eric and Natalie had hooked up regularly last year, though not nearly as often as Angel and Dana.
Eric shook his head, “I’m gonna have to pass, I gotta get up early tomorrow.”
Romero’s eyes grew wider. “You’re gonna pass up a piece of ass ‘cause you have to get up early?” He was obnoxiously loud.
“Easy,” Eric looked around. “I’m right here. Lower your voice.”
Romero shook his head and turned toward Angel. “What about you? Are you in?”
“Well, yeah,” Angel lied, “but Eric’s my ride. How’s that gonna work?”
Romero kept shaking his head. “Unbelievable, hold on; let me see what I can do.”
Romero shot Eric a disgusted look and grabbed another beer. He walked toward the girls stumbling a little. “Dude, he’s getting wasted.” Eric turned to Angel.
“Yeah, he is,” Angel shook his head.
Romero put his arms sloppily around two of the girls.
“Who’s he kidding?” Eric chuckled. “He’s gonna be passed out in my back seat in an hour. How’d he get drunk so fast?”
“He drank the whole way here, and you know he’s a lightweight,” Angel said.
They’d all only started drinking about a year ago. Then when a senior last year had almost killed himself driving drunk, it scared them so much, they’d all cut back. Even when they did drink, like tonight, it was just a few beers, and they designated a driver. Tonight it was Eric.
Angel took his attention away from Romero for a second to look in Sarah’s direction. She had a cup in her hand. He wondered what she was drinking. He could hear Romero calling for Eric.
“Aw-shit, dude, he’s calling me,” Eric looked in the other direction, pretending not to hear.
“You might as well go,” Angel said, “before his drunk-ass comes over here and drags you over.”
“Me? What about you?”
“He ain’t calling me,” Angel laughed.
“You’re gonna stay here by yourself?” Eric raised his eyebrows.
“No, there’s someone I wanna go say hi to.”
Romero was getting louder. Eric finally acknowledged him. He checked the box with the beer. “There’s four more in here. You want one?”
“Nah, I’m good,” Angel held up his bottle to show he still had plenty. Eric picked up the box and walked away toward Romero, muttering under his breath.
Strolling in Sarah’s direction, Angel recognized the short blonde girl holding a beer bottle with her as his teammate Reggie Luna’s ex-girlfriend.
As he approached Sarah, he could feel his heart pick up speed and his stomach clench up. Despite his attempts to calm down, he felt completely unnerved. It annoyed the hell out of him.
He walked around behind her, and moved in closer. She smelled heavenly, a soft delicate fragrance. Not overpowering, like some of the girls he'd hugged earlier.
He wanted to put his arm around her waist, and pull her up against him. Instead, he leaned over and talked in her ear. “Hey, you made it.”
She spun around, nearly losing her drink. Her expression went immediately from startled to pleased. “Yeah, they cancelled.”
Angel couldn’t get over how amazing she looked. If he gazed at her all night, it wouldn’t be long enough. “I almost didn’t recognize you with your hair down,” His eyes took it all in.
She nodded. “Yeah, it’s too long, especially when I’m running. It gets all over my face.”
Angel wanted it all over his face. “It’s beautiful though, you should wear it like that at school.”
She hesitated for a second. “Thank you.” He noticed she avoided his eyes again.
He didn’t want to, but he decided it would be better to change the subject before she got uncomfortable and made an exit. He had no intentions of letting her run away again. Not this time. He glanced at her cup. “What are you drinking?"
She smiled timidly. “Wine.”
“Wine?”
She laughed. “Why does everybody say it like that?”
Her smile somehow had a calming effect on him. “Out of a cup though? You can’t drink it straight out of the bottle?”
“It’s not a cooler.” Her expression challenged him. “It’s the good stuff.”
She turned to her friend, and then glanced into her cup. It was almost empty. “As a matter of fact,” she said, “I need more.”
She bent over to a medium sized ice chest and pulled out a small jug of wine.
“Nooo,” Angel put his hand over his mouth in disbelief. “Oh, you’re sick. You come to a party with a jug of wine in an ice chest?”
She laughed even more now. Her friend laughed with her. Sarah caressed the jug lovingly. “How else am I supposed to keep my little Precious cold?”
Her demeanor was refreshing, especially since she had seemed so apprehensive at school. Maybe it was the wine. Whatever it was, he loved it. He watched as she poured the wine in her cup, noticing how little she poured in before stopping. She put the jug back in the ice chest and pointed at her friend. “She brings one too.”
Her friend opened her mouth wide, as if Sarah had just snitched on her. Angel raised his eyebrows in exaggerated disbelief. “You too? But you’re drinking beer, you don‘t need an ice chest.”
Her friend smiled and tapped her bottle. “I can’t drink beer unless it’s ice cold.”
“By the way, Angel, this is my cousin, Valerie,” Sarah said.
Angel nodded. “Yeah, I know Valerie.”
He saw Valerie’s eyes widened slightly in surprise.
“Sure,” he acknowledged her surprise. Glad that Sarah had said her name. That, he would’ve never remembered.
“So, why don’t you just put your drinks in the same ice chest?”
Valerie rolled her eyes at Sarah. “Sarah doesn’t like her Precious to be disturbed.”
“She’s very fragile,” Sarah held her cup close to her.
Angel nodded, and then put his hand up. “It’s a she? Okay, well, now that makes sense.”
Sarah smiled, as she took another quick sip of her wine. Valerie got pulled away by another girl.
Angel took his last swig of beer and threw the empty bottle in a trash can near by.
“Are you out?” Sarah asked.
“Yeah, that was my last one.”
“Well, here,” Sarah bent over to Valerie’s ice chest. She giggled pretending to be sneaky, “let’s steal one of Valerie’s.”
Angel turned to see if Valerie was watching. “No, it’s cool. I don’t wanna take her beer.”
Sarah shook her head. “She’s not gonna finish all this. She never does, and then we’re gonna end up throwing it out later tonight.”
“Throw out beer? Are you nuts?”
“Well, we can’t take it home, my aunt would kill us.”
“Oh, well, in that case, let me help the cause,” He held out his hand.
Her finger brushed his hand as she passed him the bottle. That’s all it took to ignite him. His hand trembled, as he took a swig of his beer. He watched her the whole time. Her eyes were so big, her lashes so dark and heavy; everything seemed to slow down when she blinked. His insides smoldered and he gulped his beer hard.
“So, are you here alone?” She asked.
He looked around. He had to; if he stared at her any longer he was afraid he’d freak her out.
“Nah, my friends are here somewhere, we just got split up.” He turned back to her. “How ‘bout you? Is it just you and Valerie tonight?”
She sipped on her wine again. “Yeah, well, I came here with just Val, but we’re supposed to meet up with friends later.”
Angel took another swig of his beer and looked around casually, “Guys?”
“No. Some of her girlfriends; they’re not here yet though. That’s why I’m here. I really don’t like these kinds of parties, but none of her friends could get here until later, so she talked me into coming with her.”
Angel smiled, gazing in her eyes. “I’ll have to thank her later for that. So, where do you like to go?”
She held his gaze for a moment and then smiled, making Angel’s legs weak. “I love the beach,” She sighed. “I just moved out here a few months ago, from Arizona, so the beach is new to me. I could spend every night there watching the sunset. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the sunsets in Arizona are just as beautiful. It’s just the newness of the cool salty air, and watching while listening to wave’s crash, and the birds…quack?”
Angel was puzzled. “Quack?”
She burst into laughter. “Squawk? You know what I mean!”
“God, you were doing so well,” he teased, pretending to gaze out into the sky. “I mean, I could almost hear the waves crashing and everything.”
Sarah continued to laugh. Angel wondered if she was getting tipsy but he continued to tease her. He loved hearing her laugh. “I mean peep would’ve been closer, but quack? Really?”
Sarah’s hand was over her mouth, but there was no muffling her laughter. “I got the point across, didn’t I?”
“I’m just saying. The wind was blowing in my hair and everything, look.” He pretended to hold his hair down.
“Stop!” she squealed.
He couldn’t help laughing with her. It was such a cute laugh and so contagious. She was refreshing. It wasn’t just that she was enjoying his jokes, but that she didn’t mind laughing at herself. So many other girls would’ve been too busy trying to be seductive. She didn’t even have to try. He could tell being seductive was the last thing on her mind.
She wiped the corners of her eyes. She’d literally laughed that hard. “Is my mascara all messed up?” She opened her eyes wide.
He stepped forward to get a better look. Her makeup had smeared slightly on the bottom corner of her right eye. “Hold still,” he moved closer to her.
He wiped the bottom of her eye very slowly and gently with his pinky. He was so close to her face, he could smell the wine on her breath. She held her cup right in front of her, and he felt her tense up when his body touched her hand. He examined her other eye.
“Your eyes are amazing,” he said without moving back.
She held his gaze for just a second, and then backed up slightly. “Thanks.”
She turned away and Angel watched as she took a very long sip of her wine. It surprised him how uncomfortable compliments made her. With eyes like those, you’d think she’d be used to them. Still, she broke the silence as only she could.
“Where’s my Precious?” She said, in a coddling voice. She bent over and opened her ice chest. Angel watched as she poured herself less than a quarter of a cup.
He enjoyed teasing her. “Maybe if you’d fill the cup, you wouldn’t have to refill so often.”
“Ah, to deal with lower society,” she smirked. “This isn’t beer, Angel. You sip, so if I fill it, by the time I’m half way through, it’ll be warm. I don’t like warm wine, okay?”
“Oh no, you didn’t just call me lower society!”
“Oh, yes, I did.”
Angel held his pointer finger up in front of her, and she began to giggle again. “One word.”
“Bring it,” She took a sip.
“Quack!”
She covered her mouth with the cup to avoid spitting and turned her back on him so he couldn’t see it leak out the side of her mouth. She turned back to face him and kept laughing. “You had to go there.” She wiped around her cleavage.
His eyes were fixated on her hands. “I had to.” Gulping hard, he watched her continue to wipe the wine from the front of her blouse. “I can help you with that.”
She smiled at him half rolling her eyes. “That’s okay.” She returned her attention to her blouse, and he couldn’t look away.
He was still standing there gaping, when he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Eric. “Hey, dude, you ready?”
Angel turned around. Eric was holding Romero up. “Damn, is he that wasted?”
Eric shot him a sarcastic look. Angel turned to Sarah. “This is my ride.”
She glanced over at Eric holding Romero up, and giggled a little. Angel could see she was lightheaded from the wine. She seemed so small and delicate and incredibly vulnerable, “I won’t leave though. Where’s Valerie?”
She smiled at him. “Go ahead, I’m fine.”
Like hell. “Yeah, you are fine. But I’m not leaving you until Valerie gets back.”
The party was beginning to end and Valerie, Sarah’s ride, was nowhere in sight. Sarah had tried calling her several times on her cell, but the call wouldn’t go through. Angel grabbed Sarah’s hand in his, and both their ice chests in his other. “Come on, let’s go look for Valerie.”
As they walked through the party, one of Dana’s friends tried to stop him. “Hey, Angel, where’s Dana?” Her eyebrows were arched and she peered at Sarah. Angel kept walking, pretending not to hear.
“Is Dana your girlfriend?” He could feel Sarah try to let go of his hand but he only tightened the grip.
Angel pressed his lips for a second, “Nope.”
Eric was right outside looking a little irritated. Angel knew how Romero could get when he was drunk, and Eric had been on his own with him now all night, so he understood his frustration.
“Dude, are you ready to go?” Eric asked.
Sarah was still holding Angel’s hand. Angel looked at him apologetically. “Give me a sec. She needs to find her friend.”
Sarah was calling Valerie on her cell again but she wasn’t answering. When they got to the car, she looked at him. “I can’t leave Valerie.”
“Okay.” He pulled her closer to him, out of the way of oncoming cars that still cruised past the party. She leaned against him and he put his arm around her waist. He’d burned to touch her, all night, and now all he wanted was to take care of her. He examined her face, smiling tenderly. “How you feeling?”
She smiled, finally looking in his eyes. “Better now.”
It took all his willpower to not lean over and kiss her, but the last thing he wanted was for anything to happen tonight that she could dismiss tomorrow and blame on the wine.
He turned to see Eric adjusting Romero in the front seat. Romero was totally out. Angel motioned toward him. “By the way, meet my friend Romero.”
Sarah laughed. “Is that really his name?”
“Well, his last name. His first name is Ramon, but he doesn’t like it.”
Eric walked over and leaned on the car next to Angel and Sarah. He looked exhausted. Sarah rested her head on Angel’s shoulder.
“Oh, hey,” Angel said looking at Eric. “This is Sarah. Sarah, this is my friend, Eric.”
Sarah held her head up just long enough to say hello. Angel knew Eric assumed she was just another girl he’d picked up. Sarah moved off of Angel and leaned against the car now, but he still held her hand. “Where could she be?” Sarah grimaced.
They all stood there watching the driveway of the house where the party had been. There were people still walking out, and standing around the front of the house. A car pulled up and let someone out of the back seat. It was Jesse Strickland. The car that had dropped him off drove right past them and up the street.
Sarah didn’t see him at first but when she did, she straightened out. Angel noticed and his muscles tensed. “Something wrong?”
“Can we leave?” Her eyes were still on Jesse.
Jesse walked in a hurry to the back yard. Eric and Angel exchanged glances.
“What about Valerie?” Angel asked.
“We’ll come back for her,” she said, “I just don’t wanna be here right this minute.”
Angel stared at her for a second. “Sure.”
He let go of her hand to gather up the ice chests. Sarah tried Valerie again on her phone. For whatever reason, Jesse made Sarah nervous and Angel didn’t like it. He grabbed the ice chests and threw them in the trunk, then walked Sarah around and into the car. He sat down next to her and reached for her hand immediately. Eric eyed him through the rearview mirror.
“Let’s drop off this guy first,” Eric said motioning toward Romero. “Then if you want, you can drop me off and take my car. I’ll pick it up in the morning.”
Angel smiled. Suddenly he was relieved he’d only had two beers. He wasn’t ready to say goodnight to Sarah yet. He could always count on Eric to understand.
***************
Minutes passed, while she sat in the passenger seat, heart pounding, waiting for Valerie to answer her phone.
“Hello?”
“Valerie?”
“Sarah, I’ve been so worried. Where are you?”
“I’m with Angel. We’re dropping off his friend. Are you on your way home?”
“Home? It’s still early, there’s another party we’re going to. Do you need me to come get you?” Valerie asked.
“No, I think I’m good for now.”
“Oh, my God, are you and Angel gonna hang out?” Valerie gushed.
The thought of what Valerie meant by hang out, made Sarah’s heart beat even harder. She bit her lip.
“I’m not sure,” Sarah said. “I’ll call you and let you know where to meet me.”
“Is he right there next to you?” Valerie whispered, as if he might hear her.
Sarah giggled. “No, he’s outside with his friend. I’m in the car.”
“You have to make out with him Sarah, so, you can tell me all about it.”
Sarah laughed nervously, her face suddenly warm. “Valerie!” she gasped, “I hardly know him.”
“He’s totally hot. What more do you need to know?”
Sarah's body heat went up. Valerie wasn’t helping her already strained nerves. “I gotta go. He’s on his way back,” she lied.
“Okay, okay, bye.”
Her cousin was so different than Sarah when it came to guys. Valerie was commitment-phobic. She’d had one serious relationship, and she said it nearly suffocated her. She could easily just make out with someone without giving it a second thought.
Sarah didn’t think any less of Valerie for enjoying her freedom. She just couldn’t understand how Valerie could turn off the emotions just like that. To Sarah, even holding hands inevitably meant feelings were involved. It wasn’t something she could do and not feel anything, just the thought that Angel might kiss her tonight had her in knots.
She studied the guys standing outside, face to face. Eric stood a few inches shorter than Angel. His hair was a lot lighter and curlier too. He didn’t have Angel’s pretty boy good looks, but still his rugged good looks of his own, and he was so nice it made him attractive.
She'd watched them as they carefully helped Romero from the car, genuinely concerned that he got home safe. Albeit they did it with a lot of laughing and repartee, it was obvious they were very good friends.
Angel walked back toward the car. That smile. It was unreal. She shifted in her seat, trying not to look like a goofball but her own smile was so big and hard to hold back. She’d been talking to him most of the night and been doing pretty well. Except for spitting up her wine and her miserable attempt to be deep about loving the beach, she’d managed to keep the blundering to a minimum. Why was she having such a hard time breathing now?
She took a long deep breath as he opened the door and climbed in the car. His eyes were immediately on her, making her insides into mush.
“Are you hungry?”
She let out her breath and nodded.
“Good, ‘cause I’m starving.” He pulled out of the drive way.
They picked up some food at a drive-thru and headed to the beach, eating along the way. After driving up a winding road to the top of a cliff, he turned into a dead end, and parked. The moon was bright, and the ocean went on as far as she could see. They were high above the ocean, and the view was breathtaking.
Sarah stared out the window in amazement. Her thoughts were muddled when her phone rang and she went still. She had a feeling who it might be, and she didn’t want to answer it. One look at the caller ID and her suspicions were confirmed, Jesse. Angel was eyeing her. “You gonna answer that?”
She shook her head.
Glancing at Angel, she noticed his eyebrows narrow, and she turned away biting her lip. Her phone rang one last time.
“Where are we?” She turned back to face him.
He still had the same expression on his face, but he didn’t say anything He opened the door. “Follow me.” He got out of the car.
Sarah got out, and he came around and held his hand out. She put her hand in his and they walked toward the dead end. There was a rock trail off to the side, behind the homes that faced the ocean.
They headed to the edge of the trail where there was a wrought iron fence. She looked down as they walked along the side of the fence, and could see the waves crashing into the rocks below. When they turned the corner, she saw the trail stretched across the cliff. There were benches and grassy sitting areas with flowering tropical plants, and an endless trail of palm trees. Sarah took it all in with awe. She turned back to him.
“I love it,” she whispered.
“This is my favorite place.”
“I can see why.” She stepped closer to the fence and gazed out into the ocean. The lights on a couple of ships and some small sail boats still out there shined brightly. Angel stood behind her, and he grasped the top of the iron rail, enclosing her body between his arms. His warm body against her back felt good, especially since it was getting cold. His face came over her shoulder next to her ear, and she felt him take a deep breath. She closed her eyes and her body tingled all over. It was still unbelievable to Sarah that she was here, doing this, with him.
“You smell good,” he murmured.
“Thank you.”
They stood there for a few minutes in silence, his breath against her temple. Finally, he spoke. “Can I ask you something?
His tone made her nervous, somehow. “Sure.”
He pulled away from her shoulder slightly.
“Why were you in such a hurry to leave when you saw Jesse tonight?”
Sarah went stiff. God, she’d forgotten all about that. That was the last thing she wanted to be talking about right now. Jesse could be a pain in the ass when he was sober. Valerie had told her when he was drunk, he was even worse, and she had a feeling he’d been drinking tonight. She’d been afraid of another confrontation between him and Angel. “He can be a pest sometimes... that’s all.”
Angel put his hands over hers on the fence. “The other day, you said you’d hung out with him. What did that mean?”
Sarah squeezed her eyes shut for a second. Shit. She didn’t want to tell him about that. Why hadn’t she just said yes, when he asked her if Jesse was a friend? She’d hardly expected to be talking to Angel again. And not like this.
“It was a long time ago.” She thought she felt him suck in breath, and he was quiet for a second.
“What was a long time ago?”
She braced herself not knowing how he’d feel about her after she told him. But it was in the past, so what did it matter? She turned around, but he never let go of the fence, so, she was still in his arms, so to speak. His eyes seemed darker somehow. He looked straight at her, waiting.
“Nothing really,” she said. “I met him a few summers ago, when I came out to visit my Aunt, and we hung out one night.”
“Was he your boyfriend?” Angel eyes were still fixed on hers.
She shook her head. “No.”
“You still hang out with him?”
“Nope, he’s still asking me out, but I’m not interested.”
“Good,” Angel said, “he’s an asshole.”
Sarah’s eyebrow’s shot up. “You know him?”
“Yeah.” If distaste was an expression he wore it on his lips unabashed. “We’ve gone to school together since we were kids but I’ve never liked him. He’s always been a whiny little bitch, didn’t think I could like him any less, until now.”
Valerie had always gone on about how intense the Moreno brothers were. She’d told Sarah about how protective they were with their younger sister. Sarah felt his protectiveness earlier when he refused to leave her side at the party, but this was different. She could feel something, an intensity she’d never felt before from anyone. It made her a little nervous, made her stomach tighten up, but in a weird way, she liked it.
“I’m assuming then, since you’re here with me, you don’t have a boyfriend?”
Her heart at her throat, she shook her head slowly. “No, I don’t.”
She was dreaming? She had to be. Did he really just ask her if she had a boyfriend? Did Angel honestly care?
He dropped his hands from the fence, and placed them around her waist. With her heart pounding against her chest now, she gulped, wondering if he could hear it.
“Can I kiss you?” He whispered.
She nodded, unable to speak. Then his lips were on hers. They were soft and warm. He explored her mouth slowly, softly. He tightened his hug around her waist with one arm, and brought the other one up to her face. With a silky-smooth caress to her face, his hand started around and down her neck, pulling her closer to him.
His body was big and strong against hers His tongue moved faster and he pressed against her, suckling her lips and tongue. She’d been kissed before, but never like this, never with so much passion.
It was too much. His hardness pressed against her thigh, and she panicked. She pulled away and heard him groan, burying his face in her hair.
Caressing his back one last time, she could still feel his heavy breathing as she pulled away gently. She looked up just as he was opening his eyes.
“Can we go sit? My feet are hurting.”
He took a couple of deep breathes before answering. “Sure,” he glanced down at her shoes, “I forgot…. they’re nice. I like ‘em.”
They walked over to a stone bench that was part of a huge rock planter with a palm tree in the middle. She sat down and he motioned for her to move further back. She did, and he sat next to her and turned her around so she was facing him.
“Lean back.” He picked up her legs and pulled them on his lap, inches away from the tent in his pants. Wide eyed, she stared for a second, and wondered what he had planned. She watched him pull off her shoes and was about to protest, when his strong fingers began massaging her aching feet.
“Mmm, that feels so good,” She let her head fall back. She wondered if he did this with all the other girls he went out with, and if they’d all been treated to such a heart stopping kiss. She lifted her head back up and saw his eyes swallow her up.
“Your feet are so small.”
She looked down at her feet and wiggled her toes. Then she glanced down at his. They were huge. She started to giggle. “Well, compared to yours, they are.”
His expression hadn’t changed. “I love your smile.”
Her smile disappeared in reaction to his compliment. “Thanks, I like yours. As a matter of fact, that was one of the first things I noticed about you.”
His eyebrows shot up curiously. “Really? Tonight?”
“Oh, no,” she said. “Two summers ago, the first time I saw you.”
Now he looked really interested. “You saw me two summers ago?”
“Yup, same summer I hung out with Jesse.” Damn why did she bring that up again?
He stared at her, half frowning. “You went out with him and not me?” He teased.
“He asked; you didn’t.”
A look of disappointment flashed across his face. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember seeing you.”
Sarah smiled. “Don’t worry, I can be pretty invisible.”
Angel seemed almost annoyed. “You’re anything but invisible.” He paused for a moment, and then as if he just remembered something, “So, you said you’re from Arizona, when’d you move out here?”
Sarah straightened up a little, suddenly feeling uneasy. She hadn’t prepared herself to talk about her circumstances. Since she didn’t plan on making any friends, she didn’t think she’d be put in a position to explain something so personal to anyone, especially not Angel Moreno. “I haven’t exactly moved here. It’s just temporary.”
“Really? ‘til when?”
“I’m only here for the semester, then I’ll go back to finish up my senior year at my school in Flagstaff.” She glanced at him and then away, hoping they could get on another subject. But he kept on.
“So, why are you here for this semester?”
She was never good at lying, so making something elaborate up was out of the question. If he ever asked her about it again, she’d probably forget, and mix everything all up. Even a very short version of the truth was uncomfortable. She looked out into the ocean, not wanting to see his expression when she told him. “Well, it’s kind of a long story… ”
“We’ve got time.” he said.
Sarah was silent for a second, “My mom has some problems she needs to iron out, and I have to stay with my aunt now. My best friend’s family offered to let me stay with them so I could finish out my senior year at my own school, but my mom refused, so, I’m here now. But once I turn eighteen this winter, she can’t stop me from going back.”
He looked at her, eyes full of questions, and she prayed none of them were about her mom. She really didn’t feel like discussing that part of her life with him, with anyone.
“Does your aunt know you plan on leaving?”
“No, I haven’t told her. I know she won’t want me to, but Sydney and Sydney’s parents are the closest thing I’ve ever had to family, besides my mom. I have to go back, Sydney’s waiting.” She held her chin a bit higher.
Sarah noticed how intently Angel watched her when she spoke, as if he didn’t want to miss a word.
“Besides, I’ve never really been close to my aunt. We only started visiting her about two years ago, when her and my mom finally started speaking to each other again. Even then, it was only once or twice a year.” She shook her head looking away. “I’d rather be in Flagstaff. It’s where I belong.”
Angel’s expression had changed, she couldn’t put her finger on it, but he seemed genuinely concerned or maybe something else… damn it, the last thing she wanted was pity. Not from anyone, but especially not from him. That’s why she was so determined to save money. Even when Sydney’s family had offered to let her stay with them, they meant rent free, but she absolutely refused. If she was going to stay with them, she’d pay them.
“What about after high school? Will you be with your mom then?”
Sarah kept her chin up. “No, I’ll work and go to school. Sydney’s parents said I could stay with them as long as I need to, and as soon as I can afford my own place, I’ll get it.”
That look hadn’t changed. It seemed even more intense now, and his lips were pressed tight. “Well, that’s too bad.”
Sarah’s heart dropped. She knew it, he felt sorry for her. She pulled her feet back abruptly and sat up, startling Angel. She started putting on her shoes. “We may not all have a great start, you know, but it’s where you end up that counts.”
Angel looked at her confused. “What? What are you talking about?”
She finished putting on her shoes and stood up. He jumped up in front of her. “What’s wrong? What did I say?” He searched her eyes.
Sarah glared at him. “My life is not that bad. Oh, sure, compared to yours maybe, but I don’t need all --”
Angel put a finger on her mouth, “stop, that’s not what I meant.”
She tried backing away but he slipped his big hand in hers. She stopped, but stood firmly facing him, unwavering.
He looked at her thoughtfully and put his arm around her waist. “Listen to me. All I meant was it’s too bad you’ll be leaving. I’m really enjoying hanging with you and now you’re telling me it’s only temporary? You’re damn right I think it’s too bad.”
Sarah stared at him speechless and feeling a little stupid for over reacting. “Oh,”
Angel smiled. “Wow, but you turned on me fast.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I just...”
His lips were on hers again. She allowed herself to indulge in a few more of his kisses, and then forced herself to wrap it up, before things got too heated again. It was getting late and she still had to meet Valerie somewhere so they could get home together.
They met Valerie in the parking lot of an In-and-Out near her aunt’s. There were a lot of other kids there from school. Valerie and her friends were standing around her car. They all gawked when they saw that Angel was dropping Sarah off.
Sarah completely expected him to just drop her off as discreetly as possible and drive off. Instead he got out of the car and walked her over to Valerie and her friends, holding her hand the whole way. When he said goodbye he pulled her aside, but still in plain view of everyone he gave her another mind blowing kiss.