Burning Roses

by Amanda Perry

  Even after the issues of the last few days, I trust Caleb enough to not hurt me, so I don’t hesitate to sit back and close my eyes. I feel him get off the bed and walk away. The bathroom door closes, and I frown. I can’t imagine what type of surprise would be inside the bathroom, but I do as he asks and wait on the bed with my eyes closed tight.

  Chapter 9

  It only takes Caleb a few minutes to come back into the room. I’m not used to surprises and I’m a bit nervous. I don’t think he’d do anything mean, but I just don’t know what to expect.

  “Keep your eyes closed, okay?” Caleb says.

  The bed dips when he sits in front of me.

  “They are.” I bite my lip, wondering what he has planned.

  “Hold your hand out,” he whispers, sounding a bit nervous.

  I do as he asks and feel a hard object being placed into my hand. “Okay, you can open your eyes.”

  I blink a few times to gain focus before looking down at my hand. I find a small wooden box with a fancy design on the lid. I smile widely at him.

  “Caleb, it’s beautiful.” I run my fingers along the intricate design on the top.

  “Open it.” He chuckles. “The surprise is on the inside.”

  “Oh.” A bit embarrassed, I open the box.

  When I look inside my jaw hits the floor. Nestled inside the box is a silver chain with a perfectly polished clear stone hanging from the end. The inside of the stone looks like flames burning brightly. Silver metal swirls around the top of the teardrop-shaped stone and several smaller stones are set inside the swirls. Four of them sit in a row through one swirl on the right. One is crimson red, the second is a smooth gray, the third a deep blue, and the fourth is a vibrant green. The other two are white and set in the second swirl to the left.

  “Caleb,” I breathe, trying to form an intelligent thought. “I can’t… This is just… How did you…? Wow.”

  “Do you like it?” Anxiety fills his tone. He’s crazy if he thinks I could ever dislike something so perfect.

  “It is just so beautiful and amazing, and I absolutely love it.” I try to keep myself from crying. It doesn’t work well because I can feel my eyes start to water. “I’ve never had anything so perfect before.”

  “Let me help you put it on,” Caleb offers with a heart-stopping smile.

  I lift my hair up off my neck and lean forward. Caleb takes the necklace from the box and clasps it around my neck. I pick it up and watch the fire inside shine in the light.

  “How did you find something with the flames inside?” I ask with my eyes still on the stone.

  “I didn’t,” he tells me. “You did.”

  My head jerks up. “I what?”

  “Your dad got the stone you made during your test, and I managed to get my hands on it.” He shrugs. “I took it to a local jeweler and asked them if they could do anything with it. He polished it, and that’s what he found. He says its quartz and the design inside is completely natural. He said he had never seen anything like it and asked where I got it. I had to make up some story about finding it while I was camping in the mountains. I’m pretty sure he’s going to go hiking up every mountain in North America to find more.”

  “I did that?” I ask in awe. I thought for sure my attempt at a diamond for the council turned into a puny pile of hard dirt or at the most, a sad rock of some kind.

  “You’re amazing, baby.” Caleb kisses my forehead.

  I blush at his praise and try to change the subject. “What are those smaller stones?”

  “The red—a pigeon blood ruby—represents your affinity for Fire.” He pauses and laughs when I wrinkle my nose. “Yeah, not the best name, but it was the most vibrant red.”

  “It is really perfect for Fire,” I admit.

  He points to the next stone. “The star sapphire—the gray stone—represents air. I thought that was sort of perfect because of the star shape the light makes when it reflects off the stone.”

  When I turn the necklace, the light hits the star sapphire and a bright white star appears in the middle of the stone. “That’s amazing.”

  “I agree.” He smirks. “The deep blue tanzanite is for water. I’m told they’re usually more purple in color, but I thought it was the perfect deep blue like the ocean.”

  “I’ve never been to the ocean,” I admit.

  His brows rise in surprise. “Then, I guess we need to make plans to hit the beach soon.”

  I become giddy at his suggestion. “That’d be amazing. I’ve always wondered what sand feels like between my toes.”

  “Consider it done.” He chuckles. “The last one is a tsavorite garnet for Earth. It has a deep, forest green color Jaxon really liked.”

  “Jaxon?” I question, finally taking my eyes from the necklace for more than two seconds.

  He nods. “I had the stone sent to the jeweler after your test. He called to say it was ready, and he had stones for me to look at. So, that’s where I went with Cassie and Jaxon. I needed to be sure it was perfect, so I brought them with me.” His expression drops. “Maybe I should have waited and none of that stuff from yesterday would have happened.”

  “I’m sorry.” I drop my head. I didn’t mean to ruin anything for him.

  “Hey, stop that.” His gentle command brings my gaze back to his. “You should never be sorry for something you didn’t do. It’s on us, we messed up, not you.”

  “Everyone says they’re not mad, but I haven’t managed to talk to Jaxon yet,” I say with a heavy sigh. “What if he hates me?”

  “He doesn’t,” Caleb assures me, taking my hand in his. “He was a mess yesterday after what happened. He wanted to come fix things with you. He knows he shouldn’t have said the things he did, just like the rest of us know where we went wrong.”

  “I hope you’re right.” If my brother hates me, I’m not sure what I’ll do. It might also affect the way everyone else thinks of me.

  “You’ll know I’m right in a little while when you see him.” Caleb changes the subject by pointing to the necklace once more. “The two white diamonds represent the two of us. The setting and chain are platinum, so the jeweler said they’re pretty safe in there.”

  “Amazing,” I whisper, taking a closer look at the diamonds. I notice a speck in the bottom white diamond. “Wait, there’s a small red thing in this one.”

  “That”—he smiles, resting his forehead against mine and looking at the pendant with me— “is a ruby. I wasn’t planning on that part, but they showed me a few specialty diamonds they had. It’s rare, but there are times when a diamond forms around a different stone. In this case, the diamond formed around a tiny ruby. I thought it was a good way to represent my Fire.” He shrugs. “We can change it if you don’t like it.”

  “No!” My shout makes him jump in surprise. “Sorry, I just really love it.”

  “I really love you.” He gives me a soft kiss.

  I kiss him back immediately. I love Caleb’s kisses. I try to show him without words how much I cherish his gift, and him. Caleb’s hand reaches up and cradles the back of my neck, and our kiss deepens. I feel the now familiar pull in the pit of my stomach but try to ignore it. Instead, I focus on how good it feels to have his lips against mine. It takes us a while to finally part, and we have to catch our breath when we do. I rest my head against his chest, listening to his heart settle.

  “You’re going to be the death of me, baby,” Caleb mumbles against my hair.

  “Why?” I look up at him.

  “Because you keep kissing me like that, and stopping isn’t the easiest thing to do, even when I know you aren’t ready for more.” He chuckles.

  “Should we stop?” I ask, concerned I made things difficult for him.

  “No, we shouldn’t stop.” He laughs loudly. “Just don’t take it the wrong way if I stop us mid-kiss. You aren’t ready, and that is fine by me, but a guy can only handle so much.”

  Now that I understand why he reacts the way he does, I giggle at his
pained expression. I couldn’t imagine my life without this man in it. He’s so loving and caring. He doesn’t try to push me into things I’m just not ready for. He’s overly generous, as well. No one has ever given me such a thoughtful gift before—actually, no one has ever given me a gift at all.

  “Baby.” Caleb gains my attention. “We may want to get ready so we can get to the shops with everyone else.”

  I nod my head reluctantly and sulk to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get ready, while Caleb uses the bedroom to get dressed. I spend some time fixing up the loose curls Cassie put in my hair the night before, and then I apply a light coat of makeup like she showed me. I don’t like to wear too much because it makes my face feel funny, but I don’t mind the bare minimum. Since we’ll be doing a lot of walking, I put on a pair of dark wash jeans and a light blue, sleeveless blouse. A pair of black tennis shoes completes my outfit for the day.

  I step back and look at myself in the mirror. This is the first day I’ve done everything on my own, from my makeup to picking my outfit. I think I look decent, and I’m rather proud of myself. Hopefully, Caleb agrees.

  Heading into the bedroom, I freeze when my gaze lands on Caleb. He combed back his normally messy hair, and I love it as much as I love his normal style. He has on black jeans and black boots. His button-up shirt is a charcoal gray, and I drool a little at the black leather jacket he put over it.

  “Hey.” He brings my attention back to his face. “You look beautiful.”

  I blush at his compliment. “You’re really handsome,” I admit.

  “I figured if we plan to go on a date after this, I should look the part.” He smirks.

  I glance down at my outfit. “Is this right for a date? I’ve never gone on an official date.”

  “Anything you wear is perfect.” He strides toward me. He kisses my forehead, and I allow my nerves to melt away. “Shall we?” He holds an arm out for me.

  I giggle and hook my arm around his. I think I’m going to like our date.

  We end up at a small strip of antique stores. Cassie and Leanne obviously know their way around the shops. Leanne finds a good parking spot by their favorite place called A Checkered Past.

  “That’s a clever name for an antique shop,” I muse as we stroll through the old, creaky doors.

  Leanne nods enthusiastically. “It’s so cute, right? It’s the biggest store on the strip, and they have the best stuff.”

  “It’s three levels of awesome.” Cassie skips ahead of us to browse.

  Caleb veers off to the left, and I stop to wait for him. He picks up an old children’s toy. It’s a wooden doll with one eye missing, and the wood on its face and body is cracked and chipped. He holds it out to my dad, who takes a quick step back.

  “Here, Mark, I found a present for you.” Caleb extends the doll toward my dad.

  Dad narrows his eyes at the strange toy. “Montgomery, you better put that creepy thing back, now.”

  Caleb simply laughs and drops the doll back on the shelf. “What’s the matter, Mark? Afraid of a little doll?”

  Jaxon moves up next to Caleb and gestures to the doll. “Don’t you want a cute, little dolly, dad?”

  “I’m about to ground both of you.” My jaw nearly hits the floor when he scoots behind Leanne and uses her as a shield. “That thing isn’t cute.”

  Leanne dissolves into a fit of giggles. “Your fear of dolls will always be funny.”

  “If you’re so brave, you go pick up the thing.” Dad points toward the doll now in Jaxon’s hands.

  Leanne scoffs and grabs the doll from Jaxon. “It’s not possessed, Mark. It’s a toy.”

  “You hope,” he mutters.

  Leanne pushes the doll toward dad, and he jumps back. “Leanne, don’t you dare touch me with that thing.”

  Caleb snickers. “Boy, if Mark had a nickel for every time a woman told him not to touch her with that thing, he would be able to buy a lot of those dolls he loves so much.”

  Leanne continues to chase after dad with the doll, following him when he turns tail and runs the other way. Caleb follows behind with his phone out and a video recording.

  With Jaxon and I alone, I decide to use the moment to ask if he’s upset with me. He hasn’t said a word to me all morning, much less looked my way. Admittedly, I waited until we were in public before speaking with him because he’s less likely to yell at me.

  I clear my throat and shuffle my feet. “Uhm, Jaxon, are you m-m-mad at me?”

  He blinks in surprise and slowly shakes his head, watching me closely. “No, I’m not mad at you.”

  “Oh.” I glance around, unsure what to do or say. He’s not convincing in his actions or tone, but I won’t call him on it. “Okay, then.”

  “It’s all good, Sis.” He forces a smile, then quickly walks away toward the direction Cassie went.

  His insincerity concerns me, but I’m not brave enough to find out the truth. My overly sensitive tendencies could easily be at fault rather than Jaxon actually acting odd. I decide to let it go unless Jaxon brings it up again. There isn’t much else I can do.

  Six hours later, I debate whether I’ll survive another outing with Leanne and Cassie together. Going antiquing with Leanne is as bad as Cassie and any form of shopping. The two of them together is insanity.

  Admittedly, we all had a decent time together. I managed to watch everyone closely, and I didn’t notice any hint of anger or lingering frustration in them. The only one I’m still concerned about is Jaxon, but aside from watching myself around him, I can’t do anything about it.

  Even though we’re tired from being dragged around by Cassie and Leanne, Caleb and I go to the live version of Romeo and Juliet. It turns out to be playing locally and Caleb knows it’s one of my favorite Shakespeare plays. He didn’t bat an eye when I cried all over him at the end, either. Instead, he held me until I managed to get myself together.

  After the play, Caleb suggests we grab some dinner, and my stomach growls at the idea of food. We drive to a small Italian restaurant near the theater Caleb swears is fantastic. The lighting is dim and romantic, the atmosphere quiet and calm. I adore the classy, Italian décor of the restaurant. When we eat at smaller places like these, I’m not as nervous because there are fewer people, and the place is much quieter. We also don’t have to wait as long for a table, which is a bonus. The maître d’ staff quickly seats us, and we both focus on our menus until the waitress takes our orders.

  “Did you like the play? I know I said we’d see a movie, but you’ve only ever read the book. I figured you might want to see the play, too.” Caleb takes my hand on top of the table.

  “I loved it.” I smile, squeezing his hand. “Thank you for taking me. I’m sorry for losing it all over you at the end. I knew it was going to happen, but still, it gets to me every time.”

  “I’ll happily hold you while you cry during sappy movies or plays any time.” He laughs. “What was your favorite part of the play?”

  “Easy.” I giggle. “The balcony scene.”

  “Thought so.” He smirks. “I heard you whispering the lines with the actors.”

  “I’ve read it a few times,” I remind him.

  “Just a few?” He quirks a brow, then shakes his head when I shrug. “What was your least favorite part?”

  I don’t need to consider my answer for his second question either. “I don’t like the end.”

  “Why is that?” he asks, not at all surprised by my answer. “Isn’t it sort of the most poetic part? At least that’s what I’m told. I’m not a Shakespeare expert, but it’s the romantic tragedy that captures the audience.”

  “They’re so in love and so close to their happily-ever-after,” I explain. “They never got the chance to tell each other how much they loved each other. They didn’t get to have their forever. I know it’s supposed to be a tragic romance, but if I could change the ending, I would.”

  Just then the waiter comes with our food, ending our conversation. We don’t c
hat more through dinner. My thoughts are consumed by the play and how sad it was they would never be able to tell each other how deeply they care about each other.

  Romeo and Juliet has been my favorite book for a long time. It was the only romance my mother let me read because she said it’s how all love stories end, and I should get used to it. To watch it live, though, was different—it turned the emotions and characters into living beings.

  It also got me thinking about my relationship with Caleb. I don’t want to ever not be able to tell Caleb how I feel about him. But am I ready to tell him I love him? Do I love him? How do you know if you love someone? Yesterday’s talk with Cassie plays through my mind. She gave me a list of reasons why my family would never hate me. It could be the way to tell if I love someone as well.

  With my mind swirling, I remain quieter than normal during dinner and on our way back to the hotel. Once inside our room, Caleb takes his jacket off and sits on the couch, motioning for me to join him. I kick my shoes off by the door and sink onto the couch next to him.

  “Talk to me,” he orders softly as he turns his body to fully face me. “You’ve been quiet all through dinner and the drive home. What’s wrong? Did I do something to upset you?”

  “Caleb, I’ve been thinking about something for a while, not just tonight.” My eyes well up before I can even tell him. “I can’t keep this from you anymore. There’s something I need to tell you.”

  Chapter 10

  “What?” Caleb barely whispers.

  All the color in his face vanishes, and I don’t understand why. I go over my words in my head and realize he could take them wrong.

  “That’s not what I meant.” I shake my head. “I mean, I don’t want to be Juliet.”

  “I don’t follow,” Caleb mutters slowly, still pale.

  “Caleb, I’m in love with you,” I blurt. “I mean, I love you.”

  He stares at me wide-eyed, without saying a word. I worry he doesn’t like my confession. His was so heartfelt, and I barely managed to blurt it out.