Lake Emerald Chronicles: The First Summer: A Reverse Harem Romance

by Melissa Adams

  We exit the building and start walking downhill in a comfortable silence. We get halfway down through a heavily wooded area where the paved path narrows down and we have to walk in a single file when he grabs my hand, pulls me towards him and crushes my lips with his: his lips are warm, soft and silky and after a few seconds he increases the pressure and warmth floods my body. His arms surround my waist and for the first 5 seconds I am shocked and stay totally still, when I realise that he’s kissing me, that this is the first kiss I have been dreaming about for the last two summers, I let out an involuntary gasp and open my mouth a little.

  He must take that as an invitation and slips his tongue in my mouth and I am again surprised by the warm, silky and slightly wet texture but unfortunately like the surprise of his lips on mine made me gasp and open my mouth, this new surprise makes me close my mouth shut, teeth and all and I end up biting hard on his tongue.

  Now it must be Xander’s turn to be surprised because he yelps in pain and tries to take his tongue out of my mouth with the only result to somehow get his bottom lip bitten hard on too.

  He lets out a pained moan, cupping his mouth with his hands.

  ‘Oh my god, oh my god... Xander, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to bite you, you caught me totally by surprise... Are you ok?’

  All I hear is another pained moan and I give him a minute to get over the worst of the pain before I apologise again and ask him if there’s anything I can do to help.

  He manages to say just one word: ice.

  So I grab his hand and drag him down the hill and at the back door of the restaurant, where the kitchen is: we walk in silence but he doesn’t object to me holding his hand and that’s very nice of him because if the roles were reversed, I am not sure I would let him hold my hand.

  ‘Wait here...’

  I leave him sat down on a bench and enter the kitchen: there’s no one around but several pots are on the stove and some kind of bread is baking, filling the kitchen with a lovely smell.

  Since there isn’t anyone in sight, I open several freezers but can’t find any ice, the only thing remotely ice like are a few ice popsicles: I grab two and sneak back outside where Xander is still sitting where I left him.

  I look at the popsicles and ask:

  ‘Lemon or mint?’

  He gives me a naughty smile and retorts:

  ‘After what you just did to me, don’t you think I deserve both?’

  ‘If you can be sassy, then it’s not as bad as your reaction made it look...’

  He rolls his eyes and extends his hand:

  ‘Lemon, please.’

  ‘Wait...’

  I unwrap the popsicle and offer it to him and after he opens his mouth and lets the frozen treat rest on his tongue, I unwrap the other one and start eating it.

  He keeps staring at me not talking, which I guess it’s hard to do with a popsicle resting on your tongue but still, it makes me feel a bit uneasy.

  I keep eating my popsicle until he takes his out of his mouth and sets it down on the side wall near the bench, then he takes mine out of my hand and puts it down too.

  ‘Hey, I was eating that!’

  He smiles, takes my hand and pulls me closer to him until my hips rest between his thighs:

  ‘I know and you look extremely sexy while eating stuff from a stick... But I think you owe me a kiss. I am going to kiss you again and this time I am warning you, so I don’t get bitten...’

  He cups my cheek with one hand and tilts his head just slightly, placing his lips on mine, very softly at first and then, like it happened before, increasing the pressure.

  His lips are cold and so are mine but I can still feel their softness when he moves them slowly against mine and opens his mouth.

  I feel his tongue running gently over the seam of my mouth to get me to open for him and I do it, wrapping my arms around his neck.

  He tastes of lemon and his mouth is still cold. I admit that I don’t know exactly what I should do now but he starts stroking his tongue against mine, in a gentle massage.

  His tongue is silky and soft but not too soft, it has a very pleasant firmness when it moves against mine.

  We breathe together, mouths still joined, exploring each other, bodies crushed against one another: he’s sitting down and I am standing between his legs.

  A very pleasant current, almost like a low buzzing electricity is coursing through my whole body, my heart beating very fast.

  He breaks the kiss for a second but doesn’t take his lips away from mine: instead he takes my bottom lip in his mouth and sucks on it gently, sending new waves of pleasure all over me.

  We stay there, kissing for a few minutes until we hear someone clearing their throat and we part quickly and yet reluctantly.

  Our breathing is a bit laboured and Mrs Taffar, the head chef gives us a knowing smile but tries to put on a scolding tone:

  ‘Come on kids! Get lost! I’m sure you can find dozens of better make out spots than behind my kitchen...’

  We apologise and leave still hand in hand. We walk towards the tennis court and Xander stops in a little shaded area surrounded by pine trees. He takes me in his arms and kisses me again, his lips now hot and hungry. When he breaks the kiss we are breathing even harder than before.

  ‘I don’t want to stop kissing you but I have to go... I have to teach a tennis lesson in 10 minutes... And then I have a shift at the lake, with the kayaks and all the equipment, we need to get it ready for the official opening after the bonfire Saturday night...

  ‘It’s ok... Probably Brie and Hazel will be wondering where I’ve disappeared...’

  ‘Can I see you at dinner or after?’

  I agree, my heart beating thousands of miles an hour when he places a soft kiss on my lips and whispers:

  ‘I’ve been imagining how it would be to kiss you since the first time I saw you... And I had got it wrong: it’s way better than I thought it would be...’

  ‘When I don’t bite...’

  He laughs and squeezes me a bit tighter before letting me go:

  ‘You are forgiven, I guess I should have asked permission rather than surprise you like that...’

  He winks at me and walks away:

  ‘I will be thinking about you until later...’

  He walks away and I stand there, like an idiot, looking at him with my heart still pounding and a pleasant tingle all over me: my lips feel a bit swollen but in the most delicious way ever and if I close my eyes, I can still feel his kisses.

  I admit that this kissing business could have started totally wrong but Xander was patient and persistent, two qualities that my boyfriend should definitely have.

  That thought hits me like a freight train: is Xander my boyfriend now? He hasn’t asked and I guess until he does we are just casually dating... Does this make it still ok to hang out with Logan? Do I even want to hang out with Logan? I take a deep breath, I have to slow down: my thoughts are coming in so fast that they are making me feel dizzy.

  I walk aimlessly out of the tree clearing and I almost get run over by someone running really fast: it’s Jemma in a white tennis outfit, wearing the shortest skirt I have ever seen and carrying a tennis racket. She yells to watch out but doesn’t even stop and runs towards the tennis court. Is she Xander’s lesson? She must be and the thought somehow doesn’t sit well with me: last night when we were playing truth or dare, she gave Xander her panties. I almost run to the tennis court too and I stop just short of the entrance where I freeze and think again.

  My first instinct was to go and keep an eye on the situation, overcome by jealousy but really, he hasn’t asked me to be his girlfriend and if he does something with Jemma, I guess I will have my answer.

  However the idea of Xander kissing Jemma or any other girl for that matter, makes my heart shrink 3 sizes in a reverse grinch manner: is it possible that since last night, I have come to care for Xander this much? All those mind blowing kisses certainly did confuse things for me and I decide that
whatever I do, I need to be careful because it’s true that so far neither Xander nor Logan have asked me to be exclusive but if I am not cautious, all three of us might get hurt.

  I need to find something to do to take my mind off this stuff or I’ll make myself sick: going to the beach where I know I will spill to Brie and Hazel isn’t probably the best idea, so I head to the art centre where there should be the first free sketching lesson.

  Keeping busy is what I need right now, so I head in and find a free easel just in time for class.

  Austin enters the room followed by Leah and Lucy who seem to hang to his every word.

  They unfortunately sit right next to me and Lucy shoots me an evil glare: I seriously don’t know what her problem is with me since up until this summer, she didn’t even know my name, just like Joel.

  I admit I totally disliked her because I saw her making out with Joel countless times last summer and then the first night this year, I thought she was doing something with Xander in the bushes and then with Justin, this morning...

  The Justin thing isn’t out of jealousy but out of support for Brie and I still need to decide how and when to tell her what I saw.

  Austin is explaining about shading and the chosen subject for our sketch today which is a fruit bowl - cliché, I know - when the door opens and Hayley sneaks into class, wearing the shortest jeans cut offs I have ever seen with what I cannot bring myself to call a top because it’s basically a sports bra pretending to be a top.

  Hayley sets herself up on the first row and when Austin tells us to begin sketching, she beckons him over, all timid, asking if he could recap what she missed.

  ‘Sorry, my yoga class ran a bit late...’

  She says batting her eyelashes and putting a red manicured set of claws on his chest: I call them claws because she had them filed really pointy.

  He starts talking her through the shading when she interrupts with a question and tilts her blonde head towards his.

  I inhale sharply and tell myself to snap out of it: what she’s doing is none of my business, I barely know Austin and I have enough trouble being involved with two boys, I certainly don’t need a third one.

  I start sketching and tune everything else out, this is why I jump, startled, when a hand covers the hand I am drawing with.

  ‘This is really good but if you angle the pencil this way, you’ll get a better result...’

  He’s standing behind me, really close to me, so close that his chest is touching my back and his breath is tickling my ear.

  I hold my breath when he keeps his hand on mine, guiding in effect my drawing and breaths again in my ear:

  ‘You are very talented, Clary. I hope you’ll come to every lesson...’

  He then tucks one loose strand of my long hair behind my ear and takes a step back.

  ‘Hey Austin, can you help me with this?’

  Shrieks Lucy and he visibly flinches and without moving from behind me, comments:

  ‘Is that a fruit bowl or a dinosaur? Or are you going for an abstract feel here, Luce?’

  Lucy laughs at his comment as if she took it as a joke and then shoots me another evil glare while Leah, who’s where Austin can’t see her, flips me off.

  What is wrong with these girls, seriously?

  I spend the rest of the class finishing my sketch and feeling the heat from both Austin’s and Leah and Lucy’s eyes on me.

  As soon as the class is over, I rush out of the building but I don’t even make it off the front steps that 3 sets of hands push me into a thick group of bushes and I am verbally attacked before I can even fully comprehend what’s going on.

  ‘Get your virgin claws off of Austin, you little LA bitch!’

  Yells Lucy.

  ‘You already got Logan, so back off!’

  Snarls Leah.

  ‘He’s mine... Or, well... Ours!’

  Hayley is right in my face.

  I try to step away from them but they advance, determined to stay in my face.

  ‘I seriously don’t know what you are talking about...’

  I defend myself: this is the most uncomfortable situation I’ve found myself in, like... Ever!

  ‘I don’t know what you three are on about... I don’t even know him. So just back off, will you?’

  Lucy points a dark blue manicured index finger at me.

  ‘Yeah, right! You got all the boys hot for your deer in the headlights fake ass act! Drop it or be a woman and fight for him!’

  I am a bit lost.

  ‘For whom?’

  She mocks my voice:

  ‘For whom...? Austin of course, you bitch! We got here first and there’s a bet going on about who sleeps with him first between me, Hayley and Leah. So, either put your big girl pants on and fight us or back the fuck off!’

  I step back trying to put distance between me and these three girls but they won’t leave me alone:

  ‘You look so disgusted! Don’t tell me you aren’t getting your little panties wet looking at Austin. But unless you are willing to fight for him, back the hell off!’

  This is Hayley, who I have never even met officially before today: where’s last year’s lovely yoga instructor, Betty?

  Hayley is at least 4 inches taller than me, about 21 and has wavy light blonde hair, blue eyes and the slender frame you’d expect on a yoga instructor. She dresses boho/surfer girl and she would be absolutely beautiful if it wasn’t for her horrible behaviour: she’s definitely a match for Lucy.

  ‘You have been warned, little kid. You better stay away from our boys and this includes Justin and Joel!’

  Snaps Lucy.

  I look at her a bit confused: they can definitely have Justin and as for Joel... He just about knows my name and that’s a brand new development.

  I decide not to engage any longer with them: they are obviously looking for a fight, when Leah challenges:

  ‘And watch your back with Logan, he’s too cute for you...’

  I just walk away and they stand there looking like they have won some big battle: regardless of how attracted I might feel to Austin and of how inappropriate that might be since my boy situation has become a bit more complex, he certainly didn’t look interested in any of them but I have seen many boys both at school and here at camp be swayed by slutty behaviour, so anything is possible.

  I wouldn’t try to compete with any of them anyway: Lucy and Hayley, apart from being older than me, are also gorgeous; Lucy is tall and slender, with long black hair and blue eyes, she looks a bit like Lorelei Gilmore in Gilmore girls and Hayley is just blonde and so fit...

  Leah on the other hand is only 15 and for as much as I am not perfect in the looks department, she is chubby, has constantly frizzy brown hair and her front teeth make her look like a bunny but not in a cute way. Also, while Jemma’s big glasses make her look sexy and mysterious, in Leah’s case, the glasses detract from her appearance.

  I spend the rest of the afternoon reading my book on the porch of my cabin, none of my friends is around and for once, I cherish being alone with my thoughts.

  ‘Hey, would you be able to tell me where the restaurant is?’

  A cute boy with dark brown hair and blue eyes asks.

  ‘I just arrived and I am trying to call my brother but there’s no cell reception here...’

  ‘Sure, do you want to walk with me? I was going to have dinner anyway. I’m Clary, nice to meet you...’

  He offers me a bright smile that reveals really cute dimples on his cheeks and introduces himself:

  ‘I’m Brooklyn, nice to meet you.’

  ‘And who’s your brother? Maybe I know him?’

  ‘I came as a guest but my brother works here: he’s the new arts instructor, his name’s Austin...’

  ‘Oh, I see...’

  ‘Yeah, I know what you are thinking: Austin and Brooklyn... My parents had no imagination and they named us after the cities where they both grew up but we are from San Diego, California...’

  ‘Oh, co
ol! I’m from LA...’

  His smile broadens:

  ‘We are practically neighbours...’

  I show Brooklyn to the restaurant and when he follows me to the table where Hazel and Brie are sitting, he has an adorable lost puppy look: so I invite him to sit with us and introduce him to my friends.

  He has an easygoing smile and is chatting up a storm with Brie, asking questions about New York.

  This all reminds me a bit of my first summer here when I was 13 and didn’t know anyone and the first meal, I was awkwardly looking around a bit like you do in the school cafeteria if you don’t have people you sit with everyday.

  Hazel saw me looking lost and waved me down, invited me to sit with her and her roommate Brie and we have been besties ever since.

  When the meal is over, Brie is the first one to stand up and nods at Hazel:

  ‘Come on, Justin is waiting for us at the arcade and I managed to get him to bring Rob along... ‘

  My friends leave together and Brooklyn spots Austin just entering the restaurant, so he excuses himself and goes to meet his brother; I am alone again and walk out of the restaurant trying to decide if I want to go along with my girlfriends but not entirely keen on that idea since I dislike both Rob and Justin but I don’t have to dwell much on what to do because Xander is waiting for me outside.

  ‘Hey, pretty girl...’

  He hugs me and his sandalwood and amber scent invades me, still new and yet starting to become familiar.

  I hug him back and take the hand he offers.

  ‘Do you want to go for a walk?’

  I agree but decide to make a quick detour to my cabin to get a jacket since the air is colder tonight and Xander is only wearing dark blue jeans and a grey and orange t-shirt with some rock band name on it: he looks attractive but definitely doesn’t have a jacket to offer if I get cold.

  I climb the steps to the front porch and he follows me inside the cabin and into my bedroom.

  I walk towards the chest of drawers under one of the windows but Xander grabs my hand and pulls me towards him, he cups my cheeks with his hands and looks in my eyes with his incredible turquoise-green gaze.