“Hey, Amy, what happened with you and Caleb?” Bryce asked, his mouth full.
I dropped my fork halfway to my mouth and my head shot up. “What? What do you mean what happened? Nothing happened.” I spoke too quickly, and Katie looked suspicious.
My brother rolled his eyes. “I thought you two didn't zipline; what happened?”
Relief. “Oh, yeah, uh…” It took me a second to focus and I picked up my fork again. I was hesitant to tell them what happened; I didn't want my brothers giving me a hard time.
“Amy got a little dizzy from not eating and the instructor wouldn't let her jump.” Byron to the rescue. I threw him a grateful smile.
“Oh, that sucks!” Bryce crowed. “You really missed out. And you should have seen this guy.” He pointed at Byron and laughed. “He—he, oh man, he—“ Bryce was giggling like a little girl and couldn't finish.
I turned to Byron with an expectant eyebrow raised. “What did I miss?”
Byron chuckled and shook his head. “Let’s just say it wasn’t a very graceful landing. I stumbled back when they unhooked me and fell into the lake.”
The table roared with laughter and I joined in.
“It was funny but sad,” Olivia said.
“It’s okay.” Byron smiled good-naturedly.
“What did I miss? What was so funny?” Caleb approached the table and I groaned inwardly as he sat down between Oliva and me.
“Poor Byron fell into the lake.” Olivia said to Caleb. I tried not to notice her hand on Caleb’s arm as they laughed over Byron’s mishap.
I kept my eyes on my plate. Caleb caught my attention and was eyeing me skeptically. I instantly felt self-conscious and sat up a little straighter. “What?” I asked.
“I cannot believe you can still eat those.” He shook his head with a disbelieving quirk of his lips.
I eyed at the cheese puff in my hand and laughed.
Six Years Earlier…
Camp was empty when we returned from our 4-wheeler ride with Simon and Katie. I was beginning to feel sick with hunger. My hands were shaking as I took Caleb’s hand to help me off the wheeler.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I nodded at first and then shook my head, my stomach threatening sickness. “I need to eat.”
His eyes were braced with thoughtful concern. “Hey, do you have something quick for lunch that we can get for Amy?” he asked Katie.
“Amy, didn’t you eat anything this morning?” Katie scolded me. I shook my head. Katie rolled her eyes. “Everyone in my trailer and I’ll make us some lunch.”
Caleb put his arm around my waist as we walked to the trailer and sat next to me in the booth. Simon helped Katie make some sandwiches and brought a bag of cheese puffs to the table.
“Do you want to know something else about me?” I waved a cheese puff at Caleb. “Guess who holds the record for most cheese puffs eaten in one minute.” I smiled at him and popped one into my mouth.
Caleb chuckled and raised an eyebrow. “Are you challenging me?”
“Oh no, not this again, Amy,” Katie whined. “I hate watching it. It’s gross.”
I ignored her and narrowed my eyes at Caleb. “Oh please.”
Simon laughed. “Are you really going to take that from her?”
Caleb tipped his head at me. “Alright, Miss Amy. Bring it on.” He had a sly smile and I winked to tease him.
“I hate these contests,” Katie muttered.
“What happens if I lose?” I asked, suddenly unsure of myself.
Without hesitating, Caleb looked directly at me. “Ask me.”
I glared at him and shook my head.
“Ask you what?” Katie said, confused.
Caleb grinned at me and I shoved his shoulder. “Let’s have Katie and Simon decide, and we’ll find out when we are done.”
“Oooh, let’s think of something good.” Katie said to Simon, who looked so love-struck over her, I had to look away to keep from laughing.
Simon dumped half the bag of cheese puffs on my plate and the other half on Caleb’s.
“You watch the clock, Kate.” Simon donned a serious referee face and leaned forward.
I narrowed my eyes at Caleb as we leaned over our plates. He winked at me as Katie started a countdown. “Three, two, one, go!”
Caleb lost. His mouth was gaping open and he was staring at me like I was a creature from another planet. I wiped my mouth with a napkin, took a long drink, and patted his arm. “Better luck next time.”
“I don’t think I could eat another one of those as long as I live.”
I laughed. “Never go against me. You’ll lose every time.”
Caleb raised a challenging brow. “Oh, is that right?” he said in a low voice. He leaned close to me and I backed away until I was against the window. His eyes smoldered and his nose touched mine. I heard Katie gasp and Simon chuckle, but I was too lost to look away. Caleb thought he was going to win but I wasn't going to give in. We were locked in a staring match that I refused to forfeit. His eyes softened and a slow smile appeared with that dimple of his. I chewed my lip to resist and his eyes flashed in warning when he saw my lip between my teeth.
His eyes found mine again. “Ask me,” he mouthed, silently.
“Alright, you two, enough.” Katie sounded irritated and her voice pulled me back into the room.
Present Day
“Do you want another go?” I challenged him.
Caleb's lips twitched. “Do I want another go?”
I narrowed my eyes at him, trying not to smile.
“Another go at what?” Bryon asked.
My face fell; I had no intention of telling Byron about the cheese puff contests of my past. I took a sip of my drink to delay having to answer.
“Didn’t you know you’re dating the cheese puff champion?” Caleb said.
I choked a little and coughed. My eyes bugged out at Caleb. He smiled unapologetically.
“Cheese puffs, huh?” Byron said.
Caleb snickered. “Amy challenged me to a cheese puff eating contest one time, and I lost big-time.”
I turned my head from Byron and glared daggers at Caleb to shut him up. His expression showed nothing, but I knew his motive was to work me up.
Parker asked Caleb something about the ATV store and I breathed with relief.
The rest of lunch was pleasant enough, even with Caleb on one side of me and Byron on the other. We all chatted and laughed and everyone took turns talking about their ziplining experience.
“It’s too bad you two missed out,” Katie said. “Did you do something else instead? What took you so long to get back?” Her suspicious eyes were on me as she hid behind her cup.
I wanted to squirm under her scrutiny and my eyes drifted of their own accord to Caleb, who didn't bat an eye. “We pulled the jeep over to wait for Amy’s queasiness to pass.” Caleb shrugged. I was glad he was quick to answer because Katie nodded and dropped the subject, though I knew it wouldn't be the last I heard of it.
Byron leaned close to my ear. “Do you want to get out of here for a while?” he asked quietly.
I turned my attention to him. “What did you have in mind?” He smiled, his eyes sparkling with intent. “Mr. Tate, is this an indecent proposal?” I teased with a soft, sly voice.
He grinned and hung his head. “Yes, ma’am,” he muttered.
I giggled and tipped his chin up. He was adorable; it was all I could do not to kiss him right there at the table. I bit my lip to keep it in check and Byron’s eyes smoldered.
“Let’s go,” I said, all business. I grabbed his hand and stood too hastily, knocking my chair over. Everyone’s chatter died and they looked my way.
Caleb raised an eyebrow and reached for my chair. “Where’s the fire?”
Heat touched my cheeks as Byron chuckled and I elbowed him. “Nowhere. I just—we’re going somewhere.”
Caleb looked me up and down and his eyes shifted to Byron. “Where are you guys headed?”
he asked, though I was sure he knew we wanted alone time.
Byron paused, reluctant to answer. “Oh, uh, we were just going for a 4-wheeler ride.”
I nodded and glanced from Byron to Caleb.
“That sounds like fun.” Caleb’s eyes met mine for a fraction of a second before turning to Olivia. “How about it, Olivia? Are you up for a 4-wheeler ride?”
I went from twitterpated to irritated in no time, trying to keep a scowl off my face.
Olivia nodded. “Sure, that sounds like fun.” She looked at Katie and Simon. “Do you guys want to go on a 4-wheeler ride?”
Byron groaned and threw him a knowing look.
CHAPTER 10
Everyone was mounting the wheelers when I saw Olivia smiling at Byron from her 4-wheeler. My face fell; she sure liked to smile at all the men around here. I tried not to hold it against her; she was probably trying to be friendly, but it still rubbed at me the wrong way. I noticed Caleb watching me from where he sat in front of Olivia, and I marched right past him to Byron’s side.
“Hi there. Are you ready to go?” Byron asked.
I nodded and climbed on the 4-wheeler, scooting back for Byron.
“We’ll see you, then,” Olivia said to Byron, running her hand through her hair as Byron sat down in front of me. I ground my teeth and looked away.
“Are you guys ready back there?” Simon hollered from the 4-wheeler in front.
Byron gave him a thumbs up and Caleb tipped his head at Simon in agreement. Caleb’s eyes met mine for a fraction of a second as he turned his head and said something to Olivia. He eyed me before focusing forward. Olivia scooted closer and wrapped her arms around Caleb. Something boiled in me and I averted my gaze, refusing to give in to the jealousy. I wrapped my arms around Byron and glanced again at the other two. I caught Caleb watching me with a clenched jaw before he turned away and they took off. We waited a minute for the dust to settle and followed them.
We rode the main trails and ended up on the other side of the lake before we stopped for a rest. I lounged on the grass in front of Byron, leaning back against his chest. Caleb stood a few feet away talking to Olivia about the year he came to camp with us, and Simon and Katie were having a rock skipping war.
“No way that skipped ten times you didn't count properly!” Katie had a hand on her hip and a finger pointed at Simon.
He shook his head. “It was nine times, baby. That means we tied.” Simon folded his arms across his chest and stared at Katie. Suddenly, they embraced each other and were kissing passionately. I giggled and looked away to give them some privacy.
“They seem pretty happy, don’t they?” Byron said in my ear.
I turned to see him. “They do. How about you? Are you happy?”
Byron smiled. “I am. I’d be a little happier if it was just the two of us though.”
I scrunched my nose and nodded in agreement. “We did our time with the group. What do you say we—" I was cut off by Caleb’s voice.
“Amy, do you remember going for a night swim that year I came to camp?”
“What? When did that happen? I don’t remember that?” Simon questioned as he and Katie walked toward us.
I met Caleb’s eyes, and my heart instantly pounded. I couldn't believe he was bringing this up…
Six Years Earlier…
11:52. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. In eight minutes, I was supposed to meet Caleb at the cliff trail, but the closer the time got, the more certain I was that I would chicken out. I had my swimsuit on under my pajamas, and I’d hidden a towel outside earlier in the day. I'd never snuck out before but if I got caught, I had a plan to act as though I was sleepwalking so nobody would be any wiser.
We had all opted out of sleeping outside, and I was now unsure about that decision. It would have been so much easier to sneak away if I was already outside. 11:54. Anxiety came over me so badly, I thought I might be sick. Breathe, breathe.
Caleb was cute when he had asked me earlier to meet him. I worried, again, about my feelings for him. How could I be so attached already? We only had a day and a half left and I would never see him again. That thought made my mind up for me, and I checked my phone for the time once more. 11:57. It’s now or never.
I got out of bed as quietly as I could and tiptoed out of the room. For once in my life, I was grateful for my father’s loud snores drowning out any other sounds in the trailer. I took another slow step and held on to the kitchen counter as I rounded to the door. My parents were only feet away in their bed, behind the curtain. My heart was thudding against my chest and my hands shook as I crouched to find my shoes in the pile. I heard my dad moan and turn over in bed and I froze. I spotted my shoes and reached for the red handle on the door, pulling it as slowly as I was able. It made a clicking noise when it came free and I stilled, listening hard for any movement. I opened the door and paced down the trailer steps on my tip toes. Now came the hard part. I held my breath and shut the door, clicking the handle back into place. I did it! Jumping down from the steps, I ran to the towel I had hidden and raced toward the trail for Caleb.
“Hey, girl, I was sure you would bail on me.” Caleb smiled and held his hand out to me.
“Let’s go!” I whispered.
Caleb pulled me forward and we walked hand in hand through the trees.
“I hope nobody hears us splash when we hit the water,” I said as we made our way up the trail. I couldn't believe I was agreeing to this, but after thinking of him leaving, I wanted as much time with Caleb as I could get.
Caleb shook his head. “Even if they hear the splash, as long as we don’t make any extra noise, we should be good.”
“So, did you have a fun day?” I asked.
“Yeah, I did. I liked seeing those turkeys too.” He squeezed my hand and I squeezed it back.
“Me too. Maybe you can take me out again tomorrow.”
“Yeah, we should, if you are not too tired from sneaking out.” He smiled and I shook my head at him.
“Don’t tease me about it. I can’t believe I did that.”
Caleb chuckled. “Sneaking out is easy. It’s sneaking back in that’s tough.”
I stopped in my tracks and my stomach plummeted.
“What’s wrong?”
“I didn't think about having to sneak back in. I’ll never be able to do it!” I hung my head and Caleb wrapped his arms around me.
“I’m sorry. I thought you’d have known. I should’ve said something.” His voice was regretful.
Caleb held me and I couldn't feel bad for sneaking out. If our time was so limited, every second counted. Who cares if I do get caught? It’ll be worth it. My face was at Caleb’s neck and I bravely placed a kiss there. “Let’s go.” I sighed.
We came through to the dark clearing of the shorter cliff. We figured it would be safer than the higher one if we were going to jump in the dark. I watched Caleb with a satisfied grin as he removed his shoes and shirt. He folded his arms with a cocky smile. He knew he looked good, and he liked that I liked it.
“Go ahead,” Caleb nodded in my direction.
I removed my pajamas and set them on top of Caleb’s shirt. After turning his way, I had to smile; Caleb was watching my every move. I walked toward him, and he groaned looking away.
“We better jump,” he said. He hesitated a second longer with his eyes on me before tugging my hand and leading me to the edge of the cliff. “Are you ready?” he asked excitedly.
“As I’ll ever be.”
Caleb counted down from three and we jumped. The fall seemed longer in the dark and I had to keep myself from yelling out as I fell. We hit the water together, which relieved my anxiety over being heard. I kicked for the surface and Caleb pulled me to him when my head was above the water.
“This doesn’t feel as cold as last night. How did you like jumping in the dark?” he whispered through his smiling lips.
“That was crazy! It seemed like a longer fall in the dark,” I whispered ba
ck.
He nodded. “Let’s get to where I can touch the ground.”
I followed him, swimming as smoothly as I could to make less noise. Caleb reached out for me when he could touch bottom.
I wiped my eyes and looked at Caleb. Water dripped down his face and he was a dream in the moonlight, I reached both hands up and ran my fingers through his hair, slicking it back. Caleb closed his eyes, groaning, and I bit back a pleased smile. I hugged myself closer to him and his eyes opened with passion and warning.
“Sorry.” I set my hands on his shoulders.
Caleb’s eyes dipped to my mouth. “Ask me…” His voice was barely a whisper.
I wondered again why he didn't do it. Why did he want to hear me ask for it? I held my breath, and my heart sped. I wanted him to kiss me, more than I had wanted anything, ever. I would regret it later, I knew I would, but I couldn't help myself. Caleb’s mouth came closer and hesitated so close. Water dripped off Caleb’s face and onto mine.
“Kiss me,” I breathed.
Caleb’s eyes widened in surprise. He must have thought I would put him off again, but I didn’t care anymore.
Slipping my hands into his hair, I crushed my wet lips against his. Caleb returned my kiss and his hands tightened around my waist. I whimpered; I had held back from him all day and it was finally close to him again. I deepened our kiss and gripped his hair. Caleb broke from me. His eyes were wild with passion, his chest rising and falling. I let him catch his breath, but I didn't leave him alone. I kissed along his cheek, down his jaw and chin. When I came to his mouth, I traced his bottom lip with my tongue and Caleb groaned. He kissed me a few moments more and pulled away.
“Stop,” he said, resting his forehead on mine. “We need to stop.”
“Sorry,” I whispered. “I’ve wanted to do that since yesterday and I couldn’t say no this time.”
Caleb half smiled and our heavy breathing was the only sound that filled the dark, quiet night.
It Was Always You Page 8
