Kiss with Cherry Flavor (Grover Beach #4)

by Anna Katmore

  Then my gaze fell on Chloe for the first time. She had her PJs on and her hair was a mess from sleeping, so she must have come home a while ago. She stood behind her father and wore a frightened face.

  I swallowed hard, struggling to find my voice again. “Why are you all in my room anyway? What time is it?”

  “It’s three in the morning, Sammy,” my aunt told me.

  But her husband overrode her with his angry shout. “We came in here because you scared Chloe. She heard noises in your room and came to check on you. Then she found you in this chaos!”

  Chloe clung to her father’s arm, her eyes on me. She actually shivered. “You were shouting. I thought you were having a fight with someone. Then I heard a rumbling and came into your room, but no one was there, and you were lying on your bed, knocked out cold. I was so scared.”

  She was one hell of an actress. “For heaven’s sake, what are you talking about?” I shouted. “I came home before midnight, and I went to bed an hour later. Everything was normal at that time. I didn’t drink at the party or afterward, and I sure didn’t trash my room!”

  “That’s the problem with drinking,” Jack exclaimed. “You have no control. You don’t know what you’re doing in that condition.”

  “And you don’t know what you’re talking about!” I rubbed my temples, trying to concentrate. Had they all gone nuts?

  “I recognize a drunken teenager when I see one. And since you’ve been caught, you can give back the other things you stole from your aunt and me, as well.”

  “What?” I screamed at him, straightening my back and tucking my legs underneath me. I shook from cold and horror.

  “You know what I mean! My watch. The two hundred dollars from Pamela’s purse. Did you take the expensive brushes too?” He removed his arm from Chloe’s hold and started pulling open the drawers of my desk, one after the other. “Where are they?”

  “Jack, I beg you,” my aunt whined, crossing to him and tugging gently at his arm. “Sam would never steal. This is just a big misunderstanding.”

  “Is it? IS IT? And what the hell do you call this, Pam?” He shoved two crisp hundreds he’d just pulled out of my bottom drawer in front of her face.

  I gulped.

  Everyone turned to me.

  “I didn’t put those in there,” I whispered. “I didn’t take them.” My pleading gaze found Pam’s eyes. “You must believe me, Aunt Pam. I didn’t steal the money from you.”

  “Sam…” Her voice cracked.

  “Do you see now that she’s a bad influence on our daughter?” Jack hissed at Pamela. “We should have never agreed to take her in. Go and call Miranda. Tell her we’re sending Samantha home on the first flight we can get.”

  What? He was kicking me out? Oh my God. Why? What had I done? This was a mistake—not my fault. Didn’t he see that? He couldn’t send me home!

  My heart almost gave out on me. I didn’t want to leave.

  “Jack, I don’t know,” my aunt croaked as she tore her gaze away from me, holding her husband’s hand. “Maybe this is just—I don’t know.” She clapped her hand to her mouth, cutting a painful look at me and back at Jack. “We should go downstairs and talk about it. Maybe there’s an explanation. Maybe Sam just has problems.” She turned to me again. “Do you have problems, Sam? Do you want to talk about anything? Maybe I—didn’t I listen carefully enough? Please, tell me what happened.”

  “Nothing happened! I swear this wasn’t me!” Kneeling on the bed, I wrapped my arms around myself, but it brought no comfort at all. Tears clogged my throat.

  “It’s not our job to take care of this girl, Pam. If she has a problem”—he grabbed the almost empty Scotch bottle, holding it out to her—“and she definitely does, then it’s her parents’ duty to take care of her. Go and call Miranda. Now.”

  “It’s the middle of the night. At least let’s wait until the morning to talk to them.”

  “Why? Egypt is half a day ahead of us. You’ll reach them in the afternoon.”

  Obviously, Pam wanted to say more, but after a second she closed her mouth again, resigned. With another sorrowful look at me, she turned and walked out of my room, leaving me to my doom.

  Jack put his arm around Chloe’s shoulders then. “Go back to sleep, darling. Everything is under control. You don’t have to worry anymore. We’ll take care of it.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead and led her out. The doorknob in his hand, he glared at me across the room one last time. “Tidy up here, and in the morning pack your things. We’ll book a flight home for you as soon as possible.”

  The door slammed shut.

  My world broke apart.

  I sat on my bed for several more minutes, just staring at the closed door. Breathing hurt. Tears blurred my vision. My whole body trembled.

  What would I do now?

  Slowly, I rose from the mattress. My feet were cold. I walked to the middle of the room, turned around, and looked at all the mess on the floor. I felt like a stranger in my room. Who would do this?

  But I already knew who. And I also knew why. Chloe had warned me, oh my God. And I hadn’t taken her seriously enough. Our fight tonight must have caused her to snap. Now she’d gotten her way. They were tossing me out of their house.

  I sobbed into my hands, my lips wet and salty from my tears.

  On autopilot, I walked around the room and picked up the scattered clothes. In the end, my arms were loaded, and I just didn’t know what to do next, so I dropped the clothes again, sinking onto the edge of my bed. For an endless time, I stared into the distance. Finally, I closed my eyes, hoping this was all just a bad dream. But when I opened them again, the chaos was still there. Nothing had changed.

  Minutes ticked by. Bit by bit, I emerged from my shock. My panic grew. Mom. I needed to call my mom. Tell her what happened. Tell her the truth, because by now, Jack had surely talked to my parents and dished out lies about me drinking and trashing my room.

  Phone! Phone! Where was my phone? Moving things aside on my nightstand and desk, I searched madly for the damn device but couldn’t find it anywhere. Next I dug my way through the clothes on the floor, feeling inside the pockets of my pants and hoodie. Nothing there either. Where else could it be? I had to talk to my mom!

  Finally, I moved the broken laptop over and found my cell underneath. I always turned the ringtone to silent at night, so I hadn’t heard it. There were several missed calls.

  My fingers trembled as I called my mom on speed-dial and pressed the phone to my ear.

  “Sam?” my mom cried, her voice strained from worry. “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to call you for the past twenty minutes.”

  “Sorry, Mom,” I sobbed, then I choked on my tears. Speaking was no longer possible.

  “Oh, my dear. Are you all right, darling? Your father has Jack on the phone right now. Tell me what happened.”

  I sobbed and whined some more until my mother’s loving tone finally cut through to me. “Calm down, darling,” she said softly. “Take a deep breath. And now tell me what happened.”

  “I was at a party last night. I didn’t drink. And I was home early.” Sniffing, I wiped my nose with the back of my hand. “Then they all came running into my room and woke me. My room is a mess. But I didn’t do it. I promise, Mom. Please believe me!” My voice cracked. “No one believes me. They all think I’m drunk. And that I stole money and alcohol from Jack and Pam.” New, hot tears trailed down my face.

  “Shh, darling. It’s all right. We’ll find out what happened and take care of it.”

  “I know what happened. Chloe hates me. She warned me the other day that she would get rid of me. I met this guy. Tony. I told you about him. We’re together now. And she hates me for it. Because she’s in love with him. And she hates me because Pam was really nice to me.”

  “Chloe? You didn’t tell me that you had trouble with her.”

  “Because I didn’t realize it was that bad.” Curling up on my bed, I hugged my legs tightly to my c
hest with one arm while I held the phone to my ear with the other hand. Tears dropped onto the pillow. “She’s been so ugly to me since I came here.”

  “So she’s jealous?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you tell your aunt and uncle about it?”

  “Jack won’t listen. He shouted at Pam. They don’t believe me,” I sobbed. “Mom, I don’t want to go back to Egypt. I like it here. I have friends here. Please. I want to stay.”

  “Oh, my dear baby.” My mom sighed. I knew she was feeling my pain, too. “I’m afraid if they don’t want to listen and see the real problem, there’s nothing we can do about it. Jack told your dad that he’s already booked a flight for tomorrow. Maybe it’s best if you come home for now and we’ll think of something then.”

  Oh God, no! He’d already booked a flight? So fast? I pressed my lips together, squeezing more tears out of my shut eyes. If I had to go back to Egypt, I wouldn’t see Tony for almost four months. Until we finally moved to the States in the spring. I didn’t want to be without him for so long. Or without Susan. Or Lisa, and Simone, and Nick, and Ryan.

  “I don’t want to leave,” I whispered, pushed to my limit.

  My mother took a deep breath. “It’s the middle of the night for you. Go to sleep, Sammy. Get some rest. I’ll call you again in the morning. Then we’ll find a solution. Don’t worry now, my dear.”

  I didn’t want to go to sleep. But I was exhausted. And I couldn’t hold my eyes open any longer. So I agreed. But my heart ached, and for the first time in my life I was scared as hell.

  “I love you, Mom. Please believe me.”

  “I do believe you, Sammy. And I love you, too. Now go to sleep. I’ll call in the morning.”

  I pressed the phone to my ear until my mom rang off, then I let it slip through my fingers. It dropped onto the pillow. Hugging my bent legs with both arms, I cried until I had no more tears and eventually drifted off.

  *

  “Sam?”

  A gentle shake woke me. I opened my eyes. They felt sticky and swollen.

  Pam was sitting at my bedside. She stroked my hair, her face in soft but sorrowful lines. “How do you feel?”

  I remained silent.

  “Do you want to come down and eat breakfast?”

  I shook my head.

  “Shall I bring you something up here?”

  I shook my head again.

  My aunt paused for a moment, her fingers skimming softly across my forehead. “I’m so sorry about last night and all the terrible things that have been said, Sammy. But you shouldn’t have gotten drunk. You’re far too young.”

  “I didn’t drink.”

  Pam sighed.

  I closed my eyes. “You don’t believe me.”

  “Sam…you should have come to me if there was anything troubling you. I know you’ve been upset because of this boy, but—”

  Focusing on her again, I cut her off, “We’re together.”

  She cocked her head. “Really? Now that’s…good.”

  “Chloe still has a crush on him. Can you imagine how she feels now?”

  “I…well—”

  My voice got sharper. “Can you, Pam?”

  “I believe it makes her sad.”

  “She’s jealous. She hates me.”

  “She sure doesn’t hate you.” My aunt frowned at me, looking like she was in pain. “You’re cousins. You’ve always gotten along so well.”

  “You know that’s changed. You’ve seen it. Why are you denying it now?”

  Pam took my hand, holding it in her lap. “Does it make a difference?”

  Shit, of course it did! I pulled my hand away. “Apparently not to you. Or Jack.” Tears burned in my eyes again, but I fought to keep them under control. At least as long as my aunt was with me. “I fly home tonight?”

  She nodded slowly. “I couldn’t dissuade Jack from booking the earliest flight.”

  “When?”

  “Ten o’clock. You still have time to say goodbye to your friends.” She paused then added, “I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah. Me, too.” I closed my eyes again. For me, this conversation was over.

  “Look, Sam. Maybe it’s for the best. And when you come back with your parents next year, perhaps you and Chloe can start anew.”

  Sure. Like I would really want that. If I wasn’t so close to tears, I might have laughed. When I remained silent for the next couple of minutes, my aunt eventually realized there was nothing more to say. She caressed my hair one last time, then the mattress shifted as she rose to her feet and silently walked out.

  At the low sound of the door closing, I opened my eyes again, glaring at the wall and struggling to keep new tears at bay.

  My cell phone started blinking on my nightstand. A call. My mom keeping her promise. I reached for the phone and answered. “Mom?”

  “Umm…no.”

  Crap. Tony!

  “Hi,” I croaked, fighting for a steady voice.

  “Hey. You sound weird.” And he sounded every bit alarmed.

  “I— It’s—” Taking a deep breath, I struggled for control. Impossible.

  “Sam? What happened?”

  “They’re sending me home,” I got out eventually.

  “What? Who? Your family?” Tony sounded like he wanted to crawl through the phone to get out more information.

  “My uncle. Chloe tricked me. Everything’s destroyed. I have to go back to Egypt.”

  “Fuck! When?”

  I fought so hard not to sob, but in the end I lost that battle. “Tonight.”

  CHAPTER 10

  I GLANCED AT my watch. After I’d told Tony what happened, he’d said he’d meet me outside the house in ten minutes. That gave me just enough time to wash my face and dress in dark pants and a black hoodie. When I pulled my tank top off, I finally realized where the stench of Scotch was coming from. Chloe must have splattered it on me while I was asleep.

  Who cared? Certainly not my aunt and uncle.

  Leaving my room in chaos, I trudged downstairs and past the kitchen, where Pam and Jack seemed to be having another argument…over me. I didn’t bother to stop or listen. Pamela must have seen me, though, because she shouted my name.

  “I’ll be outside,” I murmured and left.

  Tony was already waiting across the street, leaning against the hood of his mother’s car. I walked up to him, and he pulled me into a tight embrace. Relaxing for the first time in seven hours, I sighed against his chest. But there was nothing I could do to keep the panic and ache from my heart.

  Slowly and gently, Tony brushed my hair off my forehead. “You look miserable,” he said.

  “I feel miserable.”

  “How much time do we have?”

  Until what? Until I had to leave the country and not see him again for fourteen weeks? “I don’t know. The flight leaves at ten. I need to pack and…” Heaviness settled in my chest. “And I want to see the others and say goodbye too.”

  Tony shaped his warm palm against my cheek. “So we have a few hours to come up with a plan.”

  I sniffed. “A plan?”

  “I’m not going to let you go, Sam.”

  He was so sweet. I placed my hand on his, leaning into his palm. “I don’t see what we can do about it. Jack’s determined. He thinks I’m a bad influence on Chloe.”

  “Ha! I should go inside and tell him a few things about his daughter,” he growled.

  But I couldn’t let him. If anything, he’d only change things for the worse. “I can’t believe that I actually felt sorry for her last night,” I said in a low voice and wiped my nose with the back of my hand. “How stupid of me.”

  “No, you aren’t the stupid one. She is. And she’ll have to answer to me later. But for now we need to figure out what to do about you. Did you talk to your parents?”

  “To my mom. At least she believes me. But she doesn’t know what to do about it either. It’s not in her hands.”

  “I see.” His voice was flat as
he looked above my head into the distance. “So it’s up to us.” Tony suddenly released me and nodded toward the passenger’s side of the car. “Get in.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “To meet Hunter and the others at his beach house. I called him on the way here.”

  Throwing a glance back at the house, I hesitated. My phone was still in my room, and my mom hadn’t called me yet. Pamela would also expect me to be back inside soon. “Should I tell them I’m leaving with you?”

  “Sam. They’re sending you back to Egypt. In ten hours. They’re probably happy to be rid of you.”

  Wow, that sounded harsh. But it was the truth.

  “Do you honestly want to go in now and pretend you’re still the nice niece, asking for permission?”

  “I guess not then.”

  “Don’t worry. If we can’t find a way out of this,” he snarled, “I’ll have you back in time so you can pack and get to the airport.”

  Heaving a deep sigh, I went around the car and climbed in. Tony drove us out of town and down to the nice bungalow the Hunters owned at Misty Beach. Two familiar cars were parked in front of it: the silver gray Audi Ryan had driven me home in once and Alex’s black Jeep. Lisa and Simone were sitting with their boyfriends on the couch in the front room when we entered. Both girls jumped up and enveloped me in a tight hug.

  “Oh my God, Sam. This is so terrible,” Lisa exclaimed. “How could Chloe be so mean?”

  “Yeah, that bitch!” Simone snarled.

  They dragged me over to the couch and made me sit down. Tony lowered himself next to me, pulling my hand onto his lap and lacing his fingers through mine. He probably didn’t even know how much this comforted me.

  A moment later, the door opened and Nick came in with a limping Susan on his arm. Ryan stood so she could sit down. Nick, for once, didn’t greet me with his ever-cheerful “Hey, Finn Girl,” but this time he studied me with concerned eyes.

  “Tell us what happened,” Alex prompted me then. “Did Chloe really snap?”