Eternal: A Seaside/Ruin Crossover Novella (Seaside #6) (12 page)

“How is a turtle making it through traffic then causing a ten car pileup cheerful?” I challenged.

She smiled wide, hitting me square in the chest. “Because the turtle made it!” She danced around in front of me and clapped, then paused and arched her eyebrows in my direction.

“I’m not clapping.”

“It’s worth clapping for.”

“Turtle power,” I said through clenched teeth. “Now, was there anything else? You said something about an emergency?”

“Oh.” She waved me off. “I need help picking out my first day of school outfit.”

“Call a girl,” I snapped, walking past her.

I felt warm fingers on my arm, and before I could jerk away, I was rendered completely paralyzed by her tender grasp. Shaking, I swallowed the terror and gave her a pointed look.

Her face fell but she didn’t remove her hand. “I just… I heard they wear uniforms at Elite I just don’t want to look stupid, I only have a few choices, I mean it’s not a big deal, I just…”

Well, damn me to Hell. I sighed and hung my head. “Fine.” I’ll just try to ignore the way that the clothes hugged her body then when she was done twirling in front of me, I’d go puke in the bathroom and run ten miles to get the image out of my head. Sounded like the time of my life. Bring it on. After all, I deserved that type of torture, didn’t I?

“Yay!” She clapped again then looped her arm in mine. “Thanks, Phoenix, I knew I could count on you.”

Funny she should say that… after all, I wasn’t that guy. The trustworthy one, the accountable one, the mature one. I may as well be a body without a soul. It’s what I felt like most days and she did nothing but remind me… that I’d once had it all and lost it.

“Hey.” Bee nudged me. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Every day in the mirror, Bee, every day.”

“What?” Her smile fell.

I forced my own. “Nothing, let’s go pick out shoes.”

“Awesome!”

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I thank God every day that I'm able to wake up and do what I love... sometimes it doesn't feel real... It's because of him that I'm able to do what I do. ;)

I hate having to do the acknowledgements and author notes because I feel like I always forget people! Thank you to my agent Erica, for just being amazing and understanding my insane schedule and supporting me through it! My readers, editors, the bloggers. AH! So many of you contribute on a daily basis and I'm forever thankful for everything you guys do. Really. I can't even begin to list all the many names of blogs and individuals that have supported me, thank you so so much!

As always, I hope you enjoyed your stay in Seaside and remember Summer 2015 the series continues!

HUGS,

RVD

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rachel Van Dyken is the
New York Times
,
Wall Street Journal
, and
USA Today
bestselling author of over thirty books. She is obsessed with all things Starbucks and makes her home in Idaho with her husband and two snoring boxers.

OTHER TITLES BY RACHEL VAN DYKEN

The Bet Series

The Bet (Forever Romance)

The Wager (Forever Romance)

The Dare

Eagle Elite

Elite (Forever Romance)

Elect (Forever Romance)

Entice

Elicit

Enforce

Ember