Rival Hearts (Rival Love #2) (7 page)

About fifteen minutes later, we’re outside a local YMCA. Skylar gives me a look. Her eyebrows are quirked upward and her nose slightly wrinkled. “What are you doing, Caleb?”

“I think we’re going to release some of your stress. So here is step one.”

“The pool?”

“Yes. The pool. Now go get suited up.”

She laughs and shakes her head. “You’re so weird.”

I pay for us to swim laps, she hands me my stuff, and then she disappears into the locker room. “Would you like a locker?”

My attention returns to the girl waiting on me and I nod. “Yeah. That would be great. How big are they?”

She looks over her desk at the guitars and smiles. “Oh. You can get one of those in there. I’ll give you two lockers.”

She hands over the keys and I head to the men’s locker room. I place Sky’s guitar into a locker and lock it. Once I change, I place my things inside the other locker, along with the other guitar. Walking out of the room, I spot Skylar across the pool sitting on a long bench. I make my way to her. Her eyes look me up and down and then she asks, “Well?”

I can’t stop studying her body. I kiss her forehead and whisper, “Pick a lane.” She sighs. “What’s wrong? I thought this was a good way for you to relieve stress?” She told me this when we learned twenty-five things about each other.

“It is. It’s just … I haven’t been at a pool since the whole vandalizing stunt. And I haven’t swum since the Saturday before that. I don’t know if I want to.”

“Sky.” I pull her to me and whisper, “It’s like breathing to you. You need this.”

“I know.” She stands and looks around. I check inside her bag, searching for a place to put my locker keys, and find two towels and two sets of goggles and caps. I laugh and shake my head.

“Prepared much, babe?”

She looks over at me with a slight glare. “Don’t mock me.” She snatches her bag from me. “I’ve broken more caps and goggles than I’d care to count. And don’t get me started on lost towels. Most swimmers have sticky fingers, which you wouldn’t really know until you went to a swim meet and all your things just magically disappeared from the bench.”

I smile. “I’m glad you have extra towels. I was beginning to think we might have to air dry ourselves.”

She tosses me a pair goggles and puts a cap on her own head. We walk over to a lane and I ask, “Should I swim in another lane?”

“No. Just don’t get pissy when I pass you.”

I laugh again. “Me? Pissy? I would never.”

“Yeah, uh-huh.”

We slip into the pool. The water isn’t freezing cold, like it was at my school when she pushed me in. But the cool water does envelop my skin and send chills throughout my body. Sky smiles and pushes herself off the wall. Zipping through the water like a bullet, she sprints down to the other end of the pool.

As I watch her go I realize all I want to do is chase after her.

Chapter 12

Skylar

The pool time was perfect, and yet it wasn’t. How could he take me there knowing I can’t do that anymore?

“Is something wrong?” he asks as we meet up in the front lobby area.

“Nope.” I stomp off but not very far. He snatches my elbow and pulls me back to him.

“Hey. What’s going on? Did I do something?”

Tears start to form and I can’t stop them from falling. “Why did you bring me to this place? You know I can’t swim here in New York. I told you the school is all academic.”

“Sky, calm down.” He guides me out the doors. My back is pressed against his chest while his arms are locked around my waist. His lips brush against my earlobe. “Babe, I didn’t realize this was going to upset you. I just wanted to unwind. This place has been stressing you out ever since you got here.”

“No, it hasn’t! You have.” I whip around and face him, drilling my finger into his chest. It’s completely unfair, I know this. But I feel myself falling hopelessly in love with him. And he’s going to leave me. So I do the only thing I know will protect my fragile heart. “The phone calls, text messages, and that Facebook message, what the hell was that? Caleb, I can’t do this. There’s no room for you and whatever me I’m supposed to be here. Don’t you understand?”

He runs his hands through his hair and screams, “No! I don’t fucking understand. We had something, Sky. We still do and you want to throw it away. Why? Because someone made you run away, someone got the best of you, and you escaped here thinking it would be better. News flash, it’s not fucking greener on the other side, Sky. You’ve got to fight for whatever you want. That’s how this shit goes from bad to great!” He reaches for me, but I stumble backward. He stops and stares at me. “You’ve got to fight, babe. Not run.”

“You don’t get it.”

He shakes his head. “You’re wrong about that. I do get it. More than most.” He walks over to a bench and takes a seat. I tell him there is bird crap all over it, but he doesn’t seem to care. “My parents died, I was angry. I didn’t know how to get a grip on things. I didn’t want to do anything but be alone in my room. I hated my uncle’s house. Hated the school. Hated the people. But then my uncle said he’d had enough and made me go to the field with him. He told me a story about himself, one I sort of heard in passing through town, but it was different coming from him. He blew out his knee in a game and could no longer play again. His future in the minors was over with and he had to rethink his life plans. He came back to his hometown with a teaching degree, but he still felt like a failure. He thought about leaving town and starting over new somewhere else, but then my parents had me.”

“What’s this have to do with anything that’s going on with us?”

He smiles. “Patience. I’m getting there.” He sighs. “I was his fresh start. I’ve never seen my uncle as a failure and will never look at him as such because he’s the best person I know. He taught me how to be a damn good baseball and football player. When we were out on that field he said, you can give up. You can always give up, but you’re going to disappoint yourself and them. Your parents aren’t dead, Sky, but if you keep trying to be this person, living or not, you’re only going to disappoint them and yourself in the end.”

I cross my arms. “What do you know?”

“I know you’re trying to be a person your father wants. I know you’re fronting. This isn’t you. Yes, you worry about your grades. But since when do you give up? Sky, you never gave in. Not when people pushed you into corners at school. You could have told, but you didn’t. You held your ground. When you thought you couldn’t be part of a team, you looked for other ways.”

My eyes meet his. He shrugs. “I overheard a conversation. Point is, you weren’t giving in. So why are you now? Who gives a shit that someone destroyed that pool? Everyone knows it wasn’t you.”

“Caleb, stop it.” My voice cracks. “You don’t know what it was like for me. I can’t go back to that. And it’ll be ten times worse because they’ll want answers. Answers I can’t give. I honestly don’t know who did that.” Plus, it’s not like any of my old friends would tell me if they did have a hand in it.

He stands and wraps his arms around me. “I know. But you are forgetting three people who weren’t in your corner before. Three people that will stick up for you, escort you, and take whatever slack you need them to.” His lips brush against my forehead, and he whispers, “I got your back, Fletch. ’ Cause you got something of mine that I need to keep undamaged.”

“What’s that?”

“My heart, silly girl. What else?”

“Oh, I thought it was your ego,” I tease. He laughs and kisses my nose.

“That too.”

I roll my eyes and smile back. “When did you become so wise?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Probably when I started studying in order to get this hot chick to notice me.”

“I’m pretty certain I noticed you the first time I saw you sitting in your uncle’s kitchen.”

He barks with laughter and walks us down the street. “Yes, but you hated my guts then. I studied to get you to
like
me.”

I nod. “Oh, in that case. I liked you the moment you came to my rescue when my stupid ex, Kevin, admitted to cheating on me.”

He smiles and pulls me closer to him. “He obviously didn’t know what he had. His loss and my gain, I suppose.”

“Even if I’m not ready for the whole getting naked thing?” I frown because I know he’s more experienced than me. And every guy I’ve ever dated has left me sooner or later because I wouldn’t turn in my V card. To be honest, I can’t go through that kind of stuff again.

He pulls me around so we can face each other. “Skylar Olivia Fletcher, I might not like your middle name. I might hate like hell that you could decide to stay here in New York. But no matter what, I love you. Whether we do get naked and I am your first or not. I love you. Got me?”

I blink. “You love me?”

“Yeah, babe, I do. And I don’t ever say that.”

“Really?”

“Really, Sky. I love you.”

My heart flutters and a happy tear slides down my cheek. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him down to me. “I love you, too. I really do.” Our lips brush against one another, and he slides his tongue over mine. I moan as we deepen our kiss.

He pulls back and we continue walking hand in hand down the street.

Maybe I can do this. Maybe I can be with Caleb. Maybe I can go to Ohio with him. He’s right about not belonging here. And if I were honest with myself, I really don’t need to fix my relationship with my dad. He left me. He hasn’t tried to make amends, it was always me. As far as making my relationship better with him and his new family, it’s up to them now.

I need to go back.

Chapter 13

Caleb

For the next couple days, Sky and I were inseparable. We went ice skating, held hands, talked, and made out, a lot. I’m in deep and can’t get enough of those lips or her sweet marmalade scent. This has been pretty much the best couple of days ever, and I’m scared it will come to an end.

The cab pulls up to the Renaissance, where I’m staying for the rest of this trip, although I’d love to keep sleeping next to Sky. At the same time, I want to give her a little space too. Show her I can and will always respect her boundaries about sex and taking our relationship to that level.

I feel like I’m on top of the world and not a damn thing can chase that away until I walk into the hotel and spot them. My mood tailspins out of control, on a crash course for the ground. Sky’s mom and my uncle are at the front desk. My uncle waves a paper around, demanding information, and the poor receptionist shakes her head. Erin stares her down like her eyes can shoot lasers; I know that look all too well. It’s the same look Sky has whenever she’s totally pissed off. Discombobulated by what this could all mean, I stumble right into one of the chairs in the lobby area.

The little incident hasn’t pulled the attention of my uncle or Erin, so I decide to make a mad dash for the exit. Skulking for the door, someone crashes into me, causing me to lose my balance and fall straight on my ass. Her scent bombards me. Her laugh fills me. And my dread only increases.

My ass is officially grass.

Sky’s eyes focus on mine while she has me pinned to the ground and then she lowers her mouth to mine. I dodge the kiss and roll her off of me. Her smile drops to a frown and she stares at me as if I’m the freaking devil. And honestly, I feel like a huge ass. I want to kiss her. I want to so damn bad it hurts, but this isn’t the time.

“Your mom is here,” I mumble.

She shoves my shoulder. “If you don’t want … what?”

I jerk my head back and mouth, “Erin and my uncle are right there.”

She looks up and her eyes expand. Her face is a mix of emotions, and I can’t tell what she’s thinking, not by her face, but whatever it is, it’s probably matching mine.

“Sky, what are you thinking?” I whisper.

“I think I should leave.”

“Please don’t. We can handle them.” Not by ourselves, but together, I’m sure we can handle them. I hope we can. I stand up and help her to her feet. I’m still holding her hands and would continue, but Sky pulls away. She runs a hand over her coat, brushing out wrinkles or whatever.

We walk toward my uncle and her mom. My uncle grumbles, “Oh, there you are.” Erin looks over at me and then at Skylar. Her eyes swim with tears and then she snatches Skylar up into a hug. I assume it’s one of those suffocating ones because Sky’s cheeks turn from cherry red to a purplish color as she gasps, “Mom. Too. Much.”

“Oh, oh, I’m sorry.” Erin releases her and smiles with a few tears rolling down her cheeks. “I’ve missed you so much.” Erin runs her hand over Sky’s hair and sniffles. “I feel like it’s been months.”

Skylar pulls away and laughs. “Come on, Mom, it’s only been a few weeks.” Which is true, but I know what Erin means. It felt like forever since I’d seen Sky. I don’t like not seeing her. It’s funny, because a few months ago, all I wanted to do was get rid of her. I couldn’t, though.

“Caleb,” my uncle’s stern voice breaks through my thoughts. “What were you thinking?”

I was thinking I needed to be with Skylar. I was thinking I needed to bring her back home because she doesn’t belong here. That’s what I was thinking. But I don’t say any of this. “Just wanted to.” I shrug.

He stares at me. “So you thought you’d come up here?” He nods, but it’s not one of his regular nods. It’s more of a
Yeah, uh-huh, how stupid do you think I am?
nod.

“Yeah.”

Erin pulls Skylar over to us and sniffles. “We should go get some breakfast. Oh, and we’re going to have to see if we can check into our room early. That’s going to be tough during the holiday.” She looks directly at me. “Caleb, I should be angry at you for disappearing on us. Not telling us where you were and everything, but I’m glad you came here early.” She hugs me.

“Well, you’re still grounded when we get back home,” my uncle informs me. Knew that was coming. “How about this, you girls go catch up, and Caleb and I will go get some things done.”

Erin smiles and Sky gives me a worried look. I smile at her. I don’t want her stressing over me. I want her to enjoy her time with her mom.