Chapter Sixteen.
St. Augustine, Florida - 2011AD Gemma fidgeted with her locker handle as she inconspicuously studied Courtney"s curls. They bobbed erratically as she threw her head back and laughed.
Gemma"s lips toyed with a smile. According to her mother they were really good friends. Gemma wondered if she should try striking up a friendship in an attempt to make things just a little more legit. It would definitely help ease the guilt. The idea of using Courtney felt bad though.
But was she really using her?
The Friday night movie thing seemed to be real enough. She didn"t even want to think about how nervous she was. Yesterday"s lunch did prove that nerves could be eased though. At least Courtney smiled at her.
The small girl was talking to Darren right now. She smiled up at him as she danced lightly from one foot to the other. Darren"s hand ran up and down his bag strap. His smile was crooked as he dipped his head then flicked his hand up with a casual wave.
Courtney watched him leave then completed two playful whirls on the spot. She looked to the ceiling then down to the floor with a blush before heading in Gemma"s direction. Instantly shy, Gemma hid her head back inside her locker and kept busy organizing her books for next period.
"Hey Gemma."
"Oh, hi Courtney." A nervous smile twittered over Gemma"s features as she turned to greet the girl.
Courtney stopped at her locker a couple along and turned the dial. Gemma watched her for a moment trying to think of something interesting to say. Courtney saved her the trouble.
"Do you think Darren"s cute?"
"I"m sorry?"
"Darren Kidman. Do you think he"s good looking?" Courtney leaned against the closed locker next to her and twirled a strand of her hair.
"Um." Gemma glanced back to where he had departed. "Yeah, I guess so."
"Hmmm." Courtney"s lips bunched then broke into a smile. "I think he likes me." She turned back to her locker and began shuffling through her books.
This would have been the perfect chance for Gemma to slip away with a polite nod, but it was also the perfect opportunity to start something that could potentially make future discussions with her mother much easier. She took a twitchy step towards Courtney and paused.
"Really? Why do you say that?"
Completely oblivious to Gemma"s shaking limbs, Courtney gathered up her books and closed her locker with her elbow. "Oh. Well yesterday, I dropped my phone when I was leaving school and I didn"t notice. He found it and drove to my house to drop it off."
"Oh." Gemma nodded with a slight frown.
Courtney nudged Gemma"s shoulder and grinned. "So, guys don"t go to that effort if they"re not interested, right?"
"Of course they don"t." Gemma smiled, pretending she totally got it.
"I thought he was going to ask me on a date just before, but I think he chickened out."
"He did look nervous." Gemma bit her cheek then shrugged. "Why don"t you ask him?"
"Call me old fashioned, but I like the guy to make the first move."
"He did drive to your house."
"True." Courtney nodded with a grin. "I actually invited him in and showed him around. We sat in my room talking for nearly an hour." Her cheeks glowed. "My Dad wasn"t home. He doesn"t like boys being in our bedrooms, but..." She looked down the hall to where Darren had been standing. "Some guys are worth breaking the rules for."
Her eyes were dreamy. Gemma smiled as she watched her. She thought of Harrison and the impact of first seeing him. She"d known within a second that he spelled trouble for her. All that time she"d spent fighting a battle she knew she would ultimately lose. Gemma ran her hand down her ponytail. This was only the beginning. Somehow she knew that she would bend or break whatever rules she had to if it meant staying with him. The rebellious thought was terrifying... and thrilling.
"I know what you mean."
Courtney shot her a wink as she shoved the last book in her bag and zipped it closed.
"I hope Darren asks you soon."
"Me too." Courtney giggled. "Although who knows what might happen on Friday night." Her eyes were dancing and Gemma couldn"t help feeling a small spurt of excitement. "Nice talking to you, Gem."
"Oh," Gemma blushed. "Yeah, you, um... you too."
She grinned. "See you around."
"Bye... see ya, Courtney."
Gemma watched the girl bounce away and covered her face in self-loathing. She must come across as such a blathering idiot. She hated how nervous she got. One simple conversation and she was ready to go into cardiac arrest. She didn"t understand how she was capable of fighting off basically any foe, but couldn"t hold a casual conversation with a high school student!
"Hey beautiful." Harrison grabbed her hand as he walked pa.s.sed. He sauntered forward with a triumphant grin. She knew he was loving the whole reveal. "Can I walk you to cla.s.s?"
She smiled, surprised by how divine it felt to hold his hand at school. Gemma felt the effects of his presence immediately. Her nervous jitters were chased away and within moments she felt lighter.
"Where were you two minutes ago?" she mumbled.
"Why? What happened?"
"I just spoke to Courtney and I was so nervous and stupid."
Harrison grinned. "I"m sure you were fine. What did you talk about?"
"Darren. I think they like each other. She"s pretty sure he likes her anyway. He went to her house to drop something off."
"He definitely likes her then." Harrison nodded. "Guys don"t go the extra mile if they"re not interested."
"That"s what she said."
The couple slowed as they approached Gemma"s cla.s.s. She glanced at her watch, feeling bad that Harrison would probably be late for his cla.s.s now.
"You"re worth it." He grinned.
Her insides tingled. Since the hallway was empty she gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "I"ll see you in History."
"I"d like to see your house."
Harrison"s random comment brought Gemma to a screeching halt. "What?"
"Your house. I"d like to go there sometime."
"Why?"
He reached for her hand and ran his thumb over her knuckles. "So I can picture you in it."
The tingling grew to a warm glow. "I guess I have seen yours." She grinned then bit her cheek and looked to the floor. "My Dad"s away and Mom"s working this afternoon. If we leave straight after school..."
Harrison kissed her.
"You two have thirty seconds to get to cla.s.s or I"m issuing detentions." The stern voice of Mr. Clark pulled them apart and had them scooting in opposite directions. Gemma glanced back at Harrison"s quickly retreating form. The idea of showing him around her place was a little scary, but...
He wants to picture me there!
Holding in her giddy sigh, she glided to her seat and sat down with a dreamy smile.
Harrison parked his car three blocks from Gemma"s house then jumped on the back of her bike. He wasn"t sure why he wanted to see her house so badly. It"s not like he was expecting time spirit memorabilia - if there was such a thing - to be openly displayed. He was just intrigued. The more he learnt about Gemma, the more he liked her. The idea of picturing exactly where she was when she was sneaking him a text message was somewhat tantalizing.
A few minutes later, they were pa.s.sing through two huge gates. Gemma pulled the bike around the circular driveway and parked alongside the ornate water feature. Harrison had been expecting nice, but he was almost intimidated gazing up at the palatial home.
"I know. It"s ridiculous." Gemma half grinned as she took Harrison"s hand and pulled him through the stunning j.a.panese style gardens around to the back door. She unlocked the door and paused just inside the garage to listen for any noise. Harrison noticed the four car garage was empty and figured they were alone, but Gemma still tread cautiously as they crept through the internal access door.
They padded down the tiled hall and stopped in the archway of the modern kitchen. It was twice the size of his kitchen. The island in the middle was the same size as their dining room table!
"Do you want a drink?" Gemma shoved her hands in the back pockets of her jeans and rolled onto the sides of her feet.
Harrison smiled and shook his head. "Just a tour"s fine."
"Okay." She grinned. "Well, this is the kitchen and the dining room is through here." She pointed and led him through the adjacent archway and into an elegant dining room with a beautifully carved ten-seater table. Everything looked expensive. It was a far cry from the mish mash of furniture he had at his place.
They continued the tour, through the front entranceway with the chandelier and up the sweeping staircase to the bedrooms. The first room she showed him housed a mammoth TV and enough equipment to fulfill every entertainment need. His mouth dropped open as he eyed the two walls of DVDs.
"Dom, the movie buff."
Harrison nodded mutely before being dragged into the biggest bathroom he"d ever seen. As he went from one astonishment to another, he noticed Gemma"s agitation grow. The tour became quicker and it wasn"t until he forced her to stop outside the next door that he found out what she was thinking.
"You think this place is really ostentatious, don"t you?"
"No." Harrison rubbed the base of Gemma"s back. "Just different."
"They like nice stuff. It"s always got to be the best, you know?"
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"This house is amazing, Gem. I think it"s great."
"Yeah, but it doesn"t have the same cozy home feel as your place, does it?"
Harrison swallowed down the resounding yes and cleared his throat with a grin. "It"s yours and I can picture you here. Thanks for showing me around."
Gemma nodded with a nervous smile and pointed at the next door.
"My room." She turned the handle and led him inside.
A slow smile worked across his face as he studied the finely crafted furniture. The walls were a soft mauve, her bed cover deep purple. The pictures on the walls were ornately framed. He inspected the various fun-filled shots of Ruby and Dom along with the formal family photo. He deduced Gemma must have been around twelve in the photo. She was beautiful then too. He shone her a smile, which made her promptly blush.
"Your skin is a lot darker than the rest of your family."
"I know, apparently there"s some Navajo in our history. Managed to skip all of them and land on me."
Harrison wondered why she sounded disappointed. She had the look of a super model and she didn"t even know it.
She watched him slowly peruse her room, biting her cheek and fidgeting with her fingers. He leaned against the large wooden desk in the corner.
"I like your room."
Her smile was adorable. "I text you from in the closet." She walked past him and opened the door, revealing a huge walk in wardrobe. "Just under here." She pointed to the back corner. "I have to lock the bathroom door in case Ruby waltzes in, but she wouldn"t care. She"s helped me keep you a secret so far."
"It doesn"t bother her?"
"Well she can hardly talk. She"s practically dated every senior in the school." Gemma"s nose wrinkled. "Although she"d probably flip if she knew how I felt. She"s always going on about keeping things casual and light. I don"t know if I can do that with you."
Gemma turned beet red as she suddenly registered the words coming out of her mouth. He chuckled softly at her mortification and drew her back into the room.
"Come on, there"s one more room I want to show you." She grabbed his hand and pulled him down the main stairs, through the games room into what looked like a closet. She flicked on the light revealing a second door with a keypad. She put in the combination and the door clicked open.
She drew him down a narrow staircase and into a huge room that looked to be the same size as the ground floor of his house. To one side was a complete set of gym equipment. In the center of the room was a raised platform with padded flooring. Gla.s.s cupboards lined the walls and held every weapon from long swords to rapiers, bows and arrows through to 18th Century pistols.
"Whoa." Harrison moved to inspect the contents. "This is amazing! Where"d you get all this stuff?"
Gemma shrugged, grabbing the key and unlocking the cupboard so he could inspect a medieval bow more closely. "Dad"s spent his life hunting it down. Before we were born he used to travel back, find what he needed and store it somewhere safe so he could dig it up years later."
"How often do you train?" Harrison gently lifted the bow and pulled the string back.
"Every weekend, unless Mom and Dad are away. We spend the first half of the morning on hand to hand combat and the second half on weaponry."
Harrison shook his head. He couldn"t have found words if he"d tried.
"Anyway." Gemma took the bow from him and gently replaced it. "I brought you here for practice. Take off your shoes and jump up here." She slapped the padded platform.
He did as commanded. She then went about working his sorry a.s.s until he was sweating. Punching, kicking, blocking, repet.i.tive drills and corrections. He braced his hands on his knees and watched droplets form on the ends of his hair as he panted.
"That was good." Gemma slapped his back. "Let"s do it again." She stood straight and walked back to her position.
"Let"s not." He ran towards her and tackled her to the ground. She let out a yelp and began to laugh as she shuffled beneath him. He pinned her arms to the floor.