The Last Song(55)

“You’ve got my brother completely wigged out,” Ronnie stated in what she hoped was an authoritative voice. “You should go.”

“What time is it?”

“It’s after ten.”

“It took you long enough to get out here.”

“I shouldn’t have had to come out here at all. I told you to leave earlier.” She glared at him.

His mouth tensed into a flat line. “I want to know what happened,” he said.

“Nothing happened.”

“Then tell me what Ashley said to you.”

“She didn’t say anything.”

“I saw the two of you talking!” he accused.

This was why she hadn’t wanted to come out here in the first place; this was what she’d wanted to avoid. “Will—”

“Why did you run off after talking to her? And why did it take you four hours to come outside to finally talk to me?”

She shook her head, refusing to admit how burned she felt. “It’s not important.”

“In other words, she told you something, didn’t she? What did she say? That we were still seeing each other? Because we’re not. It’s over between us.”

It took a moment for Ronnie to realize what he meant. “She was your girlfriend?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “For two years.”

When Ronnie said nothing, he stood up and took a step closer to her. “What exactly did she say to you?”

But Ronnie barely heard his voice. Instead, she thought back to the first time she’d seen Ashley, the first time she’d seen Will. Ashley, with her perfect bikini-clad figure, staring at Will…

Vaguely, she heard Will going on. “What? You’re not even going to talk to me? You make me sit out here for hours and you won’t even dignify my question with a simple answer?”

But Ronnie barely heard it. Instead, she remembered the way Ashley had looked that day on the sidelines. Posing prettily, clapping… wanting Will to notice her?

Why? Because Ashley was trying to win him back? And she feared Ronnie might get in the way?

With that, things began to click in place. But before she could think of what to say, Will shook his head.

“I thought you were different. I just thought…” He stared at her, his face a mixture of anger and disappointment, before suddenly turning away and heading for the beach. “Hell, I don’t know what I thought,” he tossed over his shoulder.

She took a step forward and was about to call after him when she noticed a flicker of light down the beach near the water’s edge. The light rose and fell, as if someone were tossing a…

Fireball, she realized.

She felt her breath catch in her throat, knowing Marcus was there, and took an involuntary step backward. She had a sudden image of him sneaking toward the nest while she slept outside. She wondered how close he might have come. Why wouldn’t he leave her alone? Was he stalking her?

She’d seen stories on the news and heard about things like this. Though she liked to think she would know what to do and could handle herself in almost any situation, this was different. Because Marcus was different.

Because Marcus scared her.

Will was already a couple of houses down the beach, his figure vanishing in the night. She thought about calling him back and telling him everything, but the last thing she wanted was to stay outside any longer than she had to. Nor did she want Marcus to connect her to Will. In any case, there was no her and Will. Not anymore, anyway. Now it was just her.

And Marcus.

Panicking, she took another step back, then forced herself to stop. If he knew she was scared, it might make things worse. Instead, she forced herself into the circle of the porch light and deliberately turned to stare in Marcus’s direction.

She couldn’t see him—only the flicker of light as it bobbed up and down. Marcus, she knew, wanted her to be scared, which set something off inside her. Continuing to stare at him, she put her hands on her hips and raised her chin defiantly in his direction. Her blood pounded in her chest, but she held her position even as the fireball settled in his hand. A moment later, the light went out and she knew Marcus had closed his fist over it, announcing his approach.

Still, she refused to move. She wasn’t certain what she’d do if he suddenly appeared only a few yards away, but as the seconds became one minute and then another, she knew he’d decided it was best to stay away. Tired of waiting and satisfied that she’d conveyed her message, she turned and headed back inside.

It was only as she leaned against the door after closing it that she realized her hands were shaking.





15




Marcus



I want to get something to eat at the diner before it closes,” Blaze pleaded.