3. Chapter 3
Chapter three
Six Years Ago
"What if we get caught?" she whispered.
Golden was currently standing behind Gaige as he punched in the code for the elaborate wrought iron and glass door. Even as she hovered close to her friend's back, ready to use him as a shield if they were caught, she couldn't help but look around in utter amazement. They were standing in the alcove of the mansion's front door. The mansion, like every other grand estate in Stardust Heights, was Georgian inspired and covered in rich stone that screamed old-money.
The door opened and Gaige turned around, raising an amused brow at her. "Why are you whispering? And for the hundredth time, it wouldn't matter even if we did get caught."
Ugh, the arrogance of this boy! They were skipping their last two classes of the day. Of course, she had every right to be cautious. Why she hung out with the cocky bastard was beyond her. And yet, here she was, following him inside his mansion like an idiot.
"I don’t know why I even asked," she hissed, still maintaining her whisper as their footsteps echoed on the marble floors. "Your dad just lets you do any ol’ thing, doesn't he?"
Without missing a beat, Gaige gave her a teasing smile. "Technically, your dad does too."
Golden stopped in her tracks in the middle of what looked to be a giant formal living room. Shock morphed through her at his words. There was a beat of silence between them before she erupted in laughter.
Smiling even brighter now, Gaige motioned her to continue following.
He was the only one who could joke about her absentee father with her. Granted, he was probably the only person in the world who would dare for starters and he was for sure the only one at Stardust Heights High School who knew her sad little backstory. Golden couldn't place exactly how she became friends with Gaige Rosebank, the son of a man listed in the Forbes 500, but she was sure it had a lot to do with his warped sense of humor.
On the outside he was the typical golden boy with a classically handsome face, tall, and athletic body, nothing at all that really stood out from the sea of other good-looking rich boys at school. No, it was what shone through those mischievous blue eyes. Sure, he was wicked and sometimes amoral when he was around his buddies, but with her, he let something honest out. A vulnerability that he did not show to the other guys he hung around or the hordes of girls he toyed with. With her, he was open and just a touch softer.
"Did you bring it?" Gaige asked, his voice echoing off the walls of the long hallway he turned down.
Turning her backpack around until it was hanging at her side, Golden pulled out a part of her swimsuit. "Yes, but it's still too cold to swim even if your pool is heated…" Her words died on her tongue as Gaige opened a set of double fogged doors at the end of the hall.
It was as if he just opened the door to the Tardis. Was this it? Was this her moment? Was Doctor Who finally choosing her to be the next companion?
Unsteadily, Golden stepped forward into the huge room. Half solarium on one side, windows lined the wall while sloping glass panes covered one-half of the room's ceiling. Sunlight poured into the long room, shining down on top of the still surface of the huge pool.
Golden's brain did a quick reboot. Gaige Rosebank, son of Grayson Rosebank who was the brother of Grant Rosebank. The brothers owned nearly every piece of land in Stardust County and were some of the richest men in Texas. So why was she utterly speechless right now? Shouldn’t she have expected something like this when Gaige proposed the idea of skipping and spending the afternoon lounging by the pool? Well, she didn't, dammit. Her pauper's brain could never conceive of something this lavish.
Walking carefully up to the pool's edge, she could see the tiled R signet at the bottom of the pool framed in a rose. Very high class indeed.
"Changing rooms are over there." Gaige pointed to a door in the far corner of the room. "It will have towels and whatever else you need," he added casually as he walked over to another door, presumably to change.
For the next few hours, she spent it in luxury. Once she finally gave up on trying to race Gaige, who was apparently Aquaman, they spent the remainder of the time lounging on floaties and watching TV on the massive projector in the corner. Gaige had truly enjoyed that moment, watching her jaw drop as he pushed a button and shutters came down on the glass section of the room.
"What time does your aunt expect you back today?" Gaige asked sometime later, tossing a piece of popcorn in his mouth as he spun his floatie in a circle.
Golden checked her watch and sighed. Her great-aunt Marisol was the least strict person on the planet. If she really wanted to, Golden could technically push her time here later. But the niggling feeling of guilt immediately vetoed that thought. She knew her aunt liked her home for dinner on the weekdays and Golden never wanted to disappoint the woman. Aunt Marisol had been there for her when no one else had been.
"I should probably get going now," Golden sighed. Using her hands she paddled her floatie to the pool's edge.
Grabbing a towel, she wrapped it around herself covering the simple black bikini. Covertly she looked over to Gaige and broke out into a smile to see him wrestling with their floaties, trying to stuff them back into the closet. That was another thing she loved about her friendship with Gaige, despite all the rumors at school about their friendship, he never once tried anything with her. No stolen glances or weird passes, he never tried to make it anything more than what it was.
Grabbing each end of the towel hanging over his shoulders, he gave her an inquiring look once he closed the storage door. "What's for dinner?"
"Pot roast," she answered and promptly laughed at the answering sparkle in his eyes. "You are more than welcome to come over and eat dinner with us," she offered. "Besides, you know how much my aunt adores you."
An arrogant smile spread across his lips and he tilted his head to the sunlight streaming in through the solarium windows. With the light catching his hair, he reminded her of the playful Greek God, Hermes, the talented golden child of Zeus who had a knack for tricks. "All women adore me," he answered smoothly, walking to one of the dressing rooms. "But I must say I am quite taken with your aunt."
"Only because she spoils you to no end," she called out.
He was inside the dressing room but she still heard his smug reply. "As I deserve."
Looking up, she stared at the vaulted ceiling where the glass met the traditional roof. The hum started off as a low melody, testing the open space until it reached the ceiling in a satisfying echo.
"The acoustics in here are amazing," she called out.
"Sing something," Gaige called back and she could hear the water running.
Wrapping the towel tighter around her breasts, Golden walked along the pool's edge thinking. One of her favorite old jazz songs popped into her head. Humming she tried to capture the beginning chord of the song, Midnight .
As twilight falls,
At the stroke of midnight, midnight,
I manage just fine until the day is done,
Dinner time brings a wave of melancholy,
But the depths of despair truly set in,
As the clock strikes midnight.
"You must be the famous Golden Ray I've heard so much about." A deep voice so smooth in timbre cut through the air like a gilded rapier.
The serene moment she had built for herself shattered in surprise and Golden turned around to face the most beautiful man she had ever seen. Standing tall with his hands in both pockets, wearing a dark gray suit, the man who she knew without a doubt had to be Gaige's father stared back at her with a small tilt to his lips.
Inside, Golden's thoughts came to a complete stop before this man. Nervously, she ran a hand through her short-wet curls, desperately wishing she didn't look like a sodden mess in front of this gorgeous stranger.
Grayson Rosebank's eyes traveled quickly over her, taking in the towel wrapped around her and her dripping skin and stopped on her face, his eyes locking with hers. "I heard your voice when I came in. Gaige told me you could sing beautifully. But I think he undersold it."
Golden could feel the blush spreading over her skin like wildfire.
"Hey, Dad." She felt Gaige's presence behind her and desperately called on his strength to see her through this meeting with his breathtaking father. "I see you met Golden," he said, looking from him to her with a confused smirk.
Grayson nodded and looked to the pool before pinning his son with an imposing look that made her want to die just as much as she wanted to take a picture of it to keep forever. "I have, and judging by the security footage, I see that you cut class."
It was a miracle she didn't pass out. She went from feeling feverish to feeling all of her blood drain away in seconds.
Completely remorseless, Gaige grinned and ran a hand through his gleaming hair. "You know how it is, sometimes you just need a self-care day."
Grayson just gave him a flat look before his deep blue eyes shifted back to her, warming once more. "It was nice meeting you, Miss Ray."
Finally, with the grace from God, she managed to find her voice again. "It was nice meeting you too."
"That's doubtful by your petrified expression," Gaige murmured and gently grabbed her by the shoulders, directing her to the bathroom. "Go shower and change. Maybe that will cure your shock."
Mortified, she stole one last glance at Grayson's face and discovered he was still watching her before she promptly escaped to the bathroom as instructed.
As the vivid memory faded, Golden found herself back in the present, sitting in the middle of her massive bed. The wrought iron structure had been too heavy and too arduous to move leaving it here for the tenants to use. And luckily it was still here when she got back. All Golden had to do when she moved in was order a mattress and toss it on top.
Laying back against the cool sheets, she stared at the card in her hand. "Welcome back — Grayson Rosebank." The scrawling black script even reminded her of the handsome businessman. That fateful meeting years ago had ruined her. No other boy or man had ever compared to the indomitable Grayson Rosebank.
But even the warmth of that old memory her first crush invoked couldn't battle against the shudder of embarrassment and pang of hurt that crept up her spine from the last memory she had of him.
Turning over in the bed, until her face was pressed against the sheets, Golden let out a groan. She couldn’t think of it. Wouldn't think of it! No, those details of that fateful summer night two years ago would remain tucked away, a part of her life she was content to forget.