Chapter 45
I get into a routine over the next few days with early mornings at the office, track practice, and self-defense with Nick.
Coach hands out our track uniforms at practice on Wednesday, and I run all three of my races. I get to see Olivia after school when Bay picks her up at a friend’s house. She’s excited to see Bay dive on Friday.
Cara has been smiling smugly at me for a few days now. It’s creepy, but she hasn’t attempted to talk to Seb or me, so that’s something.
I wake up to the scent of tea on Friday morning. Rolling over and opening my eyes, I see a steaming mug on my nightstand. Seb must be up already. Smiling, I get up, grab my tea, and pad to the kitchen. “Morning, Sunshine,” Seb sings, giving me a big hug.
“Good morning, Hurry. Thanks for the tea,” I smile.
“You’re welcome. I enjoy getting a hug from you first thing in the morning,” he says.
Chuckling at him, I set my tea on the island. “Did you make breakfast too?”
“Yup, chocolate chip pancakes. Take a seat, and I’ll get you a plate.”
“Wow, thank you. You didn’t need to do all this. You’re the guest here, Seb.”
“Gotta make a good impression so I get invited over again,” he winks.
“You’re always welcome here, Hurry,” I smile. I take a bite of the pancakes Seb slides over to me. “Yum, these are so good,” I tell him.
“It's E’s recipe. Glad you like them,” he smiles, sitting beside me with his own stack. I offer to clean up while Seb showers.
He drives my Jeep to school when we’re ready. E meets us at the door with hugs before we walk to my locker. The rest of the guys have grim expressions on their faces when we get there. “What’s wrong?” I ask.
Alex and Bay step aside. Nick is glaring at my locker, which has a bouquet of sweet peas hanging from it.
Soft pink sweet peas that I always buy for my mother.
I inhale sharply. This isn’t a coincidence.
I tried to make myself believe the lilies were nothing, but not these.
My vision gets spotty as I sway to the side.
“Sunshine!” Seb calls, grabbing me around the waist. “Breathe for me. You’ve got to breathe,” he says. He turns me around to face him, placing my hand over his chest. “Breathe with me, Sunshine,” he repeats.
I follow his exaggerated breaths in and out until I’m focused again. This is not happening. Are the flowers even from Ben? Maybe they’re from someone else. “What are they doing here?” I mutter. “What game is he playing?”
Alex comes into my line of sight. “Nick, get rid of them,” he orders. “Summer, we are going outside,” he tells me. Seb puts an arm around my waist as we follow everyone outside. “Summer, can you explain the significance of the flowers to us?” Alex asks.
I nod. “Those are my mom’s favorite flowers.
I buy those specific colored sweet peas for her on special occasions.
The last time I bought them was for her birthday in February.
It’s too much of a coincidence that those flowers are here after the lilies.
Someone, or Ben, knows information only a person from Virginia can.
A person who visited their gravesite or knows an employee from the florist. Sue is the only person I know who has seen those flowers. ”
“I suspect it is Ben since the roses were from him,” Alex says. “The question is, why give you flowers from Virginia?”
“I don’t know,” I say, shaking my head.
The warning bell rings for first period. “Let us all remain vigilant today and keep Summer in our sights at all times. Until we know the reason for these bouquets, we are at a disadvantage,” Alex tells us.
The guys all agree, and we head to class. Alex calls Jaxon over after AP Biology and asks him to keep his eye on Ben and me today because things have escalated. He agrees and offers to spread the word to Holly and their friends.
Cara is almost giddy with excitement in AP English and during lunch. She keeps looking over at me with a smirk and giggle. I’ve got a bad feeling; I just hope it’s unrelated to the flowers.
Coach wants the track team to rest their legs today, so Jaxon and I hang out in the stands with the other runners. I try to get some homework done, but I’m too nervous to focus.
Nick comes to get me from the stands, and he and Jaxon both walk with me to the parking lot. All the guys are waiting by my Jeep. “Hey Sunshine,” Seb says, pulling me into a hug.
“Hi guys. Thanks for walking me, Jaxon.” I wave goodbye to him. “What’s the plan now?” I ask.
“Alex and I need a light dinner, and we have to be back here by 5pm,” Bay tells us.
“You need to train,” Nick says, looking at me.
“Let’s go to Sunshine’s house,” Seb says.
“We can eat there and train.” The guys agree, and we split up into two vehicles.
I text Zander the plan as Seb drives my Jeep home.
E offers to make dinner while I let the guys know I’m calling Jake.
I really want to crawl into Jake’s bed today and listen to his heartbeat to calm down.
I settle for hugging the pillow with his cologne as I tell him my worries.
Zander arrives home after we’ve eaten, as Alex and Bay leave for school. He grabs dinner and joins us outside as Nick begins my training. E fills Zander in on the sweet peas as I work with Nick and Seb. He’s not happy to hear the news, but there’s nothing we can do but be safe.
Nick is working tonight and tomorrow with Troy, so we drop him off at the office on the way to the pool. Holly and Jaxon wave to us when we get inside. I take a seat between Holly and Zander, with Seb and E behind me. The solo divers are already in mid-competition. “Where is Reesa?” I ask Seb.
“She doesn’t come to the meets,” Seb tells me. I remember Alex telling me she wasn’t into sports, but this is her boyfriend. It’s not right, but not my business.
“How are you holding up, darling?” Zander asks.
I turn to him. “Freaking out a bit, honestly. I don’t know the game here, and I don’t like it,” I say.
“Understandable,” he nods. “We will stay on high alert. You’re making good progress with Nick from what I saw today,” he tells me. “I’m proud of you for learning to protect yourself.”
I give him a smile as I refocus on the final round of solo dives.
I hear my name being yelled from somewhere as the last diver sets up.
Looking around, I find Olivia waving at me as she climbs the stands.
“Hi Olivia,” I wave back. She comes up and wiggles her bum until Zander slides over enough for her to sit beside me.
He chuckles at her, then greets David, who sits in front of us.
“Are you excited to see Bay dive today?” I ask her.
“Yes, he’s gonna win today,” she states.
“I hope so,” I smile at her as they announce the winners of the solo diving competition. Our team placed third for both boys and girls today. Not bad.
Olivia suddenly jumps up and starts waving and yelling Bay’s name. I look down to see him and Alex walking towards the pool. He smiles as he and Alex both wave up at us. I’ll never get used to seeing them in their speedos. So…many…muscles.
The competition begins, and I get mesmerized as usual. The new team we saw last week is doing well, but their scores aren’t as good as Alex and Bay. Our guys win, with the newcomers coming in second.
Right after the winners are announced, David, Olivia, Holly, and Jaxon leave while the rest of us wait for the guys. We congratulate Alex and Bay, and then I’m surrounded as we move outside to our vehicles. There’s been no sign of Ben or Cara tonight, thank goodness.
I make a batch of high-protein granola bars for the track meet tomorrow when we get home, and then watch tv with Zander.