Chapter 9 #2
“Wrap your arm around my shoulders, and I’ll do the rest,” he instructed.
She was hesitant for a moment, but did as he said before he lifted her from the water, one arm under her knees, the other around her back.
Her friends followed as they made their way to shore.
She kept her eyes everywhere but his face until they made it to the beach, where he set her down gently.
“Let’s take a look,” he said softly. She was stung in two places. One on her exposed side, because of her two-piece swim suit, the other on her thigh.
“Shit, Chloe. I knew we should have worn set suits,” one of her friends said when she saw the damage.
“So much for magical sunrise surfing,” Chloe hissed. “We only got what? Ten minutes?”
“Girl, please don’t feel bad about this,” her friend said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She gave her a sad smile, trying to hide her disappointment.
“Do you feel sick at all, or like you’re having trouble breathing?” he asked Chloe.
She winced slightly but said, “No, I don’t think so.”
“It’s hard to tell if the rash is spreading, but if we rinse it with some hot water we’ll know for sure,” he examined the wounds carefully.
“Are you a doctor or something?” her friend asked.
He chuckled. “No, not at all, but I do have some training in first aid. This is a good test for me to see if I was paying attention in class,” he said as he caught Chloe’s eye and winked.
“I’m Renn, by the way.” He held out his hand.
“Chloe. This is Mika and Emily.” She motioned to her friends, and he shook their hands.
“So, is she going to be okay?” Mika asked.
Renn watched Chole’s brows scrunch up with worry, and Emily was on edge, waiting for him to respond.
“Better than okay,” he said confidently, and he watched Chloe’s face relax a bit. “Are you guys staying at the resort too?”
They all nodded.
“Good. I’m sure they have what we need to treat these—hot water will be the most helpful.”
“Do you think you could carry her back?” Mika asked with a mischievous smile.
Chloe glared at her.
“Of course. If that’s okay with Chloe.”
She tried to keep herself from smiling, but gave up as she said, “More than okay.” Her friends exchanged knowing looks, but Renn pretended not to notice.
“Ready?”
She nodded and they repeated the same motion as before. Her friends strolled ahead of them, shooting glances over their shoulders every couple of minutes and giggling. “Sorry about them.” Chloe sighed. “They have been extra weird with me since my bad breakup.”
“Suppotive friends can become . . . bold sometimes, can’t they?”
She laughed. “That’s a nice way to put it. I was going to say annoying. I know they mean well . . . I guess that’s what matters, right?”
He knew Nate would do the same thing to him in that situation. “Absolutely. Friends are important. I don’t know what I would do without my best friend. He’s been there for me in the good and bad.” It felt like an understatement.
“So, are you on a school break?” Chloe asked. “I noticed there was a big group that arrived here yesterday. Are you with them?”
“Yes and yes. We’re all academy students.”
Her eyes widened. “Like as in The Academy?”
He nodded.
“Wow. That’s impressive. I’ve never met anyone who actually got in there. I go to a normal, boring high school in Washington state,” she joked.
He studied her face as she spoke. Her eyes were hazel—more brown than green—and she had a sweet smile with freckles dotting her cheeks and nose. And the conversation seemed to be distracting her, so Renn happily let her keep talking if it would help.
“How old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
Her brows rose.
“Does that surprise you?” Renn chuckled, his broad chest vibrating against her.
The feeling caused her cheeks to flush.
“Yes! You don’t look like any of the eighteen year olds at my school,” she said, almost snorting, trying not to laugh.
“Is that a good thing?”
She reeled her head back to examine him, using the opportunity as an excuse to stare at him. “Yes, that's a good thing.”
Renn smiled at her in response, their faces dangerously close to one another.
Chole swallowed nervously. “I’m eighteen too, by the way.”
“Good to know.” The way he said it set her body on fire.
“Are you graduating this year too?” she asked, trying to distract him from how her body was reacting to practically everything he did.
“No. The Academy has a very particular schedule, unlike most schools and universities. I still have two more years of school before I can do anything exciting.”
They still had a ways to walk, but the pair chatted until they reached the resort, talking about where they grew up, and what their plans were after school.
The staff quickly directed them to the medical ward, bringing the hot water at Renn’s request. Soon, the nurse on-site came to examine Chloe and confirmed she would be okay and didn’t need to go to the hospital.
Renn stayed with her the whole time, helping her soak a cloth with water and cleaning the stings to rid them of any remaining venom.
He didn’t have to stay, but he did.
“You didn’t have to go above and beyond like that,” Chloe said when she was free to go.
“It wasn’t a problem at all,” he said with a wink.
“So, Renn . . .” Chloe bit her lip nervously. “I need to do something to say thank you.” Renn cocked his head in interest. “Would you want to come to a party tonight?”
The sunny day turned cool with the ocean breeze when Renn, Nate, and Kylie walked into one of the many pool areas located on the resort’s property.
Renn and Chloe had exchanged numbers earlier and he asked if he could bring some friends along.
Nate and Kylie couldn’t stop asking Renn a million questions about his act of heroism when he told them the story.
He may have taken extra care getting ready for this evening, changing his shirt once or twice—a feverish excitement running through him.
“See. The universe wants you here. Who knows what would have happened if you weren’t on that beach this morning.”
He knew Nate was only half joking.
“Yeah, Renn, you totally saved her life,” Kylie agreed. She had her long black hair braided in an intricate design, wearing a bright pink short dress that complemented her dark skin perfectly. Nate and her made a stunning couple, and the pride his friend had to have her by his side was obvious.
“That’s a bit much,” Renn said, but he gave her a wink in appreciation.
“Renn! You made it!” Chloe weaved through the crowd toward them, wearing jean shorts and a bright blue tank top. Her near-white hair was hanging in loose waves past her shoulders.
They grinned at each other as if they were unaware of anyone else there for a moment. Nate cleared his throat to get Renn’s attention.
“Chloe, this is my best friend, Nate, and his girlfriend, Kylie.” She shook both their hands.
“Nice to meet you both.”
“So, how are you feeling?” Renn asked, trying not to seem too obvious that he was looking for any signs that she may be unwell.
“Still a little tender, but definitely better. I have you to thank for that,” she said, blushing slightly. Renn had noticed that she tended to do that when she said something she may have found too bold.
“Oh, that’s classic Renn,” Nate replied, clapping him on the back. “He’s a knight in shining armor if I ever saw one.”
“Don’t make things weird. Please,” he said under his breath, leaning into him so only he could hear.
“Come on in and make yourselves comfortable. Most people here are from my school, but I think I saw a few academy students wander in too.”
They followed her. Some people were in the pool while others mingled throughout with happy pop music playing in the background. When Renn looked behind him, Nate and Kylie had already wandered off somewhere.
Chloe reached inside a cooler to grab drinks and handed one to Renn.
“I actually don’t drink much,” he admitted.
There had been the typical parties on campus over the years, but neither Renn or Nate stayed long and rarely attended at all when they came up.
They might have gotten into mischief now and then, but they were never tempted by underage drinking.
He was expecting her to be disappointed but she looked relieved.
“Ah, I’m so glad! It has never been my thing either.
” She put the bottles back into the cooler.
“Come on, there has to be water somewhere around here.” She grabbed his hand, pulling him through the crowd.
Renn spotted Nate and Kylie talking to a group of fellow academy students mingling with people who were strangers. Nate caught his eye and gave him a nod.
As Chloe guided him into the pool house, it was more quiet inside than by the pool, making it easier to hear a voice he knew all too well. A shiver skated down his spine. Please, anyone but him.
Colin Locke was on the other side of the room, talking with none other than Mika and Emily.
Renn tensed, suddenly on high alert. In staying true to Renn’s first impression and general overall bad feeling of Colin, the past couple years had only proven that his intuition was spot on.
Locke had nearly gotten suspended from school at least twice, from what Renn knew.
One was from a situation he witnessed in combat class.
It wasn’t abnormal for Colin to lose his temper, but he had lost complete control that day, breaking a cadet’s collar bone and dislocating his shoulder.
Renn was called into the dean’s office to give an account of what he saw, especially because he was the one to pull Colin off the poor guy who was getting pummeled.
It may not have been his place, but Renn had advocated that he be removed from the academy, but somehow, Colin was allowed to stay.