Second Dive (Kings of the Water #3) - Jasmin Miller Page 0,18
muscles working overtime. Those poor teeth.
The ladder scrapes across the floor by accident, and both look up at the noise.
I hold up the tape. “Are you guys ready to tape?”
Hunter smiles and grabs one of the rolls from me. “Let’s do it. Do you want me to start on the other side and work my way back over here?”
“Sure, thank you.”
With another smile and a nod, he turns around and leaves.
Did his smiles look less flirty this time or did I imagine that? Oh my gosh, did Noah say something to him about me? Maybe he warned him about me. The thought alone ticks me off.
My head whips around just for my gaze to clash with Noah’s.
It’s spellbinding just like the first time our eyes met. He sees through my shell, through any barriers or defense mechanisms, and straight into my soul.
Exactly like so many years ago. It was my first day of high school and Eadie and I stood in the hallway when Noah walked by and our gazes locked. A normal moment, nothing extraordinary, yet my whole world shifted in that instant, and I was never the same again. I felt like I had found a missing puzzle piece of myself without actually looking for it or knowing it was missing.
The current coldness in Noah’s eyes brings me back to the moment. It’s clear I’m the only one still stuck in the past.
When he takes the tape from me and his fingers brush mine, I pretend to be a statue.
There are still no words from Noah. Just complete silence. I know he’s hurt . . . was hurt . . . but this utter silence is deafening.
We used to talk about anything and everything.
We used to be each other’s everything.
And now we’re nothing.
Eight
Noah
Splashing cold water on my face barely makes a difference to my mood, so I just stare at myself in the mirror. The water drips down my chin, and my eyebrows are drawn together in such a tight frown, I’m not sure I can ever get them back to their normal positions.
Fuck.
After another load of cold water to my face, I wave my hands in front of the hand towel dispenser, and dry my face and hands before making my way out of the restroom.
This whole afternoon was a shitshow. Sure, on the outside everything looked normal. At least, as normal as possible to someone who doesn’t know me. But on the inside, I’ve been battling a vicious hurricane ever since I saw Chloe again, and it has just picked up speed.
Somehow, I have to figure out how to handle that she’s back. That she’s here. Not just in this town but also in my life. Surely, I can handle a few weeks of volunteer work with her, right? I mean, I should be able to. Maybe next time I can bring my headphones and drown everything else out. Focus on the work in front of me. The same way I’ve always done with swimming.
Hunter and Chloe left several minutes ago, so it’s just me at the elevator bank.
So what if I hid in the bathroom for a while?
I didn’t just have to escape Chloe, but Hunter too. Since his inquisition when Chloe was distracted by Tammi, he’s aware that I know Chloe.
And Hunter is like a bloodhound—once he gets a sniff of something good, he won’t let it go until he gets whatever info he wants. Kind of like my sister, actually. Huh. I never realized that before. Speaking of Daisy, did she know about Chloe working on this project I’m volunteering for?
The elevator ride to the lobby level is quick, the hospital quieter now that it’s evening.
Outside, it’s the opposite. Sometime in the last hour, a rainstorm has decided to show up. It’s only September, so rain is rare, but apparently, it’s happening anyway. At least, it’s usually short-lived.
I take it as an omen of my mood.
Of my life.
Trying to let out some of my frustration with a big exhale, I mentally prepare myself to get wet, as it’s coming down hard.
The automatic doors open, and all I manage to see is a flurry of purple before a wet body smacks straight into my chest. And I know exactly what—or rather who—just hit me.
“Oh crap, I’m so sorry. My car won’t start, and I was just trying to get back into the—” Chloe’s gaze meets mine as she tilts her head back enough to see who she ran into.