Secrets

Chapter 1

Arizona 1968

"Can you feel it?" Rhys asks me, slinking his arms loosely around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder.

"Feel what?"

He nudges the hallow of my hip slightly and a rush of air fills my lungs, causing my train of thought to halt. The feeling of security calms me and I lean into Rhys. I turn to gaze up at him and I find his well-known, adorable grin. Holding in a chuckle, he leans down to kiss my forehead and I melt under his soft lips. "What was that?" I ask breathlessly.

"That was you finally being unable to handle my sexiness." Rhys laughs and I poke him gently. I turn and inhale his regular scent of vanilla and cinnamon soap. "But seriously. Are you having a good time?" Rhys says, his tone evening out.

"Of course I am. Especially since I'm with you." I respond , smiling sweetly at him.

"Good." Rhys shoves me and I fall back. I try reaching for something, anything, but all I grab is nothing and I fall down, off the cliff we were standing on. Shocked, my breath leaves my chest and panic envelops me. Tears fill my eyes as gushes of air push past my face and hair. I flail wildly , unable to see Rhys anymore. I watch as the teal blue salt water inches closer. I am too shocked to scream. Suddenly, a pair of hands grip my waist roughly and yank me up. Finally, I start to breathe again as I'm being lifted back to the cliff. The panic doesn't leave me as I look over to find that Rhys is flying me back to our small cottage. A burst of confused gibberish comes out of me. He shushes me, placing a warm finger on my lips. We gradually land in front of our cottage and I quickly back away from him. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why would you do that to me?" Questions burst out of me in a frenzy and I feel more tears well up in my eyes.

"Laura. Laura calm down. Please. I was joking with you. I would never ever ever hurt you. You know that." The tears overflow and pour down my flushed cheeks as I start to calm down. "That was a very horrible joke. Please promise me you'll never do that again."

Rhys laughs nervously, making his way over to me and pulls me into an embrace. "I promise."

~~~

Arizona 2015

Stepping off the warm sidewalk, I quietly make my way across the street. My headphones blast my favorite song "The Divine Zero" by Pierce the Veil. I rhythmically tap my fingers against my thigh. It's around the middle of August and already the leaves on the trees around me are withering and turning into vibrant colors of orange, red, yellow and a chocolate brown. A cool breeze brushes across my sleeveless arms and my skin produces goose bumps. When I make it across, a guy that I hadn't noticed was walking down the sidewalk stops in front of me. I slow to a stop as I realize how incredibly hot he is. The back of his head is very close-cropped and the crown of his head to his hairline is covered in glossy, flowing caramel hair. His jaw is set sharp and a fuzzy beard is growing. His icy blue eyes stare me down and are protected by long and thick black eyelashes. For some strange reason, his shirt is missing. But I don't mind. He is tightly contoured and intricate tattoos line his chest and arms. It takes me awhile to pull my eyes away from his tan skin and meet his gaze. He mouths words and I pull out my earphones.

"Huh?"

"I said you're really cute," he repeats, his husky voice sending chills down my spine. A small grin plays at the edge of his lips and I can't help but grin too. "T-thanks..." I say bashfully, my cheeks heating up.

"Beautiful, in fact. What's your name?"

"Laura," I respond a little more confidently. He steps closer, cocking his head to the side. My feet don't move as if I am glued to the ground. He slides his hand across my neck and fingers through my hair. Chills slide up and down my spine as I struggle to conceal my pleasure.

"You have beautiful hair as well," he steps closer until there is no space between us. He isn't looking at me, though. He is staring at my neck hungrily. I didn't know this guy, and he was sort of creeping me out, it still felt good.

"Why don't we go some place fun?" he asked, breaking the silence. His hand, that was cold and coarse, slides down and rests at my elbow. And again, as if it never left, a grin reaches my cheeks.

"And where is that?" I question flirtatiously. His arm slides down and loosely wraps around my waist and he steers me down the sidewalk. "Where we can do things. Fun things."

I look up at him and stop where I am. He lets go and stands in front of me, waiting for my answer. He winks and I almost melt. Oh. I get it now. He wants to have sex. Huh. Well why the hell not? I'm 18, I should be able to do whatever I want. And this guy is hot and he wants me. I should be having fun, right?

"Sure why not. You at least have to tell me your name first,"

For a split second he looks as if my answer shocked him but it disappears as soon as I notice it. We stand in silence as the sun begins to set. The air gets colder within every second that passes. Then he speaks once more.

"Parker," he says blandly.

Before I can answer, he goes back to his snarky attitude. "Say... what would you say if I wanted to share you with my friends?" he said, switching his weight to his left leg. I can feel my face turn up in revulsion. No. That is not the kind of girl I wanted to be.

"No," I finally say, my voice cracking.

"No?" he asked, raising a fuzzy eyebrow.

"No. I do not want your friends taking turns on me," I say firmly. He stares, looking confused and then chuckles loudly. What's with this guy? Backing up, I look around me to see if I can make a run for it. "Your confused little girl." he says, a broad smile glued to his face.

"I don't want you in that way. No one would. Don't flatter yourself."

Ouch. I didn't know what to say. If he didn't want that what did he want?