Heartsong. Stolen Hearts Quartet Book One.

Chapter Nineteen

Tia

    I followed Scott as he led me through the crowd, parting it as he moved. Either I was rendered brain dead or his smile was impossible to resist,or maybe both,because I couldn't utter a word. The crowd thinned as we walked away from the bonfire,until it was just us,hand in hand as we walked along the beach. We passed a few couples who had ventured off for seclusion and I tried not to think about what they were doing out there,hidden in the shadows. Or what Scott was up to.

    "Where are we going?" I finally asked him.

    "Getting away." He pulled me closer to him.

      "Oh,OK." Was all I could manage since being so close to him always jammed my braincells. Though I managed to remember that he hated crowds when he was not performing.

         We wandered up on a battered playground at the edge of the beach,surrounded by woods. It separated the lake from a park. It looked like it had been deserted for quite a while,so that left the rusty slide,death-trap swings,splintered picnic table,and half basketball court all to us.

          Scott picked up a stray basketball and palmed it. He held it out to me,and asked,"you ever play?"

          "Of course." I took the ball and dribbled around him. What he didn't know was that the main mission house had a court and when i was five Sean taught me how to play. I stopped though when I got to junior high. Everyone else shot past me,leaving me a midget. Oh and Sean became a jerk.

            I still had a mean shot and a wicked cross over though.

           "Ever play horse?" I asked.

             "Who hasn't?" He countered.

             "Let's play then." I challenged. "We can raise the stakes to make it interesting."

               "Kinky." He commented,looking amused.

                I looked at him confused.

                "I assume you raising the stakes is not a ploy to get me naked quickly?" He teased,grinning.

              "What?!" I sputtered.

                "Angel,in still water the stakes are clothes." He said entertained by the look of utter shock and terror on my face. "But judging by you expression I guess playing for clothes is out of the question. I'll think of something much more challenging."

                 "And if I win?"

                 "He wrinkled his nose. " I don't think we'll have to worry about that." As if to prove his point,he slapped the ball out if my hands,shot and sunk a clean basket from where he was standing. "I'm pretty good."

              I ambled over to the bouncing ball,and nodded my head appreciatively. "Not bad." I dribbled round him as I worked my way farther from the basket. I suddenly spun round and dodged him fast. Moving quickly,I looked at Scott triumphantly as I made a three pointer. "So am I."

             Half an hour later,I sunk my final shot to clinch my win over Scott - HORSE to HORS.

              "I wish I could say that I let you win,but I didn't." He pretended to be more wounded than I knew he was. "You know, we never did agree to the terms. So what do you want?"

                 I suddenly wished that he had won then I wouldn't have to think of anything because he was obviously flirting with me and I was so out of my depth. Then again if he won he'd have probably made me do something embarrassing, I realized.