Genesis

CHAPTER 40 Wild Night

Mara insisted on taking me shopping on November fifth, the day before I would turn seventeen. My birthday just so happened to be on a Saturday this year and now my weekends were free. As soon as school let out on Friday afternoon, we hopped in her car and drove to Savannah where she was determined to find the perfect party ensemble for Saturday night's festivities.

So much had changed since the first time we'd been shopping. I no longer felt awkward when Mara used her money for our purchases. I had become part of the family and she was closer to me than my own sisters.

I still didn't care about fashion the way she wished I would, but that gave her free reign to dress me. She knew that I wouldn't wear anything too fancy or frilly and chose accordingly. I ended up with a beautiful sand-colored dress made of soft taffeta with a criss-cross top, sweetheart neck and spaghetti straps over an empire waist with a thick cocoa brown band that Mara said matched my eyes perfectly. The hemline was a couple of inches above the knee. She chose some brown leather strappy sandals with four inch heels as well as a double wrap leather bracelet with pave glass bead closures; she said the leather bracelet would allow me to wear the shell necklace that Ty had given me at the beach, since I never took it off. Mara relished the task of dressing me and explaining the couture. All I heard was blah, blah, blah, but I had to admit that my outfit was amazing. I could hardly wait to wear it.

After a whole afternoon of intense shopping, Mara wanted to go out to dinner, but I convinced her to get it to go so we could get back to her house and watch a movie. We'd be back in Savannah to get our hair and makeup done after lunch on Saturday and I really just wanted to go home. We got Chinese take-out and drove back to Eden at almost twice the speed limit. After all, we had to get home before the food got cold. It was exhilarating to know that we could do whatever we wanted without consequence.

Ty was sitting on the sofa in their enormous living room when we walked in. He jumped up to give me a quick kiss and simultaneously took the bag of food that I was carrying. He set everything out on the coffee table then excused himself to get us some drinks from the kitchen. I had told Mara that I wanted to watch "Bright Star" again, so she dimmed the lights and lit several candles to set the mood.

When Ty returned and saw the room, he just said, "Nice." He put his arms around my waist and pulled me backward onto the sofa so that I was sitting on his lap.

"I don't think we're in a good position to eat dinner," I said laughing, trying to roll my way off.

"I'll let you up for now, but as soon as we're finished eating, I want you right back here," he insisted, smacking his thighs with his outstretched hands.

"Enough already," Mara interjected before I could respond. She looked at Ty and pretended to stick her finger down her throat. "I'm going to start the movie now," she said tersely.

My tears flowed unashamedly during all the sad parts as Ty held me close and stroked my hair. I nestled comfortably into the nook that was formed in the space between his anterior deltoid and pectoral muscles. When he was relaxed, and not trying show off his amazing physique, his chest was like a memory foam mattress that was perfectly fitted to my contours.

As the credits rolled, and I reluctantly reminded my favorite twins that I needed a good night's sleep to be ready for my birthday festivities, Ty scooped me up in his arms and insisted on carrying me to his car despite my protests. "Bye, Mara," I waved over his shoulder. "Thanks again for everything. I can't wait till tomorrow."

"Bye, Essie. Pick you up at eleven."

I was wide awake when my digital clock changed from 6:59 to 7:00. Despite my best efforts, I had spent another restless night dreaming about Ty and Michael dueling with swords in the Ataroth and I was sleep-deprived. Again. I was learning, though, to live on much less sleep than I truly needed, although my marshmallow eyes always betrayed me.