Well I promise I'll update more frequently. I'm might not have many fans but I should at least be faithful to those who like my story. And I'm very sorry for all the typos in the last chapter, I was in a hurry to update since I haven't done so in a long time. Many thanks for those who reviewed, it's give me the fuel to keep on writing! Anywho, here's the next chapter, I hope you like.

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Almost Lover

Day Four: The Date

I was eerily calm for this date with Colton. Calm is something that never happens to me. Usually I'm a nervous wreak for things like this. For example, my freshmen year I was in a play and the night before I was having panic attacks for a role that only required walking around, lines were out of the question.

I stuck a flower in my wavy hair, as a last minute thing, because before I knew it there was a knock on the door. I ran over, beating my dad to the punch. I swung the door open, and there he was. Him and his eye candy glory. He smiled, looking me over. I noticed he was holding a small wicker basket in one hand and the other was tucked behind his back, awkwardly.

Flowers?

"You look amazing" He said breathlessly.

I hid my face, fully knowing it was red, "Thank you."

"This time I checked the weather. They promised a partly cloudy day with a very small chance of rain."

I stepped out, waving my goodbye's to my family who watch anxiously from inside.

"That's great, it should go smoothly then." I said, reassuringly.

"Yeah, but, just in case…" He revealed what he's been hiding behind his back, and it was not flowers, to my disappointment.

"An umbrella?"

He put an arm around me as we made our way down the hall, "I would hate to see you wet and get sick afterwards. I would feel horrible."

Hey at least he's thoughtful.

"Or maybe you should get sick. I could always help you get better."

I still felt undeserving of his kindness, thought I was still grateful he was a complete gentleman.

--

We laughed as we exited the hotel. His arm left my shoulder, slowly trailing back to his side as he led the way to some stables, that was a mile away. I didn't mind the walking, I was just enjoying my time with Colton. I wouldn't say we had a big conversation, it was random chit-chat, nothing big. We mainly talked about our families and responsibilities. Who knew that he just finished up his first semester of college.

"So what school are you going to?" I asked.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, "Eh, ummm, Brown."

My mouth dropped, "Are you serious? That's awesome! I would kill to go to a school like Brown."

He laughed, "You would kill?"

"Not necessary but, gosh, you know what I mean!"

He shrugged, "Well college in general isn't that great, all the late night studying and always having no money."

"You meet new people and there's also the Greek life." I said thinking back to all the college movies I've seen before.

Before he got to say anything the distinct smell of the stables filled my senses. Horses from Hawaii are no different from horses anywhere in the world. As we neared, I became uneasy, I shouldn't have thought the calmness would've last long. Inside the stable was a women unloading stacks of hay off a old beat up truck.

"Excuse me? Can we have two horses please?" Colton asked setting down his umbrella and the wicker basket. The women look delighted as she responded, "In a moment."

As she left I began to worry about these animals, I'm sure I've read, somewhere, that people die from riding those things. My mind was immediately filled with ideas on how to get out of this date with out hurting Colton's feelings. The only 'plan' that could really work was if I fainted, but even that's impossible, I've never fainted in my life so how am I suppose to know how to carry out the fainting naturally?

Colton casually leaned on the entrance frame of the stable, analyzing me. He knew I was freaking out. I was terrible at hiding my emotions sometimes.

"Scared?" he ask.

I shook my head, putting on the attitude of "psh, me? No way". It didn't work. Colton raised his eyebrows at me as he cracked his smile.

"That brave huh?"

The woman came back with only one beast. She gently pulled it out of the stable to where we were. It was even bigger than I expected to be, I don't know why I was picturing a small pony. This horse was massive. The women, whose name was Rose, looked nervous, which only made me more nervous.

"I could only provide this horse, the others are a bit agitated." She looked at Colton and then glanced at me, "I'm really sorry. If you want, I can call up a friend who owns another stable. He can bring another horse in minutes."

Colton politely shook his head, "It's fine, we'll just ride together." Rose wasn't the only one who relaxed that moment. The tension inside me eased. At least I don't have to face the beast alone. Rose left, without another word. Colton gently stroke the animal, like a child would pet a dog. He turned to me, patting the saddle.

"Should I help you up?"

--

I'm not sure how I managed to climb the height, but here I was, sitting on the saddle. Colton, in one swift motion, joined me, as he settled himself in front of me. Instantly, My arms circled around him, in a tight grip. I heard him gasp, signaling me that maybe, just maybe, I knock the air out of him. I loosened up a bit.

"I wasn't sure if I was being choked or wrestled." He rubbed his ribs tenderly, perhaps I hurt more than squeezed.

"Are you ready?" He called. I plastered him body flat to his back, as I nodded. The horse moved and a yelp escaped my mouth. I could see the grin forming on Colton's face from the angle I was in. The horse began a steady stride, it seemed like Colton was steering in no particular direction.

"I'm guessing this is your first time."

"Is it that obvious?"

He looked back, "Just a bit."

I stayed quiet, in fear that talking might distract Colton and we'll end up crashing into a tree. The moment that thought came into mind, I felt ridiculous.

"It's a horse Erica," I thought, "Not a car."

"So what did you end up doing yesterday?" Colton spoke trying to start up a conversation, "Were you as bored as me?"

"To be honest, I was bored to death." He forced a 'ha' and I continued on, "but then Shane came over and we hung out."

I wasn't sure why I only mentioned Shane when all the Grey's came over as well. Colton seemed defensive all of the sudden. The reason I could tell was because his body tensed up the moment I mentioned a name.

"Shane? Shane Grey? You and Shane?" He spit out, looking behind him once again.

"Uh huh."

"That's strange. I thought he didn't like you."

That felt like a blow right in the pit of my stomach. It was a reminder of all his glares and faces, primarily, directed towards me. A question hit me square in the face and I felt stupid for not thinking about it before.

Why was Shane so defensive the first two days?

I began thinking of his apology for his behavior, and I realized, he didn't explain himself at all and, there I was, accepting his so called 'apology'. Anger boiled up inside me, not just because of Shane, but because I was so easy on him. It's like I let the criminal off the hook just because he was sorry. At that moment I could of thrown myself off the horse at how foolish I felt. I bet Shane was laughing right about now, thinking how stupid I was to believe his fabrication.

"Are you guys friends?" Colton asked, confused by my unresponsive silence.

"I wouldn't call it friends…" I said with as much venom I could muster.

I heard Colton sighed in relief, "For a moment I thought you were going to rant on about how great he is."

"He's isn't"

"Well that's a relief. I won't have to worry about some punk super star trying to lure you away from me." Colton brought the horse to a stop, climbed down and looked up at me waiting for me to jump off.

I scoffed, "No need to worry about that." I tripped into Colton's arms, he steadied my unbalance form onto the unmoving ground.

"Shane and I don't get along that great," I lied, remembering the great time we had last night. I couldn't help but to think that he might still dislike me and possibly just faked all his laughs and kindness so I could stop worrying. It didn't feel like he was, though. The few moments I spent with Shane I didn't doubt any of his actions. My instinct kicked in last night and he seemed as genuine as his brother, Jason.

"He seemed, Erica."

Agh, I can't believe I'm not a date with Colton, who is being incredibly sweet, and here I am, thinking about Shane. My disgust grew as I tried to shove him out of my head. I paced around waiting for Colton who couldn't find a proper tree to tie the beast up. Damn you, Shane. You can still ruin my day without you being present. Colton jogged back, Malibu smile stretched across his face.

"Do you know where we are?" he asked, I'm not sure if he was lost or if he was asking if I knew.

I shrugged, "No clue."

"It's called LouNiki Bay. The natives have this tale that the sand on this beach is magical." He scooped up a handful of sand and let it run through his fingers.

A story? I was intrigued, I moved closer, not wanting to miss a word he spoke.

"What is it?"

He smiled as he sat down, facing the water, I followed suit. He pulled me closer to him. He leaned into my ear, whispering the story. His warm breath literally sent a chill down my spine.

"Long ago there was a girl, a beautiful girl, they say. Though, I can't imagine anyone more beautiful than you."

My faced burned.

"She was very wealthy and had everything her heart desired, except the one thing she couldn't have."

He paused for dramatic affect, I'm guessing.

"A boy; who live on this beach, in a little hut he made himself. The natives didn't tell me exactly how they met but when they did it was like they both knew they were meant for each other. The girl's family heard about their romance and decided to cut it off. They distracted her with a very caring young man and she spent weeks without seeing her love. They married her off against her will and once the news reached the boy he was terribly heartbroken."

I sighed, that poor guy.

"He spent his remaining days at her window watching what was taken from him. He died from starvation. A friend had him cremated and spread the ashes among this beach. The friend sent a letter to the girl notifying her of his death. The girl was immediately depressed. She blamed herself and took off without word. Her family was worried for her disappearance and desperately searched for her. They went to the beach where they heard her love lived at. Once they reached it they saw a pile of ashes and a writing in the sand."

"What did it say?"

"There's no bigger obstacle to overcome than the inferno."

I instantly became aware that I might be sitting in sand full of human remains, and it's not my choice of the most romantic place to sit. I shifted uncomfortably as he continued on:

"After that they said that every couple who comes to this place is bless with the power of their former love." He finished, "Now I'm not sure if it's true but might as well give it a shot."

A shot?

Confused I turned to look at him, wanting a better explanation of this "shot". His eyes sparkled and a wave of realization washed over me. I had an idea of what that shot was. I shied away, hanging my head almost avoiding what was the unavoidable. His pointer finger found my chin and propped my head up, only centimeters away from him. I was beyond my thinking capacity at this point, a million things race through my mind. Then one thing popped into my mind, or should I say person. I could see his face very clearly as the mind storm settled down, only focusing on him.

Shane

I closed my eyes trying to shove him out. Colton closed the gap between us and kiss the corner of my mouth. That sent my mind blank for just a second and he returned.

Shane.

He moved slightly, trailing his lips to kiss me softly and gently. I was close to getting lost in the moment when I realized this kiss isn't what I imagine it to be. Ok, well I didn't imagine Colton kissing me at all, but I would of at least think that I would melt. But of course, I would never imagine that I would be thinking of Shane too. I pulled back, sad that the sparks weren't there for me. By the way Colton looked, it seemed otherwise. He looked shocked and breathless at the same time. Maybe this kiss wasn't the best way to find out that I didn't like him.

"Ummm…" I said, trying to avoid the chance of him getting that close again. "Is this the only reason we came here?"

Colton smiled, "Course not, I have more up my sleeve"

He stood up searching for something. He first looks around the small area around us, he then ran over to the horse, at this point, looking for something desperately. My memory flashed me back to the stables where I distinctly remember him setting down the basket and umbrella he had in hand. I'm not sure if he brought them along but I did assume that's what he was looking for.

From a distance, Colton placed his hands on his waist in defeat. He slowly walked back, his head hanging not daring to look me in the eye.

"I'm not sure where I left my stuff. I mean I had it when I picked you up…" He trailed off remembering the steps he took, trying to figure out where he misplace the items. The moment he realized, he groaned.

"I forgot the basket at the stables." He rubbed face his is bare palms, "I'm an idiot!"

That was uncalled for, "No you're not!"

He flopped down beside me and sighed, "If I'm not an idiot then what am I? I wanted to impress you. I made the sandwiches and the drinks inside and I'm pretty sure the ice cream is gone now."

I raise my eyebrows in astonishment, "You were planning a picnic?"

"Yeah." He said sheepishly.

"Then you're definitely not an idiot." I sincerely said. "It's the thought that counts, right?"

He smiled hinting that I must of said something right, "I guess, but you have to let me make it up to you."

I smiled back, "Of course"

"Then can I have a second date?"

That caught me off guard, I knew the way I felt about him wasn't exactly the way he felt about me but there was no way I could reject him, not after all the effort he put on this date. How could I turn down a guy who obviously is more than willing to go out of the way to impress me. I definitely didn't deserve his kindness.

"Yes, you can have the second date."

Shane.

Ugh! It was like I was battling to have my own thoughts. I promised to myself that I'll have a little talk with Shane. I will not go through another date with him pestering my thoughts.

As we rode back we watch the sunset. Colton let me sit in the front while he held on to the reigns from behind. As the sun sunk underneath the water it looked like the sun was put out and could imagine the smoke rising above it and the sizzle that comes with putting out a fire.

Fire.

"There's no bigger obstacle to overcome than the inferno."

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Was a bit too random? I'm trying to kept it natural, though I have no idea how since we're dealing with stars here. Lol. I need feedback! PLEASE and thank you, in advance. :D