After finishing dinner Jenny laid her silverware down and pulled her chair back, ready to leave the table and go upstairs to her room. But as she stood her dad stopped her departure with an outstretched hand.
"Hey kiddo, before you go up I thought we could all play a board game together for a while. It's been far too long since we amused ourselves like we used to. What do you say?"
Jenny looked at her dad with no small amount of surprise. Then she cast a glance around the table. Her mom nodded her head and beamed a smile at her while her brother grinned and shrugged his shoulders as if to say it was up to her. Jenny shrugged back at her brother and turned to her dad with a smile.
"Ok. I'm in."
Although it felt as though time had flown by in reality it was only a scant few hours later that they rousing family board games were cleared away and everyone was stretching the various kinks out of their system. Jenny made her way over to her parents, wrapping her arms around each of them in turn for a deep embrace. Stepping back she looped her arm around her brother's shoulders and tousled his hair affectionately.
"Thanks guys. This was just what I needed."
"Anytime sweetie." Her mom said, wrapping her arms around her husband's waist and grinning up at him.
"Do you have any homework left?" Her dad asked.
"Ugh. Yes, but not too much. I should go get it over with so I can turn in a little early."
"Okay then, goodnight sweetheart."
"Hey Jenny, I'll race you upstairs!" Her brother called out as he broke free of her grip and made a mad dash for the staircase. Flinging an apologetic smile at her parents Jenny tore out of the room after him, her feet pounding the stairs in what proved to be a useless effort to catch her sibling.
"You're getting too fast for me," Jenny announced as she finally caught up with him outside of his door, "Of course if you didn't cheat all the time I might actually stand a decent chance."
"Ha! You'll use any excuse to not have to admit you lost, hmm?" Her brother teased.
She used her elbow to give him a playful nudge into his room.
"Get out of here, you. Talking all this crazy talk."
She continued to smile as she crossed the short distance to her room. Opening the door and closing it softly behind her she sagged against it, allowing it to hold her up for a moment. She eyed her bookbag with distaste, having no desire to do any homework. Not that this was a new feeling, but she felt that the events of the past few days were catching up on her. All she really wanted to do was go to sleep. And if a certain blue-eyed tempter awaited her? Well then so be it! She couldn't help the smile that broadened her cheeks.
Rationalizing that the sooner she started her homework the sooner she could get in a full night's sleep sparked Jenny's second wind and she sailed through the rest of her homework and was ready to go to sleep sooner than she had dared to hope. Stretching out under the sheets she tried to find a comfortable pose. Reaching down with a free hand she grabbed the comforter and pulled it up to her chin, snuggling into its warmth. She was asleep within moments.
Jenny felt the change that alerted her to her dream state before she opened her eyes. Instead of her soft cotton sheets she found herself encased in satin. Even if she didn't notice that she certainly would have been a fool to miss the dead giveaway--the fingers that were entwined with her own and the thumb that traced slow circles along the back of her hand.
Tightening her grip on Julian's fingers in a gesture of greeting she opened her eyes to find him contemplating her features. He was seated in a plush overstuffed chair pulled up close next to the bed in which she lay.
"Hello." He said in a soft voice.
"Hi yourself." She responded in the same tone.
"So how did everything go today? Are you all right?"
This time the flexing of her fingers was involuntary as she reacted to the concern evident in his voice.
"It was okay." She grinned as she recalled the spirited game night her family had embarked upon hours before. "Actually, some parts of it were pretty nice."
"Do you want to tell me about it?"
She tilted her head and considered both him and the question for a moment before nodding her reply. She opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off by standing up and tugging gently on her hand. Confusion marred her brow for a moment but she dismissed it without thought and used her free hand to push the sheets away and lever herself into a standing position.
Julian led her across the room to a chair on the other side. As her feet made contact with the ground she was pleased to feel herself literally sink into the plush covering. Looking around she recognized her surroundings as those into which she had been brought after her near-death experience at Joyland Park. But there were some definite changes and they all served to make the atmosphere infinitely more welcoming this time around. A huge fireplace adorned one wall and a roaring fire blazed in front of her. This time the firelight was not the only source of light; there were crystals which seemed to shine with a glow emanating from somewhere within their own depths to help banish the gloom that had pervaded this place the first time around.
The seat appeared to be made out of black leather but as she sat down she quickly discovered that it was actually some material that was foreign to her. It conformed to her every curve and was like sitting in the softest hug imaginable. She was seated facing the fire and she found herself almost hypnotized by the dancing flames and burning embers.
"Tilt your head back," Julian said, jarring Jenny out of her momentary reverie. As she complied she was delighted to discover that her neck now received the same cuddling that the rest of her body experienced. She lifted her head and pulled her hair out of the way and settled back into it, sighing in contentment.
The sigh quickly became a groan of pure bliss when she felt Julian slide his fingers into her hair to begin gently massaging her scalp. She closed her eyes to enjoy it and in doing so missed the look that passed across Julian's features. Her groan of contentment twisted his guts with a punch of desire and he had to grit his teeth. It took tremendous willpower to focus his ministrations on comforting Jenny, not seducing her.
For a few moments she simply reveled in the sensations and allowed herself to relax further with every movement of his fingers. Then she remembered she was supposed to be talking.
"So I realized when I got to school today that I was being selfish. All I could think about was how everything was relating to me and I was forgetting that the whole day was going to be just as hard on Tom as me. Tom and I talked before school and he told me that he hadn't told any of the gang anything. We decided to split up the job and I told Dee, Zach and Summer and he told Audrey and Michael."
"How did they take it?" He inquired politely, only intending to show some other emotion if Jenny indicated that she had been upset by someone. He thought that was for the best, seeing as he still inwardly seethed every time he even heard Tommy's name mentioned. He was in the midst of some serious internal scowling when Jenny's laughter reached his ears.
"Well the ones I told were shell-shocked. It was probably at least partly due to the fact that I waited until we had about a minute to go before our first class started. But I didn't want them to overload me with tons of questions that I wasn't ready to answer so yes, I took the coward's way out." She defended herself even though Julian hadn't sent so much as a disapproving glance her way.
"You should have seen Zach, though. He literally jumped out of his seat!" She chuckled at the memory. "Seriously, I think that move was enough to fuel the rumor mills for quite some time." She quickly sobered again and launched into the rest of her story.
"So then at lunch Tom and I met up to compare notes before going outside to face the gang, and from what he told me Audrey and Michael reacted pretty much the same way as everyone else. Our little powwow gave the group enough time to talk everything over with each other and by the time Tom and I joined them they had a whole plan of attack worked out."
"And what was the plan?" Julian couldn't help but ask and he feared the response as Jenny tensed beneath his hands. He smiled to himself as he conjured the one thing guaranteed to sooth away her anxiety.
"Oh God that's wonderful," Jenny practically purred when she felt the first stroke of a brush through her hair. From the feel of it the brush was a large paddle with a soft base and just the right amount of bristles.
She had always loved getting her hair brushed but over the past few years the only time another person had done it was at the hair salon or every now and again at a slumber party one of her girlfriends would do it during one of their makeover sessions. A delightful tingle worked its way through her body originating from each spot where the brush caressed her tresses. She felt so calm that she forgot any worry she had been feeling and continued on with the account.
"Well all eyes were on us as we threaded our way through the crowd to the table. My legs felt like they were made of lead. My cheeks must have been as red as beets. I knew everyone was talking about us from the hushed voices and stares we got. When we reached our seats I just wanted to curl up and hide, I was so uncomfortable. It seems that Zach's little maneuver made everyone wonder just what was up. And I guess that the fact that Tom and I walked out together confused everyone which was fine by me."
She paused as Julian's fingers began to follow the touch of the brush. She shuddered involuntarily and arched up into the contact, moaning her approval loudly. Julian smirked at her reaction, feeling inordinately pleased with himself. Jenny couldn't work up to the embarrassment she was sure she should feel in a situation like this. But she did dimly recall being in the middle of a thought before Julian had decided to turn her brain to mush.
"Where was I? Oh yeah. But actually the whole big plan apparently consisted of the rest of the crew telling us that we'd all talk later—the girls told me that we'd be having a slumber party this weekend—and then all of us spending the remainder of lunch and any classes we had together talking about finals, going over our notes and whatnot. So it wasn't that bad."
Once she was done she relaxed back into the seat and gave herself over completely to the sensations coursing through her. She felt delightfully boneless. Jenny decided that if she ever got the chance to dictate what heaven would be like that she would be sure to include Julian brushing her hair for her. She whimpered in protest when he stopped and her eyes slowly lifted open as she felt herself being picked up. Sighing in happiness again she curled into Julian's chest, reveling in the sensation of being held within his arms.
He tucked her into the large bed and she wormed her way into the covers, thinking that life couldn't really get much better unless of course Julian were to join her. No sooner had the thought flittered into her consciousness than she felt the bed depress with his weight. He curled his body around her, snaking an arm around her waist to anchor her to him. She wiggled backward to fit herself to him. The rhythmic feeling of his breath on her temple made her feel even drowsier.
"This is so perfect," she whispered to him, "It's exactly what I need. I lied earlier."
He kissed her hair and leaned down to her ear to whisper back.
"When was that?"
"I told my folks that family game night was just what I needed. But I'd trade it in a heartbeat for you."
He chuckled and smoothed her hair away from her face.
"Sleep well, my love."
Jenny smiled at the absurdity of falling asleep within a dream but then she was wrapped in darkness and thought no more.
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Disclaimer: I do not own the characters and if you sue me I won't be held responsible for the condition in which you find anything you take.
Author's Notes: Next batch of thank-yous:
Cassi—No Tom in this chapter! I hope you're pleased!
Cat—I'm so glad you approve of the guessing thing, although I must confess it's not entirely on purpose. I just want it to be perfect. Thanks so much for saying that you're excited about seeing where this goes…it helps me get even more excited about writing it!
Pixxi-The study of Guam lizard documents? Lol! Hey, I wouldn't give you angry reviews…I have faith in you that you say you'll finish then you'll finish! I still think The Calling's song "Wherever You Will Go" is perfect for the third book but I'm trying to find something else…I'm leaning toward a Phish song right now. I'm glad you like the chapter. Yeah, well Jenny is sort of just ranting mentally right now…I don't think she's ending her relationship with Julian just yet. Good luck with your science research project!
Clare—Hey! Thanks so much for writing! I too have read the trilogy oodles of times and was bitter over the ending. I am trying to update as quickly possible I promise! I'm glad you're enjoying it!
Venus Smurf—You crack me up! It doesn't matter if you mix up the chapters and reviews…I'm just tickled that you care enough to review in the first place! This first review had me blushing! You are going to give me a huge head with your lavish praise! And hey, don't worry about being mushy. It doesn't bother me in the least! I have to agree with you about stealing Julian…would that I could find him!
Venus Smurf –I'm serious, you are just inflating my ego and making me do my impression of a tomato with all the blushing! Thank you so much for reviewing and being so kind when you do so…I always look forward to one of your reviews and your faith in where I'm taking the story is inspiring!