Chapter Seven

Marie stared after Bradin in a trance. Why had he come? There had to of been something he wanted to talk to her about, or else he wouldn't have searched her out. But what, what could he possibly have to say to her?

The door closed in front of her eyes, blocking Bradin from her sight.

"Who was that guy?" Kyle asked, gazing down at her with a worried expression. Still in shock, Marie couldn't find her voice to answer him.

"Marie, you alright?" He touched her arm lightly, startling her.

"Yeah," she said quickly, shaking her head to clear it, "I'm uh…I'm fine." She turned to go back to her bedroom. She'd just gotten out of the shower when she first heard the knock on the door and hadn't had time to get dressed.

"Who was that guy?" Kyle repeated. Marie glanced at her feet, then back up at her friend.

"That was Bradin." She said quietly before hurrying to her room.

He ran, not knowing where he was headed. Bradin tried desperately to forget the image he had seen, but it was seared into his brain. Possibly forever.

Finally, he collapsed on the rocks at Spanish Cove. It was funny really. Whenever something crucial happened between him and Marie, at least one of them always seemed to find themselves at the Cove.

He crawled up onto the salt drenched, slippery rocks, sitting where he was just out of range of the ocean's spray.

Gazing out at the waves, thoughts raced through Bradin's mind unchecked. Marie in a bathrobe, Kyle in boxers. Both in very small amounts of clothing. Something had to have happened between them. It was the only answer.

Who the hell was this Kyle guy anyway? How did he know Marie? Better yet, how did she know him?

Bradin's head dropped into his hands, too full of thoughts and emotions to be held up anymore. A heavy sigh escaped his lips.

Time passed slowly as he sat there, thinking on what Marie and that bastard were doing right then. Were they getting all hot and sweaty? Or maybe they were laughing over how pitiful Bradin was? Whatever it was, Bradin was sure he didn't want to be thinking about it. He just couldn't get the image of Marie sleeping with some guy who wasn't him out of his mind. It was tearing him up inside.

In his mind, Bradin replayed that day that they had gone nearly all the way. That scene had played out in his head so often that Bradin barely had to call it to memory. It was right there, waiting.

As he pictured it all in his mind, his part was taken over. Now, it wasn't Bradin who kissed Marie's skin. It was Kyle.

"Uh, get out of my head." Bradin hit his palm against his forehead, as if to force the image out.

A shadow fell over Bradin. He looked up, shading his eyes from the morning sun, to see who it was.

"Wait a sec," Kyle stepped into her path, "you mean that was the guy you were so gaga over?" Marie scowled at the amusement in his voice.

"Yeah," she replied, a bit more harshly than she had intended, "what's the big deal?"

"Nothing," he threw his hands up in front of him as if to ward off her sour mode. "I just pictured you with more of a, I don't know, manly guy."

"Bradin is manly." Marie felt suddenly defensive. She glared up at Kyle, who stood at least half a foot above her. "He was there for me when I still lived with my stepfather, okay? He looked out for me and he stepped in when things got dangerous."

"I know that, Marie. Remember, you told me all about it." Kyle smiled at her sweetly, "It's just that when you described Bradin I didn't expect him to look like…that."

Marie snorted and shook her head.

"I don't know what you're getting at, Kyle, and I don't really care." She marched past him and slammed her door shut behind her. Kyle simply chuckled and shook his head.

"Hey," Emma said emotionlessly as she looked down at Bradin with a masked expression.

"Hey," Bradin replied uncertainly. "What are you doing here?" Emma shifted her weight to her left foot and crossed her arms in front of her. She looked pissed, but a lot less pissed than she had been the other day.

"I was out for a walk and saw you here." She replied, looking at him stonily.

"Do you want to sit?" Bradin asked. Her standing above him was making him nervous. Not to mention the sun was killing his eyes. She glanced around quickly and, with a huff, sat down beside him.

"Look," she said, gazing at him intently, "I haven't forgiven you yet. I mean would you have forgiven me if I kept thinking 'bout some other guy while I was with you? I don't think so. But, I am willing to try and work this crap out. You're just gonna have to make some compromises."

"Like what?" He was slightly hesitant to know.

"You can't see Marie again. I don't want to have to keep thinking that when you're not with me that you're probably off making-out with her." Emma said.

"In other words you don't trust me." Bradin replied, turning his head to look at her.

"No, I do trust you. Just not when you're with her."

"Emma…"

"No, Bradin, you don't get to talk right now." Emma shook her head. "Right now you just listen to what I have to say. Got it?" She didn't wait for his reply before continuing.

"Along with not seeing Marie, I don't want you to ask anybody in your family questions about her. I know Nikki and she are close and I don't want you getting information about Marie." Bradin stared at her in surprise. Emma continued on. "Third of all, every minute that you are not surfing or working, you spend with me. We have a lot of things to work out and I want you around as much as possible."

"In other words you want to make sure that I don't have time to see Marie." Bradin said testily, not at all happy about being ordered around like he was being. Of course, he could choose to say no to Emma's rules.

"Yes." She replied honestly, if not a bit harshly. They stared each other down. Neither happy, but still neither wanting to give up what they had had.

"And what if I say no." Bradin asked.

"Then I leave right now and never talk to you again." Emma cocked her head arrogantly. She eyed Bradin, waiting for his answer.

Changed into a pair of jeans and a pale pink V-neck, Marie walked back into the living room, her auburn curls pulled back from her face in a ponytail. Kyle was sitting on the couch; the sheets he'd used the night before carefully folded at one end of the sofa. He stood as she walked towards him.

"Hey," he said, "you still pissed at me for reasons I don't understand?"

"I don't know," she shrugged, "you still acting like a jackass?" Kyle grinned sheepishly.

"Yeah, uh…sorry 'bout that." He said.

Marie sat on the couch, Kyle sitting on the arm beside her.

"You know what I don't get," she looked up at him, "why do you even care about what Bradin looks like anyway?"

"It's not just that he looks like a total surfing idiot-"

"Surfing idiot?" Marie barked.

"Let me finish." Kyle said. She glowered at him. "It's just that, from the way you described him I thought he'd be more…"

"Manly, I know." Marie said in disgust.

"Do I have to tape your mouth shut or something?" Kyle smirked. She scowled at him and stuck out her tongue.

"Oh real sophisticated, Marie." He said. She stuck her tongue out further, this time crossing her eyes as well. Quickly, Kyle reached out and gripped Marie's tongue between his thumb and index finger.

"Lmmm mmm mmmm!" She mumbled. Kyle laughed uproariously as she tried to get her tongue free. Marie reached out and slapped his arm. Still laughing, and with tears streaming down his face, Kyle fell onto the floor. His laughter contagious, it wasn't long before Marie, too, was rolling on the floor. Their discussion far from her mind.

Man am I on a roll! Lol. Please review and tell me what ya thought.

jessesfan0409, Saynt Jimmy, Jamie, Caitlin, B, Jmacsgurl15, and kandykane33: Thank you all so much for reviewing. It really means a lot to me.