Chapter 3.
TRIXIE'S POV
"Don't scare me like that again or I'll tell everyone about you!" I threatened, punching his obviously solid chest. I was surprised at how solid it actually was. Not that I wanted to be thinking about this guy's chest. I had someone else's in mind at the moment.
"C'mon, please don't do that." The other person appeared frightened by the threat, even though he was very much taller than me, I noticed as I stood in front of him.
"What are you doing here?" I queried, trying to recollect my scattered thoughts.
"I was in the nearby area when I heard you squeal like the little girl I always knew was in there somewhere." The older boy spoke as his finger pushed right in the middle of my expanding chest.
"Trixie?!" Jim called after hearing her voice scream for the second time today. I went to usher the already hidden person away when Jim's image developed from around the bend in the path. My chest felt like it had a massive big hole in the middle of it.
"Sorry Jim," I forced upon a smile, one I sincerely hoped Jim would think was real enough to believe me. Now came the convincing story I was pulling out of the top of my head,, "I tripped over that fallen branch there, that's all I swear!" Jim's eyes questioned her and searched for clues, while his face had a smile plastered on as well. For a second, he reminded me of my recent visitor.
"It seems that you are becoming more like Bobby every day." I threw Jim a fake glare, hoping it would look normal enough that he wouldn't question me any further and pushed past him in the direction of the lake. He swung me around as he scooped me up. I squealed again. Damn it. I hate being a girl sometimes.
The cool water enclosed us. The pier had become out personal diving board ever since Mr. Wheeler's small boat broke down over three months ago. Already in the chilling water, I watched as Jim gracefully stumbled into the lake, barely making a splash as he went. Me, on the other hand, I tripped when I walked in and landed face first into the clear liquid.
"Fish!" I exclaimed, as his head bobbed underwater longer than any human should be able to hold their breath. I held my breath, watching and waiting for signs that Jim wasn't dead and could still return to the surface without any assistance. But Jim caught me pulling my detective's face as he resurfaced suddenly. I caught his emerald eyes, and I felt my heated cheeks blush.
"What do you think your looking at?" I smiled as I spoke.
"Not sure, something really beautiful though." Jim began and I blushed, though I really wasn't quite sure why I was secretly hoping he was referring to me. I mean, I didn't like Jim in that way, did I? Jim smoothly swam past me, his skills still amazing me, and scratched Patch's sweet spot, right behind the left ear, who had appeared in the lake only moments ago. "'Cause aren't you a beautiful boy?" Jim crooned to the Springer Spaniel, and gave me a mischievous grin. My giggly laugh rang through Jim's ears and I noticed he sighed.
"If only you knew?" Jim whispered to himself.
"If only who knew what?" I questioned. "Are you keeping secrets, Jim?" I immediately fired up and I felt a certain pull in the pit of my stomach.
"I possibly am, but you'll never know."
"Oh really?" I plainly teased as I pushed a wave of water in Jim's direction. Jim quickly ducked underneath the water, making the water attack Patch instead. All that was showing of my friend was, once again, the mass of hair on his head. Until his eyes appeared from the lake's surface, while everything else was still emerge in the lake water. The higher Jim rose out of the water, the closer he become to me. I watched, unable to breathe.
"Really!" Jim stated clearly once before speaking again, closing the distance between them to only a couple of inches, "I'm not the only one with secrets though, am I?"
"Are you accusing me of keeping stuff from the Bob-Whites?" While I prayed that he would say no, I could tell that Jim was frantically searching his mind, hoping to not give his investigation away by rummaging for another secret to be told.
"No," Jim finally said, "I was referring to Mart and Di's dating experience, but if you have something to hide…"
"I don't." I broke into Jim's sentence to stop any questions being asked, crushing the desired effect of Jim's by answers to be told. I formed my own style of swimming as I tried to reach the pier. I really needed to learn how to swim, and other things. I was too hungry to think about anything else right about now.
"And where do you think you're going, miss?" Jim reached for my arm as he spun me around to face him. I had just made it to the waters egde water still slightly lapping at my feet. With about an inch between us, I could almost hear Jim's heartbeat as it pounded in his chest, and I guessed Jim could feel my fastening breath against his neck. I caught his eyes glancing towards my stomach, and other exposed areas. I had never felt so exposed in my life. I had willingly pressed myself Dan in less clothing than this, but this felt worse. His watchful eyes dissected my every movement, my every curve.
"I was…" My voice trailed off, and I shook my head as if to tell myself no, but that look in Jim's eyes informed her that he wasn't gonna listen to whatever I was telling myself.
"Trix, what are you trying to say?" Jim's voice brought me back to reality after a little conversation with the people in my head told me how much of a nightmare I was turning this in to.
"Um, I was trying to say that wherever I was going, I'm not planning on moving anymore." My voice quieted to barely a whisper, and I began realizing the implications of Jim's hand as it roamed across her bare stomach. A new feeling arose in her stomach. A different feeling. A feeling I had experienced once or twice with a different man.
"Hmmm." Jim mumbled as a really crazy idea popped into my head. I couldn't believe my brain was allowing this sort of irrational behavior, well more irrational behavior that normal. I opened my mouth to speak my idea, as regret and excitement began to fill me completely.
With eyes scanning in every direction, our gazes finally met and locked. I broke the eye contact almost as quickly, embarrassed to glance into his lustful, emerald eyes. I think that Jim hoped it would go unnoticed how easily he had closed the distance between us even further was a small step of his long legs. I, on the other hand, wanted nothing more than to be even nearer. Not even in my dreams had I ever found myself in this situation, especially with this person. But emotions were revealed that I didn't know I was capable of, and my heartbeat increases with every steadying breath I attempted to take. Jim leaned in closer, and my mind panicked. I had no idea where this would lead with my best friend's adopted brother giving me the kiss. Our lips met briefly, and a tingling sensation travelled through my entire body and settle in the pit of my stomach. Jim kept creeping forward, our bodies on the verge of touching. His roughed hands found my matured waist and explored to the small of my visible back. Delicate fingers wound themselves at the base of the wild red hair of the man in front of me. By this time, the kiss was no longer a brief kiss. It had deepened rather seriously and I prayed that there weren't any spectators around. It would have appeared a hell of a lot more than a friendly encounter between us. Even though I still don't understand my feelings now or when Jim and I first met, as we grew closer and older, the more I realized and understood what was happening. In Jim's mind at least.