Color Blind (6 page)

Luka grabs the corner of the blanket and
pulls half of it onto his long legs. “I’m not going anywhere,” he says.

The challenge in his voice, combined with
the comfortable demeanor with which he sits on my couch makes it evident that
he’s telling the truth.

I believe him.

***

We wake to the sound of a key in the
front door. I’m too sleepy to feel the panic I should about the fact that Luka
and I feel asleep on the couch when my mom wasn’t home.

“Mom?” I ask groggily.

“Hey, baby girl,” she said as she closes
the door behind her. Her eyes land on Luka.

“You have company, Cam? At three in the
morning?”

Luka stands, extending his hand. “I’m
sorry ma’am. I know this is inappropriate. I’m Luka Caliper. I just didn’t feel
comfortable leaving Cam here all by herself when I dropped her off.”

“I told him that was ridiculous,” I
grumble.

My mom smiles in spite of herself. Luka
just has that effect.

“It’s nice to meet you, Luka. Thank you
for being such a gentleman. We’ll have to have you over for dinner sometime
soon.”

“Your welcome, ma’am. Dinner would be
great.” Luka grabs his jacket and walks to the door.

I walk him outside. “Thank you for
staying. Just so you know, I stay by myself all the time. You can’t come
running every time I’m on my own. Our lives are very different. You’re going to
have to learn that about me, and accept it.”

He frowns. “I don’t have to accept
anything, Cam. If I feel you’re in any kind of danger, I will always protect
you. That’s who I am, and you’re going to have to accept
that
about
me
.”

He leans down, and for a moment I think
he is going to kiss me.

I’m
not ready!
The panic
creeps up my legs and into my stomach, causing it to lurch violently.

He gives me a hug, and kisses my cheek.
“Goodnight Cam,” he says softly.

I sigh. “Good night Luka.” I close the
door behind me.

My mom stands there, arms crossed. “That
was your date tonight? Where’d you find him? I’m assuming that was his Mercedes
sticking out like a sore thumb in the parking lot.”

“You’re assuming right. He’s Dara’s
boyfriend’s best friend, and he’s on the basketball team at school. I probably
just had the most unbelievable night ever, Mom.”

Her eyes widen. “You’re going to see him
again?”

“Probably. If he wants to.”

“Okay. What happened to your big plans
about running away after graduation to be a star? How does a boyfriend fit into
all that?”

I close my eyes. “It doesn’t. Luka isn’t
my boyfriend. But I like him, and we can hang out again if he wants to. That’s
all.”

“
Mmm
-hmm,” Mom says.
“Go to bed, Camryn.”

When I start toward my room, my mom’s
voice reaches my ears.

“You look good standing next to him,” she
says softly. She says it like her mind is farther away than the next room.

Closing my bedroom door behind me, I lean
against it and heave a deep breath. I let it out slowly. I’ve never been on a
date in my life, and my first one hits the romance jackpot. Luka was been so
nice.

Chivalrous, even.

I pause.
Why
had he been such a gentlemen? Weren’t teenage boys supposed to
be hormone-driven sneaks with no manners? That’s what I read in books, anyway.
Luka is as perfect as they come. And my mom’s words haunt me.

You
look good standing next to him
.

Based on the approving looks we are
receiving from our classmates when we walk down the hallway together at school,
that is a popular sentiment.

A relationship with Luka would be so
simple. But my life isn’t simple. It never has been.

I take my phone out of my purse and sit
on my bed. I hadn’t wanted to be rude during dinner, so I placed it on silent.

Two missed calls and a text greet me when
I check the screen. I glance at the call log, and notice that both missed calls
are from Dara. Her accompanying voice message tells me that she wants to know
how my date went, and to call her tomorrow. I smile, thinking of how excited she’ll
be to hear about my great dinner and walk on the beach with Luka.

The text message is from an unfamiliar
number.

Meet
me tomorrow morning at Sunset Marina.

A shiver rocks my body.

Should I text him back? Because even
though I’m not a psychic genius, I know this text came from Cooper.

My fingers fly across my phone’s
keyboard.

Camryn:
 
Should I bring my swimsuit? :)

I wait a moment, turning my phone over and
over in my hands nervously. My heart is thumping heavily in my chest, and moisture
is seeping from my palms which makes it difficult to keep hold of my phone.

My phone buzzes with an incoming text.

Cooper:
 
Hell yes.

I lay back on my bed and stare at the cracked
white ceiling. Two dates in the same weekend.

Incredible.

I ‘ve never even had two dates in the
same school year. Maybe this is the new era Camryn. I think I like her.

Chapter
6

Jet-Skiing

The morning arrives clear and bright;
it’s a perfect setting for a day at the marina.

After breakfast, I dress in my yellow and
white striped bikini. I pick it for the way it flatters my skin tone, causing
my color to glow almost bronze in the sunlight. I study my body in the mirror,
trying to see it from Cooper’s point of view. I definitely have a dancer’s
body; flat stomach with defined abdominal muscles. Long, sinewy legs. Graceful
arms and neck. I usually compare myself to other girls and think I don’t appear
curvy enough. Today, I decide I don’t care. Cooper Goode can take me or leave
me as I am. Although I definitely wish my boobs filled out the top a little
more fully. Okay, a lot more fully.

A flash of shame suddenly washes over me.
Last night, I had a great time on my date with Luka. Today, I am going to hang
out with Cooper. Should I feel bad about that? I push the thought into the back
of my mind.

I pull on a pair of cut-off jean shorts
and my flip-flops. Then I grab my sunglasses and place them on top of my head.

“Where are you off to today?” Mom leans
casually in my doorway. Sunday is her day off.

“Um,” I answer. “Actually, I’m going to
the oceanfront today to hang out with a new friend from school.” I cross my
arms defensively, although I don’t know why I suddenly feel the need to defend
myself.

“Oh yeah? I take it this friend is
someone I don’t know?”

“Yeah. He’s new at school, so I don’t
really know him yet either.”

“Well, be careful, baby. And have fun.
It’s nice to see you branching out a little this year.” She continues up the
hallway toward her room.

I snatch my keys off my nightstand and pull
my beach bag over my shoulder and leave the house.

I spend the quick drive to the oceanfront
building a wall of anxiety and nervousness in my chest. Why Cooper Goode makes
me feel so tied up in knots inside, I don’t know. I’ve met cute guys at school
before. Every year, actually. None of them ever make me second-guess myself as
much as I’m doing right now. It’s new territory for me. I definitely don’t know
how to approach this.

When I arrive at the marina, I punch my
car into a spot in front of the glass-covered building. I get out of my car,
smoothing my shorts and tank top nervously.

“Camryn,” Cooper’s voice came from the
marina steps, immediately freezing the blood that’s flowing through my veins. I
look up, shielding my eyes from the obtrusive sun with one hand. And as I spot
him, I very nearly drop my bag, my keys, and my lower jaw.

He looks mouthwatering. I mean, just
pure, unadulterated handsomeness. I have never seen anything like him, and I
almost live on the beach in the summer. Hot guys in swim trunks are kind of a normal
thing around here.

He is wearing navy blue board shorts
covered in white anchors. Very preppy, and a direct contrast to his shaggy
brown hair glinting in the sunlight and the sexy stubble that grazed his chin. Also
a direct opposite to the tattoo that stretches over his stomach. Old English
letters that I’m currently too far away to read. I also see a tattoo peeking
out from under the shirtsleeves right at each sinewy bicep. His graphic t-shirt
hugs his well-defined chest and rippling stomach. Something makes me wonder
exactly what that chest and stomach would look like without the t-shirt.

Holy shit. He’s putting every other high
school boy to shame in his swimming gear. Maybe with the exception of Luka, but
Luka’s a freak of nature. So is Cooper as it seems.

He descends the brick steps leading down
from the marina office doors.

“Hey,” he said. That one word reaches my
ears as if he’s practiced the exact way to say it in order to send chills
running up and down my legs with the effort.

I don’t know how I find my voice, but
somehow I do, and a very small “hey” squeaks out.

This is absurd. Really ridiculous, the
effect he continues to have on me. I have to get it together.

“Thanks for the invite,” I say, with more
enthusiasm. “What are we doing today?”

“Come with me, and you’ll see.” He holds
out his hand for me to take.

I hesitate before I do, and touching his
hand is like placing my palm into a pool of lightning. The only word for it is
electrifying. I glance up at him to see if he shows any reaction. He’s staring
at our hands through the haze of those long, dark eyelashes, and the look in
his eyes is confused and fascinated at the same time.

I drop my eyes as those warm green ones
meet mine, and he tugs me gently up the steps and around to the back of the
building.

The back of the office building opens up
to a wide vista of ocean. The view is breathtaking, peppered by sailboats
drifting into the horizon. Docked at the marina are a wide variety of boats and
other watersports vehicles. Cooper leads me to a pair of jet skis tied to a
lonesome dock at the end of a long row of motorboats.

I squeal with delight. “We’re
jet-skiing?”

He laughs, a deep, raspy sound low in his
throat. His laugh is causing funny things to happen to my vision, and I place
my hand on his arm to steady myself.

“I take it you like jet skis?”

“I do! I’ve only been one other time, but
it’s so much fun! I love the rush of it, the only other time I have that
feeling is when I’m onstage.”

“Onstage, huh?” he asks, gazing at me
like he has a secret.

“What?” I asked suspiciously. They
mysterious look in his eye makes me slightly nervous.

“I’m just picturing that. You, onstage,
dancing…” he pauses, and my eyes drop to his throat. I watch, fascinated, as he
swallows hard. His Adam’s apple bobs with the motion, and I can’t recall
another example of me studying someone’s Adam’s apple. It’s new. And sexy.

“And?”

“And….nothing.” He swallows again. “So
you know how to operate one of these?” He bends down and began untying one of
the skis.

I can’t be sure, because he looks away so
quickly, but I think I see Cooper
blush
.
Something I said or did has caused this sexy, controlled, cool guy to feel
embarrassed.

Unbelievable.

I shimmy out of my shorts in preparation
to board the wave runner. I walk over to the row of lockers set up near the door
of the marina building, place my things inside one, and walk back over to my little
vehicle, which is bobbing softly in the lapping waves.

“Okay, you ready?” Cooper asks, turning
around.

When Cooper’s eyes make contact with my
bikini-clad body, he drops the rope tying the ski to the pier. Picking it up
quickly, he eyes me appreciatively. He lets his eyes rove from my feet up my
legs, passing at the swell of my hips before landing on my stomach.

“You have a tattoo,” he says
incredulously.

“Yeah,” I say shyly. “It was a spur of
the moment decision on day over the summer.”

“Can I see?” He steps closer to me. With
each step he takes, my heart picks up speed, and by the time he arrives in
front of me I’m wondering if it’s possible to experience a heart attack at
seventeen.

He reaches out and traces the curly vines
peeking out from under my bikini bottoms with his index finger. I close my eyes
briefly, and when I open them again his stare is holding mine.

“This is beautiful,” he remarks softly,
still touching my lower abdomen with his fingertip. He drops his eyes down to
my stomach. “Is it meaningful?”

“It signifies the fact that my mom’s love
reaches out to me wherever I am.” I pull down my bottoms the tiniest bit,
showing him the rest of the tattoo. The vines of ivy wrap themselves around a
lone red rose.

“Beautiful,” he says again.

“You like ink,” I say. It’s an
observation rather than a question. I shoot my eyes to his arms and then look
at his stomach where I know his other tattoo is hiding.

“Yeah,” he smiles. “We have that in
common. I wonder what else I’m going to discover about you, Cam? You’re one big
surprise after the other, aren’t you?”

I smile, feeling coy and seductive, a
feeling I have literally never before experienced. It feels…powerful.

“Uh…Cam?” he asks.

“Yeah?” I replied.

“Are you aware of how devastatingly gorgeous
you are?”

Cooper

I can’t believe I actually just said that
aloud. The words just upchucked themselves out of my mouth. I couldn’t help it.

This girl takes my breath away.

She stares at me. “What’s your type, Cooper?”
The sudden question throws me off guard.

“Type of what?”

“Type of girl. Haven’t you noticed that
we’re kind of different? I mean, am I the kind of girl you usually date?”

“I don’t have a type.” I shrug. “I really
haven’t dated much. Haven’t had the time. I mean, there have been girls. You
know. But…” I trail off, confused. What is she asking me? It seems like this
question goes deeper than I’m understanding, and I want to make sure I’m giving
her the answers she needs. I don’t want her to have any lingering questions. If
it comes down to me or Luka, I want her to be well-informed on what kind of guy
I am, and what I intend to do for her.

She takes a deep breath. “Cooper, have
you ever dated a black girl?”

My mouth drops open. This is about her
skin color? Shock and understanding take turns presenting themselves across my
face. I reach out and take her hand in mine. “No. I’ve never really thought
about it, but I haven’t.”

She pulls her hand away. “That’s what I
thought. So why are you throwing all of these lines at me?”

“Throwing lines at you? Cam, I’m just
telling you how I feel. And to be honest, I haven’t thought of you as any
different from me. So you’re black and I’m white. Is that a big deal?”

She looks dubious. “To some people, it
may be.”

“Not to me.” I take her hand back.

“Are you sure?”

I pull her hand to my mouth and kiss it
softly, feeling her body freeze. “I’m colorblind.”

She clears her throat. Nervous energy
rolls off of her, and I drop her hand. “What’s the, um, plan here?”

The fact that I make her nervous is
giving my ego a major boost. It gives me hope that she’ll give me a chance.

God, I hope so.

“Let’s ride to the 21
^st
street
pier and back again,” I answer her question.

“Then we can grab some lunch. Sound
good?”

She boards her jet ski, starts it, and
shoots forward into the gently lapping waves. A shriek of laughter escapes her
as she rockets away.

Oh, hell no. I can’t let her beat me. I climb
onto my jet ski and take off right behind her. Even though she has a head
start, I know I can catch her. Literally speaking. Metaphorically speaking, the
jury’s still out.

As I pull up next to her I see that she’s
laughing, her eyes crinkling at the corners.

Damn, that’s cute.

She makes a “where to?” gesture with her
shoulders. I point straight ahead, toward the buoy about a mile away. I want
her to round the buoy.

We race, water spraying the salty air
around us. Around the buoy she goes, but I’m on her tail. I focus on the pier
where our skis were previously tied, and she ends up finishing a split second
ahead of me.

I let her win.

Camryn dismounts her jet ski, dripping
wet but hardly noticing. She looks at me and grins, obviously proud of herself.
Seeing her happiness makes me clutch at my chest, because the ache there takes
me by surprise.

“What do I get for coming in first?” she
asks, looking up at me through her lashes.

She’s flirting with me, and I freaking
love it.

“A picnic lunch. I have one set up at the
picnic area behind the main office building.”

I take her hand and lead her down the
gravelly path. I tilt my face up as we walk, absorbing the warm breeze that
lifts tufts of my hair. I am only one state away from Maryland, but it seems so
much warmer here than it was there at this time of year.

“That was fun,” she comments as we stroll.

“Yeah? I’m glad you liked it. I thought
when I texted you last night, that you may shoot me down. It took you forever
to text back.” I look at her sideways, not wanting to ask her where she was and
what she was doing, but wanting to know those things so damn bad.

“I was out. With Luka.”

I sigh as the words punch me in the gut.
“So, is that like a thing? You two?”

She turns her head in my direction, and I
try not to look too downcast. Wounded puppy won’t not work in my favor here.

“Well,” she replies. “I’m not sure. Last
night was our first date. Luka’s made it clear that he’s interested, though.”

“Of course he’s interested, Cam,” I reply.
She’s been honest with me. Now it’s my turn.