Eden Forest (Part one of the Saskia Trilogy) (12 page)

myself together. Looking at Jessica, I can see the sadness on her

face. “I miss her too,” she whispers, barely audible. I hug her so

tightly she squeals slightly.

Josh walks in the door then and I have to say he looks so

handsome. He’s in an all-black suit with a white shirt, making

his tan stand out. His eyes are practically sparkling. “Wow, you

look stunning,” he says while leaning in and giving me a kiss

on the cheek.

“You don’t look too bad yourself.”

Jessica inhales a sharp breath. “Don’t be so mean, Sarajane.”

When I look at my little sister, she looks truly angry. I turn to

Josh and roll my eyes. “You look dashing, Prince Josh.” Jessica

is still angry, as she knows I am being sarcastic.

“Okay, kids, stand together for a photo.”

Josh places his hand around my waist and gives it a little

squeeze. I look at him with a smile, but his face is so serious that

my smile falters as it feels like his brown eyes are searing into

my very heart. I know Josh cares for me, but there is so much

more than care on his face right now. Then I hear the click of

the camera.

Dad lowers it. “Come on, kids, smile.” This time we both do,

but I know our smiles will be strained when we get the photo

developed.

I give Dad a kiss and he hugs me tightly. “I love you. Have a

great night. You deserve it.”

Tears fill my eyes. “I love you too.”

We reach the ball fifteen minutes later. We don’t speak on the

way, which leaves me feeling awkward.

The room that the ball is being held in is already full with

couples. The room is lit by hundreds of fairy lights. No overhead

lights are on, only the fairy lights and small tea lights on all the

tables light the room. The music is soft. It’s spectacular and everyone looks amazing.

We descend the stairs and enter the ballroom. Josh gets us

drinks, his mood picking back up a bit. I stand just by the stairs,

clutching my purse. A few ladies give me scowls as their partners

eye me up. I feel such relief when Josh returns and hands me a

glass of champagne. Now a lot of girls are giving looks, and it’s

not because their men are looking at me. It's because they’re

looking at Josh and wishing they were with him.

“To us. May we have a wonderful and magical night.” I click

my glass with his, causing his face to break into a smile. The

smile I return is genuine, as I feel happy that he’s back to himself

again. Maybe I misread the look he gave me in my house and he

feels awkward that he gave me the wrong impression.

The music picks up tempo and I’m eager to dance, but Josh

isn’t eager at all. “Come on. We’ll sit down and talk.” Josh takes

my free hand, moving me through the crowd until we come to

a small table and two chairs. We sit down, admiring all the

talented dancers.

Josh takes my hand in his, drawing my attention away from

the dance floor. “I need to tell you something.”

Just then a tall shadow looms over our table. “Excuse me,

would you like to dance?” asks a husky voice.

I look up and into the eyes of a gorgeous guy. He must be

in his mid-twenties. My stomach gets all nervous. He’s tall

with broad shoulders and his eyes are a piercing green. He has

shoulder-length black hair tied at the nape of his neck. His

jawline is strong and defines his full lips.

Overall, I’m speechless so Josh speaks for me, with a serious

tone. “No, she would not. Can’t you see we’re talking or did

you miss that?”

The guy averts his eyes to Josh. “I was not speaking to you. I

was addressing the lady.”

I finally find my voice. “No, thank you…” I pause.

“Tristan. My name is Tristan.”

“Okay, no thank you, Tristan.” He tilts his head in a bowing

motion and cuts Josh a hard look before he walks away.

Josh is smirking at his back. “Fool,” he says in a sneery tone,

but when he looks at me, his face falls. He can see the anger on

my face.

“Josh, don’t ever speak for me again. I can answer for myself.”

“Oh, can you? You were doing a great job. Sitting there with

your mouth hanging open.” His own anger flares across his

face.

I grab my purse. “You’re a jerk sometimes. I’m getting

another drink.”

I walk off to the bar. Regret washes over me as soon as I

reach it. I shouldn’t have called him a jerk. I was sitting there

with my mouth hanging open. My stomach flutters thinking

about Tristan. He’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The tingle

of breath upon my shoulder makes me go still.

“May I get you a drink? Or should I consult with your jealous

escort?”

“He is my friend, and yes, a glass of champagne.” I look up

at Tristan, his green eyes studying my face. He turns towards

the barman and orders two champagnes. “Thank you.” I take a

sip, not too sure what to do now.

“What’s your name?” Tristan asks.

“Sarajane Anderson.” When I say my second name, it seems to surprise him. Don’t get me wrong; he’s not overly surprised,

but his eyebrows rise ever so slightly. It would take a lot to make

them go really high.

“Anderson? That is interesting.”

“Why?” I ask, but before he gets to answer me, Josh is there.

He hasn’t noticed Tristan or maybe he’s just ignoring him.

“Look, Sarajane, I’m really sorry. It’s just I really…” Then

he notices Tristan. “You again. Can you not take no for an

answer?”

Tristan places his untouched glass of champagne on the

counter and enters Josh’s personal space. “You are beginning

to annoy me, boy.”

I squeeze in between the two of them before it gets out of

hand. “Stop acting like two kids.” Two sets of eyes shoot down

at me, as both of them are taller. Josh looks annoyed while

Tristan’s face remains expressionless. So I take my fury out on

Tristan this time. I hand him back the champagne. “Thank you

for the drink.” I turn my back on him and take Josh’s hand.

“Dance with me,” I say. While I lead the way to the dance floor.

Josh steps on my toes several times. “I told you I couldn’t

dance.” I laugh.

Josh lays his hand on my face “You’re beautiful.”

“Oh, I know I am,” I say with a big smile and swat his hand

away.

“I’m serious.” He places his hand back on my face. “I’m in

love with you, Sarajane.”

It feels like time has frozen and only Josh and I exist. I can

see by the way he looks at me that he means it. God, how did I

not see this coming? I really care for Josh, but I don’t love him.

Josh speaks then, as if he knows how I feel. “I know you

don’t love me, but in time, you will grow to.” And then he kisses

me, gently at first, and then he deepens the kiss. When I pull

back, we are both a little breathless.

“Josh, I really had no idea.”

He laughs and it’s full of joy. “I know. You can be so blind

at times.” He pulls me into him and circles his arms around my

waist. “I have always loved you.”

“Sarajane.” I turn out of Josh’s arms and am faced with

Susan, who is in a flood of tears.

“Jesus, Susan, what happened?” But I already know. The

look of hurt on her face makes my stomach tighten.

“Susan, did he hit you?” Josh asks while scanning the crowd

for Max.

She gives a bitter laugh. “You warned me, but I wouldn’t

listen.” I hug her, feeling so sorry for her. “I have to go,” she

says, panicked.

“No, wait, I’ll come.” But she leaves straight away. I race

after her. Josh grabs my hand.

“I’m coming with you.”

I kiss his cheek. “Not this time.”

I follow Susan. She’s sitting on the curb outside the hall,

crying. Her shoulders shake with sobs. I sit down beside her.

“You have to forget about this guy.”

Susan cuts me a dirty look. “It’s easy for you to say. I love

him, Sarajane.”

I can’t believe I’m hearing this. “He hit you twice now, Susan.

He will never change.” I can see the conflict in her eyes, but then

they shadow over with anger.

“He didn’t mean it.” She storms off.

“Susan, wait up.” She starts to run, and I give chase after

her, but in high heels, it’s really hard. By the time I reach the

end of the street, she’s jumped into a taxi. When I stop to catch

my breath, I notice the streets are deserted. I wrap my bare

arms around myself and start walking back, glancing over my

shoulder every few seconds. The noise of my high heels echoes

off the pavement. I start to walk faster. Someone grabs me

from behind, roughly. I swing my hands around, clawing at my

attacker’s face.

“Let me go,” I yell.

Adrenaline pumps through my body, along with fear. With all

my might I draw back my leg and kick with the heel of my shoe.

I can feel the spike make contact with flesh. I gag. My attacker

roars in pain, causing his hold to falter while allowing me to

twist out of his grasp, and I run blindly. My hair is whipping in

my face, unshed tears causing my eyes to blur. I push my body

until my lungs burn. A quick look behind confirms no one is

pursuing me.

Branches whip at my clothes and face, making me slow down.

When I stop to catch my breath, I take in my surroundings. I’m

in the woods, the opposite side of town, about five minutes from

the hall. I didn’t realise I ran that far.

“Shit.” How stupid could I be to run into the woods? But I

panicked and just ran.

It’s so quiet; the only noise is from the inhabitants of the

woods. I stand still. The only thing I can hear now is my

blood pounding in my ears. My breathing and heart rate

begin to slow. That’s when I hear a twig snap off to my right.

My head shoots in that direction, but I can’t see anything.

Quietly, I remove my heels and carry them. My black dress

is now dragging along the ground, but I can’t do anything

about it. Leaving my bag behind me on the bar counter leaves

me with no cell phone to call for help. I’m not even sure if it

would work out in the woods anyway.

I slowly move around a large tree, keeping my back to it. A

hand clamps over my mouth and Tristan is standing in front of

me. I pull his hand off and relief washes through me.

“Oh, thank God. There is a man chasing me. Well, I don’t

know if he still is, but he was.” I want to throw myself into his

arms with relief.

“Sarajane.” I hear Josh’s voice. “Sarajane!”

I run towards his voice while calling his name. “Josh!” Then

I can see him.

“What are you doing?”

I throw myself into his arms. “Someone was chasing me, but

it’s okay. Tristan’s here.” I let go of Josh and turn around, but

he isn’t there. “Tristan?” I call. I hear a thud behind me, causing

me to jump nervously. Josh is on the ground and Tristan stands

over him.

I kneel down beside Josh. He’s breathing. “What the hell did