Black and white love

CH 4

Her mother rolled her eyes, “Men,” she retorted. “I’d better go. Remember,

we’ll be home late.”

“Okay, Mom,” Jessie shivered, impatient to get inside where it was warm.

“Have a good trip.”

As her father backed the car out of the driveway, he rolled down his

window, “We love you, Princess.”

JESSIE SLOWLY FOUGHT her way up through the grief, the memory of just waving

at her parents and running inside weighing heavy on her mind. It was the same

as every other time she had the dream. She was angry she hadn’t taken the few

seconds to return the words.

When the dream appeared, though, it set the tone for the rest of the day. It

brought the darkness, that only stayed away when she skated. She’d tried to fight

it. Tried to get involved in listening to the new music she’d gotten for Christmas.

And while it had helped for a short time, eventually; the darkness returned.

Finally, she’d given up, grabbed her skates, and made her way to the frozen

pond.

The darkness had chased her around the ice for longer than she cared to

admit. Then, little by little, it had faded, becoming lighter and lighter, until

finally relinquishing its hold. Once that happened, her skating became less

hectic, – freer - allowing her to slow down and practice different moves.

Stopping, though, that wasn’t an option. Because when she did, there was

always the possibility the darkness would return. Besides, if she went inside,

there would be questions. Ones she got tired of answering.

Jessie could feel Dylan watching her. She glanced toward the house to see

that she’d been right. Her brother had come outside and was standing on the

porch … waiting for her, just in case. While she appreciated he was there for her,

it was easier when she was alone. Then she didn’t have to behave like things

were fine. On the ice – she could follow her heart. Could listen to the feeling

inside and just skate. Sometimes fast, other times slow, but always with no

expectations. On the ice, she could just be ….

Jessie’s Home

December 27

4:00 p.m.

CAM CLIMBED into his old pick-up truck and started the drive toward the Prince

home. Their families had been friends long before he’d been born. Which meant,

for most of his life, he’d grown up thinking of Jessie, two years younger, as just

Jessie.

However, the summer she’d turned fourteen, that had changed, when he’d

seen her in a bikini top. The tom-boy he’d always known had been replaced by a

female. One whose legs seemed to go on forever, and who filled out her bikini,

in all the right places. Suddenly, Jessie was the girl, who starred in his dreams.

This time, though, in a much different capacity.

The summer and fall before her parents’ death, he’d worked to win her

heart. But no matter how much he flirted; she didn’t see him as anything more

than a friend. He was the boy she came to when she wanted to complain about

school, her brothers, her friends, or even other boys. And once in the friend

zone, he didn’t know how to get out.

When her parents and brother had been killed, Jessie had stayed with his

family for a few months. He’d gotten close to her, just not in the way he’d

wanted … nor expected. There had been nights when he’d been the one to hear

her crying. Those were the times; he’d offered his shoulder for her to lean on.

She trusted him – and there was no way, he’d ever violate that trust.

It was during one of those nights, he’d decided, Jessie needed to be the one

to choose what capacity he would hold in her life. If they were destined to just

be friends, he’d not push, but would honor her wishes. Since then, he’d stuck to

his plan. He was there if she needed him … whenever she needed him.

Cam hadn’t seen her since Christmas Day. His parents had worked to make

it a happy time. Yet, no matter how much they’d tried, there was still a feeling of

loss in the air. There’d been no arguments over sports from their fathers, no pie

competitions between their mother’s, and for the first time in forever, no annual

hockey game. The day had been quiet … too quiet.

Finally, Jessie and Dylan had gone home, leaving the Hunter family alone.

The atmosphere hadn’t changed after they’d left, though. His parents had gone

one way, his brother another, and he’d watched some mindless movie.

It had taken hearing how she’d been spending her days for him to figure out

what to do. Especially with the knowledge Dylan was worried about her. They

might only be friends, but she was still his princess. Which meant, whether she

liked it or not, when she hurt – he hurt.

It hadn’t been a tough choice to volunteer to spend time with her. He loved

watching her move, both on the ice and off. Jessie was always graceful, but

when she was skating, her beauty took his breath away. The way she glided

across the ice mesmerized him, reminding him of a swan in motion. She was a

joy to watch, and if they didn’t talk much … he was okay with that. As long as

she was happy, so was he.

When he climbed from his truck, Dylan was standing on the porch. Cam

thought about stopping to talk. In the end, though, his attention was completely

focused on Jessie. He grabbed his skates and traipsed through the snow toward

the frozen pond.

Jessie slowed slightly, her eyes never leaving his. The look on her face said

she wasn’t upset he’d driven over. For that, he was grateful.

“Hey, Princess,” Cam called teasingly. “May I join you?”

Jessie tilted her head one way, and then another, and he had to wonder what

she was thinking. “Tired of reading?” she finally asked.

“Just couldn’t concentrate,” Cam opted for.

Her look was knowing, but she didn’t push the issue. Instead, she inclined

her head in that regal way of hers and nodded toward his skates. “Think you can

keep up?”

“I guess we’ll see, won’t we?” He hesitated a beat. “If you’ll allow me to

skate, that is.”

She rolled her eyes. “Put your skates on Hunter. And catch me if you can.”

By the time Cam had pulled on his skates and stepped onto the ice, Jessie

had zipped past him several times. He waited for her to get close, and then

tossed a jaunty, “Race you!” over his shoulder before upping the pace. If she

wanted speed, he’d give it to her.

With longer legs, he thought he had a distinct edge. However, his princess

was hot on his heels, seemingly determined to overtake him. Yet, Jessie’s

attention was more on what was going on inside of her, as opposed to what was

happening around them. Time passed, and her focus never wavered.

Even when his brother, Gray, arrived to pick up Dylan, she didn’t notice.

She had a mission and wasn’t willing to be sidetracked. Which was okay with

him. It gave him time to observe and be ready for what came next.

The first hour flew by, and he was okay. Halfway through the second hour,

he was hanging in there. However, when the third hour rolled around, he’d

nearly fallen more than once, and with the temperature lowering, it was getting

damn cold.

Just a little longer, Cam thought, as he mindlessly skated around the frozen

pond. He’d reached a point where only a part of him was focused on her. The

other half was working to maintain his dignity on the unfamiliar ice. Especially

since Jessie was still skating as if the hounds of hell were on her tail, which had

him sticking close. If she fell, he wanted to be there to catch her.

Their conversation was minimal, only a word here or there, but finally her

expression softened, and she grinned at him. Cam’s shoulders relaxed, as he let

go of the breath he’d been holding. Somehow, it felt like a new beginning.

Another half hour and the combination of his legs turning to jelly and the

lengthening shadows had him searching for a reprieve. The next time around, he

pushed in front of her, and turned to skate backwards. “Want to rest?”

Jessie’s eyes twinkled, telling him she was onto him. “What’s the matter,

Hunter? You a wuss?” She flipped her long hair over her shoulder and took off.

“If you can catch me, we can rest.”

.