Private 09 - Paradise Lost (14 page)

"Wow. She really doesn't like you," Graham said.

He was speaking some serious truth. I didn't get it. Was it really all about Billings? If she cared so much, why hadn't she attended our fund-raiser or the hearing where we were almost disbanded?

Luckily, the tour seemed to be almost over. As we turned back toward the mansion, we passed by a small greenhouse with some pots, bags of soil, and trowels set up on a table outside. Next to that was a workbench with a broken birdhouse on it, ready to be mended, and a couple bags of birdseed.

Thinking about my morning songbird, I glanced over my shoulder at Daniel. He was the nearest Ryan to me, and also the only one who had yet to be outright mean to me--no matter his reputation. "Do you know where I can buy some of that? " He grabbed a small paper bag off the potting table and quickly filled it with seed. "It's all yours," he said, handing it over.

"Really? Thank you," I said, surprised by how generous he was being, considering his mother's obvious dislike of me. "That's so nice of you."

"It's just birdseed," Daniel replied, amused.

"Are you children planning on catching up anytime soon?" Mrs. Ryan called out, annoyed as always.

"Children?" Sawyer said under his breath as he fiddled with the broken birdhouse. "What are we, kindergartners?"

"Yes, Mother," Daniel called back, ignoring Sawyer's comment.

He took the birdhouse out of Sawyer's hand with a pointed glare and placed it back where it had been.

Daniel's mother shook her head, as if she were fed up, and continued along toward the house. He chuckled fondly, like her behavior was somehow humorous, and walked along, cutting in front of me, Tiff, and the Hathaways.

"Is it just me or is there something weird about this family?" I whispered.

"Oh, it's definitely not you," Tiffany replied.

"They're out of one of those bad horror movies," Graham joked, putting his hands out in front of him like a screen. He adopted a deep narrator's voice. "On the surface, the Ryans seem like the perfect family, but beneath their shiny gilded veneer lies a deep, dark secret. . . ."

"What's the secret?" I asked, playing along.

"There isn't one," Sawyer said, shoving his brother. "He's just being a dork."

"God! Grow a funny bone, man. You don't always have to be so damn literal," Graham groused, shaking his head as he walked ahead of us.

Sawyer blushed and shrugged, embarrassed. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his black cargo shorts and rushed ahead to catch up. I looked at Tiff.

"Yeah. They're a weird family too," she said in an accepting way. After the tour we rejoined the rest of the group. Upton slid his arm around my shoulders and pulled me to him. I ignored the general glowers of the female population and hugged him back. Even Mrs. Ryan eyed us disapprovingly. I supposed I could add PDA to my list of crimes in her book. But the new Reed was not taking anything for granted. Especially not Upton. Especially not after what had happened that morning.

"Sienna's on the phone with Poppy's mother," Upton whispered, nodding toward Sienna, who had walked away from the group for more privacy.

My heart skipped a beat, wondering what was being said. Had Poppy been found? Maybe she was with her parents in Antigua. Please let it be something that simple. Everyone waited in relative silence until she finally flipped her phone closed and returned.

"Well, they're not worried," she said, sounding almost disappointed as she forced a smile.

"They say she does this all the time-disappearing without notice."

"See? What did I tell you?" Upton said, looking at me. "Even her parents think she's fine."

"They're not even going to look for her?" Mrs. Ryan asked, her hand going to the ornate gold necklace at her throat. It looked almost too heavy to wear.

"It doesn't sound like it," Sienna said, tucking the phone into her clutch.

"What kind of parents are they?" Mrs. Ryan asked, looking at her husband.

"Calista," he scolded, putting his hand on her back.

"So, Jet Skis?" Paige suggested, stepping forward.

"Yes, right." Daniel looked around and cleared his throat. "I think I have enough for everyone."

"He has fourteen Jet Skis?" Amberly asked.

"I'm a collector," Daniel replied with a sniff. "I buy at least three new models each year."

"Well, you can count me out," I volunteered, dropping down on a lounge chair. "I'm not up for any more high-speed sports today."

"You have to come," Upton entreated.

Noelle stepped up next to him and looked down at me. "You do realize the alternative is hanging out around here," she said under her breath, "with the Ryans." I glanced over at Paige and Daniel's parents, who gazed steadily back at me as if they knew what I was thinking. I reached my hands toward Upton, and he obligingly pulled me up.

"Okay, then! Jet Skiing it is."

Honestly, I may have even gotten back into Misty's saddle if it would have gotten me away from those two creeps.

CHAPTER 23 SANE LOGIC

Jet Skiing was way better than horseback riding. Rather than being at the mercy of an animal, I had complete control over my speed. Within fifteen minutes, I was racing with the guys, weaving in and out, jumping their wakes. Skipping over the water with the salty spray hitting my face and my wet hair whipping back was the most exhilarating feeling. If I ever won the lottery, I was going to buy myself a beach house and get one of these bad boys. Or two. But not twenty of them like Daniel. That was overkill.

"You're a bit of a daredevil, aren't you?" Upton shouted, racing up next to me.

"What?" I shouted back with a laugh, veering around Daniel and Paige, who had slowed just ahead of us. Upton shot between the two of them--a rather close call as far as I could tell-and zoomed out to catch up with me.

"You're quite good with that thing!" Upton shouted.

"You're not too bad either!" I replied.

I revved the engine and sped toward the open ocean, daring him to follow me. Of course he did. I was on one of Daniel's older models, so Upton quickly jumped ahead, laughing over his shoulder. I pulled back and turned, cutting a wide arc so I could see the shore. As soon as I did, I became mesmerized by the gorgeous view of the island and slowly pulled to a stop. My Jet Ski let out a kind of coughing sound while I idled.

Just ahead of me was a pristine white beach enclosed by palm trees and wild vegetation. Beyond that were the rocky cliffs that seemingly climbed up into the sky. And above it all, looking like some sort of modern castle, was the Ryan's estate. Upton pulled up next to me.

"What's up?" he asked.

I pushed back my wet hair. "I just wanted to take it all in for a second."

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Upton said. "I've been coming here my whole life, so I suppose I've stopped noticing."

"How can you not notice this?" I said, throwing up a hand toward the shore where the water grew lighter and greener in color as it lapped against the sand. "This is freaking paradise!"

"Freaking paradise? How poetic," Upton teased with a laugh. I blushed, feeling unsophisticated. But the moment quickly passed. Who cared? I was who I was and Upton liked me. I noticed that Noelle, Tiffany, Kiran, Taylor, West, and Dash were heading to the shore and felt a sudden surge of independence. I didn't want to be the girl who was always tied to her guy. The Billings Girls, former and current, were the people I'd come here to be with.

"I think I'm going to go in with them," I said, revving the engine. "You staying out here? "

"For a little while," Upton replied. "I'll catch up soon." I nodded and started toward my friends, zooming over the waves. As I got a bit closer to the shore, I pulled back on the handlebar throttle to decelerate. Nothing happened. I blinked and tried again. Still nothing.

"Stupid ancient Jet Ski," I said under my breath. I tried one more time, but if anything, I seemed to be going faster. My heart started to slam against my rib cage as some rocks flew by me. Rocks meant I was getting dangerously close to land. I had an eerie sense of deja vu. This thing was out of control. Just like Misty had been.

"Reed!" someone shouted behind me. "Slow down!" Okay. Don't panic. You're in control here, remember? This was not some animal. I just had to turn away from the shore. It had to run out of gas eventually. I pulled right and there was an awful grinding, clicking sound. The handlebars wouldn't turn. The steering mechanism was locked. I looked up at the beach. My friends were gathered on the sand, looking out at me, alarmed. Noelle waved her hands above her head to warn me, as if I didn't see that I was closing in on them fast.

I could hear shouts, but I couldn't make out what anyone was saying over the roar of the Jet Ski's engine. Sweat broke out under my arms, along my lip, down my back. I was going to hit the shore at top speed. There was nothing I could do to stop. And then, one word managed to make itself heard over all the chaos in my mind.

"Jump!"

I took a deep breath, stood up on shaky legs, and flung myself off the side of the Jet Ski. My ankle banged against the side of the ski, and a shot of extreme pain blasted all the way up my leg. I bit down on my tongue as I went under and tasted blood as my side slammed into the floor of the ocean.

Damn, the water was shallow. I hadn't realized just how close I was. I shoved myself up and stood, turning around wildly to see the shore. The Jet Ski made an awful whirring sound as it bounced up over the sand, soared across the slim beach area, and slammed into a palm tree. The explosion seemed huge for such a small vehicle--a burst of flame flared hot and instantly died. A monstrous plume of charcoal-colored smoke wafted into the sky, and the tree's trunk was singed black. I looked over at my friends, who were all huddled together at a safe distance from the impact. The second my eyes met Noelle's, she came sprinting toward the water and waded over to me.

"Are you all right?" she asked, grabbing my arms.

My ankle and tongue both throbbed. "Um ... I think so. I think so, yeah."

"What the hell happened? " Kiran asked, catching up. We all waded back to the beach together, where I fell right on my butt in the wet sand, too weak to stand.

"I don't know. It wouldn't slow down. ... It wouldn't turn," I said, staring at the grip marks on my hands from where I'd dug my palms into the handlebars. I looked over my shoulder at the flaming tree, which luckily hadn't taken down any other vegetation with it.

"Okay . . . that is just one too many near-death experiences for one vacation." Everyone else was coming into shore by that point, gathering around us to make sure I was okay. Graham and Sawyer were the first to arrive, followed by Upton, who dropped right down next to me and helped me out of my life vest. Finally, Amberly, Paige, Sienna, and Daniel beached their Jet Skis. Daniel ran over and broke through the crowd.

"Reed, thank God. I'm so sorry," he said, out of breath. "I can't imagine what went wrong. I had all the Skis checked by a mechanic. They all got a clean bill of health." Paige and Sienna hung back, as if they weren't at all interested in my welfare. I could see them through everyone else's legs, whispering behind their hands. I shoved myself off the ground and looked at Daniel.

"Don't worry. I know it's not your fault," I said.

I shoved by him, ignoring his look of confusion, and walked over to the girls. Upton got up and followed after me, as if he was afraid I might suddenly faint and he had to be there to catch me.

"What are you two trying to do, kill me?" I demanded. Paige and Sienna's jaws dropped in unison. "What?" Sienna asked, her face creased in consternation.

"Reed," Noelle said in a warning tone from behind me. As if anyone could stop me now.

"You're totally insane," Paige spat, looking me up and down.

"Am I? Two days ago, you and Poppy tell me to watch my back, and today your brother's Jet Ski goes haywire and I almost die," I blurted, getting right in her face. "Sounds like sane logic to me."

"It sounds to me like your past experiences have made you somewhat of a narcissist," Paige said, not backing down an inch. "Breaking news-. The world does not revolve around Reed Brennan. Not everyone on the planet is out to get you." I felt a humiliated, angry blush fire up my cheeks and burn my eyes. For a split second I was at a loss for a comeback, which annoyed me even more. But then Noelle stepped up next to me and faced off with Paige.

"You threatened her?" she demanded.

Paige and Sienna both laughed as if they were surprised at being confronted. As if threatening me was so obviously the right thing to do, they couldn't believe Noelle was even questioning it.

"We were pissed about what she and Upton were doing to Poppy, so we showed her her place," Paige explained with a dismissive shrug.

Noelle let out an incredulous noise. "Classic Paige. Always deciding what place we all deserve," she said.

"Well, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black, Noelle?" Paige countered. Okay. She kind of did have a point there.

"Are you sure you were just rushing to Poppy's defense, Miss Paige? Because I've never seen you defend anyone in your life," Noelle replied, glowering. Paige blinked, and I could see that Noelle had her. "Are you sure you aren't jealous of Reed and Upton, too?" Daniel walked up behind us at this point, sand kicking up in his wake. "Wait a minute, wait a minute. You and Upton?" he said, glancing incredulously between his sister and Upton. She looked away, crossing her arms over her chest. Daniel swallowed hard, looking ill. "My God, dude. Is there anyone you won't defile?" Noelle and Kiran laughed derisively, which gave me the idea that Daniel was kind of a defiler himself, but I didn't ask. Upton, however, didn't seem to think it was all that funny.

"Back off, Ryan," Upton said. "What I do is none of your concern."

"Actually, it is," Daniel said, his face growing red with anger. "When you screw around with my sister and my friends, you make it my concern."

His hands curled into fists. My heart hit my throat as I suddenly recalled all the things Noelle and the others had said about Daniel at that first lunch at Shutters. Things about freakouts and destruction of personal property. Destruction of people's faces. And he'd just gone from chill to fighting mad in about two seconds. I wanted to say something to Upton--to make him back down--but before I could, he had stepped closer to Daniel and laughed.