Page 23 of The Secrets We Treasure

Chapter 6

The boat rocked a gentle lullaby as Treasure stretched out her legs and glanced up at the bright coin of the sun overhead. Greer was sitting directly in front of her, pulling a paddle through the silver water—two neat strokes on one side, switch, and then two strokes on the other. The ocean was a sea of shimmering diamonds as far as the eye could see. She traced the outline of Greer’s shoulders, noting how his muscles rolled smoothly beneath his faded t-shirt. His dark curls ruffled playfully in the wind. Her gaze settled on the curls nestled against his tanned neck. He paused his cadence long enough to turn and throw her a smile so enchanting that she nearly lost her breath. Love burned a hot, consuming flame inside her. Once, a long time ago, she’d known what it was like to feel a love so exquisite and complete that it defied words. Greer had been her soulmate, the very essence of her breath. She saw the past through fragile bits of sea glass scattered over the sand—some glittering and happy, others dusty with muted sadness. All of them had sharp edges with the power to cut if picked up and examined too closely.

No, she was wrong. They weren’t in a boat but in a canoe, cutting a sharp blade through the murky marsh. The canoe heaved and jerked as she clutched the sides, fighting to keep from being thrown from side to side.

“Greer, slow down. Please.” Her pleading fell on deaf ears as he paddled with a vengeance so fierce that a pack of demented hounds might’ve been on their tail. A cold blast of wind rattled her teeth before penetrating her flesh and sinking into her bones. Fast-moving clouds obscured the sun. “Greer!” she called, but the frigid fingers of the wind snatched her breath. She kept her eyes fixed on the center of his back, afraid that he would somehow disappear from her view. I can’t lose you again. Tears welled in her eyes. Please, forgive me. I’m so sorry. Finally, he turned. She gasped as a single word trembled from her lips. “Ethan?” He smiled in what was supposed to be a tender look, but there was something macabre about the tight pull of his lips. Then, the mask dropped. She shrank back from the crazed look in his eyes and the hard set of his jaw. Her tongue sat like lead in her mouth as she worked to move it into action. “Slow down,” she managed to say, but he turned and resumed his frenzied paddling.

Rain pelted her like cold wasp stings. First one, another, and then the bucket dumped, gushing rivers. The sound of rushing waters roared in her ears. The canoe picked up speed as Treasure looked up ahead and saw the curve of the rapids just before they hurled themselves down. Too late, she realized their fate. They were headed down a waterfall!

“Stop!” she cried as they picked up speed and nosedived into oblivion.

A loud boom of thunder shook the house as Treasure shot up in bed, her body trembling and bathed in sticky sweat. Rain was pounding the window. A weak relief rushed through her as she slumped back against her pillow and raked the damp hair from her face. It was only a dream. Thank heavens for that.

The next second, the sound of rapid footsteps pattered down the hall, and Tray came running into her bedroom. “Mom,” he whined as he dove into the bed and crawled under the covers. “I—I’m scared.” He nestled into the curve of her shoulder as she cradled him in her arms.

“It’s okay.” She rubbed his hair and then flinched when another clap of thunder sounded.

Tray let out a cry, scooting even closer to her.

“It’s just thunder. We’re safe and sound in our dry, warm house.” She could feel his heart sprinting in his chest. “How about I tell you a story? Would you like that?”

He nodded vigorously.

Treasure was glad to have a diversion from the ghosts still lingering from the bad dream. It had probably been brought on by the storm, but it was unsettling, to say the least. “Which story would you like to hear?”

“The flying machine.”

A grin touched her lips as she thought of Greer. “Okay, the flying machine it is. There once was a little boy named Tray who lived near the ocean. He spent his days playing on the white sandy beach where he built sandcastles as tall as mountains and caught lots of fish.”

“What about his friends? T and Greer?”

She blinked, realizing what a pickle she’d be in if Tray mentioned the story when Greer came to visit. Talk about awkward. Every time Treasure told Tray the story, it made her feel close to Greer. “T and Greer were there too.”

“Greer was really good at building things,” Tray prompted to fill the lag.

“Yes, he could build anything. One day, T asked him to build a flying machine so they could go to the castle that was just beyond the clouds.”

Tray’s voice gathered enthusiasm. “When all the pieces were put together, they flew high into the air—higher than even the birds could go.”

“That’s right. Then they came to the castle. It was big and beautiful with all types of different rooms.”

“I want my room to be full of ice cream with sprinkles, gummy bears, and Oreos.”

Treasure chuckled. “Ice cream it is.” She continued the story, stopping only when she heard the steady rhythm of Tray’s soft snoring.

It thundered again but not as loud. She relaxed and closed her eyes, confident that the storm was finally moving past them.

* * *

“Hold that pose,” Mark, the photographer, instructed. “Give me a big smile. That’s it. Now turn the other direction. Remember, you’re having fun on the beach.”

Treasure suppressed a shiver and did as he instructed. She knew from experience that the more accommodating she could be, the faster they would get done. “Try telling my freezing body that.” It was all she could do to keep her teeth from clattering.

Mark winced in apology. “Sorry.” He glanced up at the gray-cast sky before crouching down and looking into the viewfinder of his camera as he snapped more pictures.

When they’d begun the photoshoot, the sun was out, offering some warmth to the blustery fall day. Now, however, the sun had disappeared behind the drab haze of clouds, turning the day downright cold. It didn’t help that Treasure was ankle-deep in water. They’d driven an hour outside of Philly to Lake Absegami to take pictures of Treasure wearing the swimwear of one of her sponsors.

A dull headache throbbed across the bridge of Treasure’s nose. What she wanted more than anything right now was to wrap up in a warm blanket and sleep for several hours. Due to the thunderstorm the night before, her bad dream, and Tray moving about restlessly in her bed and even kicking her a couple times, she’d hardly slept a wink.

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