Page 26 of Stone

I’d heard John had been with Monica a few years ago, and it made me want to scratch her eyes out. She constantly flirted with him, usually when I was in the vicinity, so I could see her trailing her skanky fingers down his arm or smiling up at him with blatant invitation in her eyes.

The mere thought of it made my throat catch. John had told me about the girls he’d been with. He’d also explained how none of them were special to him the way I was, though it didn’t stopmy chest feeling like it would cave in whenever I thought about him with the likes of Monica.

My jealousy was palpable in the way my throat burned and my lungs lost all air. It felt like Monica and all those other girls had one over on me, and it made my insides light up in flames. John still hadn’t touched me, and I was beginning to think it was because he didn’t want to.

I watched John’s truck peal out of the parking lot, and immediately, I sensed Kelly stiffen.

“Robert’s making a beeline for us,” she murmured out of the side of her mouth, threading her arm through mine. “Whatever happens, stay with me—”

“Elise,” Robert called over. “Can I have a word?”

Taking a breath to calm my racing heart, I snapped my back straight and turned to face him.

I observed how the light caught his blond hair. Robert was good-looking in a preppy way. He had broad shoulders and boy-next-door good looks. Add to that the fact that he came from a well-respected family, and I could understand why the girls in town went gaga over him, though I never looked at him romantically.

Robert eyed Kelly disdainfully. “Alone.”

“I promised Steve I’d stay with her.” I smiled to take the sting out of my words. “She argued with her mom earlier. We can talk in front of Kells, can’t we?”

It looked like Rob was about to argue, but instead, he stepped toward me and rummaged inside the backpack he was holding. “Got you a birthday present,” he muttered, giving me a long, thin box.

Stunned, I took it from him and slowly opened it to reveal a long, delicate chain with what looked like a diamond attached. My mouth fell open. It must’ve cost a fortune.

“Wow,” Kelly exclaimed.

My confused stare lifted to meet his. “I can’t accept this.” Shock threaded through my tone. “It’s too much.”

Robert shrugged. “It’s okay. I can afford it.”

I shook my head, grasping for the words as I closed the box, thrusting it back toward him. “It’s a lovely gesture, Robert, but I can’t take this. John would be upset with me. It’s way too expensive.”

Rob’s face reddened slightly, his mouth thinning into a snarl. “Fuck Stone. It’s got nothing to do with him.”

“It has,” Kelly said gently from beside me. “John’s her boyfriend. She loves him.”

Robert’s flushed face turned white.

I tensed. For a moment, I thought he would lose his shit, but instead, I saw him purposely take a breath and relax. His face softened, and he grabbed the box I was holding out and shrugged. “No biggie.”

My shoulders sagged with relief. “The gesture was lovely, Robert, but I wouldn’t feel right accepting it.” I smiled warmly. “You’ll make some girl very happy one day if those are the types of things you do to make her happy.”

“Right,” Rob grated out. “Like I said, no big deal.” He shoved the box back in his bag, turned, and stomped back over to his friends, who were talking to the other girls.

Kelly let out a low whistle. “Someone’s salty.”

“That was weird.” I studied her face. “Right?”

“Yeah, Elise. It was weird.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “You gonna tell John?”

I bit my lip nervously. “I’ll have to. But we’ve only got a few days before he leaves for boot camp. The last thing I want to do is ruin the rest of our time together because of Robert.”

Kelly shrugged. “I won’t say anything. No harm, no foul.”

“You’re right,” I murmured, taking a furtive glance at Robbie, who was laughing with his friends like nothing had happened.He caught me looking as he slid his arm around Claire Barrington’s shoulders and smirked. “Seems a shame to upset John for no reason.”

“Fair enough.” Kelly ducked her head to look me dead in the eyes. “When John goes, I’ll tell Stevie what just happened. He told me your guy’s already asked him to look out for you.” She rolled her eyes. “Like he even needs to ask. You know we’ve got your back.” She grabbed my hand and tugged me down to the banks of the creek. “Come on. Ignore Rob. Let’s sunbathe until John gets back.” She crouched down, scooped some water into her hands, and flicked it at me.

Laughing, I followed her down, bent my knees, and swished the water around my feet, before dropping onto my ass and laying on my back.

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