Page 64 of The Heiress
I nodded, biting down on my lower lip before taking the plunge. “Hey, Beth, I’m sorry we got off on the wrong foot. Like, I’m really sorry for how I acted.”
Beth’s lips twisted in a wistful smile. “It can be tough when you first start at boarding school,” she said. “I should’ve remembered that.” She held out her hand. “Friends?”
I nodded and we shook, but I’d become a big fan of hugs over the weekend, and I leaned forward. Beth eyed me hesitantly before extending her arms. Bigger and taller than me, I was engulfed in the snuggly embrace of her soft cardigan, her blond curls tickling my cheeks. Being an island really wasn’t for me.
“There is one thing though,” Beth informed me, drawing back in a serious manner. “Elisha, you really do need to shorten your showers. Some of the girls have been having cold showers.”
I blinked. “Cold showers?”
“Well, not stone cold, but barely warm.”
“Because of me?” I gulped. Mrs. Pritchard had told me earlier in the semester to shorten my showers, but I thought it was a time issue; I hadn’t realized it meant there was less hot water.
“Some of the girls have been going to Tiley Hall or Mellon Pool to shower,” Beth said, her face reddening before my very eyes.
“Why didn’t anyone tell me?” I shuddered at how my actions had impacted others.
Beth’s grimace said it all. Not only did I have the reputation of being an ice queen, it seemed the girls were genuinely scared of me.
“Okay,” I said, squirming with embarrassment. “I can fix that. I’ll set a timer.”
Beth smiled and teased, “Maybe I’ll set the timer, just to be sure!” She jumped up off the bed. “Shall we see if any of the other girls want pie?”
“Yes,” I said, jumping up off the bed. “Otherwise we’re just going to gorge them, aren’t we?”
We laughed as we made our way down the corridor, checking on the other girls who were back, and though I would have preferred to be back at Phoenix’s house, this is where I needed to be right now.
Chapter 19
Phoenix
Ihadn’t spoken toElisha since coming back to school, and it was now Wednesday. On Monday we didn’t have photography class, and I never ran into her. I had thoughts of going over to her dorm, I even walked around the school grounds to the Courtyard. But that’s where I stopped. A bunch of girls were standing in a group, and I lost my nerve and chickened out, flooded with insecurity. Yep, I reminded myself that she hadn’t stayed to say goodbye, so there had to be a good reason for that. Actually, I had a hundred reasons: I was inexperienced, bad at kissing, my body was too puny, too pale...I could go on for days.
I had seen her in photography class the next day, but the dark brown eyes that had once stared into mine under the glow of moonlight gave me nothing more than a fleeting glance. I was devastated by it, but knowing Max’s eagle eyes didn’t miss a beat, I had to keep cool, act normal. If he suspected something was up, he’d stick his nose in where it wasn’t wanted.
To be fair, there was a lot going on at school, kids signing up for new activities and clubs for the second half of the fall semester. Mom recommended I join chess club. She reminded me that Mrs. Liu always said chess was mental tennis—all about strategy, but I was pretty sure she suggested it so I didn’t overdo the physical stuff. I was up to twenty minutes on the treadmill and had decided to keep it there for a couple of weeks before increasing again. My muscles forced me to be sensible about it. I worried I’d be labeled a geek, but some of the smartest kids were in the club, like Jenson and Devon.
