Harper turned away from him without saying anything more, leaving him standing alone on the dock. She was actually taken aback by his invitation, but she wasn’t tempted. Not even slightly.
Sure, Daniel was kinda cute, in a grungy rock star sorta way, but he was older than her by a couple of years, and he didn’t have his life together at all.
Besides that, she’d made a pact with herself that she wouldn’t date until college. She was too focused on getting her life in order, and she didn’t have any time to waste on guys. That had been her plan all along, but she really recommitted to it after her dip into the dating world last fall.
Alex had set her up with his friend Luke Benfield, insisting they would be a good match. Even though they went to the same school, Harper had never had any classes with Luke and didn’t really know him, but after much prodding from Alex, she finally caved.
The only time she’d really seen Luke around was when he was at Alex’s house for a Halo party or some other video gaming event. Harper didn’t usually partake in those activities, so her interaction with Luke had been minimal before they went on a date.
The date itself went well enough that she’d agreed to go with Luke on a few more. He was nice and funny, albeit in an overtly geeky manner, but in his own way, he was sorta cute. It was when they’d elevated their relationship to kissing that things went sour.
Harper had only kissed one other boy, at a slumber party in the eighth grade on a dare, but even with her limited experience, she was certain that kissing wasn’t supposed to go the way it went with Luke.
It was slobbery and far too eager, like he was attempting to devour her face. Then his hands suddenly went crazy, and at first she wasn’t sure if he was trying to feel her up or having a seizure. When she was certain it was the former, she decided to stop seeing him.
He was a nice enough guy, but there wasn’t any physical chemistry between them. To break it off, Harper had told him that she needed to focus on her schoolwork and her family, so she didn’t have time for a relationship. Still, things ended up being awkward between them the next time she ran into him.
That only solidified her views on romance. She didn’t have the time or the need for all that drama.
*
Gemma leaned against the edge of the pool and took off her goggles. Coach Levi stood over her, and she could already tell by his expression that she’d beat her time.
“I did it, right?” Gemma asked, smiling up at him.
“You did it,” Coach said.
“I knew it!” She grabbed the edge of the pool and pulled herself up and out of the water. “I could feel it.”
“You did great.” Coach nodded. “Now just imagine how great you’d do if you didn’t waste your energy on those nightly swims.”
Gemma groaned and took off her swim cap, letting her hair fall free. She looked around the empty pool. Nobody else on the swim team practiced during the summer, but then again, nobody trained as hard as she did.
They rarely spoke of it, not in real terms, but both Gemma and the coach had their eyes on the Olympics. The games were years away, but she was determined to be in top form by the time they came around. Coach Levi took her to every meet he could, and she won almost every time.
“It’s not wasted energy.” Gemma stared down at the water that dripped around her feet. “It’s something fun I do. I need to relax.”
“You do,” Coach agreed. He folded his arms across his chest, holding the clipboard to him. “You need to have fun and kick back and be a kid. But you don’t need to be swimming at night.”
“You wouldn’t even know that I was swimming if Harper didn’t narc on me,” Gemma muttered.
“Your sister is worried about you,” Coach said gently. “And I am, too. It’s not about training. The bay is dangerous at night. Another kid went missing just the other week.”
“I know.” Gemma sighed.
She’d already heard about it a dozen times from Harper. A seventeen-year-old boy had been staying at a beach house with his parents. He went out to meet some friends for a bonfire, and he never came back.
That story in itself didn’t sound that bad, but Harper was quick to remind Gemma of the two other boys who had gone missing in the last couple of months. They left one night, and simply didn’t come home.
It was usually after Harper told these stories that she’d run to Brian and start demanding that he keep Gemma home. Brian didn’t, though. Even after everything that had happened with their mom—or maybe because of it—he felt it was more important that the girls have the chance to live their lives.
“You’ve just got to be careful,” Coach told her. “It’s not worth throwing this all away for some stupid mistake.”
“I know,” Gemma said, this time with more conviction. After all the hard work and sacrifice, she wasn’t about to let any of this slip away from her.
“Okay,” Coach said. “But Gemma, that really was a great time today. You should be proud.”
“Thanks. I’ll do even better tomorrow.”