Interetwined episode 10
đ¤INTERTWINEDđ¤
đEP TENđ
I was excited to start my new life. For once, I would live in ahouse where I did not have to wonder when my parentswere coming home, or if they were coming home at all.
The last time Iâd seen them was graduation day. Theydecided we would be a family once more. It was also thefirst time Iâd seen Travis sinceâŚsince he started stayingaway from me. He didn’t go to the stage to take his diploma.But he appeared out of nowhere just as I was posing withmy parents for a photo.
Emotions overwhelmed me. After thatâŚnightâŚhe kept agood distance from me. I wanted to tell him that it wasgoing to be okay, but I had to remember that it wasnât mewho had a problem with what happened between us. I knewI had to respect his decision and the space he asked for.I missed him like crazy and I almost regret what I askedhim to do for me. I realized that though it was the most
amazing night of my life, worth every second of giving upmy âfirst timeâ for⌠nothing is worth losing Travis for. If I losthim, it would be like losing my last good memory of Tom.And I canât give up my one remaining connection with mybrother.
I hugged him tightly when he approached us. Eventhough he was brilliant at disappearing from my life,somehow I knew that he was still there. Still watching me.Still keeping his promises to Tom to keep me safe.
âI missed you,â I couldn’t help whispering to him. Hegave me a gentle smile.
âI missed you, too,â he said softly, as his arm wrappedaround my wa-ist.
I pulled him toward my parents so we could all take apictureâŚas a family.
âSo, am I safe again?â I asked him. When hedisappeared, he told me it was because I was in gravedangerâŚof him. I wanted to know things were going to beback to the way they used to beâŚthe way they should be.
He smiled at me gently. âI guess it’s safe to say so.â Itrusted that he was telling the truth. Because if there wasanybody who could take hold of his strong emotions, it wasTravis.
I smiled at him brightly again. âIt’s nice to have you backin my life. It was difficult not having you around.â
He fell silent for a while. Then he reached down andintertwined our fingers. He pulled my hand to his l-ips andplaced a gentle k-ss on the back of my hand. âIt was helltrying to stay away from you,â he whispered so quietly, Ialmost didnât hear his words.
My heart pounded in,side my chest, and I knew I wasblushing a bright shade of red. I was thankful when wereached our parents. It gave me a chance to let go of hishand, so he could hug both of them before we all posed totake a picture.
Travis chose to go to a university in the same city as me.I was happy about that. At least I would find comfort in thefact that he was close by. That I could run to him when Ineeded himâŚand he could run to me so he wouldnât feelalone.
ThatâŚwonderful, amazing night that happened betweenus was best left forgottenâŚor at least the memory of ittucked away in a safe, special placeâŚuntil there wasabsolute need to call on it.
I aced Mr. Atkinsâs art class, and he gave me very high recommendations. At first, I was hesitant. But in the end, Itook his advice and chose the fine arts program at SouthernConnecticut State University.
I was geared to take over my motherâs gallery someday.I would probably try to exhibit something of my own. I livedin a dorm near the campus. I also joined a dance club. Myroommate, Sarah, was a dance major, and I developed apassion for contemporary dance.
I went out on dates once in a while, but nothing reallystuck.
I didnât see Travis regularly. I did receive emails fromhim, asking me how I was. We would text each other, chatfor hours on weekends, as if we hadnât spoken to each otherin years, talking like we were just there side-by-side witheach other. It felt nice to know that he was always nearby.
Travis and I didnât need to be together every day toremember how much we meant to each other.
One Saturday, I was hanging out with Sarah at the publicpool.
I welcomed the heat of the sun on my skin. It was almostspring break, and we were sitting at one of the poolsidetables. I was wearing a yellow two-piece suit.
âDo you ever think about what you will do? I meanâŚIâmpretty sure Iâll still be unmarried by thirty. I might be datingsomeone seriously, but I donât think marriage would alreadyhave been an option by then. That age is too young. What ifyouâll be in the same situation? What ifâŚby thirty, youârenot yet married, or worseâŚnot even close to finding Mr.
Right? Isnât there a way out of your familyâsâŚcrazytradition?â
I laughed. âI wish it was just a tradition that I couldbreak. But with all the unfortunate coincidences happeningto my relatives who broke the ruleâŚIâm scared that itâsactually a curse. But donât worryâI have a plan,â I replied.
âWhat? LikeâŚdie? Or disown your own family?â
âRelax. Iâve got that sorted out,â I said. âI will be marriedby the time Iâm thirty-one. I wonât be âcursedâ orâdisgraced.ââ
âYouâre so positive!â She rolled her eyes. âYouâregorgeous, I know. But we both know that these days, findingthe right guy requires luck, too. What makes you so sureyou will be married by then? You know guys canât be forcedinto marriage nowadays.â
I smiled at her. âIâve gotâŚa backup plan.âSarah raised a brow.
âYou know, one of those boyfriends who promises tomarry you at a certain age if youâre still single by then?â
âA safety gu?â
I nodded. âYeah. Iâve got one of those.â
âWow! Good thinking!â She giggled. âAnd you plan tostay with this guy for the rest of your life?â
I shook my head. âUntil I find the one.â
âWhat if he finds the one ahead of you?â
âI doubt that. You seeâŚyouâve got to find one of thoseguys who is happy staying a bachelor for life. You tell him hestays married to you on paper only and for purposes ofappearance. But he can continue beingâŚa player for all youcare. And when the guy for you finally arrives, you can file adivorce, taking nothing from each other and then remainingfriends,â I said to her. âBrilliant plan, isnât it?â
âYeah.â She smiled at me. âI thinkâŚIâm going to getmyself one of thoseâŚsafety guys. But I wonât be asâŚunrealistic or crazy as you. Iâll set the bar atâŚthirty-eight.Before menopause.â
I looked away from her and turned to the bar instead.And I went still for a second. It was like I was seeing a ghostall of a sudden. I had to blink a couple of times to make surethat I wasnât dreaming.
But that familiar blond-streaked black hair wasunmistakable. He was looking at me, too. He nodded inacknowledgement, and then I watched him stand up fromthe bar and make his move toward me.
My knees were shaking. I sood up from my seat. Itâdbeen so long since Iâd last seen him. Sure, we got in touch all the time, but seeing him then made me realize just howmuch Iâd missed him.
I smiled at him as he made his way toward me. He gaveme a crooked smile that would make any other girlâs heartstop beating. But my own heart was pounding in my chest. Iran toward him, and it was like I was running toward home.I didnât hesitate. I threw myself into his arms. He caughtme and gave me a tight hug. I closed my eyes and his fresh,masculine scent filled my senses. I closed my eyes and
drowned myself in his embrace. I let myself be locked intosafety. And I knew there, no one could touch me.
âI missed you,â I whispered to him.
âI can tell,â he whispered against my ear. I wanted himto say he missed me too, but for Travis to say things thatgave away a hint of emotion at all was within the range ofrare and non-existent.
I gently pulled away from him so I could look into hiseyes. âWhat are you doing here?â
âItâs a public pool, and just in case youâve forgotten, I goto Yale. Weâre in the same vicinity.â
âIt didnât feel like that for the past couple of months,â Iprotested. âI havenât seen you in likeâŚâ I trailed off, tryingto recall the last time I saw Travis.
âI know. Months!â he supplied for me.
I knew Travis wasnât Thomas, but it was certainly sad nothaving a sibling around. Thomas was also protective of me.And Travis was doing the job he was supposed to be doingâŚsometimes even overdoing it. Except for the past fewmonths, when heâd just let me be.I leaned forward and hugged him again.
âSorry if you came here to find some girls!â I said,giggling. âI missed youâand all this hugging will lessen yourchances of hooking up with another girl.â
He laughed. And instead of pulling away, he hugged metighter. This surprised me. I expected him to push me away.
âI did find a girl,â he said. âSheâs gorgeous as hell. I feelsorry for the guys who were thinking of introducingthemselves to her. Because now, sheâs like putty in myarms.â
I pulled away from him and gave him a playful punch inthe shoulder.
He laughed. âYou didnât come here with a date, so Iguess itâs safe to buy you a drink.â
I nodded. âBut wait, Iâm withâŚâ I turned around towardSarah. I found her chatting with a cute guy, but somehowher attention was divided between me and him. I turnedback to Travis. âNever mind. Sure!â
Travis wound an arm around my shoulder again and I putan arm around his wa-ist. He didnât pull away from me.Instead, he leaned forward and gave me a k-ss on theforehead.
We sat at the bar and Travis ordered some drinks for us.
âHow is school?â
âWonderful! Itâs almost break. Are you going home?â
He shrugged. âDepends on where my father will be.â
âTravisâŚâ I narrowed my eyes at him.
He sighed. âYou know heâs a difficult man.â
âYouâre not too easy, either,â I argued.
âWow! That coming from the person who couldpractically extort anything from me. How difficult could Ibe?â He rolled his eyes.
âYou know you are!â I said, and then I smiled. âAnd thankyou. Because you make it too easy for me to change yourmind all the time.â
âI donât always like it. But you know I find it so hĂŚrd tosay no to you.â He rolled his eyes again. I had to smile atthat.
âLetâs go home,â I saidâan idea had come to me. âYouand Thomas talked about taking a camping trip down atyour lake house on your first spring break, right?â
He narrowed his eyes at me. âYou know very well thatâsnot going to happen anymore.â
âWell, you were doing what Thomas was supposed to bedoingâŚprotecting me. Let me do what heâs supposed to bedoing with you. Iâll go with you instead.â
âOne wh0le week with you? Wow! Iâd rather be under thesame roof as my father!â
âLie!â I snorted. I knew that Travis hated nothing morethan being in the same room as his father.
âNevertheless, itâs supposed to be a guy thing,princess,â he said. âWe were planning to take a hike in thewoods and go camping. YouâreâŚtoo delicate for that!â
âOf course not! Iâm not so fragile, you know.â
âBut thatâs how I see you. And if you camp with me, Iâllbe paranoid about your safetyâit will be far too distracting,âhe said.
I sighed. âAll right. I get your point. I was justâŚoffering.â
âThanks, but no thanks,â he said. âAnd I plan to stay asfar away from my father as possible.â
âReally, Travis, I do not understand why you hate him somuch.â
âWe didnât not see each other for months only to talkabout my dad the first time we see each other again, right?â
I laughed. âYou gotta talk about him some day, youknow.â
He sighed. âI know. But donât hold your breath. Itâs notgoing to happen this year.â
I smiled at him. âSo, what about you? Any girlfriends?Serious relationshÂĄps?â
He looked at me for a while and then he said, âHow can Ihope to have a serious relationshÂĄp? My fate is tied to yours,remember?â
I raised a brow at him.
âIâm good at keeping my promises, cherie. Sure youknow that by now. I wonât break my promise to be yoursafety guy. So, only after you tie the knot with another guy could I even hope to start finding someone I will have heirswith.â
Now I felt guilty. I was keeping Travis from finding hisown happiness.
âTravisâŚâ I started.
âSave it,â he cut me off. âI donât mind. In fact, until youasked me to be your safety guy, I didnât think I would getmarried at all.â
âThanks! That makes me feel loads better,â I said. I tooka deep breath and gave him a serious look. âEven if it wasjust a favor, TravisâŚI hope you smile a lot at our wedding,okay?â
He was taken aback by what I said. And then, as ifsomething in,side him softened, he reached forward andtouched his palm to my cheek. âIâm pretty sure it wonât endlike that, Brianne. Iâm almost sure you will be married to aman who is head-over-heels in love with youâŚbefore youârethirty-one. A lot of guys would be lucky to have you.â
I turned away from him and thought for a while. I surehoped he was right. I was glad I was safe from my familyâscurse, but a bigger part of me wanted the real thing, too. Istared back at Travisâs handsome face, then I raised myglass to him and said, âToast to that!â
He smiled and touched the bottle of his drink to myglass.
Sarah sent me a text message.
Iâll go ahead. Looks like youâre taken care of! Details! Iwant every little bit of it!
I smiled. I could just as well have been the luckiest girlwithin a mile radius. Travis looked a lot hotter than the lasttime I saw him. Heâd grown taller, and his muscles and abswere well-toned. His face matured, but only just a little bit.
At first glance, heâd grown colder. But when he looked atme, I could still see the boy who used to pull my hair andmake me cry a lot when we were eleven years old.
Looking at his abs, a memory threatened to come to my consciousness, but I immediately shut it out. I was notallowed to do that. I couldnât allow that memory to taint theway I saw Travis. He was dear to me. He always would be.And I couldnât allow myself to think of him as somethingelseâŚeven if that night was probably the most rom-nticnight of my life.
âSo, do you have plans tonight?â he asked.
I shook my head.
âLetâs have dinner. We have a lot to catch up on.â
âYou honestly mean to say you donât check up on mewithout my knowledge, Travis Cross?â I teased.
He gave me one hĂŚrd, guilty look. Then he turned away.
âStill, hearing from you is a lot better.â
My eyes wÂĄdened. I was just joking. I couldnât actuallybelieve that I was right. âI donât believe this!â I glared athim. âTravis James Cross!â
He raised a brow. âI told you Iâm good at keepingpromises. I had to make sure youâre safeâŚall the time.â
He stood up and paid our bill. He waved at the waiterand then he took my hand in his. I refused to budge.
âSo, just exactly how do you do that? Do you stationbodyguards around me? Undercover agents?â
He narrowed his eyes. âDonât be silly.â
âThen how? How do you check up on me without askingmeâŚwithout me knowing you are?â
He sighed. âLetâs just say that the head of security atyour university and your dorm are good friends of mine now.I just told them to keep a special eye on you, make sureyouâre safe, and to call me if something seems just a littlebit off.â He held his hand out and motioned for me to walkahead of him.
I walked toward the locker rooms and then turned tohim. âIâm going into the locker room. Do you have securitycameras all over the place as well?â
He raised his face toward the sky. âOh, God! Youâre stillthe same difficultâŚcomplicated girl!â
âAnd youâre still the same paranoid guy! Why?â
âBecauseâŚâ he trailed off.
âBecause youâre good at keeping your promises?â
He took a deep breath. âThat. And some other things.â
âLike what?â I continued glaring at him.
He sighed in defeat. âBecause I donât want to lose whatâsleft of what I love.â
I was taken aback. I stared back at him. He reached outand touched my cheek with his palm. âYou know you andTom were the only ones I had for a very long time. I wasalone for more than half of my life. That makes it easy togrow up ruthlessâŚcold. You and Tom were my family. ButTomâs gone, too. And nowâŚitâs just you.â He shook his headand smiled ruefully. âCan you imagine what kind of person
Iâd be if I were to lose you, too?â
I bit my lip to keep myself from crying. I couldnât sayanything. So instead, I reached forward and gave Travis ahug. He hugged me back.
âSo donât go and die on me, too, okay?â he whispered.
I shook my head. I pulled away from him gently.
âCouldnât you just pick up the phone and ask me if I wasdoing okay?â
âI can easily do that,â he replied. âAfter all, if you pick upthe phone, I can automatically say youâre safe, right? Itâs thetimes I canât be there that I worry about.â
âIâll be fine, Travis,â I said. I smiled at him. âIâll fight tohelp you keep your promise to my brother.â
âGood! So now that you know my one weakness, howmuch do I have to pay to keep you silent about it? For amoment there, I felt like such a weakling!â
I laughed. âNo, Travis! You just became human to me!â
When I came out of the locker room wearing a pair ofshorts and a shirt over my swimsuit, I found Travis waitingfor me just outside.
âWhere do you want to go?â he asked.
âHome,â I replied. âAt least to take a shower and tochange into decent clothing.â
âWhy? Whatâs wrong with what youâre wearing?â heteased. âYouâre making a good first impression on the guysright now.â
I raised a brow at him. âNo, I prefer to repel boys bygiving an impression that Iâm a smart, boring, and prudentV-rgin,â I said dryly.
He looked at me pointedly. âI beg to disagree with atleast two of the words you just said there.â
âThe smart and prudent ones?â
âActually the boring andâŚV-rgin ones.â He stared at mewith a serious expression on his face. âI have it on goodauthority that you are not either of those things.â
My face turned beet red. I stood there open-mouthed.
When he turned to me again, he wasnât smiling, but his eyeswere somewhat dancing. I could tell he was teasing me.
âSo, do you want to drive?â he finally asked.
I snatched the keys from him and walked toward the exitas fast as I could. Damn! That guy knew how to stir upunfamiliar and unwanted emotions from me. Was it notenough that he could already read me like a book?
When we came out to the parking lot, I discovered thatTravis was driving a new, sleek red Ferrari. I gulped, andthen I handed him his keys back.
âWhy?â
âIâm not sure I could afford to pay you back if I dentedyour car.â
âItâs fully insured,â he countered. âAnd please! Have Iever taken money from you?â
I shook my head. âYou drive. Just drive especially slow.â
He gave me an amused expression and then took thekeys from me.
I didnât have to tell Travis where I lived; he knew exactlywhere it was. He parked in front of my building. I was about to open the door, but he was quick to come out and openthe door for me.
âFor a cold, ruthless guy, youâre such a gentleman,â Iteased him. âI pity the girls who fancy seeing themselvesmarching down the aisle with you.â
âIâm pretty sure they will be disappointed. Iâve alreadypromised somebody Iâll wait at the altar for her.â
âIf only to save her from humiliation,â I said.
He nodded. âSo do a better job at finding your PrinceCharming. You deserve better than having a cold, heartlessman as your groom.â
âYouâre not heartless, Trav.â
âAhhâŚmany would actually disagree with you.â
âThey donât know you better than I do,â I said, gatheringmy bag. I headed toward the building. Then I turned to him.
âFifteen minutes.â
He leaned on his car and nodded.
I took the stairs to my room. When I opened the door,Sarah was already there. Her face brightened when she sawme.
âOh my God, oh my God!â she scre-med. âWho is thathottie you were with? What happened?â
I put my bags on my bed and took off my shirt.
âThatâs Travis Cross.â
âWho is he? Did he drive you back?â Sarah asked.
âYes. I need to take a quick shower and change intosomething decent. Heâs waiting for me.â
Sarah immediately ran to the window to peek. âHolyCrap! He drives a Ferrari?â She turned to me accusingly.
âWho is this guy and how long have you been seeing eachother?â
âWeâre not seeing each other,â I replied, wrappingmyself in a towel. âHeâsâŚI mean, was, my brotherâs bestfriend.â
I took a shower as quickly as I could. When I came out,Sarah was waiting by the door to ambush me.
âDoes he go to our school?â
I shook my head. âHe goes to Yale.â
âSo, are you, like, hooking up?â
âHell no!â I answered quickly. âWeâreâŚthe dearest offriends. Like family. And you know what they say about nothooking up with your buddyâs sister, mother, or exes?â Ireminded myself briefly that Travis had done that oncealready, but I knew it almost didnât count, since I asked himto do it as if he didnât have a choice. And we agreed to
forget that night ever happened at all.
âHe isâŚvery handsome, Bry,â Sarah said. âIâm sojealous!â
âDonât be,â I said. âWeâre not dating, nor will we everdate!â
âSo does that mean heâsâŚfree?â
âFor you?â I asked. When she didnât answer, I said, âNo.Donât even think about it. He may look like the epitome ofgraceâŚbut Travis Cross isâŚa devil in angelâs skin. Heâllbreak your heart.â
âReally? He looked like heâd go to hell and back for you,â
she protested.
âHe will,â I said. âBut only because he promised mybrother he would look after me for as long as he lives.â
Her eyes wÂĄdened. âWow!â she breathed. âHow lucky canyou be?â
I raised my brow at her. âNot very lucky, apparently.Because I had to lose my brother in exchange for having ahot guy like that protecting me and looking out for me.â
Sarah bit her lip. âIâm sorry, Bry. I was insensitive,â shesaid.
I smiled. âItâs okay. But thatâs the reality, really. Travisâsfate and mineâŚwere involuntarily intertwined at the demiseof my beloved big brother. We were the only family he knew.I lost my family the day lost my brother. So, it seems likeâŚitâs just the two of us now.â
Sarah sighed. âBut stillâŚwow!â
I laughed at her. âI canât believe you! But then again,thatâs not an uncommon reaction toward Travis Cross.âI took my bag and then headed toward the door.
âWill you be home tonight?â
âOf course, albeit quite late,â I replied.
âHave fun!â
Before I left, I turned toward Sarah again. âAnd, Sarah,you know that safety guy I was telling you I have?âShe nodded.
âWell, thatâs Travis Cross,â I said. Then I turned away,leaving Sarah dumbfounded with her mouth hanging open.