Chapter 4

Jenica

Ellery strolls out of the bathroom and makes her way over to the door, studying her reflection in the full-length mirror attached to the back. "What do you think?"

"I think Cruz is going to lose his shit," I shake my head with a laugh. "And you're definitely going to get some tomorrow night, that's for sure."

She looks over her shoulder at me and winks. "I get some every night my friend."

"Yeah," I roll my eyes, "I'm aware."

Cruz and Ellery can't keep their hands off each other. They're smitten in a way that's both nauseating and adorable.

"So," she spins around, hands on her hips. "The costume…do you like it?"

I push up from the bed, stomach growling. I hope the guys get back with that pizza soon. I haven't eaten since this morning before my shift at the store, and I'm starving.

"When did costumes go from scary to slut?" I look her up and down, taking in what little there is of the outfit.

"Hey," she laughs, hitting me with one of the pom poms she's holding.

"I wasn't calling you a slut," I roll my eyes. "I mean, obviously. You're the furthest thing from it." She and Cruz may be a couple of freaks, but Ellery didn't sleep around. Cruz was her first, and he'll be her last. "I just meant everything is sexy these days. Nurse, witch, pirate…doesn't matter, as long as it leaves nothing to the imagination."

She turns her attention back to the mirror, nodding in agreement; the costume staring back at us, hitting that point on the head.

Sure, cheerleading uniforms are known to have short skirts, but this one doesn't even hit the bottom of her butt. And the top…no chance in hell any school would let it fly. The white sports-bra style top has a deep v and two thick straps that run up and over each shoulder, and that's it. It wouldn't hold up under a toe-touch, let alone a basket toss.

I had to hand it to my bestie, though. She's got both the body and balls to wear it. Me on the other hand? Sure, I've got the confidence, but I don't have a tenth of the curves. When I wear it, nothing is going to fall out of that top, even if I bend over.

"It's hot, Ells," I flash her a thumbs up. "Good thing it comes with bloomers, though."

She smiles at me mischievously. "The skirt is wicked short, isn't it?"

Ellery once told me Cruz's biggest weakness was skirts. The shorter the better. And the one she's wearing right now certainly checks that box. She loves to drive him crazy, and he will eat her up in that skirt tomorrow night.

"And the rest?" She flicks her eyes to me.

If it were anyone else, I'd think they were trying hard to prove something. But not Ellery. That's not why she chose the costume. The part that isn't sexy—blood splatters on the top, and clumps of brain on the skirt—is an homage to our shared love of horror, and for that reason alone, she nailed it.

"It's perfect, Ells. Really."

"Yay," she claps excitedly. "I'm so glad you like it because yours is exactly the same. It's in the closet if you want to try it on. I stashed them in here to keep them away from prying eyes."

I make my way over to the still open closet door and grab the garment bag hanging in the center. Pulling the zipper down, I look inside, and sure enough it matches the one she's wearing.

"My Bloody Valentine," I shake my head. "What were those douchey frat boys thinking?"

"I know exactly what they were thinking," she grins. "Sorority girls dressed in costumes, playing out their every fantasy."

I look over at my blonde bombshell of a best friend. She is literally every guy's fantasy. "Well, they'll get that with you, my friend. The big boobed, bodacious girl in the woods running from the killer."

"And you?" she laughs.

"Oh you know," I shrug. "The surly side character that has no story."

She rolls her eyes at my trademark snark. "More like the hot best friend that thinks she's not important but is the most special of all."

"Good God." I hang the garment bag back up in the closet. "You make me sound like some loser in one of those lame afterschool specials."

"Hey," she laughs. "That's my best friend you're talking about."

"Yeah, which gives me the right to talk shit about her."

She shakes her head at me and laughs again, then turns her attention back to the mirror. "Well, say what you will, but I know one person whose jaw is going to hit the floor when he sees you wearing that tomorrow night."

"Oh yeah?" I zip up the garment bag and return it to the closet, then make my way back over to where she's standing. "And who would that be?"

"Jake," she says simply.

"Has the Northeast winter frozen your brain, McFly" I ask, pretending to knock on her head.

"My brain, and my eyesight are perfectly fine." She pulls her head away with a laugh. "In fact, I not only felt that sexual tension between you two earlier but saw it."

"Um, you didn't see anything. As for what you felt, perhaps that was Cruz's hard-on as you two practically fucked on the floor in front of us."

"We were not," Ellery grins.

"Yes," I nod, "you were."

"No," she insists, "we weren't because we already did before we came home."

I shake my head and laugh. Ellery and Cruz were forever, no doubt about it. When he made it to the majors, she'd never have to worry about groupies tempting him because he only had eyes for her. A guy like Jake on the other hand…the road would be his playground. If Highland were a sea of girls, the country would be his ocean.

That's why we were cool with the status quo. He had his life, and I had mine. No muss, no fuss. Fooling around was easy. There was no commitment or drama. All we had between us were three rules.

The first, no sex. It would only complicate things. With Jake being Cruz's best friend, and Ellery mine, we would be in each other's lives forever. It wasn't worth a lifetime of discomfort if things between us ended badly. Taking sex off the table made sure there was no us. If there was no us, there could be no ending. Simple.

Second rule, trips around the bases end at third. While we agreed no sex, fooling around was firmly on the table. But I didn't do blowjobs. The idea of a sweaty ball sack near my mouth made me gag. What guys did with their mouths was their prerogative, but me….nope. Not going down on anyone unless they've showered and cleaned their taint, and in my experience, guys were way too impatient for that.

And third, what we did stayed a secret. There was no reason to get our friends excited about something that was never going to happen. We could be Uncle Jake and Aunt Jenica without everyone knowing we used to hook up in college.

"Jen?" Ellery says my name.

My eyes whip up and meet hers in the mirror's reflection. "Yeah?"

"Where'd you go just now?"

"No where."

"Uh-huh." The way she says it, tells me she believes that about as much as she does Elvis is still alive.

"Well, if you must know," I take a dramatic breath and let it out slowly, "I was thinking about how I hate to disappoint you."

"Disappoint me?" she repeats. "About what?"

"Having to tell you there is not, nor will there ever be, anything going on with Jake and I because as I've said probably a hundred times before, we're just friends."

"He could be more," she smiles suggestively. "I mean, the fact he is a friend, speaks volumes."

I cross my arms, knowing I am going to regret this. "Meaning?"

"Meaning, you don't friend easily. And you two have more in common than you want to admit."

She's right, I don't friend easily. I don't trust easily or let people in. Being born and raised in a town like Cherry Cove, you learn early not to trust anyone further than you can throw them. Except for family. Family, I would do anything to protect.

Ellery had been the exception to this rule. The moment I met her I knew I could trust her and because I did, that meant Cruz as well. I made another exception to my rule with Jake, but he'd earned it after all the shit that went down last summer. The four of us were like family and I would do anything for them.

"Well," she drawls, "I hate to burst your bubble, but the fact you came here a day early when you thought trouble was brewing and didn't call me, your best friend, but him, your friend," she air quotes, "tells me you think of him as more than that."

Again, she's got me. I did call Jake and not her when I changed my flight after learning about the body that washed onto shore back in Cherry Cove, but there was a reason. The same one that had me calling him in the middle of the night when the ring of gunshot reverberated in my dreams.

I felt safe with Jake. He was patient and kind and let me feel all the things I did as I went through the stages one might go through after killing a person. He saw me stripped down to my core, with nothing but shock and fear in my veins, and he didn't run. He stayed with me that first night, and every night after, sleeping on the couch in his room so I would know that I was safe. And it was through his steadfastness I found myself confiding in him, the things I could not tell my best friend.

It wasn't that I didn't think Ellery would understand what I was feeling. It was that she too had scars from that night that ran bone deep. If I were having a hard time processing everything that happened, I could only imagine what she was going through. I couldn't put my shit on her, so Jake told me to put it on him, and I did.

Then, when I needed to feel something other than fear, I let him in and he gave me that too. He kissed me the way he did that night at the cave, making the world fall away, and when he touched me I didn't feel numb anymore. I felt alive again and I needed that—I needed him. Just like I did today when the idea of the past coming back to haunt us came knocking.

"Come on, Jen," Ellery sighs, pulling me from the thought. "You like him. I know you do. You just don't want to admit it."

"Oh really, Phil Donahue? And why is that?"

"Because he doesn't fit your rule," she says, matching my stance. "Your whole, I only date rockstars thing. But you know, sometimes you can't help it. Sometimes, who we are drawn to is totally out of our control. And you could do a lot worse than Jake. I mean, he's gorgeous, smart, nice, and has one hell of a career ahead of him."

"Okay," I hold up my hands. "You got me. I like him." Her eyes widen but I continue before she can spin into the ether. "As a friend," I say with emphasis.

"Oh, come on Jen. It's me," she whines. "I've watched you two dance around one another for months. Not to mention, your chemistry is off the charts. So just admit you like him and put me out of my misery already."

"I can't tell you something that's not true," I shrug. "We're friends, nothing more. Sorry."

"But why?" She stomps her foot like a child. "You two are practically made for each other. Just like Cruz and I."

"Listen Miss Happily Ever After. You and Cruz are different. You fell for each other long before he was going to be a star."

"Not true," she shakes her head. "Baseball was his first love. It has always been a part of his life."

"That may be," I nod. "But you are the love of his life. He was never just a ballplayer. He was always yours."

"Always a ball player," she leans in and winks. "Sound familiar?"

I look away, avoiding that look in her eyes. I don't want to go down that road of irony. "I don't know what you're talking about, Ms. Butler?"

"Have you ever considered that connection you and Jake have is—"

"No," I cut her off, knowing what she's about to say. "So drop it, okay? Guys like Jake and girls like me, we don't fit. End of story."

"And why is that?" She tilts her head, narrowing her eyes. "And don't tell me some bullshit like where you're from because newsflash, that town is in my blood, too."

She may have been born into Elmhurst society, but her birth father was from Cherry Cove. The same tough as nails, take no shit attitude that I'd been born with, so too, had she. But she didn't grow up there. She had a charmed life, and mine was anything but.

"It's not about where I come from," I sigh. "It's because he is going to be a star and the three of you are going to be part of a world that I just don't fit into."

"But you do fit." She reaches for my hand and squeezes. "The four of us are family. You're already a part of our world. Not to mention one day you will run it because your buildings will grace the cover of Architectural Digest ."

I hold her hand tightly, wanting that more than anything. "Do you think so?"

"I know so." She turns and looks at us in the mirror. "You are Jenica Dawn Miller, damn it, and the world will be your oyster. Just you wait."

"I don't need the fame." I let go of her hand dejectedly, to sit down on the bed. "Just the fortune."

She chews her lower lip, and I know what she's thinking. "No," I shake my head before she can say a word.

"How do you even know what I was going to say?" she counters.

"Because I know you and I know you want to help me, but the answer is no. I love you, but I'm not taking money from you."

"But you wouldn't be taking it from me." She comes over and sits down next to me. "You'd be taking from the Trust, which as you know, is about to have a whole philanthropic arm whose mission is to help communities in need."

If the Davenport Trust had to fall into anyone's hands, I'm glad it was hers. The world needs more people like Ellery Magnolia Butler. Forces of nature with not only the desire to help, but the drive to do so.

Her plans for the Trust that had spent generations taking from Cherry Cove and lining Elmhurst's coffers were inspiring. I just didn't want to be my best friend's charity case.

"Sorry babe," I shake my head. "I get there on my own, or not at all. But don't you worry," I add breezily. "I'm determined. I'll be done with DCC and Cherry Cove in two years, come hell or high water. Until then, we live it up on the weekends we get to spend together."

She exhales and looks down. Ellery wants to help me, and I love her for it. But she also knows when I've dug my heels in on something, that's it. I'm not budging.

"What's wrong?" I ask when she falls suspiciously quiet.

Crossing one leg over the other, she squares her shoulders and faces me. "What's going to happen when the guys get drafted?"

"What do you mean?" I shake my head.

"The scouts are already calling and with their season starting next week, it's only a matter of time until one or both gets picked up."

"That's good," I nod with encouragement. I know it was always Jake's dream to play for the Mets and Cruz the Yankees. "So what's the problem?"

"Well…" She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "No matter where Cruz gets picked up I'll go with him. I mean, I'll stay here to finish the semester, but as soon as I'm done, I'll transfer wherever he is. Depending on Marcus and Jake, I'll keep this place until they're settled, but once it's empty, I'll either sell or rent it."

"Okay…" I drawl. "And?"

The way she's chewing on the inside of her cheek tells me there's something else on her mind, and it isn't real estate.

"Hey," I place my hand on her knee. "I feel like you're trying to say something that you either can't or don't want to say. Whatever it is, just say it."

She looks at me carefully. "Earlier, you told me you wouldn't be able to come up next month because of what it cost you to change your ticket this morning. I guess it didn't dawn on me until just now, that if the guys do get picked up soon, and you aren't able to visit again until April, then this could be our last weekend here…all of us together."

The idea of my weekends here coming to an end makes the muscles in my chest constrict. After everything we went through last summer, this place has been my safety; the people that call it home, my family. We've had some good times here, and I know nothing lasts forever, but I wasn't ready to lose this place, or the four of us just yet.

"Well," I swallow, not wanting to admit about how the idea of these weekends coming to an end makes me feel. "Then I guess we better party this weekend like it's 1999, right?"

She flashes me a smile and throws her arms around me. "I love you, Jen."

"I love you right back, Elle."

She squeezes me tight, then pulls back. "Man," I click my tongue, while shaking my head, "you are boobalicious in that outfit, my friend."

"Me," she snorts. "You're the one that's going to kill it with those amazing legs and ass. And it's a good thing too because there will be a lot of girls dressed to impress."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that," I laugh. "Cruz's eyes are always only on you."

"I wasn't talking about him." She pushes up from the bed and makes her way over to the high dresser on the other side of the room."I was talking about Jake."

"God," I groan and fall back on the bed, fanning my arms out. "Not this again."

"Hey," she yanks open the top drawer. "I'm sure there are a lot of girls anxious to get a ride on that horse before he leaves."

Jake and I may talk every night, but I don't ask about his love life, and he doesn't ask about mine. Still, I can't deny the way her suggestion makes my cheeks warm.

"Is he still the myth, the man, the legend?" I ask as casually as I can, trying not to sound too curious.

"I knew it!" She slams the drawer shut and spins around. "You do like him."

I push up from the bed and make my way over to where she's standing. "Okay, you got me. I like him. In fact, I am crazy about him. I can't wait until he goes pro so I can put his poster on the wall above my bed and dream about having his babies. Is that what you want to hear?"

"Here." She sticks her hand out, with a roll of her eyes. "I got you something."

"What's that?" I look down and see a black velvet box in her hand.

"It's for you."

"Elle," I shake my head.

"Oh, just take it." She thrusts the box in my hand and after staring at her for a moment, nods for me to open it.

"They're friendship necklaces," she explains when I open the box and find a gold round pendant divided into halves, each engraved with the first letter of our names."

I look up and swallow, throat thick with tears.

"If you think they're dumb, we can—"

"I love them," I cut her off.

"Are you sure?" she asks hesitantly.

I throw my arms around her and give her another hug. "I couldn't love anything more."

We stand there holding onto one another as if we're afraid to let go. "No matter what happens," she whispers, "you're stuck with me for life, Jen. The day we met you didn't just heal my heart. You became a part of it."

Her words reach into my chest and squeeze my heart. I never expected our friendship, but now that it is a part of my life, I can't imagine ever being without it.

"And to answer your question," she adds, "he doesn't party the way he used to and he hasn't brought anyone home. But that won't last. He's a catch, Jen, and guys like him don't stay single forever."

The relief I feel when she confirms Jake hasn't been with anyone is surprising. But her comment about him not being single forever ….well, I don't know how that makes me feel.

"Turn around," I clear my throat.

She does as I ask, and with her back turned to me, I grab the piece with the first letter of my name engraved on it, set the box down on the bed and bring the necklace up and over her head, and fasten the clasp. When done, she turns back around and takes the other piece out of the box and does the same to me.

"They look good," she smiles with approval as we stand there facing one another.

"Hell yeah they do," I smile back at her in agreement.

Before we turn into a couple of blubbering idiots, I reach for the Magic 8 Ball on top of her dresser. "What do you say we give it a shake for the weekend?"

She swipes a finger under her eye and nods. "Make it a good one."

I close my eyes and think of a question, then shake the ball like a snow globe. When I open my eyes and look down, I frown when I see the results— Reply hazy, try again.

"What was the question?" She eyes me curiously.

"Nothing." I set it back down on the dresser, and hear the door downstairs open then close, followed by Cruz's voice shouting up the stairs that he and Jake are back. "Come on," I nod to the door. "Let's eat. I'm starving."

She doesn't need to know I asked that dumb ball if I should just admit to myself that a part of me is interested in Jake. Something tells me if she did, she'd have a custom one made with only one answer—yes.