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“Your mom said you can’t swim until after you unpack your room,” I remind him, not wanting him to get into trouble.
“And I reminded her we pay movers to do that.” He slips off his flip flops. “Don’t suppose you know anything about the boys’ school here, do you?”
I shake my head, squinting up at him. The sun is in my eyes. “The sisters keep the girls’ and boys’ schools strictly separate.” The school I go to, Notre Dame Academy, has two buildings on the same grounds, one for boys and one for girls. The property is several acres large, so it’s not hard to keep the two schools divided.
“That’s too bad,” he says.
“I like it,” I say.
He looks me over. “You’re twelve. Wait until you’re my age.” He walks to the edge of the pool and dips a toe into the water to test the temperature.
“Because you’re such an adult?” comes a low voice from behind us.
I spin around, startled, and for a split second, it’slike everything goes quiet around me, like time stops for that tiny little moment.
It’s the boy with the turquoise eyes.
Ethan groans and turns to face him. Up close, I can see the right one is more blue than green and the left one is the opposite.
This boy is definitely older than Ethan. Being just a few feet from him, I can see the little bit of stubble on his jaw and the lean muscle in his arms. My stomach flutters like it does when I’m nervous or anxious.
He glances at me and raises his eyebrows. I’m staring and just being weird. I blink, close my mouth and look away.
“Shouldn’t you get to work with the rest of them?” Ethan asks him, stepping right up to him in a way that tells me they don’t like each other very much.
The older boy looms closer, towering over Ethan. “You mean the rest of the help?”
Ethan shrugs a shoulder. “You said it, not me.”
“Useless piece of…” he mutters the last part under his breath and turns to me, but I can guess what he says. He looks me up and down. I don’t even know him, and I get the feeling he’s angry even with me. “Where are your binoculars?” he asks.
So, he did see me. I feel my face heat up, and my mouth feels like I swallowed sand.
“What binoculars?” Ethan asks.
The older boy grins, then turns to Ethan and ruffles his hair. “Don’t tax your brain with more infothan it needs, kid. Space is limited as it is.” He looks at me. “What’s your name?”
“O,” I start but have to clear my throat. “Ophelia. Ophelia Hart.” My heart thuds against my chest and I rush to correct myself. I’m not sure why I gave him my full name. “But everyone calls me Phee.” Not knowing what to do, I hold out my hand to shake his. He just looks at it, eyebrows furrowing in confusion or amusement, and I’m sure my face is red as a beet now.
“Do they? Well, Ophelia Hart, careful with those binoculars. Some things are better left unknown.”
Confused, I want to ask him what he means, but I can’t find my voice.
He eyes the tin I’m holding. “Aren’t you going to offer me a cookie?” he asks, tone taunting.
“Oh,” I croak. “Would you like?—”
“You don’t have to offer him shit,” Ethan says, snatching the tin from me. “Don’t want to givethe helpthe wrong impression.”
“Is that right?” the older boy says, stepping right up to Ethan, taking a cookie, and shoving it into his mouth whole. He chews, swallows, then grins. “They’re good. Mom will like them. I’ll take them back to her. Not like Mira’s going to eat them.”
“Just try it,” Ethan says.
“All right,” the older boy says and before I even know what’s happening, he takes the tin from Ethan, and with a little shove, knocks Ethan into the pool.
Shocked, all I can do is stand there with my mouthgaping and watch Ethan go under, flail for a moment, then pop back up.
“You fucking asshole!” Ethan yells. I take off my glasses to wipe away the water, but my dress is soaked from the splash, so I just end up smearing it. Mrs. Fox comes running out of the house, her high heels digging into the lawn. The older boy just turns toward her, nods his greeting, and shoves another cookie into his mouth, taking the whole tin with him as he turns his back and walks away.
