A Penny's Worth (The Cephas Bourdon Series) Read Online Free PDF Page B

so near? I didn’t even know this guy!
    “Right now, you have my undivided attentio n. I’m sorry I upset you,” he whispered. His voice sounded sincere . I could feel quick breath on my face. He took a step closer to me, but I instinctively stepped backward. Some branches and leaves crunched beneath a pair of fast — approaching feet and I tore my hand away, but not before I saw Cephas’ eyes cloud with something akin to disappointment. No — I must have misread his expression. I looked nervously toward the br anch I had ducked under earlier. Chase appeared in the opening in the trees.
    “What’s going on here?” Chase asked accusingly. I walked quickly over to my boyfriend, whose anger level seemed to rise instantly.
    “Nothing, Chase. Cephas was just wandering around and got here right before you.” I looked up into Chase’s face and dared him to question me. He nodded easily and looked toward Cephas.
    “Come on, man. Sorry I freaked. No biggy. I think they’re about to roast marshmallows over there.” Chase beckoned to Cephas, pulling me along by the hand. I followed obediently and Cephas walked cautiously behind us. His heavy breathing was still audible, though it was beginning to slow. We emerged from the trees and Cephas instantly diverged over toward the group by the fire.
    “You don’t ever wander off into the forest by yourself, ya hear?” Chase chastised me, his hand roughly gripping my face. He released me and turned towards the fire, a scowl morphing automatically into a smile as a team mate threw him a football. He jogged towards his friends and I rolled my eyes as I looked around for Marian.
    “Hey, girl! Where you been?” Marian’s buoyant face appeared a few feet away. “C’mon. Let’s go make some s’mores .
     
    Chapter 3
    Music blared out the open window from the upstairs room. An upbeat tune sounded through the entire house. Standing in front of a full length mirror in my room, I pulled my hair into a high ponytail. I danced, or rather, twirled, across the room to my dresser where I grabbed a pair of shorts and a fitted shirt. Hurrying for the honking horn downstairs, I slipped the clothes over my swim suit and grabbed a pair of sandals. I raced down the front steps and waved to my dad.
    “I forgot to turn off my music, Daddy!” I shouted from the door, as if he couldn’t hear it blaring after me. A smile spread across my face to greet Chase while I pulled myself up into the large pickup.
    “Hey, baby,” he smiled back.
    “These step bars are really helpful,” I commented happily. Even at my height of five foot eight, I had a hard time lifting myself up into the high truck. The black paint gleamed in the sun as we spun out of the driveway and moved quickly on the freshly paved r oad. We pulled onto the highway. Flathead Lake was only a two minute drive from my house.
    “So are you excited for the game next week?” I asked, pulling down the mirror to check my makeup.
    “Yeah, it should be a good one . T he Bulldog’s Center is no match for me,” Chase replied. His right hand rested on the top of the steering wheel, the other hanging out the window. He beat his hand on the outside of the truck to the music that blared from the radio.
    “What about the guard, though? Isn't he pretty good?” I asked, flipping the visor back into place.
    “Yeah, but now we've got Cephas. He'll take down anyone.” A smile crossed his face, glorying in the fact that he had picked Cephas. Cephas must be really good . M aybe he came to play for the team because his home team was no good, and he wanted to make it big in basketball. Regardless, he didn't seem preoccupied with typical high school activities. He obviously attended them, though. I wondered briefly if he would be at the lake.
    Chase turned up the volume knob, so I looked out the window. We passed by multiple cherry orchards, though they weren't yet in bloom. Hundreds of five foot trees lined the yards bordering the lake. April