Chasing Xaris Read Online Free PDF Page B

over the last two years.
    “He’s incorrigible,” Winnie said, standing up from her desk.
    I nodded numbly and listened as Winnie talked about her online store during the walk to our lockers. Once we parted ways, I hurried to Jordan’s locker. But he had already disappeared. I didn’t see him during the next two class breaks either. So much waiting.
    When lunch finally came, I made a beeline for the school’s inner courtyard, an oblong circle lined by queen palms and filled with picnic tables. Jordan was sitting by himself at one of the tables.
    My stomach fluttered as I neared him, and I took a deep breath to steady myself.
    “Hey,” I said.
    In one motion, Jordan shut a textbook and jumped to his feet. “Miss Bloom,” he said.
    “Mr. Lane,” I said, and pointed to the textbook. “Studying?”
    Jordan gave me a sly smile. “Maybe.”
    “When did you get all studious and college-bound?”
    He scooped up his textbook and dropped it in his backpack. “Yeah, right. Can you picture me at college?”
    “Dude, if I can swing college, so can you.”
    Jordan shrugged. “My brother asked me to hang around next year after graduation and help with his surf school. I’ll probably do that.”
    “You want to?”
    “It sounds okay.”
    “But is it what you really want?”
    Jordan studied me. “Have you asked yourself that question?”
    “What do you mean?” I asked.
    “Are you still going to UF because Gramps says so?”
    My cheeks warmed. “That’s none of your business,” I said, louder than I meant to.
    Jordan’s eyes flickered. He shook his head and tossed his backpack over his shoulder.
    “You’re right, Chandler. I guess it’s not anymore.” He turned and strode away without looking back.
    I wanted to call out to him, but instead I sank onto the table’s bench and stared at my shaking hands. What was happening to me? I hadn’t felt this weak in months.
    I inhaled and exhaled deeply. Yes, I needed to breathe. In and out. And bit by bit, the aching dimmed.
    I had to apologize to Jordan. Of course my life was his business. Maybe we didn’t hang out anymore, but we still cared about each other. At least I thought we did.
    Without warning, I remembered our first kiss. Our only kiss. We’d both had epic surf sessions, and we’d been standing on the beach, not saying a word, just gazing out at the blue lines of sky and sea. He’d boldly stepped in front of me and slipped his arms around my waist.
    His hold had been firm, but his eyes had been gentle. His cocky grin had completely disappeared. He’d raised an eyebrow in question, and I’d nodded, my heart racing, my whole body pulsing. And then he’d kissed me for a long, long time.
    I’d savored every second of it—the sunlight, the salt water, the sensation of his lips caressing mine. He’d smelled like sand and sunblock and that day had been glorious. But exactly one week later, my parents had died.
    Jordan had brought up our kiss only once since then, a few months after the funeral. I’d snapped at him then. Sort of like I just did.
    I exhaled slowly. It wasn’t Jordan’s fault I had become all prickly around him. But he had a way of coming too close. He wasn’t like other guys—he wouldn’t just talk about the surf. He loved getting into life stuff, asking tons of questions and expecting honest answers.
    Before the accident, I’d loved that about Jordan. Most of the time. If I’d had one of my rare fights with Mom, Jordan had always found out. I had never wanted to talk about it with him, but then, I’d always felt better after I had.
    I couldn’t talk like that now, though. Not with everything that had happened. But I could apologize for snapping at him again. Jordan deserved that much.
    I headed back into school, but he had disappeared. I didn’t see him again the rest of the afternoon—which probably wasn’t a coincidence.
    After school, I changed into my swimsuit, grabbed a baggie full of cookies, and hopped onto my bike. If