“So, Jace is a musician?” I asked.
Cade shrugged. “He plays guitar and sings, but he’s really an artist.”
“Really?” My eyes widened in surprise as I thought of the blond haired, tattooed guy. “An artist?”
“Yeah,” Thea piped in, “he does these amazing pen and ink drawings. He’s really talented. He even does sculptures.”
“Wow,” I gasped in awe. “I had no idea.”
“He does tattoos too—draws them, I mean,” she added. “All the ones he has he designed himself.”
“That’s really cool.” I meant it too. While I was into photography—which was obviously creative—I’d never known someone that was an artist the way Jace was.
“Yeah,” she agreed. “I’m thinking of having him design a tattoo for me. I haven’t decided what I want yet, though.”
“It should be something important.”
“Do you have any?” She asked me.
“No,” I laughed, shaking my head.
“Cade does,” she grinned. “Jace designed that one too and our parent’s were livid when they saw it.”
“You have a tattoo?” I gasped. “Can I see it?” The words tumbled from my mouth and my cheeks colored when I realized what I’d asked.
He appeared sheepish. “It’s not that big of a deal. And,” his voice lowered, “I’d have to take my shirt off for you to see it.”
“I’ve seen you shirtless before and I never noticed a tattoo.”
Shit. I’d said that in front of Thea. Now she was really going to ask me questions.
Cade chuckled, ducking his head so strands of dark hair fell forward to hide his face. “It’s on my shoulder.”
“Oh.” That explained it.
Leaning towards me, he whispered in my ear, “It’s a sun. Ironic, huh?”
“A sun?” I choked.
He nodded, nuzzling his head closer to the crook of my neck. My pulse jumped. “Yeah, because I always wanted to carry a little ray of light with me—so even when things got bad I’d be reminded that the sun will always shine again.”
I swallowed thickly. I didn’t know what to say.
He brushed his lips against my ear and my body jumped in response, which made him chuckle. “So jumpy,” he murmured and pulled away.
I relaxed, but instantly missed the warmth of his body.
Cade started talking to Thea about something, but I wasn’t paying attention. I was lost in my thoughts and still reeling from the fact that his tattoo was of a sun. What were the odds?
We finished our meal and Cade dropped us off at our dorm before departing.
“Did you enjoy your weekend?” Thea asked while unpacking her bag.
I nodded. “Yeah, I did.” Despite the weirdness with their mom and dad I did enjoy myself. Even more important was the fact that I’d shared my secret with Cade and he was okay with it. I’d never expected that reaction from him—or anyone. I hated myself for what happened, so naturally I assumed that everyone else would too. Telling Cade the truth had been freeing. I wondered if I should consider seeing a therapist again. Maybe now would be a better time, because the last one hadn’t been able to do much good.
I knew in my heart that I was finally ready to heal and restore myself to the Rachael I once was. She didn’t have to die because her friends did. Instead, she had to live because they couldn’t.
nineteen