A Shattered Heart (Fractured Lives 2)

***

"Do you need more water?" I asked, holding up my own water glass and trying not to laugh at the tears in Brian's eyes.

He gulped audibly, setting his own glass down and reaching for mine. I watched with amusement as he downed the contents in one swallow.

"I did tell you it was spicy," I reminded him, dunking my own chip in the salsa.

"Spicy?" He shoved several salsa-free chips into his mouth. "That's not spicy. That's liquid fire in a fucking bowl."

A chuckle bubbled up through my throat, turning into a laugh as he glared at the black bowl of salsa situated on the table between us. I'd warned him ahead of time about the spiciness. I couldn't help he took the bait. It was like taking candy from a baby.

"You're evil."

I nodded in agreement. Growing up, everyone assumed Jessica was the prankster of our group, but they didn't know I'd been the one feeding her ideas all along. "And you're just now picking up on that?" I teased.

He sat back in his chair and studied me. "No, I've known for a long time."

"No, you haven't."

He raised his eyebrows. "The frog incident."

A slow smile spread across my lips. I'd forgotten about the frog incident.

2007

"Kat, what are you doing?" a voice whispered behind me, making me jump.

I whirled around, hiding the green squirming object behind my back. "Nothing," I answered, peering up in the dark at Brian, who just a year ago had been shorter than me. He was now almost a foot taller and as tall as Dan. He was still adjusting to his growth spurt and was gangly and clumsy. Glancing at him, I hoped he didn't trip over something and give me away.

"You can go back to bed. I was just grabbing a bottle of water," I said, nodding toward the row of coolers sitting on the picnic table.

"Is your frog thirsty?" he asked with false innocence.

"Shhhh," I hissed, holding a finger on my free hand up to my lips.

"You know Dan would freak out if he saw you holding a frog. He doesn't like frogs."

"Really?" I asked.

"Matter fact, he'd probably die if one showed up in his tent."

"I bet. That would probably be wrong."

"I don't know. Is it any more wrong than pushing a girl into the pond?" he asked with a glint in his eyes.

"Definitely not more wrong than that," I whispered, nodding for emphasis. "Do you want to help me?"

"Heck yeah. I'm still mad at him for ruining the new John Madden game. Here, hand it to me," Brian whispered, reaching for the squirming frog.

I handed the frog over and unzipped the small tent Dan was sharing with Zach. Brian shoved the frog into the tent and then hurried to zip it back up.

We crept away from the boys' tent, stopping at the spigot of the campground to wash our hands.

"You know Dan only pushed you in the water because he likes you," Brian said, handing me the soap.

Heat crept up my neck, covering my face. I was glad it was dark outside. "No, he doesn't," I said, blushing even more.

"I thought Dan was going to crap himself when he woke up with that frog sitting on his chest." Brian shook with laughter, gaining the attention of other diners.