Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins

Author:Wendy Higgins [Higgins, Wendy]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Juvenile Fiction / Family
ISBN: 9780062265951
Publisher: HarperTeen
Published: 2013-04-29T08:00:00+00:00

“Love is no hot-house flower,

but a wild plant, born of a wet night, born of an hour of sunshine; sprung from wild seed, blown along the road by a

wild wind.”

John Galsworthy, The Man of Property

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CALIFORNIA DREAMING

Few sights compared to the Santa Barbara coast. The land on one side of the road was lined with mansions, while the other side broke off into sharp cliffs overlooking the ocean. I drove to Blake’s with the windows down, salty air drenching my system. According to the twins, Kaidan spent a lot of weekends at Blake’s. That’s good, because it was a Saturday, and I was ready to tell them both. Only a couple of miles to go.

I reached down and pressed a hand to my stomach, trying to rub the nerves away.

A hot breeze ruffled my hair around my shoulders as I guided the car to a small surf shop next to a carnival. I hadn’t brought a bathing suit because I didn’t anticipate this being a leisurely trip. But now that I’d smelled the ocean and seen the creamy-looking sand, I decided on a whim that it would be good to have one. Just in case. And maybe I was stalling a little.

A long-haired boy behind the counter greeted me with a smile when I walked in. Beach Boys music played as I found the wall of bathing suits. I quickly narrowed it down to two: a cute pink tankini or a sexier white halter-top bikini with a small ruffle along the edges. An image of Kaidan came to mind, and I grabbed the white bikini. I picked out a pair of silver and pink girl’s surf shorts with a matching fitted T-shirt, and a pair of sunglasses from the rack. I threw everything on the counter without looking at the price tags, and presented Dad’s credit card before I could lose my nerve about the teensy bikini.

I changed in the surf shop’s restroom, then climbed back into the car for the last stretch, feeling much more like a California girl, minus an awesome tan. I passed some spectacular coastal homes, so I shouldn’t have been surprised when I rounded the bend through an open security gate and saw Blake’s mansion built into the cliffside.

But whoa. It was beyond incredible. I openly gawked.

A sizzle worked its way over my skin when I recognized Kaidan’s SUV—the same one we’d driven cross-country in. He was parked in front of a multidoored garage among a bunch of other nice vehicles. I parked and sat there a few minutes. I was too nervous to stretch my hearing. Blood thumped through my ears.

These are people you care about, Anna. There’s no reason to be scared. Just go in there and tell them the prophecy. There doesn’t have to be any drama.

Energized from my pep talk, I took a shaky breath and pushed my hearing into the house, spanning the silent rooms. I stepped from the car and shook out my arms. It was hot here but not humid, and the breeze made it bearable.

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