t in ters of Brices Creek. It large, maybe a
moments before.
It acular. tundra serally surrounded ting so close toget s see ter. From a distance, t like icebergs.
quot;O; sly, quot;its beautiful.
t in silence for a long a group of cly cruggling to keep up.
ter. t part. to move o touc ones and felt thers ruffling under her fingers.
Noa out t earlier and to Allie. Stered ttle ones, laughey swam in circles, looking for food.
tayed until tance - faint but po ime to leave.
Noao t of tronger than he had earlier.
Sill amazed by ;
quot;I dont knoe to Lake Matamuskeet every er, but I guess time. I dont kno. Maybe t off track or somet;
quot;t stay?quot;
quot;I doubt it. tinct, and t ter to Matamuskeet.quot;
Noaly overo fall, a lig first, tning, a pause, ttle louder noill getting .., cursing to o Moture...
teady nocrying to defy gravity as it rode on erly rees. ttle more, and big he clouds. hurricane drops.
Allie enjoyed t to let it of es, but s care. Siced, t s ness. It felt felt in years.
A cloud burst directly above to come doempt at keeping dry, making Noater.
kno. Even to come, ed t sed to be caugorm like this.
tes later, and Noao step out. out to drift a in case, ied it to te in t make any difference.
As ying t Allie and stopped breat a second. Siful as sed, cely comfortable in t try to keep dry or line of s as t clung tigo a cold rain, but and protruding, tle rocks. o stir and quickly turned atering to . ood, Allie took e t ruso it o spend t h her.
Allie, too, t it o ouc t it made ake a deep breat o tingle and a neween her legs.
S somet pinpoint t time - yesterday after dinner, or ternoon in t saylor Cal maybe, just maybe, sopped.
t inside, pausing in t;Did you bring a c;
Sill feeling tions showed on her face.
quot;I t out of t migtle big, but its ;
quot;Anyt; she said.
quot;Ill be back in a second.quot;
Noas, tairs, descending a minute later. ton pants and a long-sleeved s under one arm and some jeans in ther.
quot;; ton pants and s. quot;You can cairs. tooo if you to s;
S up tairs, feeling ered t ts and s on to and found a ies on it, and t to in t drip on t a secret t being naked in t in.
S to ser being in t feeling on reminded o live long ago. Naturally. Like Noah.
S s tucking in t toms just a little so t drag. torn a little and it nearly s looked on to t to t to to find a hairbrush.
S enougo get out tting it rest on a clasp or a couple of tle more mascara. But le of y despite everyt back doairs.
Noating before a fire, doing to coax it to life. see c over ight.
tinued to ces turned to flames, even and steady. urned to to straig a glimpse of of turned back to her quickly.
Even in iful. After a moment urned aacking the logs.
quot;I didnt ; rying to sound casual.
quot;I kno supposed to.quot; S a tinge of amusement at how young he seemed.
quot;anding t;
quot;A couple of minutes.quot;
Noas, ted to tc;Can I get you some tea? I started ter ;
Small talk, anyto keep damn, the way she looked...
S for a second, sa tincts take over.
quot;Do you ronger, or is it too early to drink?quot;
;I ry. Is t okay?quot;
quot;t sounds great.quot;
arted tocc hair as he disappeared.
tarted. Allie could turned to ter for just a second. Moments later, anotime.
Sook a quilt from t on t of ted t until sable and c s to sit beside doo eachem.
Outside, torm in full fury, winds whe rain in circles.
quot;Its quite a storm,quot; Noacical streams on t toucc rise sliging it back.
quot;I like it,quot; saking a sip. quot;Ive alorms. Even as a young girl.quot;
quot;; Saying anything, keeping his balance.
quot;I dont kno alic to me.quot;
S for a moment, and Noache fire flicker in her emerald eyes.
t;Do you remember sitting togetcorm a fe;
quot;Of course.quot;
quot;I used to t it all time after I about nig ;
quot;;
Sook anot really. Not in t I remember. Youre older, of course, youve still got till read poetry and float on rivers. And youve still got a gentleness t not even take a;
about w s racing slow circles.
quot;Allie, you asked me earlier about t do you remember?quot;
It s . You , and it it ;
Noaook a drink of bourbon, remembering, bringing back this was already hard enough.
S on. quot;I remember being so afraid before I rembling, but at time being so excited. Im glad you . Im glad o s.quot;
quot;Me too.quot;
quot;ere you as afraid as I ;
Noa speaking, and s y.
quot;I t so. You alked to me anymore.quot;
quot;I didnt to get bet;
quot;You did, te your professed innocence,quot; s;And Im glad you did.quot;
quot;ell us?quot;
quot;After I got ;
quot;as it ;
quot;Not at all. I ;
S go, and moved closer. S , and rested like the rain, warm.
Sly: quot;Do you remember ival? I asked you if you ed to see me again. You just nodded your say a too convincing.quot;
quot;Id never met anyone like you before. I couldnt . I didnt knoo say.quot;
quot;I kno; Sed ly at ;I t summer t;
Lig moments before t as tried to undo teen years, boterday.
urned from o;I ers I e you,quot; he said.
S speak for a long while.
quot;It just up to you, Noa tell you, but I e you a dozen letters after I got never sent t;
quot;; Noah was surprised.
quot;I guess I oo afraid.quot;
quot;Of ;
quot;t maybe it as real as I t it maybe you forgot me.quot;
quot;I . I couldnt even t.quot;
quot;I kno no back t . t understand, t a young girls mind couldnt sort out.quot;
quot; do you mean?quot;
Sing s. quot;ters never came, I didnt knoo talking to my best friend about ed, and t s surprised t you e. I didnt believe t you
and t all our differences made me more to me t to you ... And t you Ne;
quot;Fin and Sara;
So stop ;I kno I never asked. I assumed t you Neo start a ne me. you e? Or call? Or come see me?quot;
Noa answering, and sinued:
quot;I didnt knoime, t began to fade and it o just let it go. At least I t it in every boy I met in t feoo strong, Id e you anotter. But I never sent t I mig to t you loving someone else. I ed to remember us like summer. I didnt to ever lose t.quot;
S so sly, so innocently, t Noaed to kiss her when she finished.
But . Instead t back, kno o ouching him.
quot;t letter I e er I met Lon, I e to your daddy to find out even sure ill be t;
Srailed off, and t for a moment, bot in t.
Lig the silence.
quot;I ;
quot;;
quot;Just to o youve been up to.quot;
quot;You miged. My life isnt too exciting. Besides, Im not exactly ;
quot;Youre better t;
quot;Youre s, Noa;
stopped t if trol, trol t fourteen years. But sometaken o it, ake to heyd had so long ago.
quot;Im not saying it because Im s. Im saying it because I love you now and I always ;
A log snapped, sending sparks up ticed t burned t neithem moved.
Allie took anoto feel its effects. But it just t made tle tig t black.
quot;Let me get t; Noao t to to adjust tch easily.
to spread again, and Noaurned to ing speaking, rubbing ly against . Noah leaned closer and whispered in her ear.
quot;t;
Scher.
quot;Noa I you to kno;
quot; is it?quot;
ender. quot;t just t. Youre t expect you to say t I ed you to kno;
Noa as urned a time. tting on a sea o ers of t never see eacead of anso , occasionally reading all of it or sometimes just a part. One part s least a imes, and for some reason it ran t said:
t s so muco separate is because our souls are connected. Maybe time, for t means t t ten to w will come.
you, I see your beauty and grace and knoronger every life before t someone like you, but you, for your soul and mine must alogetands, o say good-bye.
I o tell you t everyt for us, and I promise to do all I can to make sure it does. But if again and truly good-bye, I knoime, but for all times weve had before.
Could it be? S? Sely discounted it, ing to o its promise in case it rue. times. But sitting o test t tined to al. Unless tars together.
And maybe t s to look. Instead so t bet igo tremble icipation s t time together.
It felt so rigo be rigorm - it couldnt . Like magic, it seemed, t didnt matter anymore.
Lig tside. Fire danced on . October rain sed itself against t all other sounds.
to everyt t fourteen years. Allie lifted ly on t o ouc softly ill soft and tender, and sion dissolve into passion. Sed ly. ture of oucook to s, and a ouc.
t setting speaking, sarted to undo ttons on . c and listened to breaths as she made her way downward.
itton ly at oucly as possible, letting and sly c, feeling ween ly as s over ed o kiss he sleeves.
it, ed and ran off. S s of breato ly caressed ted bodies press togeto skin. ly as sed o pull off toms. S, and c sloion as togetrembling together.
ongue along skin of s, do and made it sparkle. and beautiful, almost glo. her hands on his back, beckoning him.
to t made tly arcop ion. ride ed asting t t lingered on ion. ittle tempting froead ly rubbed against icipation. of ening as s, whimpering sounds while he moved above her.
il s take it anymore, and leness, felt o take ed, to t to be.
Sc, marveling at y as en al s and c and fell onto side. And y, every facet of her life, slipping away.
ted everytaken, and sion sed. It on and on, tingling t ruggled to catcrembled beneat t it arted to build again, and sarted to feel t after t. By time topped and t, ed but uno stop them.
t ternately making love by tcimes ed one of e poems as sen feel ther.
t on t t, and slept in eac nig and radiant, and feel as if everyt in this world.
Once, ered open and so touc o ly, to keep ime t looked at one another.
subsided, o ;You are to every prayer Ive offered. You are a song, a dream, a w know you for as long as I ;
quot;O; so ed hing shed ever known.