Page 223 of Promising You
“I already looked everywhere and I couldn’t find it. Can you give me a hint?”
“Do that thing I taught you when we first met.”
I give him a hug and find the last egg in his hand behind his back.
He circles his arms around my waist. “Open it.”
“The egg? Why? Is there something in it?”
“Well, yeah. There’s stuff in all of them.”
“Oh, I thought they were just plastic eggs.”
He laughs. “So that explains why you didn’t open any of them. I couldn’t figure that out. Well, open this one and you can open the other ones later.”
I twist open the pink plastic egg. Inside is a necklace; a silver chain with a silver starfish hanging from it.
“I thought you could wear it this summer.”
“Thank you. I love it.” I hug him again. “And thanks for the Easter basket.”
“You’ve never gotten one before, have you?”
“No,” I say, looking back at the candy-filled basket.
“Then it’s a good thing I’ve got connections with the Easter Bunny.”
I laugh. “I didn’t know you two were friends.”
“We’re not. He just owed me a favor.” Garret kisses me. “Happy Easter, Jade. You look really beautiful in that dress. You’ll have to wear it for me someday.”
“I will.” I look around to make sure nobody is around. “Hey, did you drive here?”
“Yeah. The fake Garret is behaving this weekend and going to his grandparents’ house for brunch. So it’s okay if people see me around campus or in town. But I do need to get going.”
“Thanks again for Easter. It was great.”
“We’ll have a better one next year.” He give me a kiss, then moves his lips to my ear and lowers his voice. “Plan for another picnic in the woods this week.” His breath on my neck gives me chills and I want to kiss him again, but he walks off toward the parking lot.
Garret’s surprise visit puts me in a good mood for the rest of the day. After Sean’s Easter brunch, I return to campus and go for a run. When I get back to my room I open up the remaining plastic eggs. They’re filled with fun stuff that didn’t cost much, like a candy ring, a candy bracelet, some new headbands to use for running, my favorite lip balm.
I love the necklace he gave me earlier but I also love getting these inexpensive gifts, especially when they show how much he knows about me. Just the fact that he remembers my favorite headbands and lip balm is so sweet. And a while back I told him how when I was little I always wanted candy jewelry, and he remembered and got it for me.
I want to thank him and give him a huge hug for doing all this. But that will have to wait until I can see him again, which hopefully will be soon.
The dining halls are closed all day, so I raid my Easter basket for dinner, putting myself into a sugar coma before falling asleep.
* * *
Tuesday at breakfast,and then again on Thursday, Harper gives me a heads-up to meet Garret at our secret spot. There are a lot of bugs now so it’s not the greatest place to hang out, but we get to see each other so I don’t care. Even seeing him just a couple times a week is so much better than not at all.
Saturday morning, I go out to the Hamptons again to visit Arlin and Grace. This time, they’re taking me out on their sailboat. I’ve never been boating and I’m a little worried I might get sick, so I stopped at the drugstore near campus and bought some wristbands that are supposed to keep you from getting seasick.
When I arrive at their house, Grace is dressed in navy pants and a white and navy shirt. It’s the first time I’ve seen her wear pants. Arlin is in a white polo shirt and khaki trousers, a much more casual look than his usual suit and tie.
“Are you ready to sail, Jade?” Arlin’s smiling from ear to ear. I’ve never seen him so excited. He’s like a little kid.
“Arlin loves his boat,” Grace says quietly to me. “He can’t wait to take you out on the water. He’s been wanting to for weeks.”
