Page 52 of No Ordinary Girl
That’s when a majestic wave scooped us up, and threw us to the other end of the pool. My heart leapt and my pulse raced. For a fraction of a second, I felt like I was caught in a tsunami. When the wave receded and I came to, my feet could touch the bottom of the pool. My heart hammered against my ribcage as I swam the short distance to the stairs, all the while thinking…
What the hell just happened?
“Cut that shite out,” I heard Ace scoff, and that’s when I turned to see Leo standing over us, hair slicked back, wearing black trunks and a satisfied grin on his face.
“You could have killed the both of us, you bloody wanker.”
Leo grinned. “The lady asked you to let her go, and from the looks of it, you weren’t listening.”
My heart was still beating at a frantic pace as I stepped out of the pool, wondering what the hell was going on.
With a flick of his hand, Leo drew another huge wave in the pool, sending Ace surfing again. It was the most amazing thing I’d ever seen. Even cooler than the fire play.
Ace was frantically climbing out of the pool, and it was a funny sight. Both Leo and I were laughing our heads off. He scampered off to one of the lounge chairs by the pool and grabbed a towel, and high tailed it out of there, but not before shooting Leo a death glare.
I bit my bottom lip as I watched him leave. Somehow, I felt responsible for his bad mood. I turned to Leo, whose soulful dark eyes were glued to me. He quickly pulled his gaze when I caught him looking at me. I was too far away to read him but it didn’t take a genius to know what was going on in his head – he liked my bathing suit. Suddenly self-conscious in my polka dot two-piece, I quickly grabbed my towel and covered myself.
“I’m sorry,” he said, “for causing a scene.”
“It’s okay… thanks…” I was at a loss for words.
He cocked a brow and looked up. “I wonder if they have video cameras here… I should probably get out of here before I get in trouble.”
I had the feeling that he’d gotten in trouble quite a few times in his life. I smiled. “I think you’re good… even if the security guards saw it, they probably didn’t believe their eyes.”
A wicked grin stretched across his lips, and then he did a cannonball and splashed me nice and good in the process. He re-emerged with the same mischievous smile. “Coming back in?”
I shook my head. “No… enough water adventures for one day.” I looked up at the large clock on the wall. “Only an hour until our breakfast meeting with Simone,” I said in typical brown noser mode. “I need to go dry my hair.”
Disappointment etched his features. “Such a girl.”
I was giddy as I waved goodbye, grinning like the silly girl with a crush that I was.
I realized that Leo not only had the ability to manipulate fire, but also water, and like Alicia had mentioned, probably objects as well. I honestly couldn’t tell who freaked me out the most, Ace or Leo?
But my gut instinct told me to stay away from Ace, and stick with Leo.
19
The five of us and Simone gathered around a large table in a private room Simone had reserved.
A selection of muffins, Danishes, cheeses and fresh fruit sat at the center of the table, beckoning us unsuccessfully. We all looked like we had hangovers, but none of us had had a single drink, as far as I knew. We were probably all crashing down from candy overdose – ‘candy hangovers’. Simone, on the other hand, looked as perfect and perky as ever in a perfectly pressed navy blue suit. I looked down at my grey sweats and Pepsi t-shirt and wondered if I’d ever be like Simone. I smiled, knowing that would most likely never be the case. I pictured Simone at my age. In my imagination, she wore a pretty Peter Pan collared blouse and red skirt, black Mary-Janes, glasses, and her hair in a bun. Of course, she was perfect then, too.
“I went over all our findings last night,” Simone began. “We will pay the babysitter a visit after dinner. She can meet us at her home.”
I shuffled through the papers in my folder to locate Haley’s photo. My gaze instantly fell on her eyes. It was unmistakable. They had the same eyes; smiling eyes, the color of dark chocolate, almond shaped with lazy lids, and long lashes.
I kept my discovery to myself, I still couldn’t quite be sure. I was working on a hunch. I wouldn’t know for sure until I’d have a chance to spend some time with Roy, the man who lived in the guest house.
“Now you all go and get changed,” Simone urged, “and we’ll meet in fifteen at the reception desk.”
We all grunted audibly. Not a single one of us enjoyed wearing the evil scratchy uniforms.
Roy McMillan was a large man.It was one of the first things I noticed about him. That and his large brown eyes, the same eyes I’d seen on Haley’s face.
He invited all of us willingly into his small bungalow. If the Hendersons’ home was a show winning poodle, his house was a mangy mutt – no frills or attention to detail, a basic, boring bachelor’s pad.
He’d just come from work. He worked as a heavy machinery mechanic and worked from six in the morning, but was off at two in the afternoon. I marveled at the sight of him; plaid shirt, worn jeans, scraggly beard and mismatched socks. He was the polar opposite of Mr. Henderson who was as polished as a prized statue.
