Read Online Hard to Get by Emma Carlson Berne - Free Book Online Page A

tree trunk and then another, my feet leaving silvery footprints in the dewy dark grass. I was walking what seemed like an incredibly long way. I had to be off Kelly’s property by now. I probably should go back, I thought, instead of wandering around randomly in the bushes like this. But the grass was so cool under my feet and the walking was soothing, like a massage.
    Then I rounded a hairpin bend and gasped. There in front of me a perfect garden glowed likea little jewel set in dark branches. Mowed paths meandered among beds of rosebushes, which hung their pink and red heads over the path, strewing it with petals. Banks of purple irises massed along the borders and the air was heavy with the fragrance of the wisteria intertwined in the arbors. The moon shone its eerie silvery light over everything.
    I wandered into the deep shadows under one of the arbors and emerged into the moonlight again. I rested my palm on a mossy stone bench in front of me. The pitted stone still held the warmth of the day. I sat down and leaned back on my hands, letting the stillness drape over me.
    Then a paperlike rustle disturbed the silence. I sat up on the bench and peered into the darkness. The moonlight clearly illuminated the paths, but deep shadows crowded the edges of the garden. I leaned forward. The rustle came again.
    â€œIs someone there?” I called out. I guess I should have been scared but I just wasn’t. This place seemed too magical for anything bad to happen. I tiptoed softly over the grass toward the rustle. I still couldn’t see anything. I ducked under an arbor and bumped into something large and warm.
    â€œHi,” a voice said.
    I shrieked and jumped. “Who’re you?” I squeaked, backing out of the arbor fast. He remained standing underneath it.
    â€œUm, Adam,” he said from the darkness. I heard the rustle of paper again.
    â€œWhy don’t you come out here?” I suggested.
    He stepped forward into the moonlight. Icy blue eyes and a shock of brown hair. He was tall and lean, wearing a faded blue zip-up hoodie that looked like it had been nibbled by mice and then run over with a truck several times, and a pair of canvas slip-on shoes.
    â€œHi,” I said.
    â€œHi.” His voice was surprisingly deep. “I’m Adam. Um, did I already say that?”
    I giggled involuntarily. “Yeah, you did.”
    He grinned. “Sorry about that. I’ve been hanging out with my grandfather too much.” He glanced around. “So what’s a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?”
    I groaned and rolled my eyes at the insanely cheesy line. “I could ask the same thing about you. How come you’re hiding back here in this garden instead of at the party?”
    â€œI was at the party until about half an hour ago,” he said. “But the naked water polo was a little too much for me. I needed a break.” He grinned. I noticed he had very white teeth.
    I laughed. “I’m Val,” I said.
    Adam stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you.” His palm was hard and callused as it rasped against mine.
    â€œSo, do you go to Longbranch?” I asked.
    â€œYeah. I’m a senior.”
    I nodded. That explained why he didn’t know me. Our school is giant, and he wasn’t the type we hung out with anyway. He looked like one of those guys who took AP Drawing and Painting and spent a lot of time reading little books in the halls, or crouching over the developers in the darkroom. He did have nice eyes, though.
    There was a little silence. Suddenly, I felt like we were standing too close, even though he was a couple of feet away from me. I took a step back. “This garden is amazing, huh?” I said, just to say something.
    He glanced at the flowers all around us. “Yeah. It’s a Shakespeare garden.”
    I blinked. “A what?”
    â€œA Shakespeare garden. The guy whoowns the place is completely crazy for