How I Lost You by Janet Gurtler Read Free Book Online Page A

Dream big.”
    I sat up and hit him on the arm.
    â€œHey, watch it,” he growled. “You almost made me lose a life.”
    â€œI’ll make you lose a life all right. You two will make up. You’re my best friends. If she puts up walls, James, it’s only because she wants you to break them down.”
    â€œCurse you, Mario,” he yelled. “Stupid game glitch.” He’d lost his final life. “Will I ever beat you at this video game?”
    â€œI doubt it.”
    In an abrupt whoosh, he put down the controller, switched off the game system, and got to his feet. “You know, maybe I’m not big on breaking down walls, Grace. I’ve got to get going. Check in on my mom, see if she needs anything.”
    Surprised by his quick departure, I pushed myself up and chased after him as he bolted to the front door. When he turned, I reached to swoosh up his hair but he ducked and straightened his glasses. “Kya said she wants to go to the beach soon,” I said. “I know you can’t resist glowing with whiteness in the sand with me.”
    â€œWe’ll see,” he said. “Until we meet again,” he said the same way he always did when he left.
    â€œSee ya, James.”
    The door closed behind him. My belly churned as if something were about to go wrong. Very wrong. Dad always told me never to ignore my feelings. Gut instinct, he called it. You’d make a good cop, he’d say. But Indie was going to be a cop. One child was enough for our family.
    Something bad was brewing.
    I could feel it.
    Â 

chapter six
    Sweat beaded down my back and over my shoulders. I pressed my hands and feet into the yoga mat, my butt in the air in the downward dog position, contemplating my belly button, trying to stay focused instead of being hyperaware of the guy at the back of the class who kept sneaking looks at me. I was irrationally mad at him. His presence was interrupting the quiet that should have been in my head. I pretended it was him, not Kya, who had me upset.
    Tina, the instructor, flowed into a plank and I glanced in the mirror at the boy’s reflection. His dark eyes met mine and he smiled, but I quickly looked away and swooped down into plank.
    I dripped bacon-smelling sweat on my mat, but instead of enjoying the grease cleanse and being in the moment in yoga, my mind and body weren’t connected. When the class finally ended, I still had the little ball of anxiety in my belly. I rolled my yoga mat in record time, grabbed my towel and water bottle, and rushed out.
    After a long cool shower, I wrapped my wet hair up in a bun, dressed, and left the change room. I slowed down when I spotted the boy leaning against the counter in the reception area, chatting with the owner. A warm smile lit up his face when he spotted me. I lowered my eyes.
    â€œHi, Grace.” He spoke in a low tone, slightly above a whisper. Part of yoga etiquette. Speak in low voices. “I played paintball with you and your sister yesterday.”
    â€œI remember.” Levi. The boy with the temper. The badass. “She’s my best friend. Not my sister.” I matched his low tone but smiled because he thought we were sisters. I’d always wanted a sister. Besides the obvious allure of sharing clothes, maybe a sister could help analyze the foreign minds of boys. Maybe share chores. Something other than Saturday morning breakfast. I always got to be the one to do the “womanly” stuff around the house. I’d never seen my brother scrubbing a toilet.
    â€œOh. I thought you were related.” As if he should know anything about me at all. He paused. “My cousin has a crush on her.”
    Of course he did. That’s probably what this conversation was about. To get information for his cousin.
    â€œTell him to get in line,” I said, but smiled to soften the message.
    â€œHe’s already butting his way to the front. Trust me.”
    I took a