Rhythm by Ena Read Free Book Online

her as I blush some
more.
    She stands up and runs away from me. “I’m
going to meet your parents and sibling, Grant.”
    I run towards her to stop her from teasing
me. “If you will not stop, I will tickle you to death.”
    “Don’t you dare.” She shifts from teasing
mode to pleading mode. “Don’t do it, Grant. I will never forgive
you.”
    “Oooh. So, you’re afraid of being tickled?” I
feel smug.
    “Just don’t dare, okay? Promise me,” she
commands me in a much serious tone than needed.
    “Okay, okay. I promise.” I check her if she’s
all right. “Are we good?”
    “Yes. I’m sorry for teasing you.”
    “Hey, no worries. You okay?”
    She bobs her head.
    I want to turn the wheel and ask her some
more personal questions like what’s with the tickle-to-death that
throws her off balance, but I believe I reached my quota for the
day.
    “Happy 1st week again, Rhy. I pray for more
weeks with you. I love you, baby.” I try to shift the mood because
I want to end our day on a sweet note.
    “Happy 1st week, Grant. Thank you so much for
everything, and you know that I love you too.” She beams at me.
    Thank goodness.

Chapter 5
    Grant
    I didn’t expect Rhy to open up on our 1st
week date, but she did, and I am happy that she told me those
things. At least now I have an idea where she’s coming from. I am
confident that I won’t leave her. In fact, I’m afraid she might
leave me.
    Anyway, I have to make our time together
worthwhile. I will do everything in my power to make her happy.
Today, she will be with Lola—whole day of no Rip. I will miss her,
but I don’t want her to be indulged in too much of my presence. I
will let her breathe.
    Cale and I decide to hit the gym, and then
we’ll go play ball.
    On our way out from the gym, I heard a
familiar, annoying voice.
    “Hello, Grant. Headed out? Done already?”
    I fight the urge to say, “No, we’re just
heading in. We’re just starting,” because it’s obvious that we are
headed out and that we are already done, but she’s still
asking.
    “Yes, we’re going,” I answer petulantly.
    “Hi, Cale. Your friend’s not in the mood,
huh?”
    Cale laughs. “Yes, he’s RIP ped.”
    “What ripped?” she asks, confused with the
inside joke Cale just delivered.
    I’ve got to end what Cale has started.
“Nothing, Riley. We’ve gotta go. Bye.”
    “Oh. Okay. Bye, you two. It is nice seeing
you.”
    We turn around then Cale whispers, “I bet it
is,” and winks at me.
    “Drop it, Cale. Not a word with Rip. Got
me?”
    “Yes, sir.” He gives me a salute.
    I can’t take my mind off Riley. Should I tell
Rhy about her? Yes, I should, but why? It’s not as if I cheated on
her, but I want to be honest with Rhy all the time. I don’t want to
build a wall between us, especially now that she opened up to me.
I’ll tell her soon.
    That’s right, Grant, tell her soon.

Chapter 6
    Rhythm
    “Rip, don’t look. 3 o’clock.”
    I start to turn my head, but Lola grabs my
face. “I said don’t look!”
    “L, my face!”
    “Shh. You better keep your mouth shut. I’ll
tell you when it’s safe to look. I’ll tell y—”
    “Oh, my word, L! She’s here!”
    “Rip! What did I tell you?” She shakes her
head. “Now, what?” She scolds me.
    I instantly regret I didn’t listen to Lola.
Once again, she’s right.
    She stands up, flips her long jet black hair,
smooths her pink floral dress, and smiles. She is perfection. She’s
another reason I don’t trust people to be attached with me. Ben, my
first love, is her first love, and she is Ben’s.
    Ben and I were best friends when we were children.
We spent all our waking moments with each other. We promised that
we would be there for each other no matter what. We agreed to wait
for us to be teenagers so that we could be official. He would be my
first boyfriend and I would be his first girlfriend. I thought I
finally found someone who would be with me, who would never leave
me. On our birthday,