Page 43 of Jesse and the Ice Princess
He turned back to the jeep, praying he could still change a tire.
12
Charlotte
Charlotte turned to the sopping girl climbing into the backseat of her car, recognizing her immediately. Jesse's sister was the girl he'd been with the first time she argued with him at the rink.
"Hey," Charlotte had to yell over the rain.
The girl flinched back, pressing herself into the seat.
"I'm Charlotte. I've seen you before." When the girl didn't respond, Charlotte looked out the window to where Jesse worked to change the tire on the jeep. His sopping shirt clung to the ridges of his back as he bent over.
Forcing herself to look away, she focused back on the girl, trying to remember what Jesse called her on the phone. "You're Cass, right?"
"Cassie." She pushed out a breath, her eyes still wide. "I-I'm sorry. I'm not good with people."
"You don't have to apologize for that. Most people suck."
That finally had Cassie cracking a smile. She was beautiful and looked so much like her brother, even with wet strands of hair clinging to her face. "They do."
Charlotte turned in her seat to face Cassie. "I kind of dislike most people. But your brother is growing on me."
Her lips twitched up. "My brother is probably the best person I've ever known."
"That's going a little far." Charlotte laughed before realizing Cassie wasn't laughing with her. "He's okay."
She frowned. "He's better than okay." Her voice rose as she took on a defensive posture. "You don't know what it's like for him."
"What what's like?"
"If he hasn't told you, I'm not going to." She studied Charlotte for a moment. "You don't seem like the people he tells me about. Roman is the only friend of his I've met... but you're different."
"How do you know that?"
"If you weren't, he'd never have brought you to meet me. He'd have found another way to help me."
Charlotte wanted to ask her more, to get answers, but before she could, Jesse's door opened and he climbed in. "Spare is flat too. I canceled Triple A for tonight, but I'll have it towed tomorrow."
Cassie sat back in her seat and crossed her arms.
Jesse looked between the girls, one eyebrow lifted. "Were you two... talking?"
"Yes." Charlotte didn't understand what was so odd about that or why it would make Jesse smile at her like she'd just found the key to everlasting life.
She started the car and followed Jesse's directions to a street about two miles from the beach. His large yellow concrete block house came into view. Out front, overgrown shrubs crowded the small walkway with ivy creeping up the walls. Weeds sprouted throughout the gardens, like they hadn't been taken care of in years.
Charlotte parked on the street and Cassie jumped out, running across the lawn before disappearing through the front door.
Jesse sat silent for a long moment, and Charlotte wasn't sure what to do.
When he finally spoke, there was hesitation in his voice. "What are you doing for dinner?"
She bit her lip. Should she reveal how she spent each night alone in a silent house? For some reason, she couldn't lie to him. Not now. "My mom prepares meals for me ahead of time. I'll probably just eat whatever tasteless chicken she's made, and sit in my room to watch the hockey game."
He pursed his lips. "Do you..." He paused. "I mean... My house is kind of crazy, but I feel like I owe you dinner after you helped me out with Cass."
"You don't owe me anything." She tapped her hand against the steering wheel.
