Page 41 of Never Quiet

Chapter Nine

Arriving in the Keys late the following morning, Amanda and Davis took care of the kids while the adults went grocery shopping.

Six-year-old Sterling, who was shockingly bigger, appointed himself as recreation supervisor with the younger girls at just over three and almost four.

As stunned as she’d been at Sterling’s height, it was nothing compared to him using sign language when he met Heather.

Dropping to her knees, Amanda held his shoulders. “You learned it! I can’t believe you learned it.”

“You sent me videos. They were fun, easy, and I wanted to impress you.” Smiling, hand on his hip, he asked, “Did I impress you, Amanda?”

“Yeah. You really did.” She hugged him tightly and didn’t worry about the tears she shed.

The little boy was currently teaching the girls about the proper construction of sand castles. The five of them were trading off between the water and playing in the sand. The children seemed unaware of the differences in hearing between them. They simply enjoyed their time together while she supervised.

Naturally, Davis ran inside to get sunscreen and more bottled water at the exact wrong moment after sticking to Amanda’s side all day long.

Other than three small children, she was alone when Erick and the girl whose hand he held walked up the beach toward his sister’s house.

She took the time to observe them before they noticed her sitting in the shade of the wooden beach shelter.

Erick grew more attractive every year. He was tall and lean but gained more bulk in the form of muscle than he had the summer before. His eyes were a bright blue-green she’d always found expressive.

The window to the soul of a boy who grew into a man.

His girlfriend was pretty. A brunette with a glowing tan that gave proof of the bikini she always wore. It was probably sexy and she was likely great at laughing in all the right places, flirting at all the right times, and being forward in ways Amanda honestly didn’t care to learn.

All her life, her role model had been her Aunt Noel, her beloved No-No. She was a woman who never allowed deafness or being a woman to stop her from accomplishing a damn thing.

Her aunt didn’t need a man: not even Rick. As much as she loved and wanted him, there was no doubt in Amanda’s mind that if Noel lost him for any reason, she’d carry on, surviving and thriving in some new way.

It was the most important skill Noel possessed.

There was a pain in Amanda’s chest as she watched Erick laugh with a girl who wasn’t her, smile at a girl who wasn’t her, and lean forward to kiss a girl who wasn’t her.

Amanda had loved him from the start, almost from the first moment they met, before she even understood the meaning of romantic love. Her heart fixated on him and never let go.

Now, she realized that her mistake was in hoping.

Hoping to age fast enough to catch his eye before someone else did. Hoping he thought about her when she wasn’t in the Keys the way she thought about him while she was in Colorado.

The couple made their way along the shoreline, laughing and trying to shove each other closer to the water.

As they neared Dakota and Gunner’s house, Erick glanced up and saw where Amanda sat with her little sister, cousin, and Sterling. His eyes went wide.

“Mandy! I didn’t know you were already here!”

Releasing the girl’s hand, he walked over and bent to grab Amanda’s so he could lift her to her feet. It was to deliver the hug she looked forward to all year. The moment she could touch him appropriately and feel him touch her. When she could subtly inhale the scent of him.

This time was different. When she was on her feet, Erick’s expression turned confused. She knew why but carefully blanked her expression.

Amanda was taller this summer, her hair even longer, her body fully maturing into the one she’d carry with her into adulthood.

Hours of training with Noel had defined the muscles of her tall frame. Time spent with Caroline taught her about how to care for her hair, skin, and nails. Time spent with Zoe gave her other things, knowledge of who she was and what she wanted for herself, first and foremost.

Amanda wasn’t a stupid girl.

She understood her outer shell was attractive, beautiful even. The physical parts of her were pleasing, tempting, desirable.

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