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brother, she meant she really liked
Jake’s
brother—me?
    A hundred questions raced through my mind. When she glanced up at me, her violet-blue eyes caught the glow of the dying sun, and I was struck again by an overpowering need to kiss her. With that same reckless courage I’d felt during that intense storm last summer, I leaned in and kissed her. Then my world shifted a lot, because she kissed me back. Her lips were soft and warm with the slightest taste of vanilla. I caressed her face and was flooded with sunshine, like everything was suddenly right with the world.
    After we broke apart I couldn’t suppress a smile. Action heroes always look so cool and collected after kissing a girl, but I clearly don’t have a future on the big screen since I couldn’t hold back a grin every time I glanced at Lexie. Her eyes smiled back at me, and she leaned into me and rested her head on my shoulder.
    I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her a little closer, and we sat there for a minute as the sun sank into the bluff. Lexie sighed and said, “Have you ever seen a sunset like that? It’s like the clouds are on fire. It’s so beautiful.”
    “Absolutely beautiful,” I replied, ignoring the skies and looking at her.
    “I’m going to miss this so much,” she said, almost in a whisper.
    “What do you mean?”
    Lexie stiffened as my question hung in the air between us. She inhaled slowly and replied, “Well, I know Jake just left and everything, but I’m probably leaving too.”
    “What do you mean leaving? Like for the weekend again?”
    “No. Longer. Nothing is set in stone yet, but my mom had all of the tests—all the medical tests for my grandma—sent to some big cancer center in Houston. I guess there’s some world- class doctor there, and my mom’s convinced that when he sees the tests he’ll squeeze my grandma into his schedule.”
    “Do you have to go too? I mean, can’t your mom just go?”
    Lexie looked miserable. “I’ve tried everything to get out of it, but my mom thinks this is our only option.”
    “Is she really that sick?”
    “Yeah—yeah she is. They think her only chance for survival is to have surgery and then chemo.”
    “Wow. When would you go?”
    “My mom seriously thinks we could leave at any second. She’s had the house packed for weeks and won’t even go grocery shopping since she wants us to eat everything in the freezer.” Lexie paused. “She’s even been praying.”
    “Oh yeah?”
    “Yeah, like real prayers where we kneel down together twice a day. And sometimes when I pass by her room, I see her kneeling by her bed.” Lexie’s voice caught a little. “It’s
just weird. I mean, your family says grace before eating, but we’ve never done that. I’ve never seen my mom pray—like, my whole life—and now it seems that’s all she’s doing.”
    “Then God will probably answer her prayers,” I said slowly. That sounded a little more like my own grandma speaking than me. My family only went to church on Christmas and Easter, but my grandparents were devout Christians who really believed in prayer. I usually didn’t think much about it, but somehow it felt right to say that Mrs. Duncan’s prayers would be answered.
    “You think so?” Lexie asked.
    “Yeah, I do.”
    She looked like she was going to cry, so I pulled her into a long hug. I told her it would be okay, but it didn’t feel that way to me—not when the answer to her mom’s prayers would take Lexie a thousand miles away.

8
    Distracted
    The sun had set by the time we drove the jet ski into the marina and clipped it into its slip. I felt a rush when Lexie took my hand to get from the jet ski to the boardwalk, and then I held it tight as we walked home. We probably talked about something, but I had a hard time focusing on anything but the fact that I was holding her hand and we would be at her doorstep in about four minutes. My heart thudded in my ears as I planned out the scene in my mind. I definitely