Becoming by Raine Thomas Page A

right?” he said.
    Wondering if he meant the kissing or the
incident that led them to this pond, she nodded. He was right in
either case.
    They looked around together in the
afternoon’s dwindling light. The area appeared relatively
unscathed. Outside of some pond water dripping from the surrounding
trees and some extra sediment and debris floating along the pond’s
surface, no one would have ever suspected what had just occurred.
Amber stared at the center of the dark pond and shuddered. As if
sensing her thoughts, he turned her away from the water until she
was looking at him.
    Reaching up, he plucked a wet leaf from her
hair. Pulling away from her slightly, he looked down the length of
her. “You look like you drowned in a pond,” he observed.
    She couldn’t help laughing. “Well, hot shot,
I’ve got news for you—”
    He cut her off by hooking her behind her neck
and pulling her close for another kiss. She was amazed that she was
still standing when they parted. Her legs felt rubbery.
    “Honest to goodness, every one of those
romantic clichés is true,” she marveled.
    “With the right person,” he amended. “It
makes all the difference, believe me.”
    “Oh, I believe you. I felt absolutely nothing
when I kissed that one guy earlier. Didn’t even catch his
name.”
    A corner of his mouth lifted in response to
her jest. “Well, I’m sure he wouldn’t have kissed you when
you were looking like you had rolled around in a mud pit,” he
responded, grabbing her hand and starting to walk back to the
Brewer house.
    “No?” She batted her eyelashes at him.
    “Gotta have standards, you know.”
    “Standards?” Now she glowered at him.
    “Mm-hmm. Standards. I, after all, have seen
you every morning before a brush touches your hair or your teeth,
when you’re still shuffling around in your ratty Led Zeppelin
T-shirt and boxer shorts. So for me, this look is—”
    “Don’t you dare say it’s an improvement,
Gabriel Reid. I swear I’ll make you eat the words. I don’t care how
good you kiss.”
    “You like my kissing?” He looked thoughtful.
“That’s good. As it happens, since the feeling is mutual, I’m quite
sure I’ll want to do that a lot.”
    “Even when I’m in my Led Zeppelin T-shirt and
boxer shorts?”
    “Oh, especially then. I’ve found over the
years that I’m rather attracted to the ratty T-shirt and boxer
look. Especially when it comes attached to a gal with a cranky,
opinionated, smart-ass attitude.”
    Trying not to get her feelings hurt and
failing miserably, she frowned. She started to tug her hand free of
his grasp. “It’s a wonder you would even consider kissing someone
whose style and personality are so obviously lacking.”
    Firming his grip on her hand, he stopped
walking. She stumbled to a halt beside him but couldn’t seem to
lift her gaze from the ground. You can add insecure to that list
of character flaws , she silently added, embarrassed with
herself.
    “Haven’t you listened to a word I said?” he
asked, his voice laced with exasperation. “Amber, look at me.”
    Sighing, she did. He brushed a hand across
her cheek and tucked a damp strand of hair behind her right
ear.
    “You have so many wonderful qualities. You’re
smart, talented, loyal and funny. You’re lovelier than you will
ever know. But those other traits I mentioned, the ones you
consider flaws, are what make you so much you . I didn’t fall
for just the good stuff.”
    Now her cheeks burned for another reason. She
cleared her throat and said, “Well, I reserve the right at some
later date to point out all of your many flaws. Just so we’re
clear.”
    Grinning, he gave her a quick kiss and then
started walking again. “Seems fair to me. Now, we’re really going
to have to come up with a good story for why we both look like
we’ve been, well, slopping around in a muddy pond. The car is
buried in the parking area, so we can’t leave yet. From the look of
things, the party is going to