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Bridget Glen stepped out of her car and breathed in the salty sea air, enjoying every moment of her time alone. She was taking this summer off-time to spend along and find inner peace. A friend had advised her to do exactly this and her friend usually gave good advice, so she followed his instructions.
Lately, eighteen-year-old Bridget had been feeling helpless and deserted. She cried herself to sleep every night, thinking of how bad her life was. Her mom had died when Bridget was seven and her dad was abusive. Little, tiny things would set him off in a wild frenzy. Bridget�s boyfriends had all been dirt heads who cheated on her or had hit her. Her latest boyfriend had been the scariest-Damon.
One night when she was home alone, Damon had come over and things started to get hot and heavy. Damon tried to get Bridget to do other things with him (involving a bed), but when Bridget had told him no, he had beaten her to a pulp. He might have killed her if it hadn�t been for her best guy friend, Eric, who had come over to study for history with her.
After that, Bridget stayed with Eric. He was the one who had advised this trip and her other friend, Ashley, had told Bridget about this house and told her to use it for as long as she wanted.
Bridget walked in the front door of the house and gasped at the beauty and simplicity of the house. There was a living room with a TV and VCR, a bathroom and three bedrooms downstairs. As she climbed the stairs, she saw an entire wall of windows that led out to a balcony. Another set of large windows on another wall had a view of the ocean. There was a kitchen, a bathroom and two more bedrooms in the upstairs. A couch and two recliners were conveniently placed by the ocean windows to enjoy the view.
A note sat on the dining table. �Bridget, I hope you are having a wonderful time. Stay here as long as you want and enjoy everything. Just promise to call me sometime, okay? Love, Ashley.�
Bridget smiled as the doorbell rang. She raced down the stairs and opened the door to find a tall guy standing there. He was about six feet tall with curly blond hair and deep blue eyes. He had a beautiful smile with perfect teeth.
�Hi,� the guy said, extending his hand. �I�m Justin from the house over there.�
Bridget shook his hand firmly. �I�m Bridget from this house right here.�
Justin laughed. �I thought I�d come over here and introduce myself.�
�Well come on in. Do you want anything to eat or drink?� Bridget asked, shutting the door behind Justin.
�Um, actually, a Pepsi sounds good right about now,� Justin said.
�Well, let�s go see what I have. I just got in and I have no clue what I�ve got in the kitchen,� Bridget said, taking them upstairs. �Have a seat.�
Justin sat on a stool by the counter. �So, where ya from?�
�I�m from upstate California-San Francisco,� Bridget replied, rummaging around in the refrigerator. �You?�
�Tennessee. Memphis,� Justin replied.
�Aha! Here�s some Pepsi,� Bridget exclaimed, holding up two cans of Pepsi. As she closed the fridge door, she looked at Justin intently. �You look familiar�where have I seen you before?�
�Umm�� Justin looked down at the ground.
�Aren�t you in that one group�what does Eric call it�N Stink?� Bridget said with a grin.
Justin�s head snapped up. �Hey! It�s �N Sync!�
Bridget laughed and handed the can of Pepsi to Justin. �I know. Just wanted to see what you would do.�
Justin smiled. �Yeah, that�s me. Justin Timberlake, teen heartthrob and sex symbol.�
Bridget sat on the couch and Justin joined her. �Sex symbol?�
�That�s what someone called me,� Justin said wryly.
�You�re cute, but I wouldn�t exactly say you�re a sex symbol,� Bridget said, popping open her Pepsi.
�Enough about me. Let�s hear about you.� Justin drank some of his Pepsi.
�I cam here to get away from everything and everyone-to find my inner peace, you know? What about you? Shouldn�t you be touring or something?� Bridget asked.
Justin shook his head. �We�re taking a break. We�re all exhausted, so we�re off for a few months. I came here all by myself to get away from the business�the media�s glaring eye.�
Bridget nodded. �That stuff must be hard.�
�Yeah, you have no idea,� Justin said. �Hey, do you want to go down onto the beach?�
�Sure. Just let me change.� Bridget jumped up and went into the bathroom to change into a dark blue bikini top and cut off shorts.
�You ready?� Justin asked as Bridget slipped her sandals on.
�Yup. Let�s go,� Bridget said with a smile.
They went down to the beach and spent more than half the time laughing. Bridget couldn�t remember the last time she had felt this relaxed and carefree and she had never felt like this around a guy before in her life.
Bridget playfully touched Justin�s arm. �Tag! You�re it!� She began to run down the beach, screaming and laughing as Justin easily caught up to her and grabbed her arm.
�You�re going to the dungeon,� Justin said with a smile.
�Aaah!� Bridget yelled. �Not the dungeon!� She broke away from Justin�s grasp and ran. Justin grabbed her around the waist, but he lost his balance and they both fell on the warm sand.
�Wow�nice tackle,� Bridget said with a smile.
Justin grinned. �Well, I-�
�Aah!� Bridget shrieked as a wave went up on the shore and washed under her.
Justin stood up in a hurry, laughing and Bridget scrambled up too, but her whole backside was soaked with seawater.
�I cannot believe you, Justin!� Bridget yelled.
�What? How was I supposed to know the wave was going to come up?� Justin laughed.
Bridget glared at Justin. �I�m going to get you.�
�You gotta catch me first,� Justin said, and then ran away. |
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