Kicking Eternity Read Free Page B

of prayers she’d prayed tonight beside the fire.
    She bit down on her lip till she tasted blood.
    Missy waved at someone and Raine glanced over her shoulder to see who it was.
    Aly and Cal moved toward the churning waves. Cal carried a bundle under one arm. He raised a hand to greet his sister and stopped mid-wave when he saw Raine.
    Did Cal feel it too, the lightning bolt of attraction that knocked her back a step on the sand? She wanted to throw herself into its current—something powerful enough to distract her from Eddie.
    Arm still aloft, Cal motioned for Raine to join them.
    She dug her heels into the soft sand one after another—shoving Eddie into God’s hands one last time—till she reached the hard-packed shoreline where Cal and Aly waited. The clouds had blown by and moonlight bathed the beach.
    Raine made eye contact with Aly, asking wordless permission to come along. She didn’t want to upset the tenuous truce between them.
    Aly shrugged. Her eyes flitted between Raine and Cal. Her brows shot up and she opened her mouth to say something.
    Raine cut Aly off. “I haven’t seen you guys at a campfire yet this week. Don’t you like them?” She fell into step between Aly and Cal as they strolled along the shore.
    The wind blew Aly’s hair across her face, and she caught it in her fist. “We get enough religion at this place without begging for more.”
    “People can be spiritual without doing things exactly the way you do,” Cal said. “Take Taoism for example. When we get into the flow of how things are supposed to go, everything goes smoothly. When we’re not in the Tao, we’re gulls flying against the Gulf Stream. What does that remind you of?”
    Raine racked her brain for some tidbit of knowledge from her comparative religion class that would give her a clue to what Cal was talking about.
    “Think about it. The Tao sounds like God’s will. I’ve heard my dad preach a hundred sermons on how things go better when you’re in God’s will.”
    Raine stopped dead in the sand. “Your dad’s a preacher?”
    Cal and Aly kept walking. Raine caught up with them.
    Aly smiled. “Watch out, Cal, maybe you’re genetically wired for priesthood.”
    He laughed. “Not for celibacy.” He turned to Raine. “Aly talks Catholic-ese. Every pastor is a priest. Church services of all kinds are masses. She swears in Catholic.”
    “I do not swear.”
    “What do you call ‘mother of God’ and whipping out the sign of the cross at unholy moments?” Cal said.
    “Well, only in extreme circumstances.”
    “You drink like a Catholic.” Cal unwrapped the sweatshirt bundle under his arm and tugged a Coors Light out of the six-pack. He tossed it to Aly.
    Grinning, Aly caught the beer.
    Cal handed one to Raine. The chill of the aluminum crept all the way up to her elbow.
    He popped the tab on his can and took a long pull, his eyes on her.
    “What’s the matter, Raine?” Aly tore the metal ring from her can. “Never had a beer before?”
    Her silence answered for her.
    Cal wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “You know, the Bible says not to get drunk. It never says you can’t drink alcohol.”
    “That’s true.” Raine had never been offered alcohol. Meth, yes. Of course she wasn’t doing any drugs, but would a Bible teacher drink beer? What had her contract said?
    Cal took another swig. “I bet you always drive the speed limit.”
    Their grilling was getting old. “What if I do?”
    “Figures,” Aly said.
    Raine turned toward Aly. “You think it’s easy driving the speed limit? I spent the last four years of my life in a hurry. I wanted to speed.”
    “But you didn’t,” Aly said.
    Raine brushed the hair out of her face. “The Bible says, ‘Give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s.’ ”
    “Come on,” Cal said, “you know that’s talking about paying taxes—”
    Aly broke in, “You two can debate the Bible all night if you want, but the bottom line is that you’re one of those girls