Amy Jones Books

Sealed With a Kiss <3

Today’s post theme is a collaboration between myself and several of my YA Indie writing friends, The Paranormal Plumes Society. In this themed post, Sealed with a Kiss, I will share my first kiss along with a first kiss moment from one of my books.

My first kiss!
I wish I could rewrite history here in a way that might make you swoon or green with envy but the truth is it just didn’t happen.  My first kiss was just… OK.  I was in eighth grade and the boy I smooched (and was dating at the time) was a boy from my church. Up until the moment of the afore mentioned smackeroo my contact with Allen had been limited to Sunday school and youth events at church. The lip lock occurred on our first official date… a canoeing trip. Yeah, you heard that right. Now that I look back upon the moment I’m fairly certain the date location and activity was his parent’s choice. Why do I suspect this, you wonder? Well, have you ever been canoeing? Here’s the deal, if you prefer to remain inside the boat at all times you must maintain balance with in the boat. This balance is achieved by the placement of the canoe’ers  within the boat. If one canoe’r is present they sit directly in the mid-section of the boat. If two canoe’ers are present they sit at opposite ends of the boat.  So there we were, on our first official date, sitting approximately 4 to 6 feet away from each other at all times.  How romantic... NOT! (Note to self, remember dating idea when Olivia [my daughter] reaches dating age – brilliant!)

The kiss eventually did happen. We leaned across the open span of the canoe to touch our lips together for about 3 seconds. All the while we were sweating in the hot sun and struggling to maintain our balance to prevent the canoe from toppling over and of course we had to paddle ourselves to a remote location so we would not fall under the eyes of eavesdroppers. AND… of course this remote location designated for our privacy turned out to be a mosquito and large, ugly bug invested, putrid smelling swamp-like locale.  Yuck!

Verdict on the first kiss!
So, how was my first kiss? Well, if you take away all of the negative factors (the canoe, the mosquitos and gianormous bugs, the stinky swamp and the balancing act) my assessment would be short but sweet, kind of  how a first kiss should be.

Ironically, in The Guardians of Souls, Liv and Jedd share an equally embarrassing ‘almost’ first kiss.

In this excerpt from The Guardians of Souls, Jedd and Liv share their ‘almost’ first kiss. This s a pivotal moment for the pair because, although they don’t quite seal that precious first kiss, they realize and finally admit to one another, their feelings for one another.

Chapter Five
Jedd
Time - July 8, 2015
Place - Liv's house
Queens, New York

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams."
- Dr. Seuss

I walked slowly down the street as I headed toward Liv's house. I didn't know exactly what I was going to say to her. I had been acting like such a jerk. I missed her and I wanted to set things right between us before she and the rest of my spirit friends left for their supposed summer camp outing this Friday. I knew where they were really going. At least, I knew what they were really going to do and it wasn't a sporadic hiking quest across the Adirondacks like everyone else assumed. They were going to hunt for Shy Donavan, the evil Daeva who killed Jesse Howard and Laith's step sister, Melissa Small last winter. Brayan wouldn't give me an exact location but I knew they weren't headed to the Adirondacks. Shy would go somewhere more heavily populated. He could hide and survive more easily among the chaos of a bustling metropolitan city. I tried to speculate as to where that might be, maybe Philadelphia, Chicago or Houston. I don't suppose it matters. I wouldn't be joining them. Liv had made it very clear that I was not part of the in crowd and I was not welcome.

OK, I'm not going to start to think like that again. I'm going to see Liv to apologize and make things right between us. I don't want her to have to worry about me or my deflated ego while she is hunting down a soul sucking killer. My ego should be the last of her worries. If I'm honest with myself I suppose I should admit my fear is that I am the last of her worries. My real fear is that she doesn't worry about me at all anymore. It was so much easier when we were younger. There were no confusing emotional complications back then. Everything changed for us at the block party last summer, or at least it did for me. Liv and I both reside on the same street in the Forest Hills area of Queens. Every August before we head back to school our neighbors get together and orchestrate a huge block party including music, food and fireworks. It's a great time... or at least it used to be. Last year's party felt like the beginning of the end for me. Before that party Liv was my buddy, my best pal. She was just like one of the guys, you know what I mean. It wasn't like she was a real girl, not until that stupid party. She comes strolling down the street in this very distracting purple dress. Her shoulders were bare except for two thin straps. The dress wasn't tight but it clung to the curve of her shape. I don't think I was even aware that she had a shape prior to that moment. Anyway, it hugged her body to her knee level. Her mahogany hair hung long and straight against her olive colored skin with only one small shiny metal butterfly clip to secure the length of her bangs away from her face. Her chocolate brown eyes warmed in the sunlight. She wore no make-up, just her usual cherry Chapstick, nor did she need any. She looked like a Goddess, or better.

In that instant my life changed forever because I realized I was in love with my best friend. That's why I'm going to apologize to her now. It's not her fault that I fell for her. It's not her fault I'm too much of a coward to tell her I'm in love with her and it is definitely not her fault if she can't feel the same way about me. I mean, I'm human and she's much more than that. It would only make sense that she would need someone who was more than human. She is going to need someone who is like her. I can't be that person and I should stop trying to be. I should stop punishing her for what I'm not.

I began to feel more uneasy as I walked around to the back of her house. She was outside on the deck. I could already hear her humming along to an unfamiliar tune on her iPod. As I rounded the corner she spied me and grinned as wide as the depths of my heart. She had been running. She was sporting her gray Nikes, a white tank and blue running shorts. Sweat beaded up on her cute little nose. She wiped her face with a towel and gulped a swig of her Gatorade.

"Hi, Jedd. I've missed you." she beamed.

She didn't even hesitate with her words and she was obviously very glad to see me. Why couldn't I be brave like that? Why was it so hard for me to tell her how I felt? I felt my knees get weak as she skipped to my side. She threw her arms around my neck and hugged me hard for a long moment. I was overwhelmed with both longing and guilt. I felt longing for this beautiful, sweet and intelligent girl that could never be mine and I felt guilt for denying her the friendship that she had always been able to rely on in the past and still deserved.

"I'm sorry I haven't been around. I've missed you too." I finally managed to say.

She pursed her lips in hesitation and wrinkled her forehead. She was troubled about something. I raised an eyebrow at her and she relaxed a little. I couldn't believe I had allowed this much tension to come between us.

"I shouldn't have told you that things wouldn't ever change between us, Jedd. I don't have that kind of power or control over life. No one does..." she began.

Oh no, here it comes. She's going to tell me she doesn't want me around anymore.

"What I should have said..." she looked away and shook her head. Whatever she wanted to say to me was very difficult for her. "What I should have said was I will never stop... loving you, Jedd." she said in a tiny voice.

I almost didn't hear her, but I did and my heart was doing somersaults and back flips. I stood there, my soul filling with joy while her anxiety increased in my silence. I was stunned into stupor so I pulled her into my arms and pressed my lips to her forehead.

"I love you too, Liv." I finally returned.

After several minutes she lifted her face to meet mine and whispered, "So, what do we do now?" She was as clueless about this emotional stuff as I was. It was comforting to know it wasn't just me. She comprehended my stumped expression and we both began to laugh. "This is crazy." she said shaking her head again.

"Why?" I challenged but I knew exactly what she was thinking.

How could this be happening between us after so many years of knowing each other? She watched me fall out of a tree and break my arm when I was eleven. I had cried like a sissy in front her. I'd watched her puke her guts out on the merry-go-round in elementary school. It was entirely disgusting. We'd both seen each other at our worst and yet here we were in love with each other.

"It's just that I know you better than anyone." she shrugged.

"I know... Do you remember that day back in elementary school when you spewed chunks all over the merry-go-round?" I asked and she cringed at the memory. Her nose and forehead scrunched up in disgust. "Well, if you had told me back then you loved me I would have thought your words were more revolting than the chunks of vomit you hurled all over me." I laughed and she laughed with me as she nodded her head in agreement.

"I really hate that you can remember that, Jedd. Could there be a more unattractive memory of me?" she whined.

"No." I said shaking my head firmly.

Then I placed one of my hands on the small of her back. A strand of her hair had unsecured itself from her pony tail and I brushed it away from her face with my other hand. Her skin was warm and soft and she smelled like berries or apples, some fragrance in her shampoo or perfume. We stared into each other’s eyes in a new way. It was strange and wonderful at the same time. The pit of my stomach warmed as butterflies danced inside of it. As my heart sped up I realized I'd stopped breathing. She must have done the same thing because we both sucked in a deep breath of air at the same time. Our faces were so close together I could literally taste her breath. It was warm and smelled of her grape Gatorade but it tasted sweeter. I slowly leaned in to kiss her, waiting for her eyes to give me permission, but never got her answer. The patio doors flung open as Mr. Glyn loped outside with a plate full of chicken breasts and hamburgers to barbeque on the grill. Liv and I instantaneously wrenched ourselves apart, embarrassed by almost being caught in lip lock.

"Hi kids... I haven't seen you in a while, Jedd. It's nice to see you again. Would you like to stay for dinner?" Mr. Glyn smiled.

His smile was too wide, in fact he looked on the verge of laughter. Not only were we busted but now my best friend slash girlfriend's Dad was laughing at me. Liv knew it too. She was glaring at her Dad as he mashed his lips together tightly, no doubt fighting back the urge to laugh. Then he glanced toward the open window in the kitchen. Mrs. Glyn stood there giggling, she didn't even attempt to stifle her amusement. Great, now that Mr. Glyn has invited me to dinner I'll have no choice but to suffer their amusement this evening. If I leave now it will make her parents think I feel guilty about the fact that I was just about to kiss their daughter... and I don't feel that way at all. I only feel horrifically embarrassed that they nearly witnessed it. It was my first kiss for crying out loud, or at least it would have been.

"Absolutely, I would love to stay for dinner." I replied to Mr. Glyn with as much confidence as I could muster.

"Oh... well good." Mr. Glyn said surprised.

He looked back toward the kitchen window where Mrs. Glyn was still standing and they nodded at one another. Mr. Glyn's expression looked impressed. Huh, that's cool I guess.

Dinner was awkward to say the least. Liv's Dad didn't leave us alone for more than two seconds but he never made me feel unwelcome. I guess it must be weird to watch your kid start to act all gooey eyed and stupid. Who am I to judge? The Glyns are good people, just a little hovering where their daughter is concerned. It's just me after all. They know me and they should know that I would never hurt Liv. Then again, I had kind of skipped out on her since school let out. Well, no more. From now on I will do whatever Liv asks of me, no more and no less. After dinner we played the game Pictionary with Liv's folks. I hate that game because I can't draw worth a damn! The things we do for love... We split into teams according to gender. It was Mr. Glyn's idea and it was a dumb one. Both Liv and Mrs. Glyn are very artistic. Mr. Glyn is every bit the lousy artist that I am. We struggled with our stick figures while Liv and her Mom drew sketches worthy of being matted and framed. Liv and her mother won, surprise! I hate losing and it put me in a bad mood. It was the losing or the lingering memory of my almost kiss with Liv that irritated me. I wouldn't get my chance again tonight which is going to result in a long sleepless night of wondering fantasy. Liv walked me down to the end of the driveway when I was leaving. Her parents remained in the backyard but I had lost the nerve I possessed earlier. I just knew if I attempted to kiss her again Mr. Glyn would suddenly appear in the driveway on an errand to collect the mail from the mailbox. Then Liv surprised me.

"Sleep well tonight, Jedd." she said and she stretched up onto her toes and brushed her lips quickly against my cheek.

Blush spread across her face making her that much more lovely.

"I will, because I'll be dreaming about you, beautiful." I smiled at her. On my way home I grinned so big my face hurt.

Sealed With a Kiss Line Up <3

February 1^st Abbi Glines

http://www.abbiglines.com/

February 2^nd Tiffany King

http://authortiffanyjking.blogspot.com/

February 3^rd Shelly Crane

http://shellycrane.blogspot.com/

February 4^th

February 5^th Amy Jones

http://amyjonesyaff.blogspot.com/

February 6^th Addison Moore

http://addisonmoorewrites.blogspot.com/

February 7^th Carol & Adam Kunz

http://cakunz.blogspot.com/

February 8^th Courtney Cole

http://courtneycolewrites.wordpress.com/

February 9^th Nichole Chase

http://nicholechase.blogspot.com/

February 10^th Fisher Amelie

http://www.fisheramelie.com

February 11^th

February 12^th Laura Elliott

http://laurasmagicday.wordpress.com

February 13^th Michelle Muto

http://michellemuto.wordpress.com/

February 14^th Michelle Leighton

http://mleightonbooks.blogspot.com/