Cutler 1 - Dawn by V.C. Andrews

my math class needs another guy on his team. And then I might join the cross-country team in the spring."
    "That's wonderful, Jimmy. Maybe we can make friends here; maybe we just met the wrong people yesterday."
    "I didn't say I was making friends," Jimmy replied quickly. "I just figured I could kill some time twice a week."
    Daddy wasn't around, so I asked Jimmy to tell him I had gone for a ride and Philip would take me home.
    "I wish you wouldn't get involved with that guy," Jimmy said.
    "I'm not getting involved, Jimmy. I'm just going for a ride."
    "Sure," Jimmy said and slumped down sadly in a chair. I ran back upstairs to meet Philip. He had a pretty red car with soft furry white sheepskin covers on the seats. He opened the door for me and stepped back.
    "Madam," he said with a sweeping bow.
    I got in and he closed the door. The car was even prettier inside. I ran my hand over the soft covers and looked at the black leather dashboard and gearshift.
    "You have a beautiful car, Philip," I told him when he got behind the steering wheel.
    "Thank you. It was a birthday gift from my grandmother."
    "A birthday gift!" How rich his grandmother must be, I thought, to give him a car as a present. He shrugged, smiled coyly, and started the engine. Then he shifted into gear and we were off.
    "How did you find this wonderful place, Philip?" I asked as we headed away from the school and in the opposite direction from where I lived.
    "Oh, I was just cruising by myself one day and came upon it. I like to go for rides and look at the scenery and think," he said. He made a turn off a main street and headed quickly down a road without many houses on it. Then he turned again, and we began to climb up a hill. "It's not much farther," he said. We passed a few houses as we continued to climb, and then Philip turned down a rather deserted road that ran along a field and into a patch of trees. The road was only gravel and rock.
    "You found this accidentally?"
    "Uh-huh."
    "And you haven't taken any other girl from Emerson Peabody up here?"
    "Nope," he said, but I was beginning to have my doubts.
    We drove through the small forest and came out on a clear field. There really wasn't any more road, but Philip continued over the grass until we came to the edge of the hill and could look out over the James River. Just as he promised, it was a spectacular view.
    "Well?"
    "Beautiful, Philip!" I exclaimed, drinking in the scene. "You were right."
    "And you should see it at night with the stars out and the lights of the city. Think I can get you out at night?" he asked, with a crooked smile.
    "I don't know," I answered quickly, but I harbored a hope. That would be more like a real date, my first real date. He edged closer to me, his arm over the top of the seat.
    "You're a very pretty girl, Dawn. The moment I saw you, I said to myself, there's the prettiest girl I've seen at Emerson Peabody. I'm going to get to know her as fast as I can."
    "Oh, lots of the girls at Emerson Peabody are prettier than me." I wasn't trying to be falsely modest. I had seen so many pretty girls with beautiful, expensive clothing. How could I compare to then? I wondered.
    "They're not prettier to me," he said. "I'm glad you transferred to our school." His fingers grazed my shoulder. "Have you had many boyfriends?" I shook my head. "I don't believe that," he said.
    "It's true. We haven't been able to stay in one place long enough," I added. He laughed.
    "You say the funniest things."
    "I'm not trying to be funny, Philip. It's true," I repeated, widening my eyes for emphasis.
    "Sure," he said, moving his fingers to my hair and tracing a strand with his forefinger. "You have the tiniest nose," he said and leaned forward to kiss the tip of my nose. It took me by such surprise, l sat back.
    "I couldn't help it," he said and leaned forward again, this time to kiss my cheek. I looked down as his left hand settled on my knee. It sent a tingle up my thigh. "Dawn," he whispered softly in my