Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 60482 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60482 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
“Fuck yeah. I knew it since we were kids, especially that day we made up songs in the rain, singing at the top of our lungs. But I always knew I couldn’t have you.”
I close my eyes, drifting back to that soaked afternoon. The rain fell in sheets, drumming on the grass as we lay side by side, giggling until the world blurred. I remember noticing him then—his strong arms, the way he smelled of motor oil and earth after a storm. He was too old for me, but that didn’t mean I hadn’t noticed how perfect he was.
“But when I was seventeen,” I whisper, “you let me kiss you.”
He nods. “Yeah, and it fuckin’ destroyed me for every other girl out there.”
I can taste the memory on my tongue: his lips warm, soft, the gentle pull of his tongue against mine. He tasted like freedom and beer and every secret I’d ever kept.
“Do you remember it?” I ask.
“Fuck yeah, I’ll never forget.”
Neither will I.
Every single moment with Travis Phoenix will be forever etched into my memory.
And my heart.
15
THE NEXT MORNING, I wake with a head full of static and a body full of bruises I can’t account for. It’s safe to say Travis and I had a really good night. I drag myself upright and make coffee in Travis’s kitchen, listening to him mutter into his phone about dry amps and gaffer tape, flexing band business at eight A.M., already in a pair of jeans and nothing else. I lean against the counter, watching the muscles in his back move. The world is still a fucked-up place, but for fifteen minutes I pretend it belongs to us.
Eventually, he turns toward me, hanging up the phone. “I think we should go and see Chief today.”
His words shock me, because they are certainly not what I thought he would turn around saying. I blink, wondering if I heard him wrong. Travis wanting to go out of his way to see my father after what happened is admirable, and I find a whole new level of respect for him.
“You want to go and see him?”
Travis nods. “This can’t go on forever. I fucked up when I lied to him, and I owe it to him to apologize for that.”
My heart swells. “Trav...”
“Don’t start getting mushy on me, Mischief. It’s time to move forward from all of this.”
“Okay,” I exhale. “Let me finish this coffee and we will go.”
By the time we leave, the rain has let up but the air is heavy, the sky threatening to open again at any moment. Travis drives, fingers drumming on the wheel the whole way there. I trace circles on the fogged window, watching water bead down the glass.
When we arrive, the place is crawling with patched jackets and black bikes and a handful of women still lingering from the night before. All eyes track us. I see Bill on the porch, cupping a cigarette and looking like he hasn’t slept yet. He flicks the smoke, gives me a slow nod.
“Hey, kid,” he calls out. “You look like shit.”
“Thanks, Bill.” I laugh lightly, stopping at the foot of the porch and staring up at him.
He taps the rim of his coffee mug. “Your mom doing better?”
I nod. “Yeah, she’s enjoying spending time with Gran. I’m glad she has the chance to see her.”
A half-grin. “She was always a tough broad.” He glances at Travis, who stands a few paces away. “You got balls coming in here, boy. I respect it, though.”
“Yeah,” he murmurs.
Bill leans in, lowering his voice. “Chief’s in the office. With Jaq.”
I huff. “Jaq’s here?”
He gives me a look. “She’s always here. She never leaves unless he tells her to.”
A long, drawn-out exhale. “Well, wish me luck.”
He grins. “Good luck, kids.”
We move through the compound and into the far back shed where Chief’s office is. I hesitate at the door. My hand is slick on the knob, and I don't know if it's the rain or the anxiety. I nod to Travis.
We enter.
Chief is behind his desk, sleeves rolled up. Jaq is perched on the sofa in the corner, one long leg draped over the arm, half in a slip and nothing else. She's all cleavage and smoke, cell phone glowing like a star in her hand. She stares over at us, not even pretending to be modest. There's bottled water on the desk and a half-eaten sandwich.
God, she’s foul.
Chief looks up, his eyes moving to Travis then to me. He doesn’t say anything because Jaq gets in first. "What, it's bring your boyfriend to work day?" she drawls.
“Shut the hell up, Jaq,” I snap.
Chief ignores the argument and leans back in his chair. “What brings you two in here?”
I glance at Travis, but before I can even say anything, he is stepping forward, shoulders squared, ready to take on even more of Chief if he has to. I love that about him. "I fucked up, Chief. No excuses. I lied to you, I lied to her. Wasn't smart. Wasn't right. I regret it." He pauses, knuckles white. "But it's done now. Whatever you think of me, I'm not going anywhere. She's everything to me and I need you to know that."