“What classes are you taking this year?” Dad asked Wyatt.
Wyatt swallowed and took a sip of iced tea before he answered. “Calculus, physics, English, government… Think that’s it.”
“Physics?” Dax shuddered. “Why?” Wyatt laughed, shrugging.
“Good for you, Wyatt.” Mom nodded. “Getting into the vet program is hard. Any advantage you can get is a smart move.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Wyatt’s gaze lingered on my mom.
My chest felt heavy, achy. Mom didn’t see how much that slight praise meant to him, but I did. For the second time that day I was reminded how lucky I was. Not only did I have two parents who loved me and a dork-brother best friend, I loved a boy who knew what love really was—a boy who was teaching me to love.
“Maybe you can help me with Calculus?” I asked him. “Math is my…weakness.”
Dax snorted. “Weakness? It’s going to be a lot harder to find a tutor here than it was in Dallas.”
“No more chicken for you.” I reached across the table toward his plate.
“Hey!” He swatted my hand.
I laughed and sat back.
“Behave,” Mom chided us half-heartedly, smiling.
“I can help, actually,” Wyatt said, grinning. “Math isn’t a problem. Writing papers—research papers—different story.”
“I can help with that.” I sat forward, smiling broadly at him.
“I’d like that.” His voice was soft. His warm copper gaze traveled over my face, making me sigh.
“What time does school start in the morning?” Dad asked, breaking our moment.
Wyatt turned to my father. “Eight-thirty.”
“Not too bad,” Dax murmured.
“Don’t sound too excited.” I forgot, for that split second, that he and Molly weren’t…he and Molly. “It’ll be good, Dax. We haven’t met everyone in the senior class.” I paused, looking to Wyatt then. “Have we?”
Wyatt shook his head. “No. Most of ’em, but not all.”
“Is Cannon McCracken a senior?” Dax asked.
Wyatt looked at me, then Dax, a frown on his face. “No. He graduated last year.”
When Wyatt’s gaze returned to me, I shrugged a little. Wyatt’s frown remained, but he didn’t say anything.
“Who’s Cannon?” Mom asked.
“Some…some guy,” Dax mumbled. “I’m stuffed.” He stood, taking his plate to the sink.
“I know it’s early,” Dad said and stood, following Dax’s lead, “but I don’t want you staying up too late. Eleven, no later.”
“Work?” Mom asked, her blue eyes following my father.
He nodded at her then winked. “Won’t take long.” He turned to Wyatt. “You can use any of my tools you need. Just be careful.”
“Thank you. Mr. Cooper. Dr. Cooper. I can’t thank you enough for taking me in.” He stood, shaking my father’s hand.
Mom came around the table and hugged him. “I want you to think of this as your home now, too. We’re lucky to have you, Wyatt.”
“Yes, we are,” I whispered softly.
Dax squeezed my shoulder. “Keep looking at him like that and he’s going to have a hard time being the good guy.”
I frowned. “I didn’t mean to be so…insensitive, Dax. I know tomorrow’s going to be harder now.”
He shrugged. “I’m going out to the barn to work for a while.”
After I’d cleaned up the kitchen—I couldn’t cook without using almost every pan in the kitchen—I turned off the kitchen light and went outside to check on the boys in the barn.
Mom was sitting in a wicker chair on the side of the wrap-around porch. I was surprised to see Pickett sleeping by her feet. Apparently, Pickett felt at home too. Being happy felt so fricking good.
“Allie,” Mom asked, “is Dax okay?”
Less happy now. Poor Dax. “Did you talk to him?”
“I tried, but he told me being moody was part of being a teenager.” She sighed. “He’s very good at using humor to get out of difficult conversations.”
“I think it’s awesome. I wish I could laugh the hard stuff off, instead of turning evil and spewing venom.”
Mom stared at me with round blue eyes. She opened her mouth, then closed it.
“He’ll be okay.” I tried again. “I think…I think he’s going through…something. But I don’t think we need to worry.”
“Okay.” She smiled. “But you’ll let me know?”
“If we need to worry? Oh, yeah, definitely. I won’t hesitate to call in reinforcements.”
“Good.” She paused. “Can I… You’re… You seem good.” I heard the fear in her voice and hated myself all over again.
“Mom,” I said, watching her stiffen a little, “I know I’ve been…well, a bitch. And I know that Lindie…that—somehow—Lindie’s death kind of made me being a bitch okay, even though it’s not. Losing her hurts, a lot, every day, but that’s a really lame-ass excuse for treating you guys the way I have.” I hugged myself. “And I’m sorry for that. I’m really sorry.”
Mom looked like she was carved from stone. She didn’t blink. She didn’t look like she was breathing.
“Mom?” I took a few steps closer to her.
“Allie…” Her voice broke and she leaned forward, her elbows resting on her knees and her hands over her face.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry. I’m just… Today kind of made my self-centeredness glaringly obvious. I’m really…I’m happy you’re my mom. That I have you.”
Her shoulders were shaking now, so I knelt in front of her—careful not to squish Pickett—and hugged her. Her arms went around me as she sobbed.
The back screen door slammed, followed by a tone I knew all too well. “June? What happened?” Dad’s words were so hard, so biting. “Dammit, Allie! Can’t we make it one week without drama?”
I pulled away from Mom and stood.
“Davis.” Mom stood, her voice thick. “She—”
“Stop defending her, June. She needs to grow up, to know that she’s not the only one in the world who’s dealing with heartache.”
He was right. You are absolutely right. “I just wanted—”
“Attention,” he snapped. “I know, Allie. You can’t seem to help yourself.”
Ouch. That stings big time. But he was still right.
Mom tried to stop him. “Listen, Davis, please stop—”
“I don’t have the energy for this tonight.” He looked at Mom, then me, making no attempt to hide his complete frustration. “Goddammit. I don’t know what to say anymore. Doesn’t matter, since you stopped listening to me a couple of years ago.” He sighed. “We all miss Lindie, we all loved her. But…but you can’t keep striking out at people. You can’t get even by hurting people. Or bring her back.”
I went rigid—I couldn’t help it.
And he saw it, his tone softer as he added, “Think about Wyatt, about all that young man has been through. He’s an example of making the best of a bad situation.”
“I know…”
“You know? Do you really?” he interrupted me. “You know what it’s like to be alone?”
I understood what he was trying to say. And even though I really wanted to shout at him—to beg him to let me finish what I was going to say—I didn’t. Instead, I shook my head. I had no idea, not really. I never would. I was surrounded by people who would always be there for me, no matter what. As angry as he was, my father, Dax, and Mom would never desert me. Neither would Wyatt. If I could only get the words out—
“I can’t believe I’m saying this to you.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Go to your room. I don’t care what you do there, but I hope you’ll take some time to think about your life and the woman you want to be.”
The woman I’m trying to be, right now, if you’d just listen to me for a minute.
Looking at him, seeing the hurt on his face—the disappointment—told me now wasn’t the time to talk. “Yes, sir,” I murmured, alm
ost choking on the words. Old habits die hard. But I was trying. I didn’t want to be self-absorbed Allie, even if sneers and cut-downs came easier to me than doing what my father said, walking into that house and up the stairs to my room. I closed the door, sliding down it to sit on the floor.
I could hear them yelling at each other. I couldn’t hear every word, but my name came up again and again. So did “selfish” and “out of control”. I pressed my forehead against my knees, wishing there was something I could do. Mom and Dad had enough to deal with, without my adding to it. There was no denying the fact that I’d screwed things up. I didn’t want to screw things up anymore.
My eyes burned, stinging so bad I sniffed. I would not cry. Not now. What was the point? Instead, I tugged off my clothes, pulled on an oversized sleep t-shirt with David Beckham’s face on it, and flopped onto the bed. I closed my eyes, counting backwards from fifty over and over again.
My phone vibrated. At first I ignored it. But it kept vibrating so I reached for it, sliding the lock over and reading the text.
Sweet dreams. I love you.
Wyatt had used his only-for-emergencies phone. To text me.
I smiled, rolled over in bed, and closed my eyes.
16 CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I was nervous as I made my way downstairs the next morning. I paused at the bottom of the stairs, checking my reflection. My favorite FC Dallas t-shirt was tucked into slim-fitting jeans. The ponytail wasn’t working—too cheerleader. I slipped the band out and fluffed my hair around my shoulders. A little better, even with bags under my eyes. I glanced toward the kitchen, took a deep breath, and moved.
But there was no reason to get all worked up; Dad wasn’t there. I didn’t ask why and Mom didn’t offer. Wyatt had yet to make an appearance, Dax was fidgeting nervously in his chair, and Mom was making a ton of pancakes—enough to feed the entire town of Black Falls, from the looks of it. Something told me it wasn’t first-day-of-school nerves that had Mom on edge. She chattered away, ninety-to-nothing, about supplies and lunches and schedules. “No one has after-school stuff yet, right?” she asked.
I shook my head. “Don’t think so.”
Dax grunted.
“No, ma’am,” Wyatt said as he walked into the kitchen.
“Morning.” She smiled at him. “What about football? Don’t they start practicing before school starts?”
“Not playing this year. Between rodeo and work, I had to choose.” He nodded his thanks as my mother put a plate in front of him.
“Not many guys would walk away from football,” Dax said around a mouthful of pancakes.
“Swallow before talking?” I asked, without bite. “Please.”
Wyatt’s gaze swept over my face, the warmth in his eyes instantly making the morning better. “I was a defensive lineman—replaceable.”
Somehow Wyatt being replaceable, in any way, was just wrong. No way. I caught Wyatt’s look and shook my head at him. He smiled—so freaking gorgeous, I froze. He shook his head back at me, his cheeks turning an adorable shade of red.
Dax made a big production out of swallowing and clearing his throat. “Better?”
I nodded, barely glancing at him—I was way too caught up in Wyatt.
“You ever play?” Wyatt turned to Dax, breaking the rapidly warming connection between us.
“Um, no.” Dax laughed. “Allie’s the athlete. I’m the cheering section.”
“Reluctant,” I added.
Dax nodded. “Reluctant cheering section.”
“How long did you play?” Mom asked as she joined us at the table.
“I played freshman and sophomore year. Junior year I started working.” He shrugged, without adding anything else. I knew that was probably when his mother had passed away.
“Looks like you made the right choice,” Dax commented. “A&M’s where Mom and Dad graduated.”
It was a good school. No, it wasn’t a good school, it was a really great school. They had an amazing Sports Management program and a respected Health and Kinesiology school and a Sports Therapy program—exactly what I wanted. I’d applied but never considered it because it was Dad’s school. Because I’m an ass.
And now it was Wyatt’s school.
“Allie, would you like to take my car?” Mom asked, interrupting my what-the-hell-is-the-matter-with-me moment. “You can drop me off at work and pick me up on your way home.”
“I…”
“I don’t mind driving, if you want,” Wyatt offered, glancing at me. “Least I can do, with y’all puttin’ me up and all.” He turned to my mother as he finished.
“Wyatt.” My mom patted his shoulder. “That’s sweet of you to offer. I’ll let you work it out amongst yourselves.”
Dax snorted. “I think I’ll drive myself.”
Mom laughed.
I felt Wyatt’s knee brush against mine and I shifted, letting my knee rest against his. I saw Wyatt smile as he scooped eggs onto his plate. Touching Wyatt kept my first-day nerves away. So I went out of my way to make sure we were touching. He didn’t seem to mind. If anything, he seemed to like it too.
Driving to school, I stayed happily pressed against his side—even though there was plenty of room since Dax insisted on taking his truck. Wyatt tried to ask me about Dad, but I didn’t want to talk about any of that this morning. He pressed a kiss to my forehead and let it go.
“I’ll take you to get your schedule first thing,” Wyatt said as we pulled into the parking lot. Trucks were apparently the vehicle of choice for the high school students, but there were also lots of older family cars, SUVs, and the odd van. Not a single Lexus, Mercedes, Porsche, or Volvo…nothing like my old school
“Okay,” I murmured.
He put the truck in park and looked down at me. “Ready?”
I shrugged, my stomach knotting. “Sure.”
He nodded, his eyes resting on my lips a second before he kissed me. It was a soft kiss, lips gentle, breath mingling, his hand resting on the side of my neck. His forehead rested against mine and he whispered, “Now it’s a good morning.”
He draped his arm along my shoulders as we walked across the parking lot. I liked it, this open declaration of couple-hood. When we reached the office, he held the door open for me, taking my hand once we walked inside.
“Good morning, Wyatt.” A tiny elderly lady with metal-grey hair greeted Wyatt at the counter. “How was your summer? I heard you were whipping Maureen’s place into shape.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Wyatt nodded toward me. “This is Miss Maureen’s granddaughter.”
Grey eyes peered through metal-framed glasses. She smiled, her face crinkling into a million feathery wrinkles. “Of course you are. The spitting image of Maureen when she was young. I’m Mrs. Jansen, school secretary. And you are…” She flipped through a haphazard stack of papers and files on the corner of her desk. She pulled two files from the stack. “…Allie Cooper. Here’s your schedule, honey. Turn it in to your last period teacher and they’ll get it back to me. Wyatt, will you be showing her around?”
“I was thinking about it,” he teased, squeezing my hand.
“Thought so.” She smiled, handing me my schedule. I glanced at it. “Welcome to Black Falls,” Mrs. Jensen said as we made our way from the office.
“Looks like we have…” Wyatt took my schedule, reading over it. “…everything together except Health Professions and…athletics.”
I couldn’t help smiling then. Maybe senior year at Black Falls wasn’t going to suck.
We sat at the black-topped science table together. Wyatt was shaking hands, clapping shoulders, and smiling hellos at everyone who came through the door. He introduced me, but there was no way I’d remember them all. Some of them were familiar—having floated down the river with me. But I couldn’t match any names with faces.
“Welcome to Physics.” Mr. Abernathy was a barrel-chested man with a receding hairline. “I won’t lie to you and tell you this is an easy class. It’s not. It’s physics. But
you’ll do fine as long as you do the homework.”
Physics first period. Awesome. Wyatt’s knee nudged me under the table, making me smile.
“This is your seating assignment for the year.” He put a piece of paper on our lab table. It had a diagram of the tables on it. “Fill this out and get to know your lab partner. You will be doing a lot of team work, so find a smart kid to sit next to.”
I laughed, a little startled. Wyatt wrote our names on the paper and passed the sheet to the table behind us. The class was small, maybe fifteen kids. Fifteen faces I didn’t know. One face I did. Wyatt winked at me.
After sitting through Physics, World Economics, and College Algebra, we found the cafeteria…and my brother.
“How’s day one going?” Levi asked as we sat across the table from them. “You surviving?”
“Loving every minute,” I replied, smiling sweetly.
Dax laughed, glancing between me and Wyatt. “How many classes you two have together?”
I grinned. “All of them, so far.” Wyatt’s arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me close—making my smile grow.
“That’s gonna be distracting,” Levi murmured, looking back and forth between the two of us.
Wyatt’s brown eyes met mine. “Maybe,” he said, but he smiled. “I’m good with it.”
I felt my cheeks warm and turned my attention to the bag of carrot sticks in my lunchbox. Distracting? Maybe. Bearable? Completely.
So far, so good. My teachers weren’t horrible and I had Wyatt—no complaints. Dax and Levi were in Economics together, cutting up and getting into trouble already. But the teacher was good-natured, so hopefully Dax wouldn’t spend half of the year in the principal’s office. I couldn’t help but wonder if Dax was acting like a tool because Molly was also in that class.
I glanced up and saw Molly, walking into the cafeteria with her tray, looking…conflicted. What was the deal? It was clear she had a thing for my brother. She was staring at him as she made her way to our table.
“Hey.” Molly’s voice was soft, trying for enthusiasm.
Levi slid over, making room for her—beside Dax. Poor Dax.
Here I was, practically in Wyatt’s lap, smiling from ear to ear and crazy-happy, while Dax had to deal with his feelings for Molly…and Molly’s boyfriend. He went from smiling and teasing to tense and silent.
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