Where You Belong

by Tracie Puckett

  “Roz, hey.” He reached forward to steady my arms at my sides. I hadn’t realized I was flailing. I just wanted to shout I’m sorry a thousand times, begging him to forgive me. “What do you mean? What’s really bothering you?”

  “Everything changed on Halloween,” I said. “It was supposed to be an amazing night; Ally had planned this huge birthday party for Carter, and we’d gone out to The Red Barn to celebrate. But somehow my brother’s ex-girlfriend found out about the party, and she showed up. She cornered me outside—angry and on a mission—as I was leaving. She kept using the word steroids, throwing it in my face like she couldn’t believe I was oblivious to how much and how often Daniel was using. But I was. I’d credited years of training to how big, and strong, and fast he’d gotten. Sara painted a much different picture.”

  “Why would she corner you?”

  “She’s the worst kind of scorned ex. Daniel broke up with her at the end of the summer, and it was a messy break up. She’d stood by his side, cheered on the sidelines, and promised to play the role of doting girlfriend to the all-star quarterback. She had this picture-perfect image of how their lives would play out together. Sara wanted a happily ever after, but Daniel wanted to focus on his football career. And when he called it quits, she spent weeks stewing; at some point, she decided she had the ultimate way to get back at him, so she took her first strike.

  “She’d been stealing the money from her grandparents to pay for his pills and injections,” I said. “For a whole year, she backed his habit with stolen money. And after he dumped her, she demanded every penny of it back, or else she was going to expose all of the details of what he’d been doing for the last year.”

  Avery shook his head. “How did she steal five thousand dollars without anyone noticing?”

  “She didn’t. I asked for the receipts. The withdrawals were always in little increments, here and there, sometimes months apart—never a lot at one time. There was nothing suspicious enough to raise any red flags. But the little sums added up, and in twelve months, they’d spent twenty-five-hundred dollars on illegal drugs.”

  “He owes her twenty-five-hundred dollars,” Avery said, trying to make sense of everything. “So why is she demanding twice that much?”

  “For her trouble, apparently. Because she’s the one who will take the fall if her super-rich family ever realizes they’re missing money. Not to mention she kept his secret. I’m essentially paying for her silence. Or, I would be, but . . . we have three months. I don’t know how she determined that timeline, or how she picked the due date, but that’s what she’s decided. Three months, five thousand dollars, or Daniel’s reputation is ruined forever.”

  A nod confirmed that Avery understood the dilemma, but there was still confusion etched in the lines around his eyes.

  “I understand not wanting to get your brother in trouble,” he said. “But I think you’re in way over your head here.”

  “You’re telling me. I don’t have that kind of money.”

  “I’m talking about all of it, Roz—theft, drugs, blackmail, hush money. This isn’t something you should be caught up in. You need to talk to your parents.”

  “And tell them what? The truth?”

  “That seems like a good place to start.”

  “Right, like you’ve told your network the truth about your arrest.”

  “I’m not tangled up in an elaborate blackmail scheme.”

  “No, you’re just risking your livelihood to protect a friend—one who obviously doesn’t appreciate what you’ve done for her.”

  “Okay, so we’re both culpable idiots. And I’m sorry to call you an idiot, but—”

  “It’s okay.” I sighed. “I am.”

  “Roz, you haven’t done anything wrong, you know that? You’re letting all of this fall on your shoulders, and for what? What about Daniel? What’s he doing to accept responsibility?”

  “Nothing. That’s why Sara came to me. She said he refused to pony up the money, because he never thought she’d have the nerve to come clean. If she exposed him, that meant exposing her theft, and he didn’t think she’d ever admit her part in it. So when she couldn’t get what she wanted from him, she came to me. He has no idea I know.”

  “And you think she’ll retaliate?”

  “Oh, she’ll tell the world. I’ve never met a bigger gossip. Daniel’s whole future will crumble if this gets out. He just won the state championship, and he’s in line for athletic scholarships that’ll change his life. He could go pro! He’ll lose all of that; Sutton Woods will lose their title because of him. The rest of the team earned that win, but they could have it all stripped away because of Daniel. Can you imagine that kind of humiliation? People commit suicide because of stuff like this.”

  The thought of losing Daniel knocked the wind out of me. It was a feeling I’d become all too familiar with. I’d lost so much sleep worrying about him, wondering how he would react if his usage blew up in his face. Would he buckle beneath the criticism and humiliation? Would he survive Dad’s heartache and Mom’s disappointment? Would he be able to live with what he’d done?

  Daniel’s choices held the potential to cause a ripple effect, and I prayed that one stupid mistake wouldn’t lead to another. If I thought steroids were enough to hurt our family, I couldn’t begin to imagine what suicide would do. Not only would I lose my kid brother, but my parents would lose one of the most precious treasures of their lives.

  I’d told myself that I hated him, but the truth wasn’t that simple. I didn’t hate him at all. It was my disappointment that’d left me so angry. But as disappointed as I was, I couldn’t fathom living a single day on this Earth without Daniel.

  While we’d grown apart over the years, nothing would ever change the facts. We were born ten months apart, and he was the closest thing I’d ever have to a twin. He was my best friend in all those years leading up to kindergarten, and he’d always stood at my side—protecting me when I couldn’t protect myself. Whether it was a skinned elbow, a bee sting, or a playground bully, Daniel was my ride or die. No matter what came our way, we’d stick it out together, and if we couldn’t beat the odds, we’d go down fighting for each other with each other.

  That would never change.

  He was my childhood. He was my baby brother—the one I’d always go to bat for. I’d fight for him with every ounce of strength and willpower I had, because he was my family, and I knew he’d do the same for me. He was my first friend—the person who’d given me some of the best years of my life. I loved that stupid jerk.

  “I can’t lose him, Avery.”

  “You’re afraid you will? Is he suicidal?”

  “I don’t know, but if you take his whole world away, then what does he have to live for?” I asked, starting to cry. “It scares me. My dad . . . and my mom . . . they believe in him. They’re proud of him. I don’t think our family would survive the truth.”

  “Are we wrong?” he asked, wiping my tears. “Helping people who won’t help themselves, all in the name of protecting what we love? Does that make us the bad guys?”

  “I don’t know. If they’re never held accountable, they’ll never know the consequences. And when they get away with it once, who’s to say they won’t keep trying? We have the ability to stop it, but we don’t, because—”

  “We’re idiots,” he said again, and that time I smiled.

  “Idiots who love too much.”

  “Well, at least we can be idiots together,” he said, nudging me. “Come on. Let’s keep walking.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Wow.”

  “You like it?”

  “Wow,” he said again, and the enthusiasm in his voice warmed my heart. That’s when I knew I’d made the right decision to bring him out here.

  “It’s our secret hangout,” I said, watching Avery as he stared up at the active waterfall.

  Ten years ago, in a clearing about a mile behind The Red Barn, Ally and I had wandered across the rocky gorge hidden de
ep within the trees of Sutton Woods. The limestone ravine surrounded only a small part of the creek that ran through the forest, and though every element of this natural wonder was breathtaking on its own, it was the waterfall that always brought us back; it was high enough to make a statement, but not so high that we hadn’t climbed to the top a hundred times. The fall emptied into a shallow pool of water at ground level, but we’d never attempted a jump off the forty-foot ledge. None of us had a death wish.

  Mel and Carter knew all about the waterfall, too, and over the years, it’d become the ultimate summer hangout spot.

  We’d never taken anyone else back here. It was our own little hideaway—the one place we could go to escape the world. And while we’d always promised we’d never bring another soul back there, I’d made an exception for Avery.

  I wanted to believe my friends would understand why I’d broken the rule, because Carter and I had raved a thousand times about how much this place reminded us of our favorite set on Where You Belong.

  Sterling and Anna had shared their first kiss right beneath the gentle waterfall that looked just like this one.

  Bringing Avery here was a one-time deal, and I wouldn’t even have to disclose if I thought it would become a problem. I just couldn’t imagine letting the opportunity slip by without giving Avery a small glimpse of my world.

  “It’s uncanny.”

  “Right? The rock formations, the height, the surrounding nature.”

  “Except none of this is green screen,” he said. “It’s real.”

  “As real as it gets.”

  Avery knelt at the small creek, running his fingers along the surface of the cold water.

  “I miss stuff like this,” he said, looking over his shoulder at me. “Simple moments—the slow movement of nature. The stuff we take for granted every day.”

  “You probably don’t get much of that back home, do you?”

  “California isn’t home. It’s where I live, but home is . . . a place I’m still searching for.”

  “You grew up in Georgia, right?”

  “Until I was seven,” he said, unfazed by the fact that I knew that about him. He was probably used to meeting people who always seemed to know things they had no business knowing. I guess it came with the territory of being in the spotlight; there was no such thing as privacy.

  “We moved all over the place for years.”

  “Why?”

  “We were always following Mom’s advertising career to the next big city.”

  “Do you resent her for that? For never staying put?”

  “I never craved the stability, honestly. I was content, as long as we had each other,” he said. “I didn’t know my dad, and since it was just the two of us, the moves were quick and easy. Mom worked hard, she played the social game, and she climbed the corporate ladders. She was in high demand. Competing job offers would pour in, and she’d weigh the options and make the most logical move to further her career. She landed her dream job in LA when I was fifteen, and with that came the promise of permanence. A few months later, I kinda stumbled into the acting field by complete accident; attending events at her side, I met the right people in the right circles. Apparently I had the perfect look, whatever that means.”

  “Oh, right. Whatever that means.” I rolled my eyes because I had a hard time believing Avery didn’t know exactly how gorgeous he was.

  “Are you close with your mom?” I asked, remembering how he’d said at dinner last night that it was his mother who’d encouraged his getaway.

  “I am. We talk almost every day; I’ve kept her in the loop, and she knows what’s going on. She suggested I take some time away, and I’m glad I did. I needed to decompress a little,” he said, brushing his hand along a tree. “Have you ever thought of leaving Sutton Woods?”

  “Maybe.” I shrugged a shoulder. “Ally’s dead-set on staying to relaunch her mother’s party planning business. Mel is working herself crazy to save money for a car. She’ll be out of here the day we graduate—guaranteed. Who knows where she’ll end up? She’s applied to just about every college in the country; she just has to decide where she wants to go. And Carter’s already holding onto her acceptance letter to the university in Cedar Lake, so she’s got her sights set on her hometown come next fall.”

  “And you?”

  “I think I want the college experience,” I said.

  “You think?”

  “God only knows what I’d study. I’ll let you know when I figure it out.”

  “Any ideas?”

  “Maybe I should become your new publicist,” I teased.

  “The job’s open. You’ve got the fan’s perspective.”

  “That I do.” I smirked. “Realistically, though, I have no idea. I like the idea of going new places. My mom travels a lot, and she loves it. I’ve gone with her a few times on her trips during the summer, and it’s always a new and fun adventure. But I want more. I want to see the world, you know?”

  “And you can do that with many careers nowadays.”

  “Yeah,” I agreed. “Like your mom with advertising, mine with marketing. You’ve traveled all over as an actor.”

  “I have.”

  “The possibilities are there. I just have to find what feels right.”

  “You will.”

  “I know,” I said, taking a deep breath. I cast a look around the woods, appreciating the colors that surrounded us at every turn. “And then, at the end of the day, no matter where I end up, I know I can look back and call Sutton Woods my home. This will always be my home.”

  “It’s nice to have that,” he said, and then he turned, still admiring the waterfall. As he stood studying the trees and the leaves, closing his eyes and listening to the sounds of nature, I left him alone to start climbing the rocks. I checked my footing along the familiar edges, and climbed my way up until I was high above the ground.

  Avery opened his eyes a few minutes later, realizing I’d gone missing. “Roz?”

  “Up here,” I said, and his eyes lifted to where I stood, looming above him at the top of the rocky ledge.

  “Whoa, look at you. Nice view?”

  “Gorgeous,” I said under my breath, fully aware of the quickening in my heart. It wasn’t the climb that’d set my pulse in rapid motion; it was definitely the view—the gorgeous view of the man staring up at me. I shook my head. “How is it humanly possible for someone to be so beautiful?”

  “What?” he called up, and I realized that I hadn’t kept that thought to myself.

  “Nothing. The scenery. It’s beautiful.”

  He smirked as if he knew I was covering my butt on that one, but he didn’t let on that he’d heard anything more than what I’d wanted him to hear.

  Hoping to spare myself a moment of humiliation, I turned my back to Avery to enjoy the long spread of fall foliage behind me. There were hundreds of trees, dozens of shades of yellows and oranges, reds, and golds that lined the stream of water rushing toward the waterfall. The leaves cascaded down from the trees, but gentle winds lifted them right back off the ground. It was a spectacular sight.

  “You should come up,” I said, and when I whirled around, Avery was already halfway up the rocks.

  “Man, Wes has been holding back for years,” he said, finally pulling himself to the top. “I never knew there was so much to see out here.”

  “You’ve been to Sutton Woods before?”

  “We were here most every summer until we left Georgia. Once we started moving around, the trips back dwindled down to the occasional holiday.”

  “No kidding?”

  How had we never crossed paths? How had it taken this long for Avery to stumble into my life?

  “We usually stayed at the farm when we came to town, and we’d take an occasional camping trip out to Cedar Lake, but we never saw anything like this,” he said, still admiring the scenery around him. “I love this place. Something about Sutton Woods is just so . . . comfortable. As soon as I decided to leave LA,
I knew this is exactly where I wanted to be.”

  “How’d you get here?”

  “Took a taxi to a bus station, took a bus to another taxi. Got as far as Cedar Lake, and Wes picked me up. He’d even brought me a new phone, since I’d tossed the last one.”

  “You were hell-bent on disappearing.”

  “And I had my best friend to help me.”

  “So who does the SUV belong to?”

  “Wes.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he wasn’t happy when you wrecked it.”

  “He wasn’t as understanding as your Dad, we’ll put it that way. But he’s been great about the whole thing. He did everything he could to make sure no one would find me until I was ready.”

  “So then what were you doing in town on Saturday night? If you were trying to stay out of sight, why drive into Sutton Woods?”

  “Delta’s Diner has the best burgers,” he said. “It was the highlight of my childhood summers. I was going to sneak in and—”

  “You wouldn’t have gotten far without causing a scene. I’d just left there. The place wasn’t full, but it wasn’t empty, either. My friend Mel works there. Someone would’ve recognized you.”

  “Even in the hat?”

  “It’s cute that you think the hat is some sort of invisibility cloak, but it’s not,” I said. “Why do you think I was acting so dazed on the street—that’s how you described it, right? Dazed, like I was high?”

  “Wes told you that?” He blew out a breath. “Roz, I only meant—”

  “Even in the hat I knew it was you, and I couldn’t make sense of it. I thought I’d gone crazy.” I pulled back my hair and laughed. “This bump is from shock. You did this.”

  “Yeah?” Avery moved closer, and I swear the ground trembled beneath us. He shifted, and with another step, he closed the small gap between our bodies. I sucked in a sharp breath. He reached his hand upward, tucking away a loose strand of hair, and then he ran his thumb gently across the bruise that lingered from my fall.

  “I’m sorry,” he said softly, that quiet and fervent tone resounding in my ear. He lowered his mouth to my hairline and pressed a small kiss just above the knot, and I felt the warmth of that kiss surge all the way down to my toes.