Blown Away

by Brenda Rothert

“I’m sure. You boys have fun,” she said. “And be careful.”

  He promised he would and pecked her again before packing his clubs into the trunk of his sedan and heading off.

  “I like him,” I said to Dot.

  “He’s a keeper. How ’bout G.I. Joe? Just because he’s been with lots of women doesn’t mean he won’t ever settle down, you know.”

  I was trying to think of a way to deflect her premature talk of settling down when the Funnel Finder passed by her motorhome.

  “That’s the rest of our team,” I said. “I need to go see how the day went. I’ll see you soon.”

  Dot waved and went back to her book. When I got to our campsite, Murph, Tex, and Millie were cleaning trash and supplies out of the station wagon.

  “I’m hittin’ the shower,” Tex said. “I’ve got swamp ass.”

  Millie cringed. “You don’t have to share every little thing, Tex. I don’t care about your shit cramps or chafed balls or swampy ass.”

  “I’ve got no filter,” Tex said, shrugging.

  “You can say that again,” she muttered.

  “I’ve got no filter.”

  “Go away right now. You’re the most annoying human being I’ve ever known.”

  “Damn,” Tex said, giving her a wounded look. “Good thing I’m hung like a horse. Gotta have something going for me.” He turned and saw me. “Hey, Drew.”

  “Hey, how was today?”

  “Slow.” He wiggled his brows up and down. “And how was your day, young lady?”

  My cheeks heated as they all looked at me.

  “You know what?” I said. “I just remembered I’m supposed to be preheating the oven. I have to run.”

  I hadn’t expected it to be so awkward for me, having Colby’s former team members know I’d spent the night with Aiden. I wanted to stay safe in the cocoon of Aiden’s bed, with him wrapped around me.

  Tonight I would. And I’d worry about tomorrow when it came.

  Chapter 20

  Drew

  Aiden’s face was still lit up from our day of chasing.

  “Was that not the most beautiful twister you’ve ever seen?” He grinned at me from the driver’s seat of his truck. “That shape…and the way it moved. Fuckin’ gorgeous.”

  “Looked good to me,” I said, scrolling through the photos of it I’d taken with my phone.

  “When they just touch down in the country like that and nothing but the landscape gets damaged…it’s different to watch those. There’s no sick feeling, you know? No racing to the town to see if anyone’s hurt.”

  I reached across the seat and put a hand on his thigh, wondering if he was thinking about his family.

  We rode in silence for the last five minutes of the drive back to the campground. When we pulled in behind the Funnel Finder, Tex was leaning against the station wagon, waiting.

  “Let’s go to Slippery Steve’s,” he said to Aiden. “That’s the place with the frog legs, right?”

  “It’s Sneaky Steve’s,” Aiden said. “And yeah.” He looked at me. “You up for some dinner at a dive?”

  I nodded. “I could eat anywhere right now. I’m starving.”

  “Why’d you just eat a Pop-Tart for lunch?”

  “I wasn’t hungry then.”

  “You guys comin’?” Tex called to Millie and Murph. “We’re goin’ to Sneaky Steve’s.”

  We all piled back into Aiden’s truck and he drove to a cinder-block building about five miles from the campground. Inside, it was filled with music and the smell of spicy fried food.

  A pretty blond server approached our table, breaking out in a wide smile. “Oh my God! I’ve been wondering if you guys were coming by this summer.”

  I looked at Aiden and saw him exchange a quick glance with Tex.

  “Can we get a pitcher of beer?” Tex asked the waitress.

  She looked at everyone, one face at a time, and then her face fell.

  “Where’s Colby?”

  Tex blew out a breath. “Uh…he passed away last year.”

  She covered her mouth with a hand, her eyes welling with tears. “No. Oh, God. How did I not know?”

  My inner voice was yelling at me. Something wasn’t right here. Why would a waitress at a campground be bawling about Colby’s death? Why would she remember him, know his name?

  I looked at Aiden, whose expression was impassive. Tex looked uncomfortable and Millie and Murph were both staring down at the table.

  Our waitress’s nametag told me her name was Brandi. And Brandi now had dark eye makeup running down her face from all the crying. She turned and ran for the bathroom.

  “What the hell is that about?” I asked as soon as she was out of earshot.

  Tex cleared his throat and looked away.

  “Aiden?” I turned to him expectantly.

  He shrugged.

  “How well did Colby know Brandi?” I looked at them one by one. No one spoke, and it looked like they all wanted to be anywhere but here.

  My face heated with anger. “Guess I’ll have to ask her. I’ll just order a cheeseburger with a side of did you fuck my fiancé?”

  “Drew…” Aiden met my eyes, sadness in his expression.

  Brandi returned then, sniffling as she pulled out her order pad.

  “Sorry,” she said. “So, a pitcher of beer and what else?”

  “How did you know Colby, Brandi?” I asked.

  Her eyes widened as she looked at me. “I just…”

  “Don’t,” Tex said to her. “She was his fiancée.”

  “Oh.” She stared at the ground. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  My tact was long forgotten. “Apparently it was your loss, too. So how did you know him?”

  Brandi looked at Tex. “I’ll ask another server to help you guys.”

  She left without looking at me again and I glared at Aiden.

  “Fucking tell me. Now.”

  “Let’s go outside.”

  I followed him across the concrete floor of the bar, telling myself to stay calm and give him a chance to explain.

  He led me outside, where I glared at him. “How does she know him, Aiden?”

  Aiden’s gaze clouded as he took my wrist and led me across the parking lot to his truck, which we both got in. Not good. He was expecting yelling, then.

  “Don’t make me pry it out of you,” I said, forcing my voice to stay level. “Just tell me.”

  He sighed. “I’m not sure it’s my thing to tell, Drew.”

  My heart thudded fast and my face heated as I turned toward him. “Colby’s not gonna be able to, is he? Should I go back in and ask Brandi again?”

  “Why does it matter, Drew? He’s gone.”

  “Obviously the four of you and Brandi know something about Colby I don’t. Murph and Millie looked ashamed of themselves in there. I was engaged to him. Don’t I deserve to be let in on this? I was back in Lipton working at the salon and hoping he wouldn’t get hurt or killed chasing after tornadoes, and he was…what?”

  Aiden sighed again before speaking. “He was friendly, Drew. You knew that.”

  Tears stung my eyes. “Don’t put me off, Aiden,” I said, my voice trembling. “Don’t put me off to protect him. All I’m asking for is the truth.”

  “He was a lot friendlier with women than you probably knew. When we went out places, they’d…sit on his lap. He’d buy them drinks.”

  My stomach churned with sickness. “No, I wasn’t aware of that. Is that it?”

  “That’s all I ever saw. He’d grab an ass every now and then, I guess.”

  “What do you mean, all you ever saw?”

  Aiden rubbed his forehead, looking pained. “We were here one night last year. Me, Colby, and Tex. All of us were shitfaced. Colby went into a back room with Brandi and came back a while later.”

  I was numb for a few seconds, the shock leaving me unable to speak.

  “What…do you…” I stumbled, suddenly dizzy. “Colby?”

  “Drew,
don’t—”

  “What happened?” I demanded. “Tell me. What did he do, Aiden?”

  “I don’t know. I made a comment to him once about not deserving you if he couldn’t keep his hands to himself and we got into a fight over it. He gave me a black eye and I busted up his nose. After that we never talked about it again.”

  “How could you not tell me?”

  My question came out a pitiful-sounding cry. Aiden reached for my hand and I pulled it away.

  “I’d be married to a guy who took random waitresses into back rooms,” I said softly. “I’d be at home right now and he’d be here with you. Or in there, with her.”

  “Colby loved you. I don’t think he would’ve broken his marriage vows.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him, anger surging through me. “Cheating isn’t okay before marriage, either.”

  “I know. I’m not saying that.”

  “Don’t defend him, Aiden. Don’t you fucking sit here and tell me it all would’ve been okay.”

  He stared out the windshield at the blinking neon sign for Sneaky Steve’s. “I’m not saying that. I don’t know what happened in that back room, Drew.”

  “Well, it seems pretty obvious to me. You think they went back there to discuss World War Two?”

  “Look, I know you’re angry—”

  I cut in. “Damn right I’m angry.”

  “But he’s gone. That anger at him won’t get you anywhere now.”

  “You should’ve told me. If you cared about me, why wouldn’t you tell me? Why wouldn’t the others tell me? Not even Millie?”

  “It wasn’t my place. Or theirs.”

  I wanted to fly across the seat, pull on his shirt, and yell in his face. “Whose place was it?”

  “His.”

  “I would’ve given him his ring and told him to have a nice life. He knew it, too.”

  “I’m sorry you’re hurting, Drew.” He reached for me again, and again I pushed his hand away.

  “What an idiot I am. Coming here, thinking I’d ever belong. You’ve all probably been laughing your asses off behind my back. Every time we go into a bar and someone asks where Colby is, you all know why and I’m the clueless idiot. Why the hell did you guys invite me to storm chase with you? You fucking knew I could run into this. Was it fun and games to you guys? Payback for something I did? And don’t you fucking dare call me irrational, finding out your fiancé is chasing every skirt in sight allows me to be irrational!”

  The tears came hard and fast. I covered my eyes and cried.

  “Drew, no.”

  “Take me back to camp,” I said through my hands. “I need to not be around anyone right now.”

  He took out his phone, sent a text, and started up the truck. We were just a couple miles down the road when he turned to me.

  “I hate leaving you alone like this. Stay with me. I’ll go pick up the others when they’re done. We don’t have to talk.”

  “I want to go home,” I mumbled. “Back where I belong.”

  “You belong here.”

  “What, on my back in your camper?” I shook my head, disgusted.

  “No, on this team. Not because of us, Drew.”

  “We fuck one time and now we’re us?”

  Aiden’s arm muscles tensed as he gripped the steering wheel. “Look, I’m not fighting with you, so bait me all you want. It’s not me you’re mad at, it’s him.”

  “I’m mad at both of you. How could you not tell me? You would’ve let me marry him.”

  “You didn’t marry him, though.”

  “Because he died.” I ran my fingers through my hair, pulling it with frustration. “Why didn’t you at least tell me then?”

  “What’s the fuckin’ point of that?” Aiden’s voice had an edge of anger. “He was my friend. He did stupid shit sometimes, but so do I. And I’m telling you, he loved you, Drew.”

  “Don’t defend him.”

  “I’m just giving it to you straight. I know in my heart Colby wouldn’t have fucked another woman. He did something he shouldn’t have, but not that.”

  “So that makes it okay? Jesus, no wonder you don’t do relationships. You’d be as bad at it as he was.”

  He made a hard turn into the campground.

  “Watch yourself,” he said, his voice more like a growl. “Don’t compare me to him. I’ve never broken a promise to anyone.”

  “That’s because you never make any,” I muttered.

  Aiden pulled to a stop and I reached for the door handle.

  “Wait,” he said. “You stay in my camper tonight. I’ll stay in the motorhome.”

  “No.”

  “Yes. Don’t fuckin’ argue with me, Drew. You wanted space? There you go. And if you try leaving here in the night, you won’t like me when I find you.”

  I opened my mouth to make a comment but he stopped me.

  “Keep your shitty comment to yourself. You’re just pissed off.”

  “Can I go now?”

  “Yeah. Let me know if you need me.”

  I turned and gave him an incredulous look. “What…you mean if I get horny or something?”

  He quirked a brow at me. “Sure, that. Or if you want to talk.”

  “I’ll be fine. Enjoy your night in my coffin bunk.”

  “Hey, if you decide to make a snack, you might want to wipe off the table before you use it,” he called as I stepped out of the truck.

  I narrowed my eyes at him. Low blow, reminding me he’d just given me oral sex on that table yesterday. Apparently he wasn’t afraid of inciting me further.

  But I was too emotionally drained for more. I went into the camper, its coffee and woodsy cologne scent giving me an immediate pang for Aiden.

  I turned on the lights and went to the fridge, taking out some cheese and grapes. Tonight this would be dinner.

  My heart hurt as I replayed the night. I wasn’t so much angry at Colby as I was at the ruin of my idealistic notions about relationships. I wanted to believe people were capable of loving someone more than themselves. But maybe not. Maybe Aiden had it right, never breaking promises by never making any.

  Chapter 21

  Drew

  Everyone’s brows were either up or down when I stepped into the motorhome and announced I was staying there tonight.

  Then Tex broke the silence by snickering and making whipping sounds.

  “You don’t know shit about how to treat a woman,” I said, shoving his shoulder. “All you ever do is talk about them, but I never see any action.”

  He rolled his eyes and laughed. “Teach me, master. How can I get a woman who’ll be so pissed off at me that she kicks me out of my own place?”

  “Fuck you.” I glanced around the motorhome and saw wadded-up sandwich wrappers on the table, dirty socks on a chair, and crushed-up Chex mix underfoot. “This place is disgusting. And it smells like ass.”

  Millie glared at me. “Stay here if you want, but don’t take your bad mood out on us.”

  I grunted my acknowledgment. I was in a terrible mood. I’d gone to sleep with Drew in my arms last night, not expecting to be alone in her bunk tonight.

  Even though I wasn’t wrong, I got why she was so upset. Fucking Colby and his flirting. Every time I’d watched it I’d thought to myself that I wouldn’t so much as glance at another woman if Drew was mine. I’d never seen him serious about any woman but Drew, but it was impossible to make her feel better right now.

  I climbed up to Drew’s bunk and closed the curtain. Damn, it did feel like a coffin. My feet were up against the wall, even with my knees bent a little. I turned onto my side.

  This was why I was all wrong for her. She was hurt, and not only couldn’t I make her feel better, I’d made her feel worse. Barking at her not to leave had been an extra-douchey touch.

  But I couldn’t bear the thought. This couldn’t be it for us.

  I was damn tired, and coffin or not, I fell asleep fast. My internal clock woke me up at dawn and I went over to the cam
per.

  I could see Drew’s curled-up form on the bed through the open curtain. I changed from my boots and jeans into shorts and running shoes and headed out for my run.

  The path through the woods here made for a nice morning workout. I tried to think of ways to make Drew feel better as I covered the wood-chip-lined path, but nothing came to mind.

  I wasn’t about to roll over and beg her forgiveness. I hadn’t done anything wrong. If I’d told her Colby liked flirting with other women, it wouldn’t have just been a betrayal of my friendship with him, but even I would’ve questioned my motives. I had feelings for Drew. If I’d done anything to come between her and Colby, I couldn’t have been sure it wasn’t because I secretly wanted her for myself.

  It was going to be muggy here today. I could feel it in the early morning air. By the time I got back to the camper, the sun was up and I was drenched with sweat.

  When I walked into the camper, Drew was curled up on the couch with a cup of coffee.

  “Want some coffee?” she said softly.

  Right after a run? All I wanted was water. But something made me nod, walk over to the coffeepot on the island, and pour myself a cup.

  I leaned against the kitchen island and looked at her. She was wearing one of my T-shirts and nothing else. I was a fucking saint for staying in place instead of running my hands up her thighs to see if she had panties on underneath.

  “So,” she said, sighing. “I wish you had told me about Colby, but…I treated you unfairly last night. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. You were upset.”

  She shook her head. “I was upset with him, like you said.”

  I set my mug on the island counter and folded my arms. “Listen, I know what it’s like to be pissed off at someone and have no one to take it out on. It just builds inside you until you’re about to explode from the pressure.”

  She shifted and I caught a flash of dark purple panties.

  “Who were you pissed at?” she asked softly.

  I shrugged. “My parents, for one. Not that they deserved it, of course. But there were times I wanted to scream at them for leaving me. When I graduated from high school, basic training, Ranger school, college…I’d look over at the stands and think, ‘Where the hell are you guys? You should be here.’ ”