by Sonia Hartl
Mom chuckled as she hooked her arm through his. “I think Macy was trying really hard not to call you her grandma’s preferred nickname.”
“He’s closer to my age than he is to yours,” Gram called from the dining room.
I cringed. “Sorry.”
“No worries.” Roger waved a hand. “I’ll win her over eventually.”
“Don’t count on it!” Gram yelled.
“Quit being rude!” Mom yelled back. She turned to me. “We’re heading out in a few minutes, but I’m glad you got a chance to say hello.”
“Me too.” I glanced at Roger and he was looking at Mom like she held the world. I decided I definitely didn’t hate him. “Is it okay if I keep the car then? It’s Cleaning Day.”
“Ah, are you headed out to the campsite then?”
“Yeah.” Even though I should’ve told Mom about Paxton before we went camping, I really didn’t want to have that conversation in front of Roger. “How did you two meet?”
“Roger stopped in for lunch at the diner after checking in on a few of his businesses. He came in during a lull, so he was the only customer, and he invited me to sit with him. At first, I was just hoping to get a bigger tip, but he won me over by the end of it.”
“You have businesses in Honeyfield?” I asked. There weren’t a lot of businesses to have in town. “Which ones?”
“The diner,” he said, giving Mom a sly smile.
“Dipping your pen in the company ink!” Gram yelled.
“Go back to your quilting!” I yelled at her. “She’s in a mood.”
“Despite what your grandma thinks,” Mom raised her voice loud enough for Gram to hear, “Roger didn’t tell me he owned the diner until our third date. He thought I wouldn’t want to go out with him.”
“I thought you wouldn’t sit with me if you knew I was the boss.” His whole face filled with awe when he looked at my mom. It was weird, but not entirely unpleasant, to see.
“And rightly so,” Mom said.
They’d gotten so caught up in their own meet-cute, I was 99 percent certain they’d forgotten I was standing there. “So, you just own the diner?”
“And the repair shop,” he said.
“Wait. What?” I couldn’t have heard him correctly. “The Video and Repair?”
“I technically own both, but I’m only in charge of the repair side. It’s my business partner’s job to take care of the video side.”
“I work there,” I said, for lack of a better thing to say. This completely threw me for a loop. “Does your business partner live in Shelbyville too?”
“No, he lives here in Honeyfield.” Roger gave me an amused grin, like he knew how much this was twisting my sense of reality. “I believe you all know him as Butch.”
“Butch is your business partner?” Midnight would absolutely lose it. She still hadn’t forgiven him for the Unholy Mistress nickname. “Jesus. No wonder it’s basically falling apart.”
Roger laughed. “Why do you think I split the responsibility down the middle?”
“I’m going to—” I pointed at the door. “It was supernice to meet you, Roger.”
“Likewise.” He gave me a firm handshake.
I grabbed our tent from the shed out back and packed an overnight bag. All this new information swam in my head as I walked back to the car, barely aware of my feet moving. I slid into the driver’s side. I fumbled for my keys and tried to focus on Paxton, even though I was still reeling.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“My mom is dating your boss.” So weird. “Who is also her boss. Is that, like, an ethical thing, or no? Because he didn’t tell her he was the boss until after they went out, so it’s not like he was trying to use his position to manipulate her, and he’s totally into her.”
Paxton held up his hands. “I think you need to backtrack about five thousand steps so I can catch up. Your mom is dating Butch?”
“No.” I shook my head, but I couldn’t clear out all the noise. “His name is Roger.”
“Butch’s name is Roger?”
“I’ll explain it on the way. And as an early birthday present, I’ll let you be the one who breaks the news to Midnight.”
I started up the car and backed out of my drive. As I threaded my fingers with Paxton’s, I tried to keep my mind off the impending tantrum Eric was sure to have once he realized I was done being Fly Ball Girl. I had no idea how deep his obsession with Internet fame ran, and I really didn’t want to find out.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-FOUR
WE MADE IT TO the campsite, where Midnight and Elise had one tent. Brady and Strawberry had one tent. I glanced at Paxton. Even though I had no problem sharing a tent with him, he’d been very clear in front of the store that we’d have separate tents.
I dumped my stuff on a patch of open ground near the trees and pulled my tent out of the vinyl bag. It reeked like death and was covered in black patches. I flung it away from me and shook my hands in the air. “Ew. Ew. Ew.”
“What’s wrong?” Paxton asked.
“My tent is covered in mold. It must’ve happened when I threw it in the shed after the last time we went camping. But I can ask Elise and Midnight if I can bunk with them, if you’re not comfortable sleeping with me yet,” I said. “They won’t be happy, but they’ll be all right.”
“Why do you think I wouldn’t be comfortable sleeping with you?”
“At the store, you said two tents.”
Paxton tilted my chin up and kissed me. “I only said that to get them off your back. I was hoping you’d just sneak into my tent in the middle of the night.”
My mouth had gone dry. “I guess that settles that.”
“We don’t have to—” Paxton rubbed the back of his neck. “If you want to sleep, and not do other things, I’m totally fine with that. I’m not expecting anything just because we’re sharing a tent.”
Sleeping with Paxton would be way different from sleeping with Lance. My feelings for Lance had been like candlelight, soft and gentle. My feelings for Paxton were a forest fire that could consume me. The old fear of getting in too deep with a boy attached to a town I was determined to escape rose up in me again, but instead of running from it, I faced the irrationality of it. My mom’s history wasn’t my future. My life belonged to me.
I rubbed my hands over his chest. “I like sleep.”
“Sleep is nice.” He swallowed.
“But then again, I really don’t want all those condoms in my backpack to go to waste.”
A really terrible pun about pitching a tent was on the tip of my tongue, but I left Paxton to pick his jaw back up from the ground as I went over to help Elise and Midnight set up the lawn chairs around the fire. Elise and I went into the woods to look for fallen logs for our fire, and I told her about Mom and Roger, leaving out the news about Butch. I’d already promised Paxton he’d get to drop that little gem at a time and place of his choosing.
The air felt fresher than back home. Like this little slice of nature had truly been left untouched. The earthy scent of the forest was so much stronger out here. If I could’ve bottled that smell and kept it with me forever, I would’ve done it in a heartbeat. By the time we got back, Paxton, Brady, and Strawberry were already laughing over Paxton and Strawberry’s awful date. Even Midnight managed to crack a smile.
We passed around a bottle of peach schnapps, Midnight’s new preferred drink, but both Paxton and I only took a few sips. We wanted to be sober for what we had planned after everyone went to bed. Midnight let us all know Jared had been picked up, and refused to post bail, deciding he’d rather sit in jail and await his hearing than deal with Midnight’s brother.
“I heard Travis and his friends took care of Brett and he hasn’t dared to leave his house since,” Strawberry said. “I always did like your brother.”
“It’ll be a long while before Brett shows his face anywhere around town. Which is fine by me,” Midnight said. “Even though I sometimes wonder if he wo
uld’ve been decent if not for Jared. I like his parents and siblings.”
“How exactly did Travis take care of Brett?” I asked. I had visions of broken kneecaps and shoving his fingers into a corn shucker, or however else they did things on the farm.
“Travis and his friends stripped Brett down to his briefs and tied him to that big tree outside the feedstore so every farmer in the county would see him before someone cut him loose.” Midnight grinned with wicked delight. “It was really cold that morning.”
“Oh my God.” I didn’t know whether to be pleased or horrified.
Midnight shrugged. “He’s lucky he got to keep his briefs. Travis just wanted to give him a taste of what it felt like to be helpless, so maybe he’d think twice before using his muscles to intimidate anyone smaller than him again.”
“Serves him right.” Strawberry lifted the bottle of schnapps in a silent toast to Travis. “Last summer Jared and Brett thought it would be real funny to open our stables in the middle of the night and let our horses run loose. My brother caught them and they beat the hell out of him for it.”
Strawberry’s brother was only sixteen. I didn’t feel the slightest bit horrified anymore. Brett got exactly what he deserved. It was only a shame that Jared hid in jail, but I had a feeling he’d be getting a visit from Midnight’s brother the moment he got out.
After we did a significant amount of bitching about work, ate two packages of hot dogs grilled over the open fire, and did more bitching, the liquor started to set in for everyone. Paxton still hadn’t revealed the Butch news, and I wondered if he felt bad for Midnight about Jared, or if he just wanted a more advantageous time to drop that bomb. The sun finally set, which meant the mosquitos came out in full force. We had a dozen citronella candles burning, but it didn’t keep those little bloodsuckers from feasting.
Everyone else weaved and swayed toward their tents, while Paxton and I, the only sober ones present, stayed behind to put out the fire. Once the last ember had been snuffed out with a bucket of sand, we went back to our tent.
Paxton laid out his bedroll and covered it with his sleeping bag. One of the camping battery lanterns was half open, illuminating the tent in a low and subtle light. He took off his shirt and pants, leaving his boxers on. My toes tingled as my gaze wandered over the lean muscles in his arms and chest. I’d never seen him in so few clothes. I could get very, very used to the sight of Paxton without any clothes.
I walked over to him on my knees, rubbing my hands over his chest and down his arms. Every plane of his body was firm from doing repairs in the shop and whatever Gigi needed done around the house. He kept his hands to himself while he let me explore him and get used to the feel of his skin, already warm from anticipation. I caught his mouth with my own, gently tugging on his bottom lip with my teeth, and that was all it took for him to pull me against him.
His fingers played with the hem of my tank top as his thumbs dipped under and grazed my bare skin. I shivered. Too many clothes. I had way too many clothes on. I pulled my tank top off and threw it into the corner of the tent, followed immediately by my shorts, until I wore only my nonmatching bra and underwear.
A soft glow lit Paxton’s eyes as I kneeled before him. “You’re gorgeous.”
If the wonder in his voice hadn’t convinced me, the bulge in his boxers certainly did. Keeping my gaze on him, I unhooked my bra and let it fall to the ground. A near animal sound escaped his lips as I approached him.
“I think you’re gorgeous too.” I was already breathless. “How lucky for both of us.”
I kissed him hard and deep, the skin-to-skin contact undoing any amount of restraint I might’ve shown. He lowered us to the ground until I was straddling him, rocking against him with our underwear still between us. His hands touched me everywhere, and a soft sound rose up in my throat as the friction between us built right down the center of me. I cried out as the orgasm hit me fast. I buried my face in his shoulder as the tremors spread to my toes and fingertips. I’d never had one so quickly before, not even on those nights when I gave them to myself.
When I lifted my head, he was smiling up at me. His touch trailed up and down my arms. “That noise you made at the end might be the most beautiful sound in the world.”
I kissed his chest. “We’re not done yet.”
My fingers ran down his stomach, lower, until I pushed his boxers down and took him in my hand. He groaned as I moved my hand up and down, and he was kind enough to return the favor to me. Our gazes locked as we touched each other. It was the most intimate moment in my life. As the heat began to build in me again, I rolled over to my backpack and grabbed a condom out of the side pocket.
Paxton took his boxers all the way off and paused. “Are you sure?”
“Very sure.” I slid my underwear off and threw them next to my tank top. His gaze trailed over me, half glazed, as if he were dreaming while awake. It gave me enough confidence to forget whatever awkwardness I would’ve felt about being wholly naked.
He rolled on the condom, and as I lowered myself onto him, he gripped my hips. “I’ve never done this before.”
“You’re telling me this now?” I rose up until he was no longer inside me, and stretched out beside him. “Are you sure you want to do this? It’s totally fine if you don’t.”
“I’m very sure.” He moved until he was on top of me, between my legs, and as he slid back inside me, he whispered in my ear, “I wanted my first time to be with you.”
I clenched around him, and he gently, slowly made love with me. He kept checking in with me, kept making sure it felt good. As he kissed my neck, I quickened our pace, urging him on faster, until my second orgasm hit me like a wave. Within seconds he followed me, holding me tight while his body shook from the release.
Once we’d stopped trembling, he lay down next to me, tracing light lines up and down my stomach. “I could do this all day, every day, for the rest of my life.”
I leaned my head up and kissed him. “I did bring a whole pack of condoms.”
He laughed. “How presumptuous of you.”
“I like to be prepared.”
“Do I want to know why you keep condoms in your work backpack?” His fingers kept moving around my stomach, over my arms, as if he couldn’t touch me enough. “Did you think we’d end up having sex in the alley behind the store?”
“Maybe. But if I’d known you were a virgin, I would’ve at least put some candles and rose petals out there to make it romantic for you.”
He laughed and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me against him with my back against his chest. He kissed my shoulder. “Does it bother you that I’m a virgin?”
“You’re not anymore. Unless you want to do it again, just to make sure?” I turned slightly, until I could face him and skim my fingers over his jawline. “And no, it doesn’t bother me. I’m actually feeling kind of smug that no one else knows how incredible you are.” I paused. “Does it bother you that I haven’t been a virgin for some time now?”
“No.” He kissed my forehead. “You’re here with me now. That’s all I care about.”
I snuggled back against his chest, and he pulled the sleeping bag over us. I had to agree with him: I could do this all day, every day, for the rest of my life too. As I started to drift off, I could’ve sworn I heard my phone buzzing from deep within my backpack, but whatever it was, it could wait until morning.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE
I WOKE TO THE sound of Paxton breathing deeply beside me, still asleep. If he got to pick a favorite sound of mine, then I’d get one too, and this was definitely it. His hair had fallen over his forehead in the night, and I brushed it back. He stirred awake. His lips parted as his eyes went in and out of focus, like he couldn’t quite believe he was there. We were there. Together.
“How did you sleep?” I whispered.
“Amazingly.” He cupped my cheek. “I haven’t slept that good in nine years.”
Elise tapped on our tent. “Ar
e you decent?”
“No. Go away.” I snuggled against Paxton, and his arms wrapped around me as he tucked my head under his chin.
“Get decent then, and come out,” she said. “We need to talk.”
My stomach dropped. I hated it when people said “we need to talk” without saying what they wanted to talk about. It always left me running over a million scenarios in my mind, asking myself if I’d done anything to piss them off, or if something had happened to someone I loved. It was the worst way to wake up.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” I said to Paxton.
He mumbled something and put his pillow over his head, like it could block out the light. The sight of his bare chest and the slight soreness between my legs had me smiling all over again. Once I found out what Elise wanted to talk about, I’d put another one of those condoms in my backpack to good use.
I got dressed, brushed my teeth, and stumbled out of the tent. Elise sat in one of the lawn chairs by the firepit. A cool morning mist snaked across the ground. Drops of dew clung to the clover and leaves as the sun barely crested the horizon.
“It’s so early,” I whined. Everyone else was still in their tents. “What did you want to talk about that couldn’t have waited another two hours?”
“You’re my best friend.” Elise stared at the firepit, and my anxiety spiked. “I love you, and will always take your side no matter what. But Paxton is my friend too, and he’s grossly, desperately in love with you. If you’re still going to play Twitter games with Eric, you have to let Paxton know what’s going on. Please don’t string him along.”
I dropped into the seat beside her. I had no idea where this had come from. Never mind the fact that I was equally as grossly in love with Paxton as he was with me. “What the hell are you talking about? What makes you think I’d ever string him along?”
“I checked Jessica Banks’s Instagram this morning. Since you said you were done with that whole Baseball Babe fiasco, I wanted to let you know if she tried anything.”
She handed me her phone. I unlocked the screen with her birth date and she had Jessica Banks’s Instagram video open. My stomach rolled before I even hit play. Ever since Paxton had told me about what had happened with his sister, I had no desire to go online. I hadn’t been keeping tabs on Eric or Jessica, and that was a huge mistake on my part.