by Piper Frost
“I just gave you my passcode, Paige. I can’t get any more open than that. Anything you want to see, I’ll never stop you.”
A smile lifts on my lips and I kick myself for ever doubting him. “Good.” I reach up and kiss him softly. “Can you let the hatred towards Ammo go please? I hate worrying that you’re going to get hurt trying to kick his ass.”
“No.” He says simply. “If he keeps fucking with you, I am going to kick his ass. I don’t want to talk about him anymore. Fuck, today was a good day and that douche fucked it up.”
“It still is a good day.” I give his hand a squeeze. “Let’s just get food and forget about it.” Ammo’s been friends with my brother since Kindergarten. I’ll have Gray talk to him and hopefully stop this shit.
I wouldn’t make it if something happened to Fenton because of me. Because of something I could have fixed and didn’t try.
***
“Does this look okay?” I ask my mom, stepping into the living room once my costume is complete. Tonight’s our yearly Halloween party and for the first time ever, I’m looking forward to my costume. Usually it’s something thrown together last minute, but Fenton and I planned tonight and we’re going to win best dressed for sure.
“Red riding hood?” my mom asks.
“Yeah.” I spin and look in the mirror. “This black hair thing is kind of nice, maybe I’ll color it to be like yours.” I grin at her and she rolls her eyes.
“Keep your golden locks. That’s what you should have been. Goldie Locks.” She chuckles.
“Halloween is about being different, Mom.” I adjust the wig and fix my red cape. “Fenton’s the wolf.” I grin and check my phone for the time. “And he’ll be here soon. Is Dad finished? Where’s Gray?” I don’t know why I'm nervous. I've been going to these parties since I was a kid and my parents started doing them, but this year’s different. This year my entire extended family will be there as well as most of the kids from our class. Including my boyfriend.
“Dad’s finished and Gray is probably doing what he does best. Talking to the three girls that showed up early ‘cause they each thought they had a date with him. Surprise!” She shakes her head and huffs. “That boy reminds me too much of your uncle Grant,” she mutters walking away.
I laugh and head out the front door when I hear Fenton’s truck in the driveway. I hope he likes my costume. It’s not as sexy as I’d like it to be, but this is a family party so the more skin I show the more trouble I get in. The short length of this skirt is enough to make me worried about bending over all night.
“Hi!” I run towards him and throw my arms around him the second he’s out of the truck. “I missed you.” I haven’t seen him in two days since we had a break at school and he needed to go home last minute.
The side door of the truck pops open and I glance over, seeing his brother get out and look around. I didn’t know he was coming...
“Hey.” Fenton pecks my cheek. “I’m sorry I had to bring my brother.” He glances over to Sutton and when I look again, I notice his bruised eyes and the bandage on his nose. I really hope that’s his costume. “He got into some trouble.”
Okay so it’s definitely not his costume.
“Why’s it feel like every time you go home, someone comes back injured?” I mumble. “Hey, Sutton!” I wave at him and he glances back at me and nods, then heads for the barn. “He seems happy to be here.”
“I uh.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I think he likes your sister,” he whispers.
“Leena?” I blurt, then start to laugh. “Good luck to him. That girl’s something else. You think I’m bad news, but she’s worse.” I push my lips to his and grab his hand. “Come on, Gray and my dad got the barn all set up. It looks amazing.” I hope. It always does but I haven’t been in since they finished.
I start to walk towards the barn but he stops and pulls me back against him, wrapping an arm around me to hold me tight to him. I smile up at him, expecting another kiss.
“I love you,” he says like something’s bothering him.
“I love you.” I tap his nose. “You look like...the sexiest big bad wolf I’ve ever seen, by the way.”
“The better to eat you with.” He growls and his hand slides down, almost grabbing my ass. Right before he leans in for a kiss, my dad calls my name and Fenton jumps away.
“Let’s go, lovebirds,” my dad yells. “Fenton, two feet!” My dad points at him from the barn door and cracks a grin.
A few weeks ago my dad told Fenton he’s supposed to stay two feet away from me any time he’s around because he can’t see his little girl getting felt up. I think Fenton thought he was joking at the time, but he’s been pretty serious about it since.
“He’s going to make tonight really difficult,” I mutter, holding his hand and walking towards the barn.
“Haha, loser.” Sutton pushes Fenton then runs away when Fenton lunges toward him.
“At least I have a girlfriend,” Fenton calls out then smiles down at me and winks. “You look cute.”
“Thanks.” I ruffle the black wig. “I told my mom I’m going to dye my hair black. It’s sexy. Kind of scary.”
“I...um. Keep the blonde?” He smirks.
“That’s what she said, too.” I laugh.
We step into the barn. The overhead lights are replaced with a black light and the orange lights strung around the beams on the ceiling makes it bright enough to at least see. There are fake spider webs hanging all over and...
“Gray,” I laugh, walking over to him and the girls. “Is that a zombie cow in the corner?”
“Hell yes it is,” he blurts, then busts out laughing. “Dad hates it, but it fits the theme!”
The music starts after a few more people show up and before long everyone’s dancing and having a great time. I don’t know why I was so worried about tonight, everyone here already knows Fenton. My uncle Chase is really the only one that doesn’t, but he’s heard of him for so long now that it didn’t feel awkward introducing them. I’m glad he fits in here. It’s like he was made for our family.
Towards the end of the night, once everyone’s exhausted from dancing and laughing all evening, I glance around the barn and smile.
“I was so nervous about tonight,” I tell Fenton. We’re sitting at a table in the corner with a bowl of popcorn to share, unable to call it a night though we’re both exhausted.
“Why? It was awesome. Especially when my brother got slimed by your dad.” We laugh hard.
“I haven’t heard my dad scream in laughter so hard in a while. God, that was so funny.”
He takes my hand and brings it to his lips.
“But I mean... Tonight was like a right of passage into the Kenshaw family. You’ve been around for a while now, and this party is always a big deal every year to my family, and I was just nervous. Nervous that they wouldn’t accept you or you wouldn’t like them or something. Which is stupid because you already know most of them. But like, my aunts and uncles and everyone. Uncle Bo can be a difficult guy to crack but you had him warmed up to you in an instant.”
“Bobby’s just like him.” He chuckles. “And we’re cool. Your whole family is cool. Good people,” he mutters and glances toward his brother who’s talking to Leena like he has been most of the night.
“I think they’ve hit it off,” I say. “Which is crazy because my sister’s never shown an interest in boys like she has your brother.”
“Yeah.” He twists his head a little then pulls his eyes from them and gives me a smile. “I’m gonna help your dad clean up.”
I lean forward and push my lips to his just to hear my dad’s voice bellow across the barn. “Two feet!”
I hear my brother laugh and roll my eyes then grin at Fenton. “Later,” I promise. “At the guest house.” His eyes lock on mine and I hope he can read my mind. I’ve waited forever to find someone I trust like I trust Fenton. And now that I know how I feel I know what I want.
“I, uh, my brother. I g
otta get him home tonight.” He winces apologetically. “But tomorrow.” Smiling, he walks away from me.
I stand and start to clean off the tables in the back of the barn when I smell the smoke. “What the hell?” I look around, no one else seems to smell it so I chalk it up to the bonfire they’ve got going outside and keep cleaning. It’s not until I see the smoke that I start to panic. “Dad!” I yell, eyes wide. “Dad!” I turn to see him frozen and staring at the smoke billowing out from the back of the barn.
The party goes from calm and organized cleaning to mass chaos. My mom’s trying to get everyone out of the barn and my dad, brother, and Fenton are running towards the smoke.
“Stop, call the fire department!” I yell but they don’t stop.
I curse and grab one of my little cousins before running outside. I make it out and hand the baby off to my aunt Kaydence so she’s safe with her mom, then run around the back of the barn and see the back door wide open and the boys trying to grab the hose to put the flames out.
The farming equipment is fucked. The back of the barn is screwed.
My grandpa’s barn.
I swipe at the tears of panic and when my mom rounds the corner, her worried eyes go from her husband, to her son, to Fenton, then to me.
“Mom,” I cry. “What happened?” I don’t expect her to have an answer, but I need one right now because this makes no sense to me.
“I don’t know,” she says like her heart’s broken. “Baby, go make sure everyone’s okay. Your friends need to get home. Please just get people out of here and the kids inside,” she tells me before she moves for my dad who looks like his whole world is burning.
I don’t want to leave them. I don’t want to leave Fenton but he and my brother are too busy throwing water on the fire and trying to drown it to even know I’m here for them right now so I listen to my mom and clear the place out. I can’t get my uncles to leave but at least my aunts give me help getting all the kids inside. I gave the little ones my room to sleep in and figure I can sleep on the couch tonight.
“Aunt Kinlee, I’m going back out there,” I mutter, praying the fire’s out by now.
“Be careful,” she says, her eyes hitting mine. I smile at her and move across the room for a hug. I love her hugs. She’s my mom’s best friend and the best aunt a girl could ask for. “And Paige? I think you’ve got a good one with that boyfriend of yours.” She smiles as I pull away and my cheeks burn.
“I know.” I smile but it fades. “I gotta go check on them.”
“Here.” She heads for the fridge and tosses me a few bottles of water. “They’re going to want these. And grab some wet washcloths on the way out, it’ll help.”
“How...” I almost finish asking how she’s so calm right now but then I remember the stories my mom tells me about when they were my age. Kinlee’s been through a ton. She’s used to fires, which sucks. “Thank you.”
I head outside and run across the field, dropping the water bottles a couple times and cursing as I scoop them up. The closer to the barn I get the more my heart races. It’s still standing but it smells like hell out here.
When I round the corner, I’m relieved to see the fire’s out but then I see my dad sitting on the grass next to the fried back end of the barn and my heart hurts. This barn burnt to the ground when my dad was around my age. My whole life he’s been so proud of the massive barn he rebuilt with my grandpa, even if they barely spoke the entire time. My dad and my grandpa were closer than any father son combination I’ve ever seen, and when he died two years ago my dad took it hard.
This barn is like the last thing he’s got of his dad’s.
“Here you go,” I whisper, walking over to him and handing him a bottle of water.
He looks up and me and takes it. “Thank you, baby girl, you didn’t need to do this.”
“I did.” I hand him a washcloth and he chuckles.
“Your aunts put you up to this?”
“No, I wanted to help.” I turn and look around, seeing Gray and Fenton searching the barn and making sure there are no more flames. “Are you guys okay?”
“Yeah. We’re okay.” My dad curses and coughs and I look down at him and smile.
“Good. I’m glad.” I turn and walk over to Fenton and Gray. “Here, guys. Drink.”
“Thanks,” Gray mutters, swiping the water bottle and chugging it. He looks pissed. Fenton doesn’t look any better, really.
“Maybe you guys should sit down.”
Fenton’s eyes stay on the barn, not taking the water bottle I’m holding out until I nudge him with it. “Thank you.” He steps closer to me and when I look up at him, I notice his eyes looking around. “Have you seen my brother?”
Shit.
“No,” I blurt. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry. I was so worried about the babies. I didn’t...” Shit! “Can you call him?” I look around, panicked that I lost his kid brother.
“Yeah. I will.” He walks away from me to make that call and I stare at him until Gray coughs.
“You should have called the fire department,” I say. “That’s a lot of smoke for you guys to be inhaling. You sure you’re okay?”
“Paige, the whole barn would have been gone by now if we would have called and waited.” He curses and kicks the melted tire of the tractor. “So much money up in flames. Dad’s pissed.”
"At least none of the animals were hurt and you guys got it under control.” I look around and my heart sinks. “It’s so sad.”
“Yeah.” Gray starts coughing again and my mom comes up with another bottle of water, pulling him over to the grass to sit by my dad. I wish Fenton would drink.
“You get a hold of him?” I ask, walking over to him when he ends the call.
“Yeah.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I gotta head out. He started walking back to my aunt’s. I guess when everyone was leaving he thought he had to too. I’m sorry.” He glances toward the barn.
I look up at him, then practically jump in his arms, wrapping myself around him tight.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “You...” God, he could have gotten hurt or worse tonight. “You jumped into the most dangerous thing and saved our barn.” I pull back and look up at him. “Thank you.”
He doesn’t look like he agrees, but he rubs his thumb over my bottom lip before giving me a quick peck then leaves.
I walk up to Mr. Kenshaw while he organizes the ropes. “Hey, Mr. Kenshaw.” He glances at me.
He’s told me to call him Brandt, but I just can’t. I’ve been working here for almost four months and I see the Kenshaws a couple times a week. I eat Sunday dinners with them if I’m not at my dad’s, but I’m more comfortable calling him Mr. Kenshaw.
“Do you know what happened to the chains?” I ask him, not able to finish loading the bales without them.
“They used to be right where you’re standing,” he says, then walks over and throws his hands to his hips, looking around. “Huh. They were right there yesterday.” He takes off his hat and rubs his head. “Maybe Gray’s using them.”
“He’s...” I stop. I know Gray isn’t using them but Mr. Kenshaw has a lot to deal with right now so I just nod. “I’ll ask him,” I say walking away.
Tonight we’re having a little party for my birthday and I’d rather do something alone with Paige, but she’s looking forward to the party too. She keeps talking about what she bought me, that I’ll love it, and all I want is to spend a night with her for my birthday. That’s the only present I need.
I don’t find Paige before I leave because I want to get back quick. My dad’s coming into town tonight to help my aunt with something and I don’t want to be home. I rush home and shower then meet Gray at the lake where we’re having the party.
“Dude, you can’t swim. It’s too cold!” I yell at him when I see he’s in shorts. It’s sixty-four degrees out.
“Not when you have a few beers in your system already!” He laughs and finishes chugging a can. “Happy birthday, my brother!” He
tosses the can on the ground and runs for the lake screaming. “Oh fuck!” Immediately he’s running back out of the water. “Fuck! Shit! Why the hell didn’t you warn me!” He runs past me and heads inside the guest house and I follow, listening to him bitch the entire way.
My face lights up when I see Paige sitting next to Shae. I don’t usually like to take her away from her friends, but it’s my birthday, so I slide up next to them. “Hi.”
“Hey.” She reaches up and kisses my cheek, wrapping her arm around me. “Happy birthday.”
I nod and glance at Shae, wishing she’d walk away so I can greet my girl properly but she just stares at us smiling.
“Thanks.” I nod awkwardly. “Gray jumped into the lake.”
“Wow.” Paige’s laugh makes my smile grow. “He’s insane. And drunk already I think. The boy has no limits.” She turns and wraps both arms around me and looks me in the eyes. “Are you gonna kiss me?”
I glance toward Shae and she finally gets the hint, turning away from us. I pull Paige closer. “I missed you today,” I whisper and kiss her again. “I’ve been thinking about you all day.” I slide my hand under her ass, but don’t go any farther because apparently Shae is her shadow today. She hasn’t left the couch.
“Hey, I’m spending the night at Shae’s tonight,” Paige whispers, grinning at me.
When Shae laughs and shakes her head, I almost roll my eyes because she’s still paying too much attention to us.
“You owe me, bitch.” she pulls out her phone, pretending to ignore us.
“You are?” I grin, my gaze landing on Kirby who’s across the room. It takes him a second but he looks at me in question. I shift my eyes to Shae and in no time he walks over, getting her attention. “What are we gonna do?”
Paige smirks and bites her lip. “I could think of some things. I still have to give you your present, too, but maybe later?”
“I’m not leaving without it.” I grin and move in for a kiss. “You wear this skirt all day when you went shopping with Shae?” I look at her long legs and little skirt as she sits practically draped over my lap.