She narrowed her eyes. “What’s your favorite?”
“Um…” I really wanted to say the right one. “The Frog Prince.”
She grew quiet. Then turned her attention to Tyson. “I like her. She can stay.”
Tyson laughed and stepped forward, scooping her up into his arms. A sense of relief washed over me. Was it weird that I was so happy that his little sister liked me?
“Come on, Tiny. I want to show you my room and my princess pajamas.”
After she was dressed and her teeth brushed, she climbed into bed, patting the mattress next to her. “Can Tiny read me a story?”
Tyson glanced over at me. His eyes were wide. For a moment, I sensed a glimpse of approval before he shrugged. “It’s up to her. What do you say?”
“If that’s okay. I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes,” I said.
Tyson laughed as he walked over and grabbed a picture book from the bookshelf. “It’s okay. I’m pretty tired of this one anyway. It needs new blood. Someone to breathe some life into the words.”
He handed me a condensed version of Cinderella.
I nodded as I took it from him. Cori’s eyes widened as if realizing I was actually going to read to her. She squealed and shifted over as I sat down.
I brought my feet up onto the bed, and she snuggled in next to me. My heart swelled for this little girl. I knew what it was like to have disappointing parents. But for me, I still had one that cared for me. She had none. Well, she had Tyson.
When I glanced over to where he had been standing, I saw the he’d moved over to a nearby chair. He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, watching me.
There was something so open and raw about his stare, that it made my heart pound in my chest. What was he thinking? It couldn’t possibly be what I so desperately wanted it to be.
“You can start. I’m ready,” Cori said as she yawned.
I snapped my gaze down to the book and nodded. “Of course.” I flipped open the cover and started.
It was nice, sitting there with Cori, reading to her. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, it reminded me of when my mom used to read to me. And that made me sad. Made me long for a time when my life hadn’t been so complicated.
And having Tyson in the room made me both nervous and comfortable at the same time. I liked being in his presence, but it also scared me.
Just as I read the last sentence, Cori’s chin dipped down onto her chest. Her breathing was slow and heavy, and she was no longer giggling at the way I read Gus Gus’s voice.
“I think she’s asleep.”
I jumped. Tyson had left his spot on the chair and was now standing next to the bed. I took a deep breath, realizing how close he was to me.
Instead of focusing on the fact that he was standing over me, looking at me in a way that took my breath away, I turned to Cori and slowly shifted her off my shoulder and onto her pillow. After some Matrix-smooth moves, I was off the bed.
Tyson was inches from me, and it seemed he was not going to move. I needed to. I couldn’t be this close to him.
I took a step forward, desperate to get away, when a sharp pain shot up my foot. I yelped and stumbled. Just as I placed my hands out, anticipating the fall, two hands wrapped around my waist and pulled me up.
“You okay?” Tyson asked. He kept his arms around me as he pulled me to his chest.
“Yep. Um hmm,” I said, ignoring how good he smelled and how amazing it felt to be in his arms once more.
“Those Barbie shoes. They’re dangerous.”
I nodded as I wiggled my foot against the carpet, hoping to dull the lingering pain. It seemed to be working. Or maybe my body had just given up on transmitting the pain and had refocused its efforts on the feeling of Tyson pressed against me.
Good call, body. Good call.
“Come on, we should get out off here before she wakes up.” He stepped away, sliding his hand down my arm and wrapping his fingers in mine.
My heart hammered so hard, I swear he could hear it. It was like all my emotions were rushing through my blood at a mile a second. I just hoped I didn’t have a heart attack before this night was over.
Out in the hall, Tyson pulled Cori’s door shut then hesitated. I watched him, wondering what he was thinking, hoping that he wouldn’t pull away again.
“You did great in there,” he said, bringing his gaze up to meet mine.
Oh, good, we were just going to chat. I could do that. Mindless talking. I smiled at him. “Thanks. She’s a sweet girl. Almost makes me wish that I had a sibling.” I pushed aside the pain that gripped my heart. Having a sibling would mean that Mom hadn’t left, that I wouldn’t have been abandoned.
He must have seen my face fall because he looked worried. “Are you okay?”
I chewed my lip and nodded. “Yeah. Just thinking about my mom.” My voiced dropped to a whisper. “And how she left. How everyone seems to leave.” I didn’t realize I had said those words until they lingered in the air. What was I doing? Why was I saying these things to him? He had enough problems in his life to worry about. My sad childhood shouldn’t be one of them.
He stepped closer to me, meeting my gaze. My heart picked up speed. “She’s an idiot.”
I cleared my throat. What was happening? “Who?” I asked.
He focused on me. “Your mom. Only an idiot would leave you.” He reached out, grabbed my hand, and pulled me closer to him.
And I knew. I knew he was going to kiss me, and that was all I wanted him to do. He reached out his other hand to cradle my cheek and then dipped down to press his lips against mine.
It was gentle at first. Like he was seeing how I would react. This time, I didn’t hesitate. I dropped his hand and wrapped my fingers together at the base of his neck, pulling him closer to me to deepen the kiss. I wanted him to know how I felt.
He took control, moving me back until I was pressed against the wall. He lifted me up so I was level with him, using the wall to support me. I tangled my hands into his hair and let him kiss me.
Every moment. Every heart-breaking moment we’d shared earlier today was washed away. All I cared about was Tyson and me. That was it.
Moments later, he pulled away and set me down on the ground. His breath was deep, and his gaze held an intensity that weakened my knees. I was thankful for the support the wall gave me.
He pressed his hands on either side of me as if he too needed that support. After a few deep breaths, he met my gaze again. And I saw it. Worry. Regret. All the things that I wanted to beg him not to feel. This was right. I liked him, and I was pretty convinced that he liked me too.
“Tiny, I…” His voice was deep as if emotion was choking his throat. When he glanced up at me, I could see the conflict in his gaze.
“It’s okay,” I said, even though my heart broke from those two little words. It wasn’t okay. I wanted to be with him. And he wanted to be with me. And even if I said I understood why he felt we couldn’t be together, the truth was, I didn’t.
He shook his head. “I like you, Tiny. You’re different. And I like that. But—”
I pressed my finger to his lips. I couldn’t hear those words again. I wanted to bask in the moment for a bit longer before reality crashed down around us.
He raised his eyebrows but didn’t say anything more. Instead, we just stood there, inches from each other. We didn’t say anything. We just lived in this moment. Lived in what it meant. And what it could never be.
He reached up and cradled my cheek. He brushed his thumb against my lips, sending shivers across my skin.
How was I ever going to be the same after this? There are defining moments in everyone’s life, and the moments that I’d shared with Tyson carried that weight. I wasn’t going to be able to walk away unscathed. He’d changed me. I just wished I could tell him.
I wished that he wanted to hear how I felt. But he looked so broken as it was. I didn’t want to burden him with my problems as well.
I reac
hed up, wrapped my arms around him, and pulled him close. He was a friend, and I wanted to show him that. He responded by wrapping his arms around my waist and holding me tight.
We stood there, in his hallway, outside of his little sister’s door, holding each other. If his phone hadn’t started ringing, we could have stayed there forever.
But he broke our hug and pulled out his phone, glancing down at it.
“Huh, that party we were at? Apparently it got broken up by the cops. Crazy, right?” I saw him smile as the phone lit up his face.
“Yeah.” And then I realized that I never told Rebecca I was leaving with Tyson. She was probably worried about me. “My phone,” I said, stepping toward the staircase.
“You okay?” Tyson asked, following after me.
“I forgot to tell Rebecca that I went with you. She’s probably freaking out.” I padded down the stairs and over to my purse, which I’d left by my shoes. I grabbed it and pulled out my phone.
I’d been right. There were at least fifteen texts from her. I clicked on the last one, and my heart sank.
Rebecca: Tiny, I hope you don’t hate me, but I can’t find you. I had to call your dad to see if you were home. Please, don’t be mad at me. I’m just so worried.
My stomach flipped as I swallowed. I needed to get home. Right now.
I glanced up, and Tyson must have seen my worried expression because his eyebrows were drawn together.
“What happened?” he asked.
“You need to take me home. Now.”
Chapter Fourteen
Tyson turned down my street, and I held up my hand.
“Drop me off here,” I said.
He nodded and pulled over. I unbuckled my seatbelt and let it slide back. I wanted to leave and stay at the same time. I had a pretty good idea about how Dad was going to react, and I really didn’t want to face him right now. Plus, I knew the moment I got out of the car, the magic of this evening would evaporate like rain on a hot summer day.
“I’m sorry if I got you in trouble,” Tyson said. I felt his gaze on me.
I turned and shrugged. “It’s no biggie. Dad will get over it.” Truth was, I didn’t know if that was true. I’d never done something so grievous that he had to “get over it.” If his inability to move past what Mom did was any indication, then I had no chance of saying anything that would calm him down. Or instill his trust in me again.
“Well, if he grounds you forever, I promise to come visit you.” There was a playful hint to his voice.
I glanced over at him. “I’ll hold you to that. You might have to slay a dragon to get to me, but I expect that you’d chance bodily harm to see me again.”
He did a mini bow in his seat. “Yes, m’lady.”
I grabbed my purse and pulled on the handle. “I’ll see you later.”
Tyson’s expression grew serious. “I hope so.”
I hated it when he did that. When he made me hope. I was pretty sure that it was just his flirty side coming out. He wasn’t intentionally hurting me over and over again. But it did. Every time.
He dropped his smile as if he suddenly realized what he’d said. “Sorry, Tiny. I didn’t mean to—”
I shrugged. “It’s fine. It’s really a fact more than anything else. You will see me on Monday. So…” I shrugged and stepped out onto the curb.
Just then, a yellow Bug drove by. But I ducked down next to his car out of instinct. Once it was gone, I straightened, smoothing out my skirt and shooting him a sheepish look.
“Maybe you should text me tonight. Just so I know that your dad didn’t kill you or anything.”
I snorted. “I think you’d be the one he’d come after if anything.”
His skin paled, and I waved away his worry. “I’m not going to tell him. I want us to go to state as well, and dropping his best player would be stupid.”
He wiped at his brow. “Whew. Thanks.”
Before our conversation went down the path that only led to heartbreak for me, I gave him a thumbs up, stepped away from the car, and shut the door.
I watched as he drove away and then started the long and anxiety-inducing walk to my house. When I got to the front walkway, I glanced up at the windows.
Every light was on.
My stomach squeezed. This wasn’t good.
I took a deep breath and made my way to the front door. After I pushed the door open, I paused, listening.
“I just don’t understand why she would lie to me like that,” Dad’s voice carried from the living room.
My brow furrowed. Who was he talking to?
“She’s a teenage girl. I’m sure it’s not unheard of.”
Was that Ms. Swallow? What was she doing here?
I stepped into the entryway and dropped my purse down on the table. “I’m here.”
I heard scrambling and then Dad appeared.
“Where have you been?” He folded his arms and narrowed his eyes.
Go with an apology. “I’m so sorry, Dad. I didn’t mean for things to get out of hand.”
“You said there weren’t going to be boys there, and then I get a call from Rebecca telling me she can’t find you.” His face reddened from just saying the words.
My thoughts flashed back to the kiss Tyson and I shared and then the image of Dad’s head exploding if he ever found out.
“I realized that the party was getting out of hand, so I left. I forgot to call Bec, and my phone was on silent.” I cringed as the lies kept piling up. But it wasn’t only me that would be affected by Dad finding out about me and Tyson. It could hurt Tyson as well. So I pushed forward. “I decided to walk, which is why I’m home now.”
“Sounds like a responsible move.” Ms. Swallow appeared behind Dad. She gave me an encouraging smile.
“Hey,” I said, nodding at her and then I glanced between the two of them. “What is Ms. Swallow doing here?”
Dad lifted his finger. “Don’t change the subject. I am not the one on trial here. You were out, with boys, and you lied to me.” He sighed. “I’m disappointed, Tiny.”
Ms. Swallow reached out and rested her hand on his forearm. “But she left when she realized that the party was getting out of hand. You have to admit, that shows some good integrity.”
I tried not to grimace. Why was Ms. Swallow still talking? It was like she was heaping the guilt on me. I really wanted her to stop.
“I’m really tired. I just want to go to sleep. We can talk about this in the morning.” I ducked my head and began to walk past them.
Dad grunted, but didn’t say anything more. I wondered if Ms. Swallow had hinted that he should let me go.
Once I moved past them, I glanced into the living room, where the TV was on and there were two glasses of wine and a bowl of popcorn sitting on the coffee table.
Were they on a date? A sour feeling took up residence in my gut. Ugh. What was happening? How could Dad be so upset about me spending time with the opposite sex when he was doing the same thing? It felt hypocritical and made me angry.
But I wasn’t going to push my luck right now. I was going to head upstairs, take a shower, text Rebecca that I was safe, and then go to bed. In the morning, I’d face all my feelings about Ms. Swallow and Dad. And maybe, my feelings about Tyson.
Dad was in the kitchen when I came downstairs the next morning. He was sitting at the table, drinking a mug of coffee. Steam rose from the dark liquid in white wisps.
I nodded to him as I passed by on my way over to the cupboard, where I grabbed a glass and filled it with water. I could feel his gaze on me. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to say to him, so I poured myself some cereal and leaned against the counter.
“I wanted to apologize for getting so upset last night.”
I was grateful that he’d decided to be the one to break the silence. I was mid-bite, so I just nodded. Once I’d swallowed, I said, “I’m sorry I misled you. It wasn’t my intention.”
He folded up the newspaper that was spread across the table. �
�I know you would never intentionally deceive me.”
That statement was like a kick to my gut. Ugh. Why did he have to say that? I felt like a terrible person and an even worse daughter. But I wanted to be able to see Tyson—even though it hurt—and owning up to everything didn’t seem like the smart move to make.
So I shrugged, drank the remaining milk in my bowl, and rinsed it out. “I love you, Dad.” At least that wasn’t another lie.
“I know, Tiny. I love you, too.” He stood and walked over.
When he wrapped me in a hug, the guilt dug deeper into my chest. How had everything become so complicated? Why was me liking a guy so terrible to him? If he just got to know Tyson, then I knew he’d like him too. After all, Tyson was so responsible that he acted like he had the world on his shoulders, and Dad could relate to that.
Maybe that was the solution. If I could just get Tyson and Dad to talk, maybe Dad would realize that Tyson was a good guy and let go of his ridiculous expectation that I die a nun.
It could work.
I gave him a good squeeze, and we broke apart. Dad rinsed out his coffee cup, and I waited around the kitchen. It was Saturday. The day we normally did something, just the two of us.
Dad set his mug down in the sink and then turned. “What do you want to do today?”
I threaded my fingers and cracked my knuckles. “Oh, I was thinking about kicking your butt at mini golf.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I feel a challenge coming on.”
I laughed. “Oh, old man, you don’t want to challenge me.”
“Them are fighting words. You sure you want to go head-to-head with your old man?”
I pretended to punch his bicep. “Oh yeah.”
He laughed and nodded. “Alrighty, Pirate’s Cove it is. But don’t go crying if I beat you.”
“Ha! You always say that and yet never do.” I raised my hands as if I were addressing my adoring fans. “I am reigning champion.”
Dad scoffed. “Well, be prepared to be taken down.” He leaned in and narrowed his eyes. “It’s time.”
“Thirty minutes. I need to shower and get dressed.” I skipped toward the stairs.
Rule #1: You Can't Date the Coach's Daughter (The Rules of Love) Page 10