by Sally Henson
Jace wrangles Joe to the side and asks Ross, “Will we be on the beach?”
Ross nods. “We would play three days and three nights at a club smack dab in the middle of all the action on the beach.”
The guys whoop it up. I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. I was hoping to use that week to tell Regan about the secret agreement with her dad. That, and convince her that a summer with me would be worth staying for.
Ross calms them down. “Lane? You don’t seem excited.”
Joe steps toward me. “No way, you can’t seriously be thinking about not going.”
“Come on, man,” Jace says. “It’ll be awesome.”
Luke drapes his arm around my shoulders. “It’s a great opportunity, Lane. Your girl can handle one week, right? Just a week.”
One week isn’t very long. It would be like I was away at school. Regan will probably spend half of her time at Tobi’s anyway.
“Where at in Florida?” Luke asks.
“Miami.” Joe presses his palms together. “Please say Miami.”
Ross holds his palms up. “Not Miami. Ft. Lauderdale.”
I scrub my hand against my cheek. Regan has plans for us to spend as much time together as possible then. But a whole week of playing in Florida? She would probably be okay with it. I don’t want to say yes without talking to her first. “When do you need to know?”
Luke pelts another question before Ross can answer me. “What are we driving that will hold all five of us and our gear?”
Jace and Joe jump in too, talking over each other.
I pull out my phone and check the time. Regan’s lunch is already over. My next class starts in twenty minutes and I need to grab my stuff. “Look, guys, I’ve got class. See you at practice.” I toss them a wave and head to the dorm.
Ross catches up with me halfway to our building. “Hey, so, what do you think? Can you make it?”
“I don’t know yet. When do you need to know?”
He places a hand on my shoulder. “Now.”
“What?” I ask, turning to him. “Ross, come on. I need to talk to Regan.”
He releases my shoulder, shaking his head. “I don’t get it. It’s a week. You’ll miss her, what…two weekends? That’s it.”
I take in a deep breath and rub the back of my neck. “I don’t know. Why do they have to know right now? Sounds sketchy.”
“The band they had lined up dropped out. If I don’t let them know in thirty minutes, they’ll keep looking. Some other band could get our lucky break.” He steps in front of me, stopping us both. “Come on, man. Dad says it’s legit. Plus, this guy has connections.”
I grip my hips and look him square in the eye. “Is this just a party trip? If I go, it’s not to party. And if the other guys are going to party, you don’t need me there.”
“I mean, yeah, you know Joe. But playing comes first. You really add to the band, man. We could do it without you, but we’re so much better with you.”
I drop my head and stare at the grass at the edge of the sidewalk. The tightness in my lower back is grating on me. “Just, give me…” I groan and scrub my palm down my face. “Give me a few minutes. Okay?…Let me get my stuff.”
Ross steps aside. “Fine. But I need to go up too.”
We continue walking and Ross jabbers about the band, the trip, what his dad said about the guy who wants to book us.
All his chatter is jamming my brain.
“Ross. Can you shut up for ten minutes?”
He gives me a look.
“Please. I can’t think while you’re talking.” I stop in the lobby. “You know what? I’ll take the stairs.”
We split apart and I head for the door to the stairwell. I hate that I only have fifteen freaking minutes to make a decision.
“Once in a lifetime, buddy,” he calls as I walk away. “Think about that.”
I grip the door handle to the staircase. Once in a lifetime. Nashville connections. My tense shoulders fall back into place. He’s right. What is there to think about? It is only one week. Regan and I will have the whole summer to be together.
I let go of the handle and jog to the elevator. “Hey, Ross.”
23
LANE
I park beside Rex’s truck in Tobi’s driveway. The warm early spring afternoon ended after lunch when a cold front moved in. With the thunderstorm raging, it took longer than it should have to get home tonight. No thanks to my lousy wiper blades. Winter didn’t do them any favors.
Now that it has slowed to a sprinkle. I better make a run for the house in case the sky pours again. Besides, I don’t want to get the Bridlow’s furniture wet.
Regan will be so surprised. I bolt out of the truck and run to the door. In the past, Tobi’s parents have told me not to knock before I come in their house. But I feel weird about walking in when they’re not expecting me. “Mr. Bridlow?” I call quietly, peeking my head inside.
Mrs. Bridlow answers, “Lane? Is that you?” She comes out of their living room. “I didn’t know you were coming over tonight. Come on in, hon.”
“Thanks.” I step inside and slip off my wet shoes. “It’s a surprise.”
“No band tonight?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No, ma’am. The place where we play had a small fire early this morning. Not bad, but enough damage they cancelled everything until it’s repaired.”
“Well,” she says, “it’s good to see you.” She extends her arm, motioning me further in. “They just ate and went downstairs. Are you hungry?”
Come to think of it, I haven’t eaten since Luke’s beef jerky today. I’m too excited to talk to Regan about Spring Break. “Uh, no. Thanks though.” I head to the basement door, quietly opening and closing it, sneaking down the stairs.
The music is loud enough, the gang might not hear me come down.
As soon as I hit the basement floor, Rex steps out of the bathroom and sees me. I put my fingers to my lips, signaling for him not to give me away. Tobi and Regan are scrolling through the movie choices to stream. And as luck would have it, their backs are to me.
I step behind the sofa where Regan sits and leap over the back, landing on the cushion right next to her.
The girls scream.
“Hello, ladies.” I chuckle at their expressions. Scaring Regan never gets old.
They yell at me in unison, “Lane!”
Tobi tips over on the cushion, clutching her chest, and rolls off the sofa onto the floor.
Regan’s arms wrap around my neck, tipping us over in the opposite direction.
“I’m so glad you’re here.” The whisper of her words are like stepping into a hot bath. I don’t even take baths, but the way those words wash over me…
Rex and Tobi mumble about something I can’t quite make out. Regan’s warm lips on mine has me moaning with satisfaction.
“All right, all right,” Tobi grumbles. “Enough PDA.”
Regan pushes off of me to sit up.
“PDA?” I ask, straightening too. My eyebrows crumple together. It was just a kiss.
I take Regan’s hand in mine.
Tobi gives Regan a goofy look and giggles. Girls. Sometimes I just don’t understand them.
“What?” Tobi asks. “No band tonight?”
I shake my head. “Nope. Last-minute thing.” I turn to face Regan and see the remnants of a blush. “I thought I’d surprise you.”
She rewards me with a beautiful smile. She squeezes my hand and says, “You succeeded.”
“How’s the band going?” Rex asks. “You still get along with everyone?”
I turn to answer him even though I’d rather keep my eyes on my girl. “Yeah, mostly.”
Tobi pushes her hip out, planting her hand on it. Her eyebrows pop on her forehead as she gives me a pointed look. “Have you been singing with the Greeks lately?”
I glance at Regan and drop my head a little, looking through my lashes at Tobi. Did she actually need to bring that up? It was a mistake that a
lmost cost me Regan. If Tobi acts like this right off the bat, now’s as good of a time as any to leave.
“Nope.” I lean my lips close to Regan’s ear and ask, “I need to go home to see my family. Come with me?”
She nods before I even pull away. “I’ll get my stuff.”
Tobi scoffs. “You’re leaving? You just got here.”
I look back at Tobi. She moves her gaze from me to Regan. “You’re not staying over now?” she asks.
Regan shrugs.
I rest my hand on Regan’s leg and give it a squeeze, thanking her for coming with me. “My parents are leaving for the weekend and I told them I’d see them off. I’m just stealing her for a while. I’ll bring her back.”
Tobi’s eyes widen. “Are you sure you want to?” she asks Regan. Tobi gives her blue-eyed puppy dog eyes as if she’s pleading for Regan to stay.
My eyebrows pull together as I watch the silent conversations between the two of them. I look at Regan again. She seems perfectly happy to leave with me. When I catch Rex’s eye, he hitches a shoulder, letting me know he doesn’t know what the deal is either.
“I don’t know how we’ll survive a few hours without her,” Rex says, wrapping his arms around Tobi’s waist.
“Yeah, it’s not like you haven’t seen her all week,” I add. “That would be me, actually. I think you can spare her for a while,” I say, standing and pulling Regan up with me.
“We can go out,” Rex suggests. “Or stay here, and I can make my famous chocolate pie.” He nuzzles her hair with his nose.
Tobi’s posture softens into him. She wraps her arms around his.
Rex’s move makes me want to nuzzle my girlfriend’s neck. We need to get out of here. Like now. “Okay, then. We’ll see you later.” I wave and head toward the stairs.
Regan grabs her bag and jacket, motoring up the stairs behind me. We slip on our shoes at the door and make a run for it through the rain to my truck.
She slides in, and by the time I get my door shut, we’re both wet. And cold.
“Here.” I tug at her jacket, to help her take it off, and then my own. “Let’s put these on the floorboard. Maybe they’ll dry a little on our way to my house.”
“Good idea.” She moves them near the floor vent while I start the truck and pull out of Tobi’s place.
“Remember the ballet tickets the girls got for Christmas?” I ask.
She nods against my shoulder. “Yeah.”
I love it when she sits so close to me while I’m driving. I don’t know why, I just do. “It’s tomorrow, but my parents are driving over to St. Louis tonight and staying over.” I laugh, thinking about what a mess the girls probably are right now. “When they found out I was coming home tonight, they wanted to see me before they left. I bet my sisters are bouncing all over the place, driving Dad crazy.”
Regan rubs my leg and it causes my heartbeat to speed up a few beats. “You’re a good big brother,” she says.
I chuckle. “Sometimes.” Sometimes I love to irritate them as much as they like to do it to me. A song the band covers comes on the radio. My chest tightens a little. I shouldn’t be nervous to tell Regan about Spring Break. Except we were going to spend it together, and she won’t be happy about that. She’ll still be excited for me…I think.
“Ted’s had a small fire. That’s why we’re not playing tonight.” I turn down the radio a little.
“No one was hurt, were they?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No. Ross said it was a grease fire.”
She hugs my arm. “I’m happy you got to come home tonight. Not that I wish they had a fire anything.”
“Yeah, me too.” I swallow and start in. “Ross and his dad are working with a guy on a big gig for the band. They said he has Nashville connections.” My chest tightens even more. I reach my arm around her shoulders and try to stretch to relieve the tension.
She angles in the seat to look at me. “Like he could get you a record deal kind of connections?”
I love her smile. Even if it’s dark in my cab, her smile shines like a light. “I think he could make the introduction.”
“Wow. It seems weird a guy like that would live in Charleston. When do you meet him?”
I take a deep breath and hope she’s not too disappointed. “We get to meet him over Spring Break. In Florida.”
She cocks her head to the side. I can feel her gaze on me, smell the sweet perfume I got her for Christmas, but the rain has picked back up, and I can’t take my eyes off the road.
“Wait.” She shakes her head as if she’s trying to clear her thoughts. “Are you saying the band is going to Florida over Spring Break?”
My lungs burn, and I realize I was holding my breath for her reaction. “I wanted to talk to you before I agreed, but I had like fifteen minutes to decide, and you were in class.”
“Why?” she asks. “Why wouldn’t they give you more time than that?” There’s a strain in her voice.
I stroke my fingers down her hair. “The band he had booked dropped out. Ross said we had to commit right away or the guy would find another band. I’m sorry. I wish I could have talked to you first.”
Regan angles back toward the windshield. “We are supposed to spend that week together.”
I grit my teeth at the blow from her heartbreaking voice. “I know, Rey. I wish you could come with me.”
“How long will you be gone?” I hear her swallow. Probably trying not to show how disappointed she is.
I arch my back to loosen the tight muscles. It’s just a week. Like any other week at school. “A week. It would be like me staying up at school two weeks in a row. We’ve done it before. No big deal, right?”
She nods. “Yeah.”
“And I’ll call every day. I’ll probably drive you crazy with all my messages.” I rub her shoulder.
“Yeah.” She fakes a laugh. “So what’s this guy’s name? Tell me about it.”
My muscles relax a little. She’s disappointed, but she gets it. “Braden West, I think. He owns a club and books for some other places down there.” I tell her all I know about it, which isn’t much.
We near my driveway, and I slow to a crawl to see where to turn. The ditches are so full, the water trickles over the road. “Dad will love driving in this.” I scoff.
“Can you imagine if this was snow and not rain?” Regan asks when I park and turn off the ignition.
I chuckle and release my seatbelt. “We might get snowed in.”
She takes off her seatbelt and places her hand on the back of my neck. Her eyes are so intense as she searches mine, they almost glow. Maybe it’s the security light reflecting off my window into her eyes. “That might not be a bad thing,” she says. Her voice is off. Lower, maybe? Different.
The warmth of her skin on mine, her voice, does something to my insides. My pulse increases, and I swallow a lump in my throat. “Dad will want to get on the road,” I croak. “I’ll leave my stuff in here until it stops raining.” I point to the passenger floorboard. “Would you hand me my coat?”
She sighs and reaches for our coats. “They’re still wet,” she says, handing it to me.
I’m not sure what is going on, if anything. Maybe she’s still upset. Probably. That wouldn’t explain why I am very aware of her lips, curves, presence right now. I take the jacket and grin. I know how to change any awkwardness that might be hanging around us. “Race?”
She smiles back. “You’ll have a head start.”
“Nope. I’ll wait.” I make a motion to cross my heart. “Promise.”
“Okay,” she reluctantly agrees. Her voice is more upbeat than after I told her about Spring Break. Maybe I can make things up to her somehow.
I open the door, using my coat as an umbrella, and wait for her to climb out. “Five, four—”
“Go!” she yells and takes off before I get to one.
I chase her down until she’s only two steps ahead. It’s a little hard to see through the pelting rain.
&n
bsp; “Ahh!” Regan screams. Her body dives through the air, and she lands hands and face first into the water-logged grass.
I drop my coat and rush to her side. “Are you okay?” I ask, lifting her shoulders.
She raises her head, tilting it enough that I can see her mud-covered face. Every flutter of her eyelashes knocks a bit of the caked soil from them.
“Are you hurt?” I pull my shirt over my head and wipe her eyes as she pushes up on her hands and knees.
She sits back on her heels and cracks a tiny smile. “Only my pride.”
Relief rolls out of me in laughter. “You had me worried.”
Now that I know she’s okay, the realization that we’re outside, rain pouring over us, in forty-degree temperatures sets in. She shivers and so do I.
“I’m freezing,” she stutters.
“Me too.” I help her up, giving her the shirt I took off, and jog back for my coat. I raise it over our heads and she wraps her arms around me. The heat as her fingers skim across my bare skin catches my breath.
Whoa.
I do my best not to lose it as we trek across the walkway and inside the house. The warmth of the heater hits me and I shudder. It could be from Regan’s touch. She still has her hands on me.
I clear my throat and call, “Mom?”
Regan drops her arms to her sides.
The television is on, but the ping of the water hitting the mudroom floor can be heard.
Mom steps into the doorway from the kitchen. Her hand flies to her mouth. “Oh, my.” She steps toward us. “Regan, are you okay?”
Regan nods, snickering, shivering. “Cold.”
Mom looks us both over. “You two are a mess. Take those wet clothes off. I’ll get some towels.” She turns and heads for the bathroom.
Dad steps into view, Leah and Lilly on either side of him. He quirks an eyebrow and warns, “Not all your clothes.”
I chuckle, shaking my head. “Yeah, thanks for that news flash.” I help Regan peel her coat off and slip off her shoes and then my own shoes.
24
REGAN
After I get showered and dressed, my teeth begin chattering again. The hot water felt so good, I wanted to stay in longer. Plus, I was thinking about getting closer with Lane since his family won’t be home all night. It’s perfect.