“Are you going to the concert tonight?” Grady asked, making conversation. He was sitting down on the wood pile, stretching out his legs.
“What concert?” My brow furrowed.
“Travis is actually back in town, and he’ll be performing at the fairgrounds tonight,” Grady explained.
“No shit?” I said thoughtfully, taking another swig from my beer. I hadn’t seen Travis in years, and I’d never heard him perform before. I’d only caught a few of his songs on the radio; Alberta didn’t have many decent radio stations and they definitely didn’t play newer music.
“I’m going. Elle scored tickets,” Braden said. He paused to drink some more beer. “Tessa will be there too,” he added with a smirk.
I narrowed my eyes at him in warning. The last thing I needed was for Grady McDonnell to get the wrong idea and go running back to the Armstrong brothers. My life was complicated enough.
“You interested in Tessa?” Grady asked, picking up on Braden’s not-so-subtle hint. His dark eyes fixed on my face as he waited for my response. I could have decked my brother then and there.
“No,” I answered, keeping my tone neutral and my expression indifferent. “Braden’s just on a mission to set up his girlfriend’s best friend with someone. I’m definitely not interested.”
“Well, you should come tonight anyway. Gordon’s gonna be there; the whole gang will be. There’s a huge after-party at the Clayton’s barn.”
“Yeah, you could go get your licking early from Gordon, then Tessa will be free game!” Braden joked, cackling at his own joke.
I glared at him. “Seriously, Braden. Shut the fuck up.” I shook my head, my irritation at my brother growing tenfold.
Grady grinned, amused by the situation. “Well, either way. Gordon has his own construction company. They build houses and cottages. He’d give you a fair price on building the cabin.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said distractedly.
* * *
Showering in my tiny trailer wasn’t exactly easy at my height. I was six feet, and I had to crouch down in order for the water to hit my hair. The pressure was shit too, but the trailer served its purpose as a temporary home until I could get the cabin set up. It was definitely a good motivator, if anything.
I knew I’d be welcome to shower at my mom’s house, where Becky and Braden still lived, but that would mean going there and facing her. So I sucked it up, crouching beneath the slow stream of water and washing away the hard day of work.
I still hadn’t decided on whether I wanted to go to the concert. On one hand, it’d be nice to see everyone again. On the other, I was having a goddamn difficult time getting Tessa out of my head.
My thoughts drifted back to earlier that day, when I saw Tessa leaving her tent through the tiny window over my kitchen sink.
I was about to make myself a cup of coffee, but my hands had stilled, and I found myself watching her for a few moments…just to make sure she was okay. She walked gingerly towards her truck and paused with her hand on the door as if she was considering leaving. She caught sight of her reflection in the mirror and her fist went up to her mouth, tears spilling from those amber eyes. The sight of those tears prompted a lot of heavy emotions in me; anger, guilt, compassion…and something strong and potent that I was afraid to label.
It was a vulnerable moment that I knew she hadn’t meant for me, or anyone for that matter, to witness. The urge to fix things took over and before I could talk myself out of it, I was leaving the safety of my trailer and walking towards her.
She hadn’t liked that I’d seen her tears, and her sass and attitude towards me when I told her she had a right to feel scared, had me smiling when I shouldn’t. She had me smiling, and I hadn’t smiled like that in years.
Then there was whatever the hell happened in my trailer when I was trying to tend to her wounds. When she looked up at me and bit her lip, the desire was so potent it took everything I had to not kiss her, although I knew I had several opportunities. Any time our skin touched, she’d inhale sharply. I could practically see her pulse jumping the same way mine was.
She wanted me too.
It was the strangest feeling, watching the tires of her old Ford spin out as my brother’s girlfriend peeled out of the clearing. Normally, I’d be pissed that Elle had torn up the grass, but the only emotion that passed over me was regret. Regret to see Tessa go, regret that she’d been hurt last night and regret that I didn’t ask her for her number.
But acting on my strong feelings of desire and even just asking for her number would have been a dick move. She’d been attacked the night before, and having some guy hit on her was probably the farthest thing from her mind. But oh, how I’d wanted to.
The need to get to know this girl was alarming. The desire to be with her was staggering. It was almost acutely painful.
The cold water finally roused me from my thoughts and I finished washing the soap away before turning it off. Another downside to trailer life was that the hot water tank was ridiculously small.
I left the small bathroom, wrapping a towel around my waist, and made my way to the bedroom. My clothes were still tucked away in suitcases. There was no sense in unpacking; I had nowhere to put it anyway. I pulled out a pair of well-worn jeans, a white t-shirt and a plaid button up shirt. It was still warm out, although as soon as the sun faded, it would get chilly.
“What the fuck am I doing?” I muttered, staring at the clothes I’d laid out on my bed. Was I actually considering going to this concert? Was I actually considering putting myself right in front of temptation again? Temptation in the form of someone completely off limits?
But what if he’s there? I thought, thinking about that piece of shit asshole that had attacked Tessa last night.
My hands clenched into fists with aggravation. I felt responsible for it, in a way. If only I’d trusted my instincts about that guy. If only I’d trusted Hunter’s instincts about him. Hell, if only I had allowed myself to do the one thing I desperately wanted to do, talk to her. Claim her as mine. She would have never been put in that situation. I could have protected her better if I wasn’t so busy trying to ignore her existence.
Hunter whimpered from his spot beneath the kitchen table, almost encouraging me with those yellow eyes.
“Fuck it,” I sighed, tearing off the towel and stepping into a clean pair of boxer briefs. I dressed quickly, pulling my jeans on and sliding into my boots. I pulled my shirt over my head as I walked out the door. Hunter followed me, dutifully walking over to the chain wrapped around the tree. I always tied him up and left him water when I had to go somewhere without him. If I didn’t, he’d tear the inside of my trailer apart. My next project would be a kennel for him once the cabin was completed, but for now this was enough.
I clipped the chain to his collar and patted him on the head before I turned around and walked to my truck.
* * *
The fairgrounds were packed; it seemed like everyone in town was there to see the concert. I found a parking spot and locked up, joining the stream of people heading towards the brightly lit stage. I kept my head down and my hands in my pocket, regretting my decision to come with everything I had. It felt like everyone was staring at me.
I wasn’t an idiot; I knew the town gossiped about me and my family. We were that family in town, the family from “the wrong side of the tracks”, the family that had never really fit in. My father was an alcoholic that couldn’t hold down a job, and we were the kids that couldn’t stay out of trouble growing up. If something bad happened, a Miller was likely nearby.
I just took it to a new level with ex-convict on my resume.
Before I could turn around and give up on this stupid plan, I heard someone shouting my name. I looked around, catching sight of red hair. Melanie Clayton sauntered up to me, wrapping her arms around me in greeting. I froze, my body tense. She didn’t let go for several long moments. When she finally pulled away, I exhaled with relief.
“He
y, stranger,” she said, her voice dripping with flirtation. “Grady and Braden said you might show up tonight! I haven’t seen you in forever!”
I bit back the cold responses I longed to fire out at her, like No shit, I’ve been in jail – remember?
“Yeah, it’s been a while,” I said instead.
“You look good,” she told me, her eyes lingering on my chest before they slowly made their descent downward. I inwardly sighed. Melanie was one of the first girls I’d slept with, and she’d made her way through every last one of my friends. I definitely didn’t want to go down that particular road again.
“Well come on, everyone’s waiting for you,” she said, reaching for my hand. She led me through the crowd to a cluster of people.
Everyone turned out to be Grady, Braden and two of his friends; Peter, who still looked absolutely terrified to be in my presence, and Ezra, his cousin luckily not in attendance.
Grady lifted his beer and nodded in greeting. “It’s good to see you out tonight, man!”
“Yeah,” I said, tugging my hand free of Melanie’s relentless grip. She pouted like I’d personally offended her, but I ignored her. “Is Gordon not here?” I added, glancing around.
“No, he might show up later tonight,” Grady answered. “He had a situation to deal with.”
“Oh.” I nodded once, my eyes restlessly roaming.
“Tessa will be here soon.” Braden smirked. I glared at him and Melanie shot a look at me, her eyebrows furrowed.
“Why the fuck would you care if Tessa is coming?” she demanded, as if she had any right to the answer. This pissed me off and made me want to tell her that I fucking cared because Tessa was gorgeous and classy and everything she wasn’t. But I bit my tongue, knowing it would cause unnecessary drama and knowing I couldn’t act on my feelings anyway.
“Ease up, Melanie.” Braden cackled. “No need to flash your crazy bitch card so soon. Brock doesn’t like crazy bitches.”
“Whatever.” Melanie tossed her hair over her shoulder, her expression as sour as her mood. I moved away, my irritation growing tenfold.
“I need a beer,” I grumbled. I motioned with my head for Braden to follow me. Luckily, he picked up on the hint. We headed towards the beer tent, my silence stony.
“What crawled up your ass?” Braden scowled, sensing my aggravation.
“You need to fucking quit it with this Tessa shit, Braden. It isn’t going to happen.”
“Why the hell not?” he demanded. “I saw how you two looked at each other. I know I’m not university material, but I can tell when two people want each other; so what’s the problem?”
I stopped walking. It was out of character for Braden to question me on my motives, or lack thereof. “Because,” I responded slowly, “I don’t have time to get involved, and I can’t anyway. Besides, do you really think the Armstrong brothers will let me get anywhere near her? I’m an ex-convict, Braden.”
“You can’t be afraid of them.” He shook his head, a wry grin on his face. “You could take all three of them at once; fucking look at you.”
“That’s not the point.” I sighed, massaging the stubble on my jaw with my hand. “I have enough shit to deal with right now; I don’t need to add to it.”
The expression on Braden’s face was akin to the one he used to wear when we were younger and I told him he couldn’t tag along with me and my friends: it was an expression of crushing disappointment.
“Why is it so important to you anyway?” I asked, my voice gentle.
“Forget about it.” Braden waved away my question. “Let’s just get the fucking beer.”
Braden’s attitude perplexed me. I couldn’t figure out why he was so invested in the whole Tessa thing, but I knew he wouldn’t talk to me about it. Braden didn’t talk to anybody about the thoughts in his head. He was so stubborn; so much like me, so much like our old man.
Tessa
True to Elle’s word, I won the first place ribbon. A scowling Melanie came in second place, and a girl from Carling won third.
My dad and I loaded up Spirit and I returned to my farm with Elle. She helped me with my evening chores, just like she promised. I think she helped more or less so I wouldn’t bail on her.
By seven o’clock, we were pulling out of my driveway, heading back to the fairgrounds for the Travis Channing concert. I was dressed in a pair of dark denim jeans, a cream tank top and an off the shoulder light brown knitted sweater.
Elle was dressed in painted on floral tights, high heeled boots and a tight white tank top with a pale blue jean jacket. She wore her hair down under her black cowgirl hat. I had a matching one in brown that Elle had bought me a couple summers before. It sat on the seat between us, with me undecided as to whether I wanted to wear it. I always thought cowboy hats were a little too overkill, but Elle insisted they were fun.
I parked my truck and gave Elle a leveled look, about to open my mouth to complain.
“Hang on,” Elle said with a slight frown. She shuffled closer to me and gently began to pull free the pins that held my braided hair in place. The braids fell against my shoulders, heavy and long, and Elle tugged the elastic bands out. She finished running her fingers through my hair and pulled back with a smile. “Perfect! Let’s go.” She grinned brightly. Her primping had made me nervous, and I couldn’t get my jaw to loosen enough to voice my concerns. We climbed out of my truck and entered through the front gates, heading towards the stage and the beer tent.
“I don’t know about this.” I stared at the brightly lit stage and the swarm of people before it. Travis Channing was set to go on in ten minutes, if that.
“Oh, Tessa,” Elle sighed heavily. She clucked her tongue, shaking her head. I felt her arm link with mine, and she pulled me closer to her so I could hear her voice over the crowd. “I’ve been your best friend for literally my whole life. I know when you like someone, and I know you like Brock Miller. You are forever complaining about how boring life is and how you can’t wait for college because nothing exciting ever happens around here. Then when something exciting does happen, you run scared.”
I exhaled. “I’m not running scared, I’m being realistic.”
“Realistic is hardly any fun.” Elle rolled her eyes, repressing a smile. “Try not to make a big deal about this. It’s just a concert; Brock probably doesn’t even know we’re coming. He’s here with Braden.”
I couldn’t help but feel a swoop of disappointment in the pit of my belly. Brock wasn’t expecting us to join him and his brother. This whole charade was an ill-hatched and impulsive plan of Elle’s to force us in each other’s company again. “Great,” I muttered, drawing in a shaky breath.
Elle jumped with glee. “See! You like him so much you’re upset that he doesn’t know we’re going to show up. I knew it! I told Braden this was an awesome idea!”
“Braden’s in on it?” I came to a stop, my jaw wide with disbelief.
“Oh don’t give me that look.” Elle refused to allow me to dampen her spirits. “Braden just said Brock seemed taken with you.”
“Taken with me? What are we, in the 1920s?” I rolled my eyes, biting down on my lip to keep from smiling.
While I was totally not okay with this idea of hers, equal parts of excitement and dread rolled around within me at the prospect of seeing Brock again, and the small hope that he was interested in me. I couldn’t help but analyze exactly how I had felt when I saw him at the bush party, and any moment after that we had spent alone. I remembered the affect his voice and presence had on me. But I also couldn’t help worrying that all he’d see when he looked at me was that naïve drunk girl he had to rescue because she was too stupid to stick to the buddy system at a party.
I didn’t have time to dwell on it though, as my eyes fell across the space and landed on Brock’s tall build. He was standing with Braden surrounded by what appeared to be a huge group. Peter, Krista, Ezra, Joanna, and a couple of Gordon and Brock’s old friends: Grady McDonnell, and Steve Winters. My
eyes widened with surprise when I noticed Melanie Clayton standing beside Brock, but that surprise faded quickly, replaced with nervous anticipation when my eyes moved on to Brock.
He had his back to me, and I took a moment to really appreciate the view. He was dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt that hugged the curves and dips of his muscles like a second skin. The contrast of the white shirt against his tanned complexion was breathtaking, and he wore Wranglers even better from behind. As if he felt my presence, Brock turned his head and looked over his shoulder, directly at me, catching me staring.
I could feel my cheeks heating up.
Melanie’s dark eyes landed on me and she sent me a vengeful smirk. She tossed her thick red hair over her shoulder and stepped closer to Brock, practically hanging off his arm as she batted her lashes at him. Brock looked down at the contact and gave her a patient smile before detangling his arm from her grasp. I couldn’t help the swell of satisfaction at the sight of him turning her down, not that it meant anything for me. Still, it was nice to see the smug smile fade from Melanie’s lips.
“Hey, babe.” Elle grinned, stepping up to Braden for a kiss. Braden placed his arm around her, grinning playfully at me from over the top of Elle’s head.
“Tessa, so good to see you. You look hot as fuck tonight,” he said, his voice full of double meaning as he smirked towards his brother. Brock said nothing; he just stonily took a sip from the beer he was holding, his eyes narrowing darkly. “Wouldn’t you say, Brock?”
Brock didn’t respond. Although he didn’t speak, those steel-coloured eyes were caressing me as they slowly travelled the length of my body, finally pausing to rest on my lips.
“Thanks, I think…” I blinked, my thoughts disoriented. The heat of Brock’s gaze was doing strange things to me. I felt lightheaded, almost dizzy. Nervous butterflies exploded in my belly and my legs threatened to give out as Brock’s eyes rose to lock on mine.
Rebel Soul: (Rebel Series Book 1) ((Rebel Series)) Page 7