by Jenika Snow
“It’s late as fuck, boy.” Brian paused a moment. “Where you been?”
“Out,” Rory said and went to move past him, but his dad grabbed his arm. Rory stopped, breathed in and out to calm himself, and looked at his dad. “You better get your hands off me,” Rory said, knowing that his old man was drunk enough he might start shit. Rory didn’t allow himself to get beat anymore, though. He threw punches back.
“Who the fuck do you think you are, coming back here this early in the goddamn morning?”
Rory wrenched his arm out of his father’s hold, turned and faced him, and showed him he wasn’t afraid of his bullshit. “I said I was out, and that’s the end of it.” He didn’t talk about Lena with Brian, didn’t even like thinking about her when he was in the fucker’s presence.
Brian let go of Rory, grabbed a cigarette from off the counter, and the pack crumpled. He put one of the sticks in his mouth, bent over, and turned on the stove. The burner’s flame was a vibrant blue, and he bent closer to it and lit the end of the cigarette. When he straightened, he inhaled a few times, blew the smoke out through his nose, and chuckled. “You with that little girlfriend of yours?”
Rory might not talk about Lena with his father, but that didn’t mean Brian didn’t know about her. It was kind of hard to hide the love of his life for three years, especially when she’d come to this shithole over the past few years for one thing or another.
Rory turned and started walking toward his room, not about to talk about Lena with this worthless waste of space human. Brian had never been a father to him. He’d been a bully, a man who got drunk and started using his kid as a punching bag, because he’d been so worthless he couldn’t even find a shred of love in that black heart of his. Brian didn’t give a shit about what Rory did or when he came home. This was just a tactic to start shit with him, and if he kept at it, Rory knew they’d start throwing down.
Did he want to fight with his father? No. He wished he’d had a decent childhood, and that he could talk to his dad about Lena and his plans for their future.
“I’m still talking to you, Rory,” his father said with a slight slur in his voice. “You don’t fucking turn your back on me while I’m talking.”
Rory continued walking away. He wasn’t going to let this asshole ruin what he’d shared with Lena tonight or the high she always gave him with just her presence. Brian and Rory might share the same six-foot-three height, but Brian no longer had the muscle mass he probably had back in the day. The alcohol, shitty lifestyle, and lack of staying healthy made him overweight, slow, and lazy.
“You fucking that little girl? You want pussy, you need to fuck a real woman, boy.”
Rory clenched his teeth and walked into his room. He should knock the fucker out for even saying anything about Lena, but he just wanted to crash for a few hours before he had to go to work. With school officially out, and Rory able to say he’d stuck it out and finished high school, he planned on working for a little while, saving more money, and moving toward his goal. He still had to talk to Lena about that, and that was what was on his mind, not the fight his old man was trying to start.
He went to shut the door, but his father was there, putting his foot in the way so he couldn’t close it.
“I asked you a question.” His father pushed the scarred wood inward, and Rory didn’t bother stopping him. If he wanted to do this, fine. Rory was more than ready.
“What I do isn’t your damn business. It hasn’t been for a long fucking time.”
Rory had lost any fear he’d ever had for this man. Now he just went up against him with what he had. Of course he wanted out of here—away from Brian, this shitty house, and the bad memories—and he would be gone soon. Leaving Lena wasn’t what he wanted to do, but he wasn’t, not really. He knew doing this would better both of their lives. He’d be able to provide for her and give her what she needed. Once he talked to her, told her what he planned on doing, they could decide how things were going to play out. He wanted her with him, right by his side, but he also didn’t want her giving up her plans and dreams.
Brian chuckled and shook his head, leaning against the doorframe. “Why are you even still here, Rory?”
“Believe me, I won’t be for long. And I wouldn’t be here if I had any other choice.”
His father raised a graying, bushy eyebrow. “If it wasn’t for me taking care of you after your loose as fuck mother kicked the bucket, you’d be nothing but a memory now.”
Rory clenched his hands into fists at his sides.
“Shut your fucking mouth.” Rory didn’t know his mother, didn’t remember her, but that didn’t mean this piece of shit could badmouth her. Yeah, he knew from what Brian had said enough times that his mother had slept around before they got together and that she’d been heavy into drinking as well. But he didn’t care about any of that. This asshole didn’t talk bad about the dead, no matter who they were.
“You owe me a hell of a lot.”
“I don’t owe you anything, Brian.” He kept his body tense, his form ready if Brian really wanted to do this. “Believe me, I’ll be out of here and never fucking look back.”
His father took another step toward him, but Rory held his ground. He refused to back down. If Brian was drunk enough to do this, then so be it, because Rory was primed for a fight. “You want to do this, Brian?”
Something flickered in Brian’s eyes, maybe fear or realization that he couldn’t take Rory down. Maybe he saw that Rory was pissed and on edge enough that he’d get knocked the fuck down … again. Whatever went through Brian’s mind had him stopping and moving a step back, shaking his head in the process.
“I don’t have fucking time for this, and you’re not worth it,” Brian mumbled, then turned around and walked away.
Rory slammed the door hard enough it shook, and the noise reverberated through the shitty room. A moment passed before Rory felt calm enough to even move. He turned, stared at the small bed, the sheets and comforter mussed on top, and breathed out. Scratching his head and knowing he should take a shower, Rory said fuck it and walked toward the bed. Aside from the bedframe that was as old as Rory, he’d had to buy everything else in this room for himself. That was how worthless Brian was.
He lay down on his bed face-first, closed his eyes, and let the only good thing in his life fill his head, which was the girl he was absolutely in love with … Lena Port.
6
Lena had been feeling on edge. She couldn’t say what it was or even explain where it came from, but when Rory had called her this afternoon and said he had some things to talk to her about, her belly had been in knots and her entire body had just felt … off.
The past few days had passed in this kind of hazy, euphoric blur. All she could think about was being with Rory, about how they’d lost their virginity to each other, and how she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She might only be eighteen, but she knew what she wanted out of life.
She had plans to go to college, already having been accepted to a few of the universities she’d applied to. Rory had applied as well, but she hadn’t heard one way or another on if he’d gotten in. Maybe that was what this was about? Maybe he got in, or maybe she was feeling all kinds of nervous because he hadn’t gotten an acceptance?
She ran her hands over her thighs, her skirt rising slightly, and her heart beating wildly. She sat at a corner table at the local coffee shop in town, her vanilla bean scone and lemonade in front of her. The cup had droplets of condensation on it, and she watched those trails of water move down the plastic and collect on the tabletop.
“Hey, baby.”
The sound of Rory’s voice had her glancing up. She stood and walked into his arms, resting her head on his chest. The sound of his heart beating below her ear was comforting. He had his hand on her back, rubbed it up and down, and she inhaled the scent of his cologne. He smelled so good and felt so good against her. When she pulled away, she rose on her toes and pressed her lips to his. But she no
ticed how he looked, the way his face looked hard.
He looked like he had something heavy on his mind by the strained, tight expression he wore. Rory pulled her chair out and gestured for her to sit down. After she did, he took the seat across from her. He didn’t get anything to eat or drink from the counter, and by the way he looked right now, she felt like something was definitely up.
When he leaned back in the chair but stared at his hands on the table, the silence stretching between them, she couldn’t help but reach out and cover his hands with hers.
“Rory, what’s wrong?” Her appetite was gone, and she pushed aside the cup and plate that held her scone. “Is it your dad?” Although she’d never actually met the man, it was no secret in town that Rory’s father, Brian, was an alcoholic who lived on disability because of a back injury he got from work over ten years ago.
But the truth was Brian had been in so many drunk driving car accidents before that time that she had to wonder if it wasn’t those accidents that had been his ultimate downfall in not being able to work anymore. Either way, it didn’t matter because Brian Jaymes was an asshole who had hit Rory when he was younger and still tried to now.
“Lena, I wanted to talk to you, to explain something to you,” he said and looked up at her. He put one of his hands over hers, gave it a squeeze, and the smile he gave her was a little forced.
“Rory, you’re kind of scaring me.” They’d talked on the phone a few times since that night at her place, but he’d been working a lot, and she hadn’t actually gotten a chance to see him until now.
He gave her another smile, this time not so forced. “I don’t mean to be, and I should have talked to you about this when I first found out last week, but I guess I was just looking for the right time to tell you.”
She didn’t know what he was talking about, but she sat up straighter, waiting for the other shoe to drop. She didn’t speak again, just waited. It was clear he was working up the nerve to say what he needed to tell her.
“I got offered a job, Lena.” He stared into her eyes. “It’s a damn good job, in fact, one that will have me making enough that I can get a place where you’re going to school and support you while you focus on your studies.” He leaned forward and smiled, lifted her hands to his mouth, and kissed her knuckles. “Baby, I can take care of you while you worry about school.”
Her heart was beating so hard she felt dizzy. “That’s incredible, Rory, but I feel like there is also a ‘but’ in there somewhere.”
He exhaled and leaned back again. He didn’t speak right away, and although she was happy, excited even that Rory found a job that was that incredible, there was that “what else is there” feeling filling her.
“The job was brought up by Mickey and James at the garage. They are getting positions as well, and when they brought it up to me, I applied. I didn’t think I’d actually get it, but …” He shrugged and left the conversation hang after that word.
God, she loved him so much. It wasn’t just that he was so damn attractive, and that the girls in this restaurant had no shame as they checked him out while Lena sat right across from him. She’d long since gotten rid of the jealousy, of the worry that he’d leave her one day and find someone thinner or prettier. Being with Rory, having a relationship with him, was so much more than just being boyfriend and girlfriend. They were perfect for each other, made for each other, and nothing would ever change that. Right now, she was just confused, and her worry was piqued because it felt like this heavy weight was moving between them.
He was leaning back on the chair, the hat he wore frayed around the brim, and the shirt that was stretched over his wide, muscular chest, showed a few of the tattoos under the material. He was big, so big and powerful, so strong and confident in everything he did. But right now, he was nervous. That was clear by how he bounced his foot, his leg moving up and down under the table, the strained look on his face, and the fact he looked at her as if he didn’t want to really talk about whatever he’d called her here for.
“Rory, I love you, but what is it that you’re not telling me?”
He ran a hand over his scruff-covered jaw and leaned forward again.
“The job is great, but I have to leave, Lena.”
“Leave?” she asked. “Like town, commuting or something?” Although she asked the question, she knew the answer already, could feel it in her stomach, deep in the recesses of her cells. Just by the way he looked told her that this wasn’t about him commuting. This was about him leaving her.
7
Rory felt like shit right now, not because he’d taken the job but because he hadn’t told Lena sooner. Like right the fuck when he’d found out he was leaving. He stared at her, at the way her brow was furrowed, the stress on her expression.
“You’re leaving me, aren’t you?”
He shook his head. “Baby, I’m just leaving town. I’d never leave you. It’s you and me forever.” His throat was tight as he continued to watch her. He knew she’d see this as him leaving her and that this would hurt her. Fuck, this hurt him, too. “I don’t want you ever to think I’d leave you because you’re it for me, Lena. I don’t ever want anyone else.”
“You’re it for me, too, Rory, but this is such a shock.”
“I know, baby.” He smiled, hoping she’d see the love he had for her, because what he was about to say would make this harder. “The job requires me to leave town for the next year, Lena.”
Her mouth parted, and this little sound left her. “A year, Rory?” He could see the panic on her face, knew she was thinking about how long a year would feel. Since they’d started dating three years ago, they hadn’t gone more than a week without seeing each other.
He took his hat off and rubbed his palm over his head. “I should have talked to you about it.” They weren’t married, and they may only be eighteen, but she was the girl he’d marry one day, the girl he wanted to have his babies when they were ready, down the road. “I should have told you right away, but at first, I wasn’t sure I’d even apply, and then when I did and got the job, I wasn’t sure how to talk about it with you.”
She swallowed, and he saw the slender line of her throat work from the act. “And I assume you won’t be able to see me at school?”
He shook his head. “The job is going to Colorado for an entire year to help build a new prison. The work will be grueling, and there will be a few thousand men working on it off and on.” He gauged her reaction, but other than her picking at her napkin, she just stared at him. “It’s a massive project, and after it’s said and done what I’ll be getting paid, and until I land another construction job, which they’d guaranteed me if all goes well and I work my ass off, will have us set, baby.” He went to grab her hand, but she leaned back and rested them on her lap.
“Can you come see me at all?”
He shook his head again. “Because I’ll be working six out of seven days a week, and the hours, I’m told, are pretty grueling, I won’t have time to go see you and then get back to the jobsite.”
She breathed out loud and looked down at her lap. “This freaking sucks, Rory.”
“I know, baby, but once the year is up, I can go to where you’re at and have them hook me up with a job there. We’ll be set. I’ll have a shitload in the bank from the year’s work that you can live with me and just focus on school.”
She didn’t speak for several moments, and when she finally looked up, he still saw the pain in her expression, but she was trying to look happy.
“It’ll be good for you to get away from Brian. But God, Rory, I am going to miss you. A year is so long.”
“I know, baby, but it’ll be worth it, I swear.”
She nodded. “Will you be able to call me?”
“Of course, although I’ll be working pretty much sunup to sundown, but you know I’ll make time for my best girl.”
She smiled, and although it was sad, he did see the love she had for him in her face. When Lena grabbed his hand and gave it a sque
eze, his chest tightened.
“When do you have to leave?”
He was silent for a long time, so long he noticed she started to shift on the seat. “Next month.”
Her eyes got wide for a moment. She looked down at the table, her face showing she was thinking hard. “Next month?” she asked, but really it was as if she spoke to herself. “But school …” Again, she spoke to herself, shook her head once, and finally lifted her gaze to him.
She hadn’t decided on where she was going yet, probably waiting until he told her if he got accepted, which he didn’t and hadn’t. That was something else he still needed to come clean about.
“But what if you get accepted into one of the schools you applied? You still haven’t heard back from any of them?”
He felt shame that he wasn’t as smart as she was, that he hadn’t been able to get into even the lowest college on his “hope” totem pole. He felt shitty that he honestly didn’t care about college. He only cared about her and making sure she succeeded. “I didn’t get accepted, Lena.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “To any of them? There were like five you applied to, right?”
He’d never been interested in school and had struggled to focus on it and making sure he passed his classes. Maybe if he’d actually applied himself, his GPA wouldn’t be shit.
“I don’t know what to say other than I didn’t get accepted, and this job has come as a godsend, baby.”
“You kind of stunned me with all of this, Rory.”
He felt like an ass. “I know, and I should have told you about it long before now, but hell, the whole rejection letters humiliated me. You’re just so damn smart, and I’m lucky to have even graduated.”
“Don’t say that. You are smart. You’ve just been dealt a shitty hand.”
He smiled. “You have the sweetest heart, Lena, but the truth is the truth. I’m just not one of those guys.”