Gravel Road

by Walls, Stephie

  The music died when Austin removed the keys from the switch, yet he didn’t make a move to get out. His calloused fingers caressed my jaw, and his thumb swept across my cheek. I became putty under his touch and the gentle gaze of his sweet, brown eyes. My breath hitched, and my heart skipped a beat just having his undivided attention.

  “You sure you’re not puttin’ the final nail in your coffin?” His concern was endearing—as was his Southern drawl—even if it were misplaced.

  I grabbed both of his cheeks and firmly planted my lips on his with a loud smack. I took what I wanted and gave him what he needed. Austin was confident in all areas of life, including the size of my daddy’s gun collection. He’d move heaven and earth to please me, unless it meant crossing my father. I appreciated the respect Austin had for him, but this wasn’t about Daddy; it was all Sarah.

  I patted his cheek, the prickle of his unshaven face tickling my palms. “Sarah isn’t my father. Don’t worry so much.”

  “She looked pretty ticked.” So did a rooster; it didn’t mean I’d let him affect my day.

  “And she wonders why Charlie isn’t interested.”

  His forearm flexed when he reached for the handle, and heat rushed to my core. There was something about the strength in those lean lines that drove me to the edge of sexual fantasy. “Most girls would feel sorry for their sister,” Austin spoke as he hopped down.

  I waited for him to face me, knowing he’d extend his hand. I took it and scooted past the steering wheel. Then, instead of jumping down with his help, I spun my finger in a circle. Without hesitation, he presented me his back. I draped my arms over his shoulders and around his neck. When I secured my legs at his waist, my thighs clenched until I was confident he had balanced my weight. He shifted away from the truck and bumped the door closed with his foot.

  The staggering heat was made exponentially worse by my insisting on a piggyback ride like a monkey. I loved being close to him, and Austin didn’t complain. Even if he hadn’t come wrapped up in a gorgeous package of Southern charm and virility, his scent alone would have claimed my virtue. My nose touched the skin below his ear, and I inhaled deeply. Only one other smell in the world carried a multitude of memories like this one did, and that was my mama’s. Although at this point, I had far more memories with Austin than I did with her.

  Austin’s scent surrounded me with security like a blanket on a cold night. It might have been creepy to anyone else, but he knew how I felt, and he let me do it. I’d cried on his shoulder more times than I could count since we were kids, and through the years, he’d become as vital as an organ or a limb. Austin carried the key to the vault that housed all my secrets. Most guys our age would leverage that kind of power. My boyfriend coveted it, held it in the highest esteem. And regardless of the piss and vinegar I poured on Sarah, he recognized my defiance as pain that seeped through the cracks of a broken childhood. He had assumed the role of knight in my life the day my mama walked out. In a handful of words, he’d committed to me on my tenth birthday. I’d thought then that it was the worst day of my life. I realized now that it had been the best. Without one, the other wouldn’t have happened.

  “You two coming?” Charity bounced in the water and eagerly waved at us to join the group.

  People were everywhere, primarily seniors who’d recently graduated and the juniors who would fill our spots in the fall. Football players, cheerleaders, the 4-H club members, it didn’t matter—they were all here. This was a rite of passage in Mason Belle, Texas. It was the only time of the year when social status didn’t exist.

  By the time Austin set me down, my friends had waded into the water, and I couldn’t tell who was who. We’d find them all before the sun went down. As it stood, the only thing on my mind was stripping off my tank top and shimmying out of my cutoff jean shorts.

  I loved this spot. With nothing other than water and forest as far as the eye could see, it had been the place where I’d sought comfort for years. Lush-green trees surrounded the lake, and the color reflected off the water’s surface. It gave the illusion of swimming inside an emerald and being drenched in jewels.

  My cheeks flamed under the already sweltering day as a catcall pierced my ears from behind. I stood and stepped out of my shorts, leaving them on the ground with my shirt and flip-flops. Large, calloused hands gripped my hips, and warm lips teased the sweet spot on my shoulder. The moment Austin’s teeth sank into my flesh, my knees buckled, and I forced myself to put distance between us. My cheeks ached from the smile I wore in his presence, and as soon as I spun around, my heart swelled.

  “You need to quit.” The weakness in which I uttered that statement left me wondering if it were a plea or a command. I was well aware that an audience wouldn’t deter him.

  As he took a step toward me, I took one back. Any second he’d lunge, and if I weren’t prepared to take off, he’d tickle me until I peed on myself. “And if I don’t?” His legs were longer than mine and closed the distance quicker.

  I held up my hands, already giggling, and he hadn’t so much as laid a finger on me. “I’ll get Brock up here to teach you a lesson.”

  Austin’s head fell back. His Adam’s apple bobbed in his thick throat, and the muscles tightened in his abdomen, creating a six-pack that Budweiser could market. The only sweeter sound than his laughter was his voice—mellow and rich, deep and Southern. “Sweetheart, even if Brock wanted to save you, he doesn’t stand a chance.”

  I narrowed my gaze, failing miserably at acting irritated. Austin’s eyes glittered with amusement and crinkled at the sides with tiny crow’s feet. With a hitched hip and attitude in spades, I lifted my free hand to wave a finger in my boyfriend’s direction. Had I not been paying attention, I would have missed the quick twitch in his glance. Noticing it, however, did not prepare me for what it meant or the arms that seized my waist. Gathered up like a bale of hay, I was tossed onto a shoulder almost as broad as Austin’s.

  “What don’t I stand a chance at?” Brock’s deep baritone vibrated his entire body, jostling me.

  While I struggled to get down, Austin ignored my plea for help. “Randi thinks you’ll save her.”

  I tried to lean around his side for my words to reach Austin. “He would!” They ended up muffled by a wall of muscle.

  “Hate to tell you, Randi, Austin claimed your ass long before the rest of us knew there was anything to try to mark as our own. Your fate was written in the stars years ago.” A large hand came down on my butt, which remained high in the air. There was no telling whether the credit belonged to Austin or Brock, and I wasn’t certain that I cared to find out. “But rest assured, if it’s anyone other than him, I’ll be the first to defend your honor.”

  The world tilted, literally. Brock hadn’t put me down when he turned toward the lake. Then there was another set of feet—yucky boy feet I’d recognize anywhere—next to Brock’s. Together, the two took off running in the direction of the water. My stomach bounced on Brock’s shoulder, and I managed to oomph out several ignored cries for help. It didn’t matter how hot it was outside; being thrown into the water would be like having ice dumped over my head. The drastic change in temperature would suck the air right out of my lungs. It was hard enough to breathe through the humidity in June; it was even harder to breathe underwater with no warning.

  Dreading what was to come didn’t lessen the laughter, on my part or theirs. They’d been doing this kind of thing to me for years. Had it been anyone else, I would have decked them. These two owned my heart—for different reasons—and neither could do anything wrong. I heard the cheers from my classmates, although I couldn’t see beyond the muscles in Brock’s back. The red dirt and patches of grass whizzed by as my captor ran, still on a path to the lake. One day, they’d get too old for this kind of thing. Today wasn’t that day.

  His feet slowed when he hit the shore, but not because he planned to stop. Running in water was no different than high-stepping in quicksand. It was laborious and threatened to take
him under if his feet didn’t land right. Brock grabbed my hips, his fingers closed around my skin, and the moment air crept between my stomach and his shoulder, I took a deep breath. Catapulted through the air, my arms and legs flailed, and the last thing I saw before breaking the surface of the lake was Austin’s infectious smile.

  Before I kicked my way to fresh air, Austin appeared in front of me, and the two of us swam up together. His face rippled with distortion from the water, yet through the blur, he never took his eyes off mine. Even when he and his friends played around, Austin never left my side. I gasped when we broke the surface. Remnants of the lake washed my cheeks and dripped from my jaw. It was too deep for me to stand, but Austin found his footing and circled his arm around my waist to draw me into the safety of his sculpted chest.

  Instinctively, my legs held on to him to keep me from floating away, and I swatted playfully at his bicep. It was an act, one all the girls played with their boyfriends. If he’d treated me like a delicate flower, I would have bailed a long time ago.

  He flinched, as if I’d actually put any force behind my punches. “Why are you hitting me?”

  “You let your best friend try to kill me.” It was a tad melodramatic, and the grin I couldn’t erase gave me away.

  He shook his head to get the water out of his hair, and I flinched to avoid the spray. “Sweetheart, there is nothing in the world that will ever hurt you as long as I’m alive.”

  “I love you even if you are a cheeseball.” With everything in me, I adored Austin Burin.

  I leaned back without waiting for his reply. Floating on my back with my legs secured around his waist, I stared at the sky and the white puffs of marshmallowy clouds that dotted the blue. The water distorted sound in my ears, yet even muffled, it wasn’t hard to distinguish happiness. It was, however, difficult to understand the warning that may or may not have been issued before Justin Richert did a cannonball off the dock, landing feet from my head. The waves engulfed me, and I dropped my grip on Austin’s waist to keep from drowning.

  We had drifted into a depth where I didn’t have to tread water, which was the only reason Austin didn’t come for me versus going after Justin. “What the hell are you doing, dude?”

  Austin’s wrist slid through my hold when I tried to grab him. I caught his fingers and tangled mine with his, and a quick squeeze grounded him. There weren’t many things in life that Austin fought over, but I’d held the number-one spot since we were kids.

  “Austin…” I pleaded.

  “I was just messing around, Burin. Calm down. Cheerleader Barbie didn’t drown.” He dismissed Austin as quickly as he’d buried me in waves.

  Justin wasn’t so bad. The self-proclaimed class clown only did things to get a rise out of people. This was no different. He liked to make people smile, but sometimes, he missed the mark.

  I wasn’t his target, just in the way. “Hey,” I cooed, tightening my grip.

  By the time he faced me, Austin had cleared whatever expression he’d shown Justin. Before he could say anything, Brock waved Austin over to the group of football players and their girlfriends playing chicken.

  Austin arched a brow and coupled it with a smirk that made my lady bits tingle. “You game?”

  He was easily distracted, and we were reigning champions. “Of course, I’m game.”

  “That’s my girl.” Three sweeter words didn’t exist. Austin claiming me held far more power over my heart than “I love you;” although, I liked that second best.

  Once we joined the other couples, Austin disappeared under the water in front of me, and I climbed onto his shoulders, lacing my calves under his biceps to secure my feet against his back. He hadn’t taken the first step toward engaging in the teenaged battle royal when the grind of metal on metal reverberated across the lake as if it had happened in the middle of it. My ears picked apart the breaking glass, the shriek of skidding tires, horns blaring, and a heavy thud in slow motion. Every kid stopped, and silence hung around us like a thick, black veil.

  “What was that?”

  “Sounded like an accident.”

  “Way out here?”

  “I hope no one was hurt.”

  The random voices and offhand comments flittered by me without my brain grasping who said them or what they’d asked. All I clung to was the absence of noise after so much commotion. Without answers to their questions, people lost interest and meandered back to whatever they had been doing. My attention hadn’t wavered from the accident. I couldn’t see anything, no matter how hard I tried, but there was only one road out here.

  I leaned over, looking at the top of Austin’s face upside down, while still perched on his shoulders. “Do you think we should make sure everyone’s all right?”

  He grinned and tilted his chin, puckering his lips in a silent request for a kiss. I obliged, but it was chaste. “Would that make you feel better?” His voice was smoother than honey on a warm biscuit.

  I nodded, and he lowered me down. “I just want to be certain they don’t need help. That sounded really bad.”

  “You’ve got a heart of gold. Come on.”

  My sister might disagree. I was headstrong, mouthy, and foolheartedly carefree. I was also the girl who couldn’t stand to see an animal in pain or a homeless person on the street without trying to fix it.

  No sooner had we gotten to the shore than sirens rolled across the water in waves. The one fire truck in Mason Belle honked its horn and roared in the distance. I held Austin’s hand, clutching it as though I were the one waiting for help to arrive. I couldn’t be sure which came next, the ambulance or the police car. I wasn’t quite as adept at differentiating their sounds because nothing exciting ever happened in this town. If it weren’t for the parades on every major holiday, I wouldn’t have recognized the fire truck, either.

  I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I held. My chest deflated, and my shoulders sank with relief. Simply knowing there was help set my mind at ease.

  “You still think we should go?” Austin asked.

  We probably wouldn’t be able to get anywhere near the wreck. And I’d be dragging Austin away from our friends for no real reason other than to be nosy. I couldn’t offer any assistance or useful skill. So, I shook my head and lifted onto my toes to plant a kiss on his jaw. “Nah, let’s stay here.”

  An hour or so later, after the songs of emergency vehicles had ceased, and the accident wasn’t more than a blip of a memory, we’d beaten all the other couples. It wasn’t much of an honor, but in Hicksville, USA, Chicken Fighting Champion held clout. I laughed as other girls from the cheerleading squad gave me a hard time over my competitive nature.

  “Miranda Adams,” the voice bellowed.

  With a smile on my face and words still coming from my mouth as I defended our title to Charity and Anna, I angled toward the gruff bark that caused my name to hover like a storm cloud. At the top of the path, just before the ground broke, stood Sheriff Patton. The grim expression he wore pushed me back instead of forward.

  “Miranda,” he repeated, as though I hadn’t heard him the first time. Nobody in this town used my full name unless I was in trouble. “Darlin’, I need to speak with you.” He put his hands on his hips and lowered his head, his chin nearly touching his chest. I couldn’t read his face when we made eye contact. Sheriff Patton shifted his sight to someone else before I identified the emotion he hid. “Austin, son, why don’t you bring her up here.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  I peeked over my shoulder to see my boyfriend swim toward me. I didn’t have a clue what was going on, but I wanted no part of it. “Miranda” and “darlin’” in the same sentence had only happened one other time in my life, and that was when Daddy admitted that my mom had left. When Austin reached my side, I shook my head and refused to go.

  “Sweetheart, the sheriff needs to talk to you. I don’t think it’s open for discussion.” He laced his fingers through mine. “Come on. I’ll go with you.” The wink that typically made me
mush did nothing to calm my fear, yet I still allowed him to lead me out of the water.

  I twisted, expecting to see life continue behind me, not stunned stares of pity and concern. As we climbed the path, the blue lights on top of his car circling in a dizzying pattern came into view. Nothing he had to say could be good. Cops didn’t come out here, ever. And they certainly didn’t do so on official business.

  Sheriff Patton removed his hat with one hand and put his other on my shoulder. My gaze followed his movement, and my skin broke out in a feverish sweat. Afraid to give the officer my attention, I turned to the person who’d caught me every time I’d ever fallen. Neither of us knew what hurdled in our direction.

  But Austin couldn’t save me.

  The man who’d watched over this town since I was little took a deep breath. “Darlin’”—I was starting to hate that term—“there’s been an accident.”

  1

  Miranda

  Six Years Later

  “Eason, are you ready?” I peeked my head around the door to his office, and his slate-grey eyes met mine. My heart warmed at the sight of his panty-dropping grin.

  “Packing up now. Did you finish the files on the Martin case?”

  I lifted the folder and proceeded across his office to drop the paperwork on his desk. “Everything you asked for is there, including a copy of the will.” Real estate law was rarely exciting, but every once in a while, a case went to court, and things got juicy.

  As a paralegal, I didn’t get to attend many of the actual hearings, although occasionally, I did get to sit in on depositions and mediations. It never ceased to amaze me just how greedy people got after death. Brothers and sisters became mortal enemies, and long-lost relatives appeared out of nowhere—every one of them had their hand out. I’d get tickled when Eason let a case get hung up in probate because his client was an ass. “I wish I could come with you for this one. It’s going to be a doozy.”