American Honey - Page 104

“Pissed enough to send me away, or to start coming home from work at night?”

She had me there. My mom was always home by dinnertime and is always there when I need her. I didn’t grow up not seeing her. “My anger would be more directed at the boy in your bed. That would piss me off the most, but work is never more important than family.”

“It is when you’re trying to screw the boss’s niece. Get the hell up you lazy asses.”

We both jump, causing Jeremiah to cackle loudly as he leaves the barn.

“Shit,” I mutter. “I didn’t want him to see us.”

Savannah pulls away quickly, scrambling to her feet. “Why not?” there’s pain in her voice. I reach for her, only for her to pull away.

“Because he’s an ass, that’s why. He’s a freaking child, Savannah. It’s not because I don’t want him to know, it’s because of the torment we’re going to receive. Believe me, sweetheart, I’ll be shouting that you’re mine from the rooftops when we decide to make it official.”

“What’s it going to take?”

I pull her to me, capturing her lips with mine. “You tell me.”

I leave her standing there with her mouth wide open. It’d be so simple to just fall into her life and be with her if she wasn’t leaving. I can’t be the one to make a decision on where we’re going. If she wants to have fun, I’ll show her a good time. If she wants to be together, I’ll be there willing and waiting for her to break my heart in the end.

Chapter 12 – Savannah

I rush through my homework, knowing that Aunt Sue won’t let me go out with Tyler tonight if it’s not done. It doesn’t matter that it’s Friday; rules are rules here, and they’re not meant to be broken. I know they mean well, but it’s hard to concentrate knowing that Tyler is waiting for me. He’s going to take me on a date. Well, I’m calling it a date. I don’t care that it’s not to some five-star restaurant with a maître d’ and fake accent. It’s a night with Tyler and his friends and I want to see him interact, see who he’s become. I want to learn what makes him tick and how to make him laugh. I have a feeling he’s different in front of his friends. I just hope he doesn’t put up a front while I’m there.

My mind drifts back to the barn and how comfortable I was in his arms. My heart was racing, laying there with him on top of me. It wasn’t like before, when my mom caught me. Everything about that night was wrong. The way he touched me. The way his lips felt against my skin. I had expectations and feelings that I thought would surface, but they never did. With Tyler, my senses are heightened. I don’t have to wonder how my body will react because it knows him. How it can remember him from when I was twelve is unbelievable. I know our moms used to joke that we’d get married when we were older, but I never thought anything of it. Poppycock is what Uncle Bobby would say, but maybe they were right. What else explains my sweaty palms, my inability to breathe and the anxiousness I feel when he’s around? It’s not just when he’s standing next to me but when he’s across the pasture or standing in the kitchen. I feel his presence all the time.

I should be scared because when you think about it, it’s creepy, having those types of reactions when you hardly know someone. My knees shouldn’t go weak when he smiles at me. I shouldn’t find myself smiling at the silliest of thoughts, things like when he brushes up against me, but that’s what I’m doing. I can hear my heartbeat over the loud roar of the tractor and not just when he’s near – it’s in anticipation of when I’ll see him. I didn’t know how today would go. I wasn’t sure if I’d see him before lunch. He made sure I did, working along the side of me until it was quitting time. For the first time since I arrived, I actually loved my job today.

My cursor blinks at me, reminding me that I should be filling the screen with useless words that don’t mean anything to me. Homeschooling has a lot of benefits, one being if I ace this paper, I’m done with this class. Sure I’m going to miss graduation in a few weeks, but I don’t care. When my mom busted the party, they all went running. Not a single one of them stayed to help clean up or helped me to diffuse the situation. Not a single one of them spoke to me the following Monday at school, shunning me due to their own selfish reasons. They left me alone, throwing me to the sharks of high school rejection.

The more I think about it, the happier I am that my mom sent me here. In just a few weeks I’ve remembered what it’s like to live here, breathe the cleaner air and relish in the calm that comes with living out in the country. I miss the amenities that living in the city provides, but I’m managing. It’s nice not to be tied to my phone all the time or sitting in my room surfing the web.

I look out the large picture window that faces the driveway, the same driveway that will lead to Tyler’s house if I were to walk that way. Half of me wants to get up and start the trek, just to see what he’s doing, maybe even pretend I was just out for a leisurely stroll. He’d know I’m fooling, but that wouldn’t matter, not in my eyes.

I let out a heavy and dramatic sigh only to hear Aunt Sue giggle from the kitchen. I should talk to her, confide in her. I know she won’t tell my mom how I’m feeling or what I’m doing, but she might tell Uncle Bobby and I don’t want him freaking out on Tyler. Uncle Bobby doesn’t need to know that Tyler was in a state of undress with me pressed up against his body alone in his house. I don’t want Tyler to get into trouble for my actions. It wouldn’t be fair.

Aunt Sue appears with a tall glass of sweet tea and a plate of cookies. She sets them down in front of me and pulls out the chair to my right. When she sits, she sighs in a more dramatic fashion than I did a few moments earlier.

I laugh and shake my head before taking a sip of her homemade brew. Uncle Bobby says it’s the best I’m ever going to taste. I’ll have to take his word for it. None of my friends would be caught with ice in their tea.

“What’s on your mind, sugah?”

“Me? I’m not the one who exhaled a year’s worth of breath when I sat down!” I wink at her, letting her know that yes, I’m in a good mood and she won’t get any sass from me.

“Well, there’s something I want to talk

to you about.”

“What is it?” I ask, shutting the screen on my laptop. Out of respect, I’m giving her my undivided attention. Not that the black vertical line blinking at me is going to get any of it.

“I know I’m not your momma and I never pretend to be, but you’re here in our house, livin’ under our roof and we have rules that you’re expected to follow.”

I’m slightly confused by what she means. I’ve done everything she and Uncle Bobby have asked of me and I’ve done my chores without too much complaining. I know I’m a pain and didn’t want to be here, but I’ve adjusted.

“Did I do something wrong, Aunt Sue?” I change the infliction of my voice and throw in the “aunt sue” to help diffuse whatever situation is brewing.

“Well, not so much, but I just want to have a woman-to-woman talk. Ya see, Jeremiah was flappin’ his yapper again and said somethin’ about you and Tyler… well you were…” she starts wringing her hands and I can only imagine what Jeremiah came in here and said. It makes me wonder if Tyler knows how much of a busy body that boy is. Maybe Jeremiah and I need to have a sit down about his gossiping.

“Just spit it out so I can tell you the truth.”

Tags: Heidi McLaughlin Romance
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