I kick the flat tire before reeling back on my heels. My arms flail, but I regain my balance before falling on my butt and dropping the Tupperware of cokes I spent most of the night before making for Cami’s graduation event.
“Is everything okay, Mommy?”
I take a deep breath through my nose before turning around and looking at Cami. She looks adorable with her graduation cap tipped over and her miniature gown trailing on the floor behind her like a wedding dress. If she had paid attention to my mom’s sewing lessons, she might have been able to adjust the hem.
The same heaviness that has been present since this morning grows stronger as I remember my mom.
I miss you so much, Mommy.
“I need to ask someone to pick us up.” There is no way I will be able to change a tire by myself.
The smile on his face fades. “We will arrive late?”
I check the time on my phone. Not if I can help it. Since I always like to arrive early to everything, I made sure I had enough time for any last minute emergencies. I have come to learn with Cami, anything is possible. Juice spills. Favorite sock missing. A trip to the bathroom.
I choose to call Delilah first. The call goes straight to voicemail, so I call her again, hoping it’s a problem with my
service. Voicemail responds immediately. “Shit,” I hiss.
Cami gasps.
I open my purse with trembling fingers and hand him a dollar. “Why don’t you go put that in the jar for me?”
“Well!” She grabs the dollar from my hand and runs into the house, almost tripping over the hem of her dress in the process.
Wyatt, the next person on my emergency list, also goes straight to voicemail. I call Violet next in a last act of desperation, hoping she will answer. Except, like Delilah and Wyatt, she doesn’t answer.
“Why is no one answering?” I cursed as I kicked the tire again.
I told everyone to arrive thirty minutes before the start time—
Wait!
I hit my forehead. Every time Lake Wisteria has an event with more than fifty people, the area becomes a cell service dead zone, most likely due to the overload of our only cell tower. It happens every year before our Strawberry Festival.
“Damn”. I pull my hair, the sting of pain punishes me. “What am I supposed to do?”
You could start by staying calm.
I open my rideshare app and type in the coordinates to Cami’s school. The nearest driver is one city away and will take thirty minutes to arrive.
Panic sets in my chest, turning every breath into a challenge. A beam of sunlight bouncing off the roof of Cal’s shiny car catches my attention.
No. You can’t be serious.
I wish it wasn’t. If avoiding Cal were an Olympic sport, he would be a gold medalist. Since our kiss a few days ago, I’ve done everything in my power to stay away from him.
Find another way.
There is no other way. She’s the last person I want to ask a favor from, but I’m out of options. If he doesn’t take us, we won’t make it to Cami’s ceremony on time.
My heels sink into the gravel as I walk up the driveway toward the house. Identifying Cal’s location doesn’t take more than a second, especially when combined with Cami’s laughter. I follow the sound of her voices all the way back to the living room, where I find him on his knees, readjusting Cami’s crooked cap.
“There. All better now. He taps the brim of his hat with a smile. “Thank you, Cow-l!”
A warmth spreads through my chest as Cami wraps her arms around Cal’s shoulders, hitting him in the face with the tassel of her
cap.
My low laugh catches Cal’s attention. Our gazes collide, and his eyes widen.
“That?” I tuck a wave behind my ear. “You are so Beautiful.” Her voice deepens.
“Ooo. You think mommy is pretty! Cami’s bright gaze goes from me to Cal.
“I think she is the most beautiful damn woman in the world.”
The butterflies in my stomach return, their endless fluttering creating a buzz in my lower half.
“Actually?” The deafening tone of Cami’s voice combined with the hearts coming out of her eyes warns me to stay away.
He doesn’t look away from me when he says, “Absolutely.” I break eye contact. “UH oh. Cal said a bad word.
Cami squeals with delight as Cal blindly hands her a hundred dollar bill without even breaking eye contact with me. She walks off to the kitchen, leaving Cal and me alone.
His gaze darkens as it rakes over my body, turning the heat in my chest into a raging inferno. For Cami’s special occasion, I decided to wear a floral summer dress that makes my boobs look amazing, and my favorite pair of heels that hurt like hell if I stand for too long. The two thin threads of suede wrapped around my calves cut off most of the blood flow to my feet, but beauty is pain.
It’s worth it. With the way Cal looks at me, I’d willingly risk turning each of my ten toes purple.
His eyes focus on my shoes. “Shit.” “That?” I look down but can’t find anything wrong.
“The things I would do to have your legs wrapped around my waist while I wear them.” He looks up.
Oh. My. God.
He closes the gap between us before kneeling in front of me. Shoes. “What are you doing?” My heart pounds against my ribcage, the beats filling my ears.
“You’re going to pass out if you keep them that tight.” Her fingers run over one of my swollen calves. I stagger at the simplest touch behind my knee, so I reach out to put a hand on her shoulder.
A simple brush of his fingers against my leg makes me bite the inside of my cheek to keep from moaning. “I’ll be fine.”
Cal doesn’t let me choose as he carefully unties the first set of threads. They fall, landing in a messy pile next to my feet.
He rubs the red marks on my legs with a frown. “Doesn’t this hurt?” “Who cares as long as they look good?”
His fingers work in small circles, massaging my calves until he is satisfied with the result. Breathing becomes an impossible task, the growing pain between my legs intensifying with each passing second. By the time he finishes retying the first shoe, I’m gripping his shoulder with a steely grip.
“Are you OK?” He smiles at me.
My eyes narrow. “You know exactly what you’re doing.”
I just don’t know why Cal is doing it. After how quickly he walked away after our kiss, I thought he would keep to himself and prevent any mistakes from happening in the future.
A lot for that.
His smile widens as he runs a finger over the goosebumps forming on my skin. I push her stupid smiling face away, only to almost fall on my ass before she steadies me.
Repeat the same on my other leg until I’m panting. The push and pull between us will drive me crazy if he continues.
This is exactly why you should avoid it.
He rises to his full height, though the image of him kneeling in front of me will live forever in my dreams. His mouth opens, but the sneakers slapping against the hardwood stop him.
Cami runs back into the living room. “Is anyone coming to get us now, Mommy?”
“No.”
His smile falls. “Because?”
“Can I ask you a big favor?” I look at Cal and tuck my hands behind her back to hide the way they shake.
A line appears between his eyebrows. “Tell me what you need.”
A sanity check would be a good place to start.
I swallow the thought. “Do you mind if I borrow your car? I have an apartment and no one answers their phone, and I wanted to get a shared ride but…
His eyes are stretched to the limit. “Do you want to drive my car?”
“Umm, well…” I point to the imprint of a vial in his front pocket, ignoring the painful tightness in my throat.
“It’s nine in the morning” He speaks in a low voice.
Oh God. You insulted him.
“Good, but-”
He raises a hand. “Fine. Whatever. You can drive.” “Hurrah!” Cami applauds.
My shoulders drop, the tension melting away along with all the pent-up adrenaline. “Thank you.”
Cal hands me his keys. “Anything for you.”
Three words. Five syllables. A punch in the stomach.
I don’t let the impact of his words show on my face. But he sent me back to the past without a lifeline, leaving me drowning in memories of him.
saying those same three words over and over again.
Anything for you , he said when he broke his arm trying to get my kite down from a tree.
Anything for you , he complained after picking me up early from my first date with Pete Darling, a jerk who didn’t live up to his last name.
For you , he whispered brokenly after I made him promise to never return to Lake Wisteria, knowing I wouldn’t be strong enough to resist it again, drugs and alcohol be damned.
Reality is a bitch, making my eyes sting with unshed tears.
That was then. This is now.
I push my emotions aside and rally for my daughter, who needs me to focus on the present.
Cami waits inside so she doesn’t sweat while I prepare her booster seat. Because of how cramped Cal’s back seat is, the lower half of my body remains outside the car as I struggle to get the seat belt through the holes.
“Everything is alright?” The heat of her breath against my neck makes my skin harden.
“Perfect.” I curse as the seatbelt buckle hits my knuckles.
“Here. Let me help you.” Cal’s chest presses against my back as she moves closer to my body to help me with the seat belt. Our bodies collide with each other like two magnets, the mutual attraction is too great to ignore.
I take a breath as goosebumps spread across my skin. He brushes them with the pad of his thumb, giving me another sharp inhale.
“Stop doing that.” She loosened the seat belt, letting him fix it.
He doesn’t give me room to escape, but instead chooses to work around me. It doesn’t take you long to figure out the process.
“All ready.”
I jump at the sound of his voice, my butt crashing into his crotch. My eyes open in time with her sharp inhalation.
Oh shit.
