Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
I let out a sarcastic gasp. “You? Giving me a ride? What’s your angle, brother? How much gas money do I have to pay?”
“Just being a big brother. I’m four years out of practice and I guess I should be nice to you for a change. We can go back to being petty after I make it up to you.”
Works for me, and I’m sure it works for Dolly. Angus is a lot cooler a chaperone than my father ever was, no matter how cool Dad tries to be. I’m still anxious though. I’ve been eyeballing Red for a good long while, and our little conversation yesterday wasn’t an out-and-out date invitation, but there’s definitely an implication that the two of us want to be far more than just friends.
All I have to do now is hope that my brother’s intensity doesn't drive Red away, because I’d really like to see where this all goes.
3
RED
A bonfire is an easy way to get together and keep up with friends, even as we drift away from one another and come to realize how central high school was to our social lives. Whenever someone throws one, me and the boys always make sure to show up.
It’s also, of course, a damn good excuse to get piss drunk, and as any guy from eighteen to twenty-four knows, you rarely turn down an opportunity to go and get wasted. I like a good drink as much as the next guy, but I want to be clear-headed tonight, so I pick up one beer and wait for Annie to arrive.
She steps out of an unfamiliar truck, along with her friend Dolly and... is that Angus Rowdy?
It’d been so long I didn’t even recognize the guy. Of course, Home is such a small town that not only do you know everyone in town’s business, you know the business of the next town over. I’ve chatted it up with Annie a whole bunch of times at the diner, so I know that this asshole has been absent the past four years. Went off to college like some sort of bigshot, abandoned his family’s ranch to wither away without a lick of support from him. Annie never shows it, but I know it angers her, and by that right, it angers me.
When she breaks away from her brother and friend, I head over and I take her in. She’s got this tight little pink T-shirt that grips every bit of her curves and a skirt that shows off her legs that I could stare at for days. She’s as spunky and sexy as ever, and it’s enough to make me fantasize about doing things to her that would be inappropriate in such a public place.
“Hey beautiful, you want a drink?” I say as I approach.
She giggles. “Should I? I’m only eighteen, you know.”
“Old enough to vote, old enough to drink.”
“That ain’t how that works, Red.”
“I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear that if you want one.” She jabs me in the arm as we go over to the keg and she fills a little red cup with some beer. I’m not the type to get a girl smashed so I can do things to her, and I find the guys that do that to be reprehensible. Doesn’t mean the girl shouldn’t be allowed a beer or two if she wants.
“Seems like everyone’s here, feels like it’s been so long,” Annie says wistfully as we wander around the fire.
“Not everyone, I guess.”
“Hmm?”
“Ray took off to go join the army. Don’t know if he’ll ever be back. Jessica met some businessman at her job and now they’re running off to Chicago to get married.”
“Chicago? Really? Didn’t she work at an auto shop as a mechanic?”
I shrug. “Cars break down in Chicago too. I guess he found something sexy about being covered in oil and smelling of gasoline.”
“Red! Go long!”
I snap to attention, instinct kicking in. The football is flying through the air and I book it. Jeans and sneakers aren’t the best for chasing the ball down but with a little leap I catch it.
“Alright then, catch this, Sam!” I send the ball right back to him, the Red Rocket still alive and ready despite me using my arm to hammer things more than throw lately.
I didn’t realize the alternate meaning for my arm’s nickname until after graduation, and I’m choosing to act like I still don’t know. It feels like it’s for the best.
Sam catches the ball, but it hits him hard, rolling him into the dirt.
“Still got it, huh?” Annie says as I catch up to her.
“Construction work keeps you in shape. I ain’t going to turn into a lazy ball of dough just yet.”
She smiles. “That’s good to hear.”
We continue to pace about the bonfire, my hand drifting toward hers. I decide to go for it. I take her hand into mine, feeling her gentle touch. She doesn’t reject me, and our fingers thread into one another. It’s such a minor thing but it makes my heart beat a little faster. She’s just that beautiful.