AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yeah, like I said,” I continued as casually as I could, “he’s the son of Danny who owns the garage.”
Luke seemed to be holding his breath, and his face was going a little pink. Being a teacher at Sunshine Prep, he heard all the rumors that went around school—good and bad. It was one of the major downfalls of having a teacher for an uncle.
“Breathe, Luke,” I murmured.
He finally released the breath and shook his head. “Those Darling boys are trouble.”
“Well, I was in trouble, and Reed and his brothers helped me.”
“Reed and his brothers?” I really wasn’t doing myself any favors here. I just needed to stop talking before I made this much worse for myself. “You were in the car with several boys?” Luke rubbed a hand down his face like he’d just aged ten years.
“It was fine. I’m sorry I didn’t call, but I’m home now, and I’m safe. I promise you don’t have to worry.”
“Vi, I’m meant to be looking out for you. I can’t have you getting in cars with strange boys…”
“Mom wouldn’t care.”
“Your mom’s not the one looking after you right now.”
I slowly nodded as tears stung my eyes. Luke could be a bit blunt at times, but I knew it was only because he cared. But, after everything else I’d dealt with this evening, the reminder that my mom was thousands of miles away when I needed a shoulder to cry on was a little too much to handle. I needed to get out of there before I burst into tears for real.
“I’m going to go to bed,” I said.
I turned and made my way toward the stairs, but Luke came after me. “Vi, hold up a sec.”
I didn’t feel like facing him again, and I felt too tired to argue. I wanted nothing more than to continue up to my room, bury my head under my pillow, and pretend I hadn’t heard him. But Luke was my uncle. He was going out of his way to look after me, and I couldn’t shut him out like I might have done with my mom. With a sigh, I stopped on the stairs and turned to him.
“I know I’m not your mom,” he said. “I might not have the same rules as her or react the same way as she would, but I’m trying my best to take care of you.”
“It’s okay, Uncle Luke. I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“I just don’t like thinking of you trying to do that all on your own,” he continued. “If you’re ever in trouble, you can call me. I know Lydia didn’t give you much choice about coming to live here for your senior year, but you're not alone. You can trust me.”
"I do trust you, and if I’d needed you, I would have called you,” I replied. “But this trust thing goes both ways. Mom was rarely around back home, and I’ve taken care of myself for a long time. You need to trust me too.”
“Okay,” he replied. “I’ll try my best.”
My face must have betrayed my surprise because he chuckled and said, “I’m not always the evil dictator Mia makes me out to be, you know.”
I smiled. “She doesn’t think that.” Well, not all the time, at least.
He gave me a skeptical look, but thankfully he didn’t press the matter. “Where is my wayward child this evening then? I thought she was meeting you at the movies."
“Uh…” That was another part of my cover story I’d overlooked. “I messaged her to let her know about Betty. She and Nicole went on ahead without me. I’m sure she’ll still be home by curfew.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Luke grunted. “Anyway, I’ll let you get to bed.”
“Okay, good night.”
I continued up the stairs while Luke returned to the living room. “And don’t worry about the car repairs,” he called as he went. “We’ll talk with your mom and sort something out.”
I didn’t share his optimism. My mom was all about fostering my independence, and when my grandma had given me the car, Mom had made it clear that it was up to me to take care of it. I’d always had to cover things like fuel and getting it serviced, and I was quite certain my responsibility didn’t end at repairs. I was going to have to dip into my savings to cover the cost, and there was no way I was accepting any help from Luke. He’d already done enough for me this year. That was a problem for Monday though. I just had to hope it was a quick and simple fix.
As soon as I made it to my room, I collapsed onto my bed. I’d only been lying there for a minute or two before my phone buzzed with an incoming message. It was probably Mia, having finally checked her phone. My skin went cold when I saw it was from Jeremy.
Jeremy: Sorry I missed your calls earlier. Forgot my phone at home so had to swing past to grab it. Just got to the party. Where are you?
I’d barely finished reading the message before I threw my phone across the room. My eyes stung with moisture once again, and I clenched them shut, trying to stop the tears from falling.
