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I back him into the wall, and he finishes posting, throwing up his hands in surrender.
“Give me the damn phone.” I grab it out of his hand and press thePowerbutton, but there’s a code to unlock. I glare at him, slamming the phone back in his chest. “That’s great. Thanks a lot.”
At least one person has screenshot it by now, I’m sure.
In two seconds, my phone starts buzzing, and Farrow laughs. “Is it Kade?”
I look down, seeing Hawke’s name.Nope. Worse.He’s already seen the picture—a pic of Dylan and me, coming out of a bathroom half-naked together—and if he doesn’t rip out every follicle of hair on my head, her dad will.
“Go!” I shout. “Everyone out!”
Farrow chuckles, leaning on his friends as everyone piles out into the street.
“Yeah, glad y’all are having fun!” I fire back, slamming the door behind them.
They just laugh louder.
My phone keeps ringing.
I hold the wheel with one hand, swiping the screen and ignoring my uncle Jax’s second call with the other.
Hawke’s called and texted, my mom’s called, and I’ve gotten a slew of texts from Pirates. Nothing from Kade.
And nothing from Jared.
Perfect. It means he’s still asleep and missing the action.
I shouldn’t have been dumb enough to shower with her while people were in the house. It should’ve just been us.
Next time, it will be.
But I don’t know if I could take it again. I need more. I need to see her with my hands. God, she’s beautiful.
I cruise down Fall Away Lane, porch lights and lamp posts lit up to boast the beautiful orange, red, and yellow leaves on all of the trees. Lawns of green, with flower beds and small vegetable gardens, pepper the air with the scent of herbs and perfume, and a light stream of water coasts down the pristine gutter, emptying into the sewer.
There are parts of the Falls that aren’t so clean, and parts that are wealthier, but while I loved my house growing up, I was always a little jealous of Dylan’s neighborhood. Not just because these homes look like houses do on sitcoms, but also because you have friends who live next door. Or a few houses away, maybe. You have everything you need. Trees to climb. Streets to ride bikes.
And this was a perfect neighborhood for trick-or-treating in the fall and block parties in the summer.
Dylan grew up with people everywhere around her.
At my house, I’d just had Kade.
Which was great, until it wasn’t.
I pull up to the curb on the other side of Dylan’s house and shut off the engine. Gazing out my driver’s side window, I take in the dark Trent house, except for the lanterns lit up on both sides of the front door, and a dim light coming through the living room window. It’s the small light above the stove, streaming out all the way from the kitchen.
Jared’s old Mustang Boss 302 sits in the driveway. It’s not his only car, but it’s still his favorite. He likes it to stay visible.
Checking down the street both ways, I climb out of the car and jog across the lane. I leap up onto the sidewalk and veer right, to the side of the house, avoiding the front door. Picking up the pace, I run hard toward the tree between Dylan’s house and Hawke’s, scaling the trunk in two giant leaps and hopping up onto the first thick branch. I crawl up another ten feet, glancing at Hawke’s dark bedroom window. He’s a first year at Clarke University and lives in the dorms.
But he’s close if Dylan needs him.
I step in the opposite direction, toward the French doors of Dylan’s bedroom, holding the branch above my head for support. We’ve been navigating this tree for almost our entire lives. Limbs have been trimmed, generations of squirrels have lived, it’s survived storms, even a tornado when we were five, and nearly being cut down in a tantrum between Dylan’s parents who grew up with this tree between their bedrooms too.
But every year, the leaves abound and not a branch breaks. I half-think Jared and Jax kept ownership of the houses just to keep the tree.
I open Dylan’s French doors, always unlocked, and jump over the railing, landing inside. I cringe, hearing my heavy footfall echo through the house. I pause, listening.
