AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She didn’t say anything as she climbed into the car, or as Tiny drove off, heading back home.
It was a long drive ahead, and they’d have no choice but to pit stop at a motel.
“Are you going to ignore me the entire drive home?”
“I’m not ignoring you.”
“Do you hate me right now? More than an average teenager would?”
She chuckled. “No, I don’t hate you, Dad.”
“But?”
“No buts. I get it. I do.”
“Devil believed you were missing home.”
“He’s right. I was.”
“Honey, talk to me.”
“I honestly don’t know what to say. Do you want me to say you’re right, that you’ve been right from the start? You have. You know you have.”
“I want you to be happy and to know that you can talk to me about anything, even stuff you don’t think I can handle.”
Tabitha licked her lips. “I thought…”
“What?”
“I thought I could do this. That it would be easy.”
“Leaving home? Going to Piston County?”
“Both.”
“And it wasn’t?”
She shook her head. “No, it wasn’t easy. I missed home a lot. All this time, I figured you and Devil were just being giant pains in the ass. Keeping us apart because of some dick-measuring contest, but it’s not.” She sighed. “You were right.”
“I didn’t want to be.”
“Dad, I know there’s a choice I’m going to have to make. Give up Simon or the club. It’s one or the other. I can’t have both.”
Tiny didn’t say anything.
“What would you have done?” Tabitha asked.
“I didn’t have to make that choice. I’ve got my woman and the club.”
“If you had to. If Mom made you choose between her and the club, what would you do?”
Tiny sighed. “I’d pick your mother, sweetheart, but I’m not a leader anymore. If you want a true answer, talk to Lash. He’d give you an honest one.”
She sat back. That wouldn’t be helpful at all.Chapter TwelveA couple of days later
“Fancy meeting you here,” Daisy said.
Tabitha held her hand up in a wave at her friend. She was out near the forest, sitting on a patch of earth she’d once snuggled up against Simon with. That seemed so far away right now. Of course, the moment had been lost when Luke and Ryan arrived, assholes.
Daisy dropped down onto her knees beside her. Her best friend wore a pair of jeans and a white shirt. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail. “I thought you’d be here.”
“Yeah, I needed to think. I would have called you last night.”
“It’s fine. A lot’s going on in your head right now, right?”
Tabitha nodded. “I guess.” She tore out some grass, holding it within her grasp.
“So you spend all of this time with Simon and you’re officially more miserable than ever. Want to tell me about that?” Daisy slid her legs out from beneath her and crossed them.
“I don’t know if I can do it, Daisy,” she said.
“Do what?”
“Be his old lady. Be what he needs me to be.” Rubbing at her temple, she groaned. “Forget it.”
“You mean leave Fort Wills indefinitely and go and live life as his old lady.”
“Yeah, that’s what I mean. You know, I’m so stupid.”
“You’re not stupid.”
“Yeah, I am. All this time, I thought our parents were just being jerks about this whole thing, and look what’s happening.”
“So you’ve had a bit of a reality check. That’s not a bad thing.”
“It is a bad thing.” She looked away. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Hey.” Daisy put a hand over Tabitha’s clenched fist. “I get that you’ve been away for some time, but don’t shut me out. That’s not fair. I don’t do it to you, so don’t do it to me.”
“Oh, yeah, what about your dad?”
“We’re not talking about that. Stop with being a bitch to me, okay? I get it. You’ve got to make this big tough decision but no one is forcing you to do that.”
“Devil, my dad!”
“They’re not telling you to make it now. They’re making you aware of the decision you’ve got to make. They are trying to help you.”
Tabitha pressed her face into her hands.
“You’re making this a lot harder than it needs to be,” Daisy said.
“Oh, that’s easy for you to say. The love of your life is like a ten-minute walk away.”
“First, I haven’t even asked Anthony out, and don’t think I’ve forgotten our little agreement there either. I haven’t. If he turns me down, bikini dancing is in your future. Second, I don’t even know if he feels that way about me. I know you keep on saying it but it doesn’t mean it’s actually true, does it?”
“Oh, please, I know what I’m talking about.”
Tabitha screamed as Daisy suddenly launched herself at her, wrapping her arms around her.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Tabitha asked.
Daisy held her even tighter. “I’m holding on to you so you stay grounded. Remember, it’s what you told me to do? If you ever feel like you can’t cope, I can just hold on to you, and then all the bad stuff is going to go away.”
