“Her fucking mom and mine have already lined up some dinner at the Hollis’ for Thursday evening.”
“So make something up and tell them you can’t go.” He shrugs like it’s no big deal.
“You do remember Mrs. Hollis?” I ask and he nods. “The woman will get in her car, show up on my front porch, and lecture me on manners.”
“So dragging her daughter along is the better alternative?”
I don’t answer because he’s right.
“Just tell your mom you aren’t interested,” he says, leaning forward resting his elbows on his knees. The breeze is lightly blowing and the rustling of the leaves on the trees is all you can hear at the moment until he continues. “Aunt Wynn will understand. She may have some kind of vision for your lifebut I’m pretty sure that vision doesn’t consist of you being miserable.”
“It doesn’t matter anyway.”
“What doesn’t?”
I realize my mistake and quickly try to backtrack. “Nothing.” I clear my throat.
“Seriously?” Ben sits back again in his chair and glances back over his shoulder, ensuring we are alone. When he sees that Camryn and Lexi are nowhere to be found he turns back to face me.
“You honestly think that none of us know what took place with you and Kendall?”
“I...” I tilt my head trying to come up with the words. “There isn’t…” Fuck me. “It was…” This is Bennett. I can’t lie to Ben, or Brantley for that matter. The three of us were raised side by side like brothers, always together, sharing everything. We have a life-lasting bond. “Wait, how?”
He chuckles. “Get those woman together, some good alcohol flowing, and they get loud. I’ve heard way too many details about what you did to her, where, and when. I know more than I want or ever wanted to know about your anatomy.” He shivers.
I release a deep breath, unsure of what to say in response.
“My question is,” he continues when I say nothing more. “Is she the reason why you can’t get yourself to commit to dating this girl? Or is it something else?”
Knowing he can already read me like an open book, I figure there isn’t anything more I can do but say what I feel and have felt for weeks.
“Kendall’s always caught my attention. She isn’t like any other girl I’ve ever dated. She’s fun and she has no problem standing on her own two feet. She can be scary, her and Adley running head to head in that category. To be honest sometimes the woman scares the hell out of me, but in the best kind of way.”
He nods like he knows exactly what I am referring to.
“That night, it was like any other night, whenever she is around. Drinks, laughter, and a lot of shit talk, mostly from her. She captures my attention, makes my heart race, so yeah, I think she is playing a big role in where my head is and has been.”
“What are you going to do with that?”
“What can I do? To her it wasn’t anything but a good time that won’t be repeated. I was the guy that was there at the time to scratch the itch.” I shrug. “So I’m gonna push through, get over it and move on.”
Again Ben chuckles. “I can see that’s working real well for ya.”
“It fucking sucks,” I admit, tipping my beer back and emptying the bottle.
CHAPTER SIX
Kendall
“Call came in for a pickup,”my dad hollers out the office door as I round the corner. “Teenage girl stranded on Dirksen Lane, with a flat tire. Wiley Rhodes’ girl.” He tosses me the keys to the tow truck. “Can you grab her and get the car back here so we can patch her up and get her back on the road? Her dad’s out of town and her mom is stuck at work more than an hour away.”
I catch the keys and wipe my dirty hands on the rag tucked into my back pocket. “Got it.” I spin around and bump into Leo’s chest. He grins, like I’ve given him exactly what he wants. “You mind?” I arch a brow.
He stares at me, I stare right back.
The man is cocky, good-looking, but an arrogant son of a bitch. He is also the biggest whore in the state of Alabama.
Surrendering, he holds his hands up in the air, still wearing that same cocky grin. The same grin that I’ll admit after a few drinks or a long shift at the shop, I’ve fallen for. Leo isn’t the kind of guythat calls the next day. He isn’t a flowers kind of guy, he’s a catch ya later, as he walks away pulling up his pants.
