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“Come on! I don’t want to miss the movie, and we need more money for all your candy.”

I squeezed his hand and smiled, letting him pull me over to my dad first . . .

“RAE, DID YOU WANT CANDY?”

I mentally shook myself and answered Hay who looked more than a little impatient. She wanted to return to Jake and I was holding her up, “Yeah, you know what I always get.”

“I do. You’ve picked up the same treats for years.”

Her innocent remark reminded me of the last time I came to the drive-in when my dad was still alive, the exact same day I had literally just been remembering. The thought of that day, the last time I felt real love and warmth before it was yanked cruelly away, hurt unbearably but I brushed it aside. Tonight was about fun, and I wouldn’t dwell on the painful past.

She bustled about, trying to make up her mind and failed miserably. Hay was terrible with decision making. I usually ended up telling her what to buy so we could move on.

Tonight was no different.

Fifteen minutes later we had paid for our treats and were headed toward the wide front doors of the concession area. Lost in laughter we didn’t notice the rough looking bunch of guys surrounding us until we were blocked on our way down the nearly empty aisle.

Baggy jeans, silver chains linking the wallets to their back pockets, combat boots, loose t-shirts, and leather jackets completed the ensemble of the guys standing in front of us. The only visible difference was hair and eye color and the t-shirts, of course. A bad feeling sank into the pit of my stomach.

Something about these guys was familiar.

“Hey gorgeous,” one of them drawled, a tall and lanky guy with shaggy brown hair and a scar running jagged along the left side of his face.

I froze, every muscle on alert. Who was this guy?

Chapter 10

“You finally told her huh?” R.J. fixed me with his usual lazy smile.

“Yeah.”

“I’m glad. You’ve been flirting with her so long I thought you would never make a move,” Jake teased.

“Shut up Jake,” I laughed. “Both of you know how long I’ve cared about her.”

“Dude, I can’t even remember a time when you haven’t talked about Rae,” R.J. laughed. He put on his best mimicking voice. “Have you seen how pretty Rae looks today? Have you ever seen a smile like that? Isn’t she beautiful?” he batted his eyelashes.

Jake chimed in, his hand over his heart, “Rae’s so smart. Rae’s so pretty. Rae. Rae. Rae.”

I punched both guys in the arm and sat between them on the tailgate, “Yeah, ok, so I love her and I have for a long time. So what?”

R.J. shook his head, “I’m only jealous bro.”

Jake snickered, “I’m gonna make a move on Hayley. Girl is gorgeous.”

I nodded, “Almost as pretty as Rae.”

All three of us laughed, watching the previews play ahead of us on the large outdoor screen.

“Let’s all go to the lobby to get ourselves a treat.”

I smiled at the cartoon with dancing treats as they sang the old commercial. I lay back against the bed of the truck, my arms behind my head, and looked up at the newly darkened sky. The stars would be out before long, twinkling above the drive-in in hundreds of little white lights. Rae always loved the stars and swinging beneath them as the movie played . . .

“HOLD PETER’S HAND SO you don’t get lost. Hurry back now, don’t dawdle.”

“I will daddy.”

I clasped Rae’s hand tight, “I’ve got her, sir.”

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