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I frown at his domineering tone as Nadia replies, “Yeah, I think she ducked outside to see Brutus—her boyfriend.” With deviousness in her voice, my best friend adds. “Head out into the yard, you won’t miss him. He’s, like, seven feet tall and has the VP patch on his vest.”
We keep our shit together as Joseph stomps away, apparently irritated by the mere mention of my father and his status as a biker. The second he drops out of sight; all bets are off. The pair of us exchange a look, then we dissolve into giggles. I clutch my belly, my laughter increasing as Charlie skulks out of the shadows with visible relief etched in her expression.
“Thank you so much, girls.”
“Any time,” Nadia tells her.
“Why did you hide from him?”
Charlie purses her lips at my question. “He’s hounding me about the proposed upgrades to the children’s playground. Tonight is about celebrating the past year, not worrying about what’s to come.”
“Okay.” I shrug. My dad’s long-time girlfriend is very active in the local community. Where I’m more of a homebody, preferring the farm and hanging out at the MC’s compound in the city. I plan to get out of Inadale as soon as I can in the New Year while Charlotte Hannaford is firmly entrenched in the fabric of our small, country town. She’s lived here all her life, and I doubt she’ll ever leave. “Well, we’ve done our good deed for the night, so if you don’t need anything else—”
“Off you go.” My stepmother shoos me out of the kitchen. “I expect you to socialise, Lilianna, not find somewhere to hide with a book.”
Nadia laughs at Charlie’s order. I pinch her. She dances away from me, deserting me with a wave when she spies Sander and Luke. My best friend’s on again-off again relationship with my twin is apparently on-again tonight.
For how long, remains to be seen.
Even though it’s the middle of summer, the night air has a cool bite to it. After the humidity of the enclosed room, it’s jarring. I fold my arms under my breasts, hugging myself as I scan the crowd for familiar faces.
Well, one familiar face in particular.
Zeke promised me that he’d try to get away from the last-minute job the Shamrocks gave him to deal with earlier today. Since he’s limited the time that he spends around me since we kissed a couple years ago, I’m not expecting much more than a group hangout.
Even so, it’s still better than nothing.
I miss him.
Time seems to be dragging as the countdown to my eighteenth birthday continues.
As usual, my mind flits between feeling like a loser for panting after a man who keeps making me wait and revelling in my power as a woman worth waiting for.
Determined to make the most of the night, I clear my mind of doubt and continue searching for Zeke. I don’t find him anywhere in the town hall. Ducking across the street, I discover that his bike isn’t parked with the others and neither are Slash or Toker’s motorcycles. When I delve into the back pocket of my jeans to grab my phone to call him, I remember what Nadia said about Sander taking it.
I jog back into the yard surrounding the town hall, almost tripping over my brother where he’s hidden near the side gate. Sander is alone, perched on the low fence with his head in his hands. As I take a seat next to him, he sighs. I nudge him with my shoulder, then hold my hand out with my palm up. It takes him a moment, but he quietly links fingers with me. Squeezing tight, my twin leans heavily against me.
“Nads?” I ask.
“Yep. We managed to get into an argument within two minutes.”
“That’s gotta be a record. Normally takes you thirty seconds max.”
Sander’s answering chuckle is full of love and frustration. “She keeps me on my toes.”
“And you keep her on hers.”
“Yeah,” Sander agrees easily. He lets go of my hand to wrap his arm around my shoulders. “I’ve gotta tell ya somethin’ but I want you to promise that you’ll hear me out before you blow your top.”
“What have you done?” My temper is already spiking at the mere mention of losing it. “If you made Nads cry—”
“Zeke called.”
“Oh.”
“I answered, and we had a little chat. About you… and him.” My heart lurches into my throat and my eyesight goes blurry. With my pulse pounding in my ears, I wait for Sander to continue. The tightening of his arm tells me that I’m not going to like what I hear. “He said that he’s not comin’ tonight. Said he wants to give you space to grow up, find yourself, work out what you want from life before signin’ yours away to him and the Shamrocks.”
My bottom lip quivers as the message Sander’s passing on sinks in. I squint, trying my hardest not to fully blink, because I know I’ll cry if I do. Time seems to slow down. The night breeze disappears, leaving a blanket of despondency to heat my skin. It weighs me down, anchors me, momentarily saves me from being swept away on a sea of heartbreak as my brain works to protect me from fully comprehending my new reality.
