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“Brax, I can’t. There is no way to fix everything.” I felt like I was going to hyperventilate. “Losing my baby was the worst thing that has ever happened to me!” I yelled.
On my last word, I heard someone making a choking sound behind me.
Swiveling around quickly at the sound, I saw Kace standing in the door with a grief-stricken look on his face, before mumbling, “Sorry.” Then he was gone.
I frowned in thought, turning back to my brother, with a question in my eyes, and once again he read my mind.
“I don’t know what that is about, but one day the guy is going to have to tell me,” he said. “But this is about you right now. You and Landon.”
“There can’t be a Landon and me,” I whispered. Even though each day he was around was making it harder to believe.
“There can, Alley. Relax and let it happen. Love will find a way.”
Now my brother was trying to get us back together. Everyone but me was on board.
How did I stand a chance?
ChapterSeventeen
ALLEY
I was screwed.
Truth was, Landon was playing dirty just as he had this morning, and with him on his game the way it was, I didn’t stand a chance in hell. It was a bit comical that I had just asked myself if I stood a chance right before I left my brother’s office. And now I had the answer.
But that didn’t mean I wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Walking into the house that was dark except the foyer light and the one leading down the hall that had been dimmed down by the control, I noticed a row of Scooby-Doo snack cookies that I was sure were like my breadcrumbs in finding what Landon wanted me to see. Seriously, the man was nuttier than the Nutty Professor.
My ears caught the soft music playing through the speakers in the front room, and the words toAfter AllbyCher and Peter Ceterathat spoke of two hearts coming back together who were meant to be after all they had been through. Goosebumps lined every part of my body as the thought of the forever it spoke of washed over me. Were we really meant to be together forever?
I was caving. My fight was draining out of me because how did you deny a love that raced through your whole body when that one person was around, and you knew you would never feel like that with another soul?
As the song went on, I found my feet moving, following the path left for me. Unsure what I would find when I got to the end, I tried to tighten my control on my emotions. But when I reached my bedroom door, and my eyes caught sight of what was lying on my mattress, I lost it in so many ways. Emotions be damned.
I slowly moved toward the bed and picked up the note lying on my comforter. The one right next to the motorcycle helmet that Landon had bought me for my twentieth birthday. I had not seen it for years, and my breath hitched at the sight. Brushing my hand over the top of it, I thought about all the trips we took together on his bike as I wore the helmet he had designed especially for me.
Black and purple twirled together, two of my favorite colors, with writing scrolled across the back. I breathlessly whispered the words out loud as my emotions took over, “Mi Tesoro, let the speed drive you, and the wind set you free.”Landon knew how much I loved to ride and how it made me feel. The first time I ever got on his bike, my worries seemed to disappear. It was exhilarating going so fast, the wind in my face, and he knew it always made me feel like I could do anything. It also made me feel free of the burdens my parents placed on me and my struggles during my life.
Glancing back at the nickname he called me, my thoughts took me back to just how that started. I’d been over at the Abbott house with Summer in her room when her mom summoned her to the kitchen, probably to give her a speech about hanging out with me again. It was no secret her parents detested me, but I didn’t give a shit because I knew she needed me as much as I did her. I wasn’t letting them scare me off.
So there I was sitting in Summer’s immaculate room, legs criss-crossed on a soft shag rug that was as clean as the white-driven snow working on my homework. I wouldn’t dare have something this nice in my room since my parents were slobs and let people trample in and out of the house, drunk or high, whenever they wished. Even my room. I had fled the house for this very reason and to work on Spanish with Summer. Not my best subject and one that had been giving me trouble.
I cursed a little too loudly when I couldn’t remember how to say something properly and heard a deep chuckle from the doorway. When I looked over, there stood Landon, smirking at my annoyance.
“Trouble with Spanish?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.
My seventeen-year-old heart fluttered a little, and I wondered what the hell that was about. I’d always known Landon was gorgeous, sweet, and funny, which with his parents and upbringing, the humorous part was a surprise. But what the heck was happening just now with his brow quirked? This was my brother's friend, my best friend's brother, and like a brother to me.
This reaction was a bigno, no, no.
Playing it off and hoping he didn’t see my reaction or just thought it was because of frustration with Spanish, I said, “Yeah, stupid shit is a pain in my ass.” And there went the mouth again, getting away from me. I said a silent prayer that his evil parents were not lurking close by, or they may never let me set foot in the house again. They barely tolerated me now, but it had a lot to do with the guy in front of me that I was allowed. He was always going to bat for Summer and me too, intervening when their parents were rude.
He must have heard what I was trying to say in Spanish because, “Mi Tesoro,” rolled off his tongue beautifully and I remember thinking he could call me his treasure any day of the week. Then I almost smacked myself in the head at the thought. I remember him telling me that one day someone would say that to me all the time, but neither of us realized then it would be him. He still looked at me like a kid sister and it wasn’t until then that I had felt anything other than friendship for Landon. And it scared the shit out of me.
Then just as I had pulled myself together, Landon left the doorway and started in the room as Summer walked back in with a huff, plopping down on her bed with a dramatic sigh. “This is stupid, but my mom is making me go with her to the country club to help set up for a function she is hosting tomorrow. I’m so sorry, Alley.” Groaning again as if she was in agony, she pulled herself from the bed.
Before she said anything else, Landon jumped on the conversation, “I can run you home, Alley.”
