Page 35 of Somewhere in the Sunset

I wince, because I forgot all about him as soon as I laid eyes on Luca. “Oh, shoot. Sorry. I forgot.”

Weston sighs softly across the line, like he forgives me. “Was everything okay with Luca?”

“No. It was bad,” is all I tell him. Ican’ttell him the rest. I’m so humiliated by how easily fooled I am, so I quickly get to the real reason I called. “I know you aren’t back to work until tomorrow, but do you already have plans today?”

“I was probably going to hit the gym then grab a beer with the guys tonight. Why?”

“Um. How would you feel about driving me to Santa Cruz instead?” I ask, then hold my breath and wait. It’s almost rude of me to make such a request. Weston owes me no favors.

“What’s in Santa Cruz?”

“My mom. I really need a hug from her,” I say, then bite down hard on my lower lip as I remember the conversation I had with Weston last night. His mom isn’t here anymore, but I don’t mean to be insensitive. I quickly lighten my tone and add, “There’ll be some burritos in it for you. And I’ll pay for your gas.”

“Why can’t you drive yourself there?”

I catch myself blushing and I’m relieved he isn’t here to witness it. How many twenty-two-year-olds can’t drive? Not many, I bet. “I never got my permit. Luca always drove me anywhere I needed to go that the BART can’t reach. But I’m going to take my test soon, I swear.”

Weston scoffs. “I’ll drive you to Santa Cruz,” he says, “but there’s one condition.”

“Which is?”

“When we get back, I’m taking you to the DMV office to get your damn permit.”

My laugh eases the pain in my chest. Only a little, but enough.

WESTON

Cameron calls me a slacker for blowing off the gym with him. Adam calls me a boring lame-ass fucker for being undecided on whether or not to hit the bar with him tonight. When they both ask what I’m up to instead, I lie. I tell them I’m visiting my brother at the Beale Air Force Base, two hours north. But really I’m in the parking garage of Gracie’s building.

I drum my fingers anxiously against my steering wheel after shooting her a text to let her know I’m here. It’s over an hour’s drive to Santa Cruz, and although I feel comfortable around Gracie, we haven’t been stuck in a car together yet. When we get to Santa Cruz, I have no idea what to expect. Do I drop her off and leave? Does she want me to meet her parents?

Movement catches my eye. Gracie crosses the garage toward me and gives a little wave, her smile sheepish. I grin back and quit my nervous fiddling. She’s so fucking cute and she really doesn’t mean to be. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail, her bangs framing her face, and huge hoop earrings dangle from her ears. They swing as she walks.

As she opens the car door, I try to muster up a witty greeting, but ultimately go with a pathetic, “Hi.”

“You cleaned your car!” Gracie says cheerfully as she settles into my passenger seat. A floral, fruity scent follows her into the vehicle. She gestures to the floor space and the empty cupholders, then beams at me. “Did you do that for me?”

“I didn’t realize Charlotte probably hated being driven around in this trash pile until you got in here the other week and pointed out the mess,” I admit. “So, I made the effort to clear it out for you.”

“See? You’re starting to get it!”

“I’m trying. So, Santa Cruz?”

“Please,” she says.

I pull out of the parking garage. Gracie’s apartment building is perfectly located for access to the freeway, so I floor it up the entrance ramp and head south. The sun blazes through clear blue skies for once. Perfect road trip weather. I nudge up the AC and start my music, keeping the volume low. I glance sideways at Gracie. She stares silently down at the camera she twists around in her hands.

“Why do you have that?”

Gracie sighs, but doesn’t lift her head to look at me. “I thought I could vlog today. I’ve already filmed a couple of things here and there. I’m just pretending Luca is out of town, which isn’ttoounusual. We did sometimes make our own vlogs without the other.” She sticks the camera into the storage compartment of the door. “Obviously I won’t filmyou.”

“Obviously.”

She looks at me now and succumbs to my smirk. Her laughter is like a breath of air. Light, fragile, barely noticeable. But it’s there. “You know, I’m really going to miss all of this when we eventually shut down all our accounts. The filming. The editing. Sharing my life.”

“Can’t you start from scratch? A new theme? Gracie Taylor and Gracie Tayloronly.”

Gracie bites her lip and quietly says, “But I’m boring without Luca.”

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