Page 42 of The Road to Finding Us

Aspen catches up to me as I head in the direction of the car, and together, we walk.

“I’ll miss them,” I tell him.

“I will too,” Aspen responds sadly. “They’re really great people.”

When we reach the truck, we toss our bags in the back. I let Aspen close it, in effort not to break that part of Gladys again.

Once we’re both buckled in, I look over to Aspen. “Where to next?”

“Is that excitement I hear in your voice?” He gives me a look of disbelief, placing his hand over his heart for theatrics.

“It’s possible,” I say, flicking his hand that rests on his chest.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Aspen mutters, smiling wide.

“I know, right?” I put my feet on his dashboard to get comfortable. “I’m actually not hating this trip with you.”

“That’s Lily Morrison speak for: ‘I’m having a really good time, Aspen, but I don’t want to admit that to you because I’m a stubborn ass.’” He playfully says my words in a voice meant to mimic my own.

I laugh, shaking my head at him. “You aren’t helping yourself here. Put Gladys in drive, and let’s go!”

“Gear down, big shifter,” he replies, laughing and shifting into gear. Gladys begins to roll backward. “Ready for our next leg?” he asks as he pulls back onto the highway.

I smile, looking out the window. “Yeah, I think I am.”

Aspen’s hand comes to rest briefly on my bare leg, giving me his panty-dropping smile. “I am too, Lily Bear. I am too.”

22

Aspen

Past - Age Twenty-Two

Tristan, my teammate, waves a beer bottle two inches away from my face. “Drink up, man,” he says, clanking the bottle down on the table.

I look away from the girl at the bar, focusing back on my friends. I snatch the beer bottle from his hands, lowering my eyebrows at him to let him know I’m not amused with his antics. All Tristan does is shrug and proceed to take a drink from his own beer.

“I can’t believe we’re halfway through our senior year. We’re going to have to grow up soon. I ain’t fucking ready,” Leo whines from my left, sliding down in the booth and resting his head against the back.

“You’re not growing up anytime soon,” I retort, laughing at the mental image of him even pretending to act like a grown ass adult.

“Touché.” He lifts his bottle in my direction, saluting me with it before taking a sip.

I pick up my own beer, letting the bitter taste wash down my throat.

The crowd in Lenny’s bustles around me. A group of sorority girls wave a shot book for some girl’s twenty-first in the air as they screech, their voices reaching all the way across the bar to us. There’s also the familiar sound of pool sticks snapping against cue balls, amongst many conversations taking place. Every now and then, I catch a glimpse of Lenny, the owner of our favorite bar, handing out drinks.

“It still hurts, bro,” Leo continues. “I wish I could be in college forever.”

“I don’t think your liver could handle that,” I respond haphazardly, my gaze traveling back to the spitfire at the bar. I’m not sure Leo’s liver is functioning regardless anymore, judging by the way he ends up puking out his brains like a drunk teeny bopper each and every time he goes out.

I wipe the image of the usual drunk Leo from my head, focusing on the body across the bar once again. Her dark hair spills down her back in straight shiny strands. She currently has her body halfway sprawled across the bar, clearly flirting with the bartender as her fingers trace around the rim of her cocktail. Her hips barely graze the bar top as she stands on the tips of her toes to get closer to the asshole on the other side of the bar. I can’t take my eyes off her, even as she aims her perfect smile at the guy across the bar. He says something to make her laugh and she throws her head back, her sleek hair spilling all the way down to her ass.

“Are you just going to stare at her all night?” my friend Anthony asks from across the booth.

I throw him a scowl, not wanting to hear more of his bullshit. My lips wrap around the beer bottle angrily.

I haven’t been staring. I’ve just been casually observing.

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