Page 6 of Rewrite Our Story

“Get in the truck.” I round the hood, opening the door and loving the fresh scent of new leather. I saved up for ages to get my own truck; one that didn’t have the Jennings Ranch brand on it. As much as I love the work trucks, and I still mostly drive those as I prepare to take over the family business, I wanted something that was my own.

Apparently, Mare doesn’t seem to have the same sentiment. In fact, she seems peeved that I’m not driving the same old truck she remembers from five years ago. People walk behind her, all going about their own lives, while she stares daggers at my pride and joy.

“I’ll call an Uber.”

I fix the baseball cap on my head, flipping it backward so I can slide a pair of sunglasses on. “Marigold,” I chide. “I know it’s been a long time since you’ve been home, but you know how it is. It’s off-season. You could be waiting for a car for hours.”

Her hands find her narrow hips. “I guess I’ll wait.”

A frustrated growl falls from my lips. “If I don’t return home with you, Pippa will kill me. You know that. I know that. So get in the damn truck.”

Her feet stay planted.

My head falls backward with a defeated sigh. I don’t have the energy to do this with her. I turn to face her, taking a long, slow breath. “Get in…please.”

Her eyes soften. When she takes a step toward the truck, I get a glimpse of the girl I used to know. For a few short moments, she doesn’t look angry with me anymore. In fact, she looks at me the way she used to. She watches me like she thinks I hung the moon. Like I can do no wrong. Sometimes I wish we could go back to old times. A time before I let her down.

Just when I think she might do as she’s asked, she raises her chin defiantly and looks me square in the eye. “No.”

“No?”

“I don’t want to get in the truck with you, Cade.”

“I don’t remember asking what you wanted.”

“Well that makes sense because younevercared about what I wanted.”

Her words are like a kick in the gut. Years ago, we were in almost this exact same spot when she begged me to listen to her and what she wanted. We stare angrily at each other for a few more seconds before I let out a long sigh.

“Get in the damn truck or I’ll put you in there myself. Either way, I’m not fucking leaving without you.”

She looks me up and down, as if she’s trying to see if I’m bluffing.

I’m sure as hell not. The past few days have been shitty. Adding in the fact that I have to see her again, where we ended things of all places, means my patience is non-existent.

To prove a point, I step closer to her.

Her hands instantly come between us in an attempt to keep me at a distance. “Fine!” she yells, taking a step away from me. “I’ll get in the truck.”

She’s silent as she slides into the seat and closes the door. I get in, yanking my door closed.

My fingers tap against the steering wheel. With both of us in the truck, I know I should just shift intodriveand go, but something stops me. I feel like there’s more I need to say to her, but I just can’t get a grasp on what I should say.

She beats me to it. With a long sigh, she slides her hand across the leather between us and carefully places it on my thigh. “I’m so sorry about Linda, Cade.” Her voice shakes as she squeezes my leg. My hand falls to hers instinctively. For a few moments, the rest of the world fades away, and it’s just Goldie and me again. Things aren’t complicated. It’s just her hand in mine and the feeling of immense comfort. The angry tension is gone, at least for the moment. For a few short seconds, I remember why I gave her the nickname Goldie in the first place. Aside from it being a shortened version of her name, she always reminded me of the sun. She brought light into my life. And for right now, even if it’s only for a brief moment, she brings a little bit of light into a darkness.

My thumb brushes over the top of her hand once before she pulls away, and the connection is broken. I swallow through the lump of emotion stuck in my throat.

I was the one who found my mom in my parents’ bed. It should seem real that she’s gone, but somehow it still hasn’t hit me that we’re never going to see her again. Before I can say anything else, I throw the truck into drive and pull away from the curb, embarking on what might be the two longest hours of my life.

3

MARE - PRESENT

MARE

Why didn’t you tell me Cade was the one picking me up and not you?

PIPPA

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