Page 3 of Forever My Boy

Why didn’t he ask me to go with him?

Inside, my father calls my name, but I ignore him and head to my room. I lock the door behind me, not wanting either of my parents to come in. As I look around my room, I know what I need to do.

Under my bed, I keep my suitcase. I pull it out and start throwing clothes in there. I know if I call him, he’ll come get me and we’ll figure things out on our way to Texas. I can’t live without him.

My phone sits on my nightstand, next to a picture of Liam. It’s a photo I took in the early spring with the camera he’d given me for my birthday. I always keep it in my school bag and take random photos throughout the day. But on this particularday, he was standing against his truck, with his foot on the door, waiting for me to come out of class. Liam didn’t seem me walking toward him, but I saw him and the way the sun shined on him. He looked perfect. God knew what he was doing when he created Liam Westbury.

“You’re my future,” I say to the photo of the man I love.

I pick up the handle of my phone and begin dialing Liam’s cell number. His father bought him a phone so he could stay in contact with recruiters. He hates it, but it’s a way for us to talk without his parents listening in on the other line. I get to the last number and my thumb hovers over the nine. If I call him and he tells me he can’t come back and get me, then what?

What do I do if he doesn’t want me in Texas with him?

I sit on the edge of my bed, with the cradle in my hand, looking down at the illuminated buttons even though the coloring is faint. Finally, the line tone changes, and a rapid busy signal starts. My calls been disconnected. I hang up and let the tears flow, wishing things were different.

Under my pillow is one of Liam’s T-shirts. I made him wear it the other day, along with his CK One cologne. I pull it out and bring it to my nose, pulling in a deep inhale. This will have to tide me over until I see him again.

At least, I have the mix tape he made me so I can listen to his voice . . . only, I don’t.

chapter 2

. . .

It’s been six weeks since Liam left, and I’ve hated every single second of him being gone. Right now, we have a routine. He calls every Sunday, like clockwork. Neither of us wants to miss this call. We spend an hour on the phone, racking up Sterling’s bill. We laugh about it because why not.

Other times we talk, it’s hit or miss. He’ll call, and sometimes I’m not home. He teases and says I’m out there living my best life when in reality, I’m nothing more than a third wheel. As much as I miss Liam, I miss Katelyn. She’salwayswith Mason or he’s always with us, and frankly, it’s annoying. He’s supposed to be at school but hasn’t moved into the dorms yet because he wants to wait until Katelyn’s there. As much as I love them together, they make me want to gag sometimes.

I need girl time. I want to float in her pool and talk about how horny I am and how much I miss Liam’s dick. Not once during sex education did anyone tell us that once you start having sex, especially with someone like Liam, you won’t want to stop. But I can’t say this to Katelyn because Mason is always there when she’s not working.

To add salt to my gaping wound, Katelyn and Mason fuck like bunnies whenever they’re together. Like all the freaking time.I can’t imagine there being anything worse than spending time with your friend and her running into the pool shed to get laid. Katelyn thinks the sound of the pool pump drowns out their sex noises. She’s so very wrong.

When Liam and I talk, he sounds different. I can’t pinpoint why or how, but it’s like life has dulled for him even though he’s living it up in Texas. I remind myself to call Greyhound later to get the bus schedule and see how much it’ll cost me to go there for a long weekend. I want to surprise him, to show him how much he means to me. And if he asks me to stay, well then, my life will become perfect.

I’m sitting on the step in front of my house, waiting for Katelyn. We’re going shopping for our dorm room, something my mother wants to do with me, but I refuse. We don’t like the same things and she’s a minimalist and doesn’t think I need much. Me, on the other hand, thinks I need everything. Mostly, I plan to buy a phone and get a part-time job so Liam can call my dorm room and not have to call the payphone in the hallway.

Katelyn pulls up to the curb and honks. It’s as if she doesn’t see me even though she’s staring right at me. I take my sweet time making my way to her car.

“We need coffee,” she says when I sit down in the passenger seat. “Java Joes?”

“Is there another place in town I don’t know about?”

“Nope,” she says as she speeds down the street, forcing me to hang onto the door handle for dear life.

“Why are you trying to kill us?”

“Ugh, I’m pissed at my mother.”

“What else is new?”

Katelyn sighs heavily. “She put a lock on the shed door.”

I can’t help it and bust out laughing. “Really? After all these years?”

She looks at me and rolls her eyes. “I got the holy lecture this morning about promiscuity and fornicating before marriage.”

“Did she think you were a virgin until now?”

Katelyn shrugs as she pulls into Java Joes. It’s our favorite coffee shop, smack dab in the middle of a parking lot. According to the owner, Traci, this is the new hype, these boutique drive-thru only coffee shops. I’m hoping one opens near campus so I can get a job there.

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