Page 53 of Riding Jamie

God, she’s such a little shit. I can’t help but be proud.

“Can you send that to me?”

My voice is about as shaky as my hands are, but Maggie just snorts and shoots me a knowing look as she takes her phone back.

“Already did, genius,” she says.

There’s a lot less acid in her voice than usual, and her eyes are almost affectionate. She doesn’t pull me into a hug before she leaves, but she does linger in the doorway for a long moment.

“Don’t let that fucker ruin the things you’ve going for you.”

Standing, I rush over to my bed, fumbling on my nightstand for my own phone, as she slips back into the hallway. I’ve had enough of letting anyone ruin things—including myself. I’m not going to worry about the right thing to do this time.

I know what I need to do.

I force myself to focus on pressing the right buttons instead of the feeling of bile starting to burn up my throat. So much for Shane not knowing. I wanted to believe that he wouldn’t use me like that, and to know that he planned to do so much worse makes me sick.

The video is almost two minutes, and it takes forever to send, but it finally shows as delivered. My dad will be shocked, but with such undeniable proof, he’ll have no choice but to believe it. Once he gets over his shock, he’ll bepissed.

David Montgomery is not a man to take a threat to his family lightly.

Swiping over to my text thread with my aunt, I send her the video, too. Shane proved, loud and proud, that he doesn’t deserve any of my sympathy. We’ll see how he likes getting what he earned.

I know it’s a big favor, but can you make sure he doesn’t have a job when he gets back to New York?

I don’t even have to wait for the length of the whole video to get a response.

Oh, Oakie, I’ll make sure of that and more.

I can practically hear the vindictive venom in her voice, and it brings a grin to my face. Good. Let the fucker regret every second of my time that he wasted.

My hands have finally stopped shaking, and there’s only one thought in my head now.

Jamie.

He has to see this, and I have to show him the proof he was right about all of it. Maybe it won’t change anything, but he needs to see it. I grab my phone and a jacket before dashing down the stairs, not bothering to tell anyone where I’m going. This feels like the most important thing I’ve ever done in my life, and I can’t wait a single second longer than I have to.

Jamie’s beat up old truck rolling up the driveway causes me to stop halfway down the porch steps.

The arm in the cast hangs out of the driver’s side window, and I can see the nerves on his face, but he’s trying to be casual. A smile splits my face when he raises his hand in a lazy wave. I should probably be annoyed with him, but something in my heart is telling me to just get in the truck. Somehow, looking at the shy warmth in his eyes, I know everything is going to be just fine.

“Hey,” he says as I walk down the stairs, careful of the snow. “Want to go for a ride?”

I don’t answer him. I stalk straight toward the truck, not hesitating for a second. He looks nervous, and he tries to shift back when I step right up to the window, but I don’t let him. I reach in and wrap my hand around the back of his neck, yanking him forward.

His lips are chilly and chapped against mine, and he stiffens in shock, but I don’t let go. My eyes are still open, and so are his, waiting for each other to do something.

It’s him that moves first, his mouth curving into a smile beneath mine, and he presses closer, taking my lips in a proper kiss. The whole world goes silent as I try desperately to pour a million apologies and explanations into the action. I think he understands, because he tangles his hand in my hair and pulls me closer, desperate. The metal of his truck is cold even through my jacket, but I’m so full of warmth that I can hardly feel it.

“Yeah, let’s go for a ride,” I say when we separate, both of our faces flushed. “I’ve got something to show you before we leave.”

Before he has a chance to really respond, I pull away, feeling more confident than I have in a long time. I finally feel like I know what I’m doing.

I climb into the passenger side, immediately scooting across the bench seat to sit directly beside him. He watches me, confused, as I pull my phone out from my pocket and pull up the video. His attention shifts to my phone when I hold it out and press play.

His face goes sour when he recognizes Shane, and then complete shock overtakes that when the video shows Savannah sitting across from him. He watches it in silence, confusion shifting to surprise shifting to anger as it plays. When it ends, I lock my phone and replace it in my pocket. Nerves are finally starting to crawl up my spine, some of the confidence that filled me as soon as I saw Jamie draining away.

He doesn’t say anything for a long moment, and I can’t tell what’s going on in his head when he finally looks at me.

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