Page 37 of Buried Dreams

“How are you doing?” I ask, and he folds his arms on the bar.

“I would be better with a beer,” he tosses out, and Autumn just looks at him. “Please?”

She walks over and grabs two beers, handing one to me and then another one to Emmett. “So what have you been up to?”

“Not much,” I reply, taking a pull. “What about you?”

“Same old, darlin’.” He brings his bottle to his lips. “Same old thing.”

Charlie comes over and leans by my side on the bar as the rest of his crew grabs tables, giving the server something else to do. “So when are you going to come and let me take you for a ride?” Emmett asks after we finish eating. He’s standing beside me, leaning on the bar, while Charlie sits on my other side. The music is a bit louder than it is normally, and a couple of the guys have gotten up to show a couple of the other guys how to line dance. I’m about to answer him when a shadow fills the doorway. I would know that shadow anywhere, even in the dark.

He walks in and looks at the guys dancing on one side before shaking his head, laughing, and then coming up to the bar. His eyes look around and stop when he sees me, but he quickly looks away to where Charlie is sitting, which is right beside me. He walks toward where Charlie is and nods at Autumn.

“I’m sorry, what?” I turn back to Emmett, giving him my attention and not showing that Brock has any effect on me. We can be in the same room without anything happening.

“When are you going to let me take you on a ride?” He grins at me, and then his grin turns into a smile. He said it so loud you would think the whole bar would stop to wait for an answer.

“What kind of ride are we talking about?” I flirt back with him, but I feel like I shouldn’t because I’m only doing it to take my mind off the one person I should stop thinking about.

“Whatever ride you want me to take you on.” He winks at me, and then we both laugh.

“I don’t know.” I push out the stool. “Can you dance?” I ask him as my head screams at me this isn’t going to end well, but my heart. My heart is beating for someone else entirely. Someone who I vowed I would never love again. “Let’s see you move those two left feet.” I hold out my hand to him, not knowing what he’s going to do. I feel all eyes on us, but the ones I want on me are looking straight ahead.

Chapter Twenty

BROCK

I stand at the bar, facing ahead, trying not to let anything show on my face when I hear her voice. “What kind of ride are we talking about?” The minute she says the words, the tightness happens again. I don’t know what I was thinking by coming here today. I should have just walked away when I heard the loud music. But my feet had a mind of their own, and my heart felt as if it was beating for the first time today.

“Whatever ride you want me to take you on,” Emmett replies to her. I’ve never had a problem with him, but I suddenly want to throat punch him.

“I don’t know.” I don’t turn my head as she pushes her stool away. I can see from my side view. “Can you dance? Let’s see you move those two left feet.”

“Autumn,” I say, holding up my hand, “can I get a double of the house blend?” I ignore the need to turn around and watch her. I can hear the hooting and laughing coming, and I can imagine what is going on. She always could turn heads when she would dance.

“You good?” Charlie asks from beside me.

“Yup,” I reply, keeping my eyes looking straight ahead. Autumn places a coaster in front of me and puts down the glass. “Thanks.” I take the glass up and hold it tighter than I should. It’s a miracle that it doesn’t shatter in my hand. I bring the glass to my lips and take a gulp instead of downing the whole thing so I can get the fuck out of here.

“Sent you a text,” Charlie states, and if I look at him, I’ll see her, but if I don’t, she’ll know it gets to me. Either decision means I lose, and she wins. But it’s no surprise. She’s always won when it came to me.

“Yeah, I got it,” I confirm, turning and staring at him but wanting to go over to Emmett and rip his fucking arms off him.

“You never got back to me.”

“Didn’t know there was a need to reply.” I look forward, feeling the ache fill my chest, finishing the drink and then placing the empty glass on the bar. “Thanks, Autumn.” I reach in my back pocket and toss two twenties on the bar. “See you guys around.” Charlie nods at me. He looks like he has other things to say, but I need to get out of here. Even my breathing is becoming labored.

I turn and walk straight past the dancing, seeing the sight of peach turning around and hearing her laugh as I make my way out into the darkness. I think the tightness will get better, but instead, it’s so tight I have to stop beside my truck and put one hand on the side of it, or else I think I’m going to fall on my ass. I close my eyes, and instead of getting into my truck, I make my way to the forest and toward the creek.

I don’t even know why I keep coming back here at this point. It’s like I’m a glutton for this punishment. It’s like I want to feel this pain, but in the end, I know it’s the only place I can go to where I can feel close to her without admitting it to anyone, least of all to myself.

I get to the creek to our spot and sit down, putting my knees up and leaning my forearms on them as I look out at the water trickling by. Closing my eyes, I think of all the fucking times we came here. All the moments we’ve shared here.

Fuck, so many that it’s all coming back to me, from the first time I kissed her to the last time I made love to her here.

I hear the sound of the branches snap and close my eyes, wiping away the tears that have escaped from the corners of my eyes.

I hear her before I see her. Getting up to my feet, I watch her walk down here with her head down. She looks up when she must feel me looking at her. “Brock,” she says my name in a whisper.

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