Page 17 of Heat Wave
“Then stop kissing her! You just don’t understand her the way I do. She’s not…”
“I can kiss her if I want to because this is between me and her, not you and me and her…”
“Guys, what is all the yelling about?” Rowan comes out asking, but she isn’t heard over the two siblings screaming at each other. “Kids!!!”
Both of them stop arguing and turn to their mom.
“You can’t keep doing this. You’re making Oakley a nervous wreck, and all the bickering and arguing is hurting her, I’m sure!”
She comes over, takes my hand, and pats it in support.
“Terry, you know your brother would never hurt Oakley because he knows how important she is to our family. He is taking care of her, keeping her safe, and trying to make this very stressful time just a little more bearable for her.”
Terry looks down and shuffles her feet. Her cheeks are stained just the barest hint of pink.
“Waylon, you can appreciate how much Oakley means to Terry and why she is trying to protect her, too. You are older than Oakley, some of the things you find normal might not be normal to her…yet. Terry doesn’t want something you do to upset her so badly that she wouldn’t feel comfortable over here after all of this is settled.”
This time, the blush is on Waylon’s face. I’ve never seen a man blush before. I never realized how attractive it could be.
“Both of you want the same thing: to keep Oakley safe, and both of you should be working together to make sure that happens. Not sending her running because of some silly bickering. Now…hug.”
“What?”
“Ah, Mom!”
“Hug it out! Now!” I have to stifle the laugh that wants so badly to spill out as the two siblings awkwardly pat one another on the shoulder and roll their eyes at the same time.
“Waylon, honey, can you be a dear and grab that old pot over the stove that weighs as much as your Nan?”
“Yes, Mom.”
I take the opportunity to whisper quickly to Terry.
“I won’t kiss your brother again if you don’t want me to. He just thought it would…”
Before I can finish, Waylon is picking me up over his shoulder.
“We’re going to keep kissing, and you’re going to have to get over it, sis. Love you though.”
My hands flail out looking for something to hang on to. I realize this isn’t the first time I’ve been in this position, but it’s the first time sober. I end up grabbing a bunch of his shirt in my hands and holding on for dear life as Terry follows us into the house. How he’s going to explain this to his mom, I have no idea.
Chapter Fourteen
Waylon
We stayed over to eat with Mom, Dad, and Terry. Nan even came over. I had been putting off taking Oakley back over to her house because I could tell just the thought of going back there bothers her.
“We can go over to your apartment tomorrow.”
She nods as we both sit in my car, but neither of us gets out.
“It’s gonna be alright, Oakley.”
Big, sad eyes turn to look at me. “I don’t want to go back, Waylon.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t understand. I don’t ever want to go back. What am I supposed to do about that? What…what happens then? I don’t want to leave Terry, and my mom seems so far away. She’s dating some guy, did you know that?”
