Page 124 of One Good Crash
From behind me, Jax said, "I know plenty."
"Hey!" my mom barked. "What's that supposed to mean?"
God, what a nightmare.I couldn’t help but recall the last time the three of us had been standing along some roadside.Thattime, she'd been turning on the charm. Now, she was totally unhinged.
I wanted to scream in frustration. Surely, therehadto be a middle groundsomewherebetween humping his leg and screaming like a banshee.
Then again, she'd never been great at moderation.
Of course, it didn't help that Jax was shoveling fuel onto the fire.
My mom looked to me and demanded, "Well?"
"Well what?"
"What did he mean by that?"
"I don't know," I said through gritted teeth, "but I’m sure it wasn't as bad as you think."
From behind me, Jax said, "Wanna bet?"
Damn it.I hated this. To think, it had been such a wonderful evening, and now, it was going to hell in a handbasket. And the longer this went on, the worse it would get. I just knew it.
Isodidn't want that to happen.
I turned and gave Jax an apologetic look. "Listen, if you want to go, I totally understand."
From behind me, my mom called out, "Yeah! And that's a hint in case you didn't get it."
I cringed.Technically, her statement was true. Ithadbeen a hint, but not in the way she made it sound. Yes, I wanted him to leave, but not because I didn't want his company. Mostly, I wanted to spare him from drama overload.
Plus, this was all too embarrassing for words.
I turned and I told my mom, "I wasn'ttellinghim to leave. I was just letting him know hecouldleave if he wanted to."
From behind me, Jax said, "Good."
I turned to stare up at him. "What?"
"Good," he repeated, "because I’m not going anywhere."
Shit."Why not?"
He glanced toward my mom. "You gotta ask?"
My heart was racing, and my palms were sweaty. I had no idea what to do. But then, like magic, the most wonderful idea presented itself. I whirled back to my mom and forced a smile. "I know. What about Tabitha?"
She stiffened. "What about her?"
"You could stay atherplace."
"No. I can't," she replied. "I'm on her shit-list." She looked to Jax and said, "Thanks toyou."
"But wait," I said, "what does he have to do with it?"
She glared past me to tell Jax, "Not thatyoucare, but your security goon broke her arm." She looked back to me and said, "She's been pissed at me ever since."
I froze. "Tabitha broke her arm?"
