Page 55 of Sinful Skulls
On the drive, he talks nonstop about Rachel and the family she made him feel a part of. It warms my heart he has them. I love her already.
“She always has my favorite snacks, and she lets me go over there to nap on their couch. I swear it’s got some kind of fucking magic fairy dust sprinkled on it. It’s the best napping spot I’ve ever found.”
I giggle at his stories.
“One time Jackson and I found all these little frogs out by the barn at his grandparent’s place. We caught as many as we could and took them to his house. Somehow the lid came off while we were in school and the little fuckers got out.” He laughs, shaking his head. “Man, did she chew our asses for that one. And oh god, one time it was lightning bugs, but she didn’t mind them as much as the frogs.”
“You two sound like you were little shits.”
“Were?” he teases.
I laugh. “What am I getting myself into?”
“Everyone’s going to love you,” he says, bringing our entwined hands to his mouth.
“How will I ever remember everyone’s names?”
“I’ll set you up with little Charlotte. She’s my other best friend’s daughter. She’s a chatter box, but she’ll keep everyone straight for you.”
“I am excited to see Lexie and Ash again.”
“Yeah, about that. They ran into a little trouble with some asshole. He fucking kidnapped them.”
My eyes shoot to my hairline. “What?!”
“They’re okay. Ash was in the Army. That fucker can handle almost anything.”
I glance from the road to him and back again. “I’m sorry I kept you away from your family for so long.”
He laughs. “I guess we did lose track of time, but I don’t regret it. We needed that time together.”
“I’ll admit I’m a little reluctant to go back to the real world. It’s been nice being free to be myself.”
“Pull over. I’ll drive the rest of the way.”
When we get out of the truck to exchange seats, he grabs me and pulls me close. “Listen, I want you to be yourself around the club. There’s nothing about you that you should hide. I’m sure your parents would agree. I think you’ve built this divide between you and them up here.” He taps my temple lightly. “Have you thought more about calling your family?”
I lay my head on his chest. “I know. I should.”
“Why don’t you do it now? We’ll be home soon. It will ease my mind, and I think it will yours too. This is a new start for both of us. We want to take off on a good note. I don’t want the police busting my door down someday looking for you.”
My eyes widen, and I jerk my head back. “You don’t think they’d report me as a missing person, do you?”
“Yeah, Daisy, I do. They love you, and you haven’t contacted them in several weeks. It’s time. Just tell them the truth.”
The truth. I don’t know what that is anymore.
“Like they did me?”
He sighs loudly. “I really think you should give them a chance to explain, but I won’t push you on that. What I am going to push is that you call them and at the very least let them know you are okay.”
When he says it like that, I know he’s not going to budge. Maybe he’s right. They are probably losing their minds.
I grab my phone out of my bag as we pull back onto the road.
“Take a few deep breaths and turn it on,” he says, reaching over and placing his hand on my leg. “You got this. You’ll feel so much better after you get this over with.”
As soon as my phone powers on the messages begin to pour in.
