Page 31 of True Honey
“I thought you quit that job?” He asked, his voice muffled as the phone slipped.
“No…” I said quietly, I was secretly hoping to hang on to it. Since Kayla hadn’t fired me and the tips were decent, given most of the town was University students. And if I screwed up with Silas who knows how long the part time gig with the stadium would last. I needed a back up.
“Quit,” he said. He wasn’t exactly making it easy to take Ella’s advice and trust that he’d do what was best for both of us.
“I need those hours,” I said to him, knowing that his head was half in our conversation, half in another. I heard him mumble under his breath something about convincing me later before a door slammed in the background and the noise died out.
“Call in sick today,” he said, “I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important that we go into the city and today is the best day for me to get away from the stadium.”
I opened my mouth and then shut it again, it was part of the deal… I needed to be willing to help him out with his family stuff to keep the apartment space. I could see August’s rested face and relaxed demeanor that morning and chewed on my lip. I couldn’t screw this up, I needed to make it work for August.
“I’ll be there soon,” I said, hanging up the phone to call Kayla with my best fake cough.
She didn’t seem too impressed but lately she was pretty over me, between breaking a plate of glasses, cutting myself and having the world's worst schedule. She couldn’t be bothered in making my experience at Hilly’s fun and I didn’t blame her. I was a wet blanket even when I bothered to show up and do my job.
When I arrived at the stadium, Silas was in the parking lot pacing with his concentration on a very loud conversation he was having with someone. He wore a gray dress shirt, buttoned to the top, soaked down the back from the sun. But the moment he spotted me, his demeanor changed, a bright smile was pushed on his face and he shoved the phone into his pocket.
“Hey,” he said as I climbed from my car.
“Everything alright?” I asked, trying to force myself into the Drew he had met that day at the bar. Funny, intelligent, sassy Drew with a hint of defiance. I had read about masking on my phone during the nights when I spent more time scrolling on my phone than sleeping. Realizing very quickly that it was something I had become good at without even trying to be.
“Yeah, fine…I’m just going to change and then we can go,” he said, pointing to his bike.
Silas started to unbutton the shirt and hauled it over his shoulders. I tried to look somewhere else but he gave me very little time to try as he exposed the flexed muscles of his arms and torso. I hadn’t given much thought to what wasunder all those dress shirts, but it definitely wasn’t supposed to be all that toned muscle and sun-kissed skin.
For a doctor he sure got a lot of sun.
His eyes met mine and he let go of a tiny chuckle as a smirk formed on his lips and I could feel the heat rising up the back of my neck. He had caught me staring and I looked like a total idiot. He tossed the shirt over the seat of his bike and pulled a clean t-shirt out of the bag at his feet, pulling it down over his head before he quickly fixed his hair with his hands.
“Come on,” he said, reaching around his bike and extending a helmet to me.
“Oh, you want me to get on that?” I pointed to the bike and shook my head. “Not a chance.”
“I promise it’s safe, I’ve been riding it my entire life,” Silas said. I could see the assurance in his eyes but it still felt like a questionable decision.
“We can take my car,” I suggested.
“No offence but your car looks more like a death trap than my bike,” he said, his grin widening.
“Don’t insult my car,” I said quietly, tucking down into my hoodie and he laughed, putting both hands in the air.
“I’ll admit it’s because I’m not very good at being a passenger,” he said.
“You a control freak?No…” I teased, not even sure where the statement had bubbled from but trying to hold on to the confidence that came with it.
“Unfortunately,” he said, wetting his bottom lip.
“Those things terrify me,” I confessed.
He stepped forward, a small smile on his face and nodded, “I think that’s the first honest thing you’ve told me about yourself other than your name.”
“Does it get me out of riding your death rocket?” I asked, swallowing tightly as he approached.
“No,” he laughed. “Everyone is scared at first,” he said, holding out the sleek black helmet in his hands. “But then the rush hits,” his tone dropped an octave as he brushed the hair back off my shoulders gently tucking it back so it wouldn’t get caught.
I was focusing too hard on holding my breath to protest.
“We have to be back by three so I can get Auggie,” I warned.
