Page 57 of Spur of the Moment
Maybe he did it to get me to see him.
To give him my attention, regardless if it was negative or not.
And that fucking scared me.
Bailey was always there when I needed someone to cry on or rant to, and I was the same for him, but that was all this ever was. All it ever could be.
I couldn’t ruin what he and I had by testing how far we could go.
What if we didn’t work out as more?
What if I fucked it up and he ran like all the other boys I’d had in my life in the past?
Then I’d have no Bailey.
And I’d rather keep him how he was in my life, at arm's length, than let him in further. It would crush me if something tore us apart.
His hands squeezed my hips lightly and I lifted my head, finding his gaze.
“You doing okay, Huckleberry?” he asked.
The song ended and I dropped my arms, taking a step back from him. “Why does everyone need to ask me that a million times a day?”
His brows furrowed with confusion. “You just seemed tense, is all.”
“Of course, I’m tense, Bailey. I have a lot of decisions to make right now.”
“Like?”
I sighed, looking around the dance floor at the few couples already moving to the beat of the next song. “You know what.”
It wasn’t just the school. It was us.
His face dropped, and I wanted nothing but to bring his smile back. “Lettie, don’t think about that right now. It’s your birthday.”
I looked down at my boots, then behind his shoulder at the bar. I couldn’t see the look on his face again knowing that I put it there. “I think the party’s over.”
He was quiet for a moment, watching me to gauge if I was serious, then his shoulders fell, and I fucking hated myself. “Okay.”
I turned, heading back to my brothers and Brandy as Bailey followed a few feet behind me.
I’d already upset him, and even with something so small, it fucking crushed me.
I couldn’t let us go any further, and staying in Bell Buckle would only make that more difficult.
I guess that made my decision.
I’d start packing for Boise tonight.
30
Lettie
After dinner, Beckham invited us all to the bar for old times’ sake. I agreed to go as long as Brandy could tag along. I didn’t want to be stuck around a whole bunch of guys by myself, brothers or not.
I rode with Callan and Bailey. Reed, Lennon, and Beckham took a separate vehicle. Since we’d stopped on the way there to pick up Brandy, the three of them got to Outlaw’s Watering Hole before us. Callan pulled into a parking spot and killed the engine, all four of us getting out.
I stared up at the orange neon sign out front of the wood building. Not a thing had changed about the outside in the last five years. Nostalgia hit me in the chest, and I realized just how much I missed this small town. Bell Buckle ran in my blood.That ranch and the rescue were my entire life. I was a fool to leave.
