Page 44 of When Wrecked Meets Ruined
“Jesus. I said I heard you. How many times do you have to say it?”
“Yeah, well, I’m just checking to make sure your hearing works. Because the last time we had this conversation, you said you heard me. But that doesn’t mean you listened, now, does it?”
“Don’t you have better things to do?”
He grunted in response and strode away. Shiloh was waiting for him next to the barn. He slung an arm around her shoulders and ushered her away. She gave me a little wave and a smile over her shoulder as they disappeared around the corner.
“They’re probably going to kiss,” Noah said. He ripped a tall weed up by the roots before he climbed through the space in the fence and leaned against it. After brushing the dirt off the weed, he pinched it between his index finger and thumb and pretended to smoke it.
His brow furrowed in concentration. “Am I doing it right?”
“Doing what right?”
“Smoking weed.” His eyes lit up, and he snapped his fingers as if he’d just had a great idea. “Hey, Ridge. Have you got a lighter?”
Oh shit. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. “You’re doing it right. You don’t need to light it. Just chew on it.”
“It doesn’t taste too good.” After a few seconds of chewing on the weed, he tossed it aside with a look of disgust. “Yuck. I’d rather have a popsicle.”
“Yeah, you should probably stick to popsicles.”
He nodded, then tilted his head and studied my face. “Do you have a girlfriend yet? Cause I think you should get one.”
“Oh yeah? Why’s that?” My nephew always had the best answers, and once again, he delivered.
He gave me a sly smile. “So you can kiss her whenever you want.”
CHAPTERSEVENTEEN
Evie
Quinnand I streaked past the picnic tables and darted through the trees. We were quick on our feet, but when you’re being chased by two athletes, your chances of escape diminished.
“Evie!” Quinn yelled. “Watch out.”
No idea how he did it, but Ridge was now in front instead of chasing me. I faked a right, then darted left. Unfortunately, Ridge didn’t fall for my juke.
He caught me around the middle, threw me over his shoulder, and jogged toward the water while I pummeled his back with my fists. “Put me down before I hurt you.”
He laughed. A hearty har har har.
Yeah, good joke. My fists bounced right off him. Teflon. Ping. Ping. Ping.
“You’re going down all right, Bellamy.”
Two seconds later, I was flying. I hit the water with a splash right after Quinn did. When I surfaced, I pushed my hair off my face and spun around to face Quinn. We burst out laughing. Every time we looked at each other, we started laughing again. I don’t even know why we were laughing, but I felt lighter like some weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
“Uh oh.” Quinn’s eyes widened. “You know I love you, but you’re on your own.”
I turned in time to see Ridge coming for me, a determined look on his face. Quinn swam for the shore while I struck out in the opposite direction. A hand wrapped around my ankle and dragged me under. I kicked off from his rock-hard chest and kept swimming. Surprisingly, he let me go without a fight.
When I reached the rocks on the opposite side of the swimming hole, I heard his voice right behind me. “There’s nowhere to run.”
And it dawned on me that this was exactly what he’d wanted. I was trapped between a rock and a hard place. Literally.
Undeterred, I levered myself out of the water and climbed over the rocks, cursing under my breath when a sharp edge cut the sole of my foot. Ignoring the sting, I forced myself to keep going. When I reached the woods on the other side, I half-sprinted down the dirt trail through the trees, then slowed to a hobble. I tried to hide the limp, but with each step, I winced.
“Jesus Christ.” Ridge grabbed my arm. “Would you just fucking stop? You’re bleeding.” I looked down at the ground. I’d left a trail of blood on the pine needle-strewn dirt.
