Page 38 of Bending Under Pressure

“Fine, but if we get—”

“We won’t,” he promises.

This is insane. Regardless, I follow Keelan. I am almost certain that boy can convince me to do anything. We’ve raced. We’ve snuck out. I’ve taken him into my bedroom when no one was home. To top it all off, I’m doing an illegal act right behind the dang police station!

“You first,” Keelan says, stepping behind me and releasing my hand as we stand in front of the ladder. It doesn’t go all the way to the ground. In fact, it’s above my head. If I lift my arms, I can wrap my fingers around the first rung. Keelan grips my waist. “I’ll help. Ready?”

“No, but go ahead.”

He chuckles, kisses my temple, and then lifts me, so I can grab a rung high enough up. He helps hold my weight so I can go higher until I can place my feet on the ladder as well. Keelan must be strong enough to pull himself up so his feet reach the lowest rung.

“Hurry up!” Jess yells down.

Goodness, she’s going to get us caught! As quickly as I can, I climb the ladder with Keelan right behind me. A gulp of fresh air fills me with relief when I make it to the top. Jess high-fives me.

“Fantastic view, right?” she sarcastically comments with a roll of her eyes.

“Yeah,” I whisper in awe. Maybe it doesn’t look like much to her, but I think it’s beautiful. There’s only one streetlight below us, and the forest is across from the station. That isn’t what steals my breath. The full moon easily illuminates the tall trees, allowing me to see the highest branches as they sway with the gentle breeze. Between that and the many stars twinkling in the sky, I’m positive this is the best decision I’ve made all year.

“Like it?” Keelan whispers.

I glance back to see him standing right behind me. “Yeah.”

Jess sits, her legs dangling over the edge of the platform and her forearms resting on one of the bars of the railing. I do the same about two feet away. Then, the boys sit down behind us. Resisting the shiver at the feel of Keelan’s legs on either side of mine, his chest pressed against my back, and his chin resting on my shoulder is nearly impossible to do, but somehow I manage.

“How many times have y’all been up here?” I ask.

“A ton,” Cameron answers.

“We were even up here one time when a cop stopped by the station,” Jess adds.

“What?” I whip my head toward her.

Keelan’s chest shakes as he laughs. “I think he forgot something, and he came back to get it. It was like three in the morning. I had started climbing down, so I had to stop and be still. He never even noticed us.”

I turn my head to look at him. “What happened to making sure I don’t get grounded? My mom will kill me if we get caught.”

“Good thing we don’t plan on getting caught,” he teases.

Rolling my eyes, I look out over the land again. It would so be worth my mom killing me over this. We’re quiet for a while. My lungs stop working when Keelan slips one finger underneath my shirt at my hip and just draws circles over and over in the same spot. If he keeps this up, I’m going to melt and slide right off the ledge.

Thirty minutes pass before Cameron stands, beckoning Jess to come with him.

“Y’all have fun. We’re going to the truck,” he says.

I don’t get a chance to speak before they are climbing down. Keelan shakes his head. “I’m surprised he lasted this long before dragging her down there to make out. Whenever you’re ready, let me know. I can promise it’ll be up to us to decide when to leave or we won’t until daylight.”

Watching them climb down, I say, “Cameron surprises me.”

“How?”

“Jess said he likes to gossip, and he obviously doesn’t mind showing how much he wants to be with her.”

“Cam has been crazy about Jess since the day he met her. She didn’t pay him much any attention until high school though. He’s the way he is because we learned to cherish the people we have in our lives, and trust me, Jess knows exactly what she means to him.”

They’ve reached the bottom and it almost looks as if Cam is dragging Jess.

“Do you think it’s because of y’all were in foster care? Does he remember his birth parents?”

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