Page 36 of Reckless Rebel

We leave on Sunday and today is Friday, and somehow I haven’t managed to broach the subject with Rick yet. Something which Jace finds very interesting, asking me every time he sees me if I’ve ruined little Dicky’s day yet, his words not mine. And each time I throw a punch his way which he deflects easily. He is beyond insufferable.

A loud honk draws me from my thoughts and Sofia is diving off the steps before I can even blink from my inner turmoil. By the time I stand, Jace has already got out of his car just in time to catch our sister as she dives at him, and just like always the genuine smile he offers her lights up his whole face. It’s not often he lets the darkness swirling beneath the surface linger when she is around, but still I see it, and still I wonder what happened to him. I know the bits and pieces I’ve heard from my parents and Sienna, but I also know there is more to it than anyone knows.

As I make it to the car, Jace already has the door open for Sofia to jump inside, as he eyes me with the same smile that’s been on his face everytime he sees me lately.

“Morning, Red.” That stupid nickname now his favorite term of endearment everytime he speaks to me.

“Jace,” I reply with a tip of my head. “You gonna tell me where we are going yet?”

He smiles at my question. “Nope, you’ll just have to trust me, Riles.”

“Trust is earned,” I respond blandly as he moves to open the passenger side door for me.

“Oh yeah?” He swings his arm, motioning for me to get in. “And how am I doing?”

He’s doing great, but I don’t tell him that, instead I shrug. “I’m undecided,” I say, dropping into the seat thinking that will be the end of it.

But he leans inside bringing his head level with mine and I startle back a bit, he isn’t deterred though, he just smirks as he whispers, “Maybe I’ll send you another picture to try and change your mind.”

The door slams before I manage to close my mouth, and I have to force myself not to fidget when he climbs inside, thankfully Sofia is a great buffer.

“Music, Jacey, music!” She squeals from the backseat, and I can’t help but smile.

Jace doesn’t miss a beat as he opens Spotify and opens the search bar. “What’s your poison today little miss Fifi?”

“Taytay!”

His fingers hesitate slightly before he pulls up a Taylor Swift playlist and hits shuffle, then settles his phone into the center console. He reaches round to offer Sofia a high five and a smile.

“Okay ladies, let’s get this show on the road.” Is the last thing he says before we are speeding off for a day of fun.

* * *

Four hours later, we’ve enjoyed a delicious lunch and have more shopping bags between us than I can even count. Jace told us he had never been on vacation before and insisted we help him make sure he had everything he needed. He has new shorts, shoes, hats, sunscreen, snorkelling stuff at the insistence of Sofia, and even a few board games she made him buy for the cabin. He also treated her to three new dresses, four pairs of shoes and some swimsuits. I tried to tell him he didn’t need to, but he just shrugged and said he’d missed too many birthdays and he needed to make them up. I could hardly say no to that so I let it slide, but I did draw the line when he tried to insist on buying me some bikinis I was looking at. All in all it’s been a fun day.

Sofia has been spoiled like she truly deserves and she is the happiest I’ve seen her in a while, and so is Jace. I’ve watched them together all day and it’s been amazing. He is sweet and patient with her, the exact opposite of what you’d expect from anyone that looked like him and it’s just heartwarming to witness. They’ve grown so close in the last few weeks and it’s clear to see they adore one another. Considering how I felt when I first met Jace at the beginning of summer, it’s weird to now consider him not just somewhat a friend, but family. He isn’t going anywhere and I am glad we can finally get along.

We load the bags into the car with a bit of a struggle, but when I move to climb inside Jace halts me by slipping his finger in the loop of my jeans, his fingers brushing some of my bare skin in the process and my breath hitches in response.

“Not so fast, Red, we still have one more stop to make.” He grins as he pulls me towards him.

“You can’t be serious, there is no way we will fit any more bags in the car,” I exclaim, looking to Sofia for back up, but she is bouncing on her toes in excitement at the prospect of going somewhere else.

Jace laughs, spinning me around. “Don’t worry, Red, the place we are going is just for some fun, you like having fun right?” His question sounds more like an innuendo as usual with him, but I just huff.

“Fine, lead the way.” I gesture my arm for him to go on ahead, but really it’s just so I can catch the breath still caught in my throat.

We walk for about five minutes with Jace leading the way, and every few seconds he glances down at his phone like he is following directions. It isn’t until we come in view of a small shop still lit up on a darkened row that he slows down. I follow closely behind him with Sofia next to me, and when he reaches the store he pushes open the door and holds it wide for us.

I look around and see that it’s some kind of pottery shop, there are a few different stations plotted around with different activities to be done like pottery and painting, and when my eyes come back to Jace, I see he is shifting a little like he might be nervous.

“I know you guys like to paint so I thought we could maybe paint some pots.’’ He shrugs, “I’ve been here with a friend and her daughter, it’s pretty cool.”

“I’m going to paint a mug!” Sofia shouts excitedly, and immediately moves over to the empty table where there is stuff clearly waiting for us.

I’m almost speechless as I take in our surroundings and think about the thought and effort that has gone into this. “Jace this is really thoughtful,” I start and he interrupts me.

“It’s nothing, just thought it would be something you guys would enjoy.” Again he looks nervous as he tries to sound casual and I can’t help myself. I move and throw my hands around him and give him a swift hug which he stiffens at, but I pull away before it can become awkward.

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