Page 59 of Where It Begins

“Oh, thank God.” I release the steering wheel and burst into tears.

“Mom? Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

I try to reassure her, but it comes out as a relieved sob.

“Mom? Ma? Mummy?”

I hold up a hand and shake my head.

“Did you honestly believe something happened between me and Buck? I feel like I have to call him Buck instead of Miller until the end of time now. Wait. Is this because you’ve been reading those smutty stepbrother romance novels again in your book club?”

I get myself under control enough to say, “He was naked.”

“I was fully clothed. And his room smelled like vomit and dirty socks.”

“I panicked.”

“Clearly,” I say.

I hand Violet a napkin.

It sticks to her fingers, so she uses the bottom of her shirt instead.

“I need a shower, and your car needs to be detailed. I have no idea where that sausage went, either.”

“Why don’t we go home and get cleaned up?” I need half an hour to get over this before I call Sidney.

“That seems reasonable.”

I pull out of the spot while Violet cleans her hand with a wet wipe and then digs around in another bag, producing a container of french fries.

“I can’t believe you actually thought something happened with me and Buck,” she muses as she pops a fry into her mouth. “He’s got a lot of chest hair for a seventeen-year-old and, logically speaking, he’s only going to get fuzzier with time and hormones. Also, that he takes out his front teeth to entice random girls is a little weird.”

Her phone buzzes and she spends the next minute trying to find it. “Buck texted me.” She frowns and pops another fry into her mouth as she reads the message.

“What did he say?”

“Oh, this is interesting,” Violet mumbles.

“Interesting how? What did Buck say?”

“He apologized, then asked what happened last night, and followed it up by saying he hopes he didn’t do or say anything inappropriate.”

“So he doesn’t remember? Poor Sid. I need to call him. He must be losing his mind. Apparently Buck is a real Casanova.”

Violet snorts. “I don’t know if I’d go that far.” She punches in a message in response.

“Are you messaging him back? What are you saying?”

“That he owes me for making sure he didn’t die last night, and that he didn’t do anything inappropriate.” She pops another fry into her mouth. “I would have made him sweat a little longer if I didn’t feel bad for Sidney. No wonder you two were freaking out so hard. I bet Buck is going to be grounded for eternity.”

“Yeah. Probably.” At least we don’t have to call off the engagement.

* * *

“How’s Violet?”

“She’s already in bed. She was exhausted.”

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