Chapter Eighteen
It takes me entirely too long to text my sister.
Me: i know your probably going on a date with weston but i wandered if you could ride with me to clear my head evan texted me again and it fucked me up please i’ll bring scout okay let me know
Drumming my fingers on Uncle Atticus’s steering wheel, I wait impatiently for her to respond.
“She is learning more tech stuff today,” I tell Scout, who’s sitting in the passenger seat panting. “Hopefully, she can answer us soon.”
Another text from Evan pops through.
evan knox dont answer him: Alex can get you a free gym membership if you want. You don’t have to go with us. I know you’re still mad at me.
Mad?
I hate him. He destroyed all the good, innocent parts of me.
His efforts to manipulate me into thinking he’s all of a sudden reformed fall on deaf ears.
I won’t fall for his bullshit again. Especially with Destiny being here.
She needs my full focus to keep her safe.
I jab my thumbs on the tiny keypad of the phone, mashing each letter out one at a time at an infuriatingly slow pace.
Me: dont want to talk about this with you i’m not going to hang out with you and you’re boyfriend so stop trying okay bye forever
His response is immediate. How can anyone type that fast?
evan knox dont answer him: Don’t be like that. I’m trying really hard, Rowdy. Cut me some slack.
Since it’ll take too long to respond, I close my phone and start driving to pick Destiny up.
If she texts back and says she’s going on a date, then I’ll turn around.
But I can’t just sit around doing nothing while waiting for an answer.
My mind shoots in a thousand different directions when left alone and I don’t fucking like it.
Ten minutes later, my phone buzzes. Scout barks at me, probably warning me not to do something stupid. Since we’re on a desolate road, I chance a look at my phone while driving. Thankfully, it’s not Evan.
Destiny: I can see him another day. You need me more right now.
Right now?
How about always?
I find the heart emoji and mash that since it’s the easiest to reply with one hand on the steering wheel. The rest of the drive, I feel much lighter knowing Destiny is going to take a ride with me.
Once I make it to the clinic, I hop out of the truck. Scout jumps out behind me. His tail swishes happily. He must feel my excitement because he seems every bit as eager to get Destiny as I am. Smart dog. Makes me miss Spirit. I hope Mage is sharing his treats with her.
We make our way to the front of the building.
I lean my shoulder against a lamppost and Scout flops onto the snowy ground to wait.
A few minutes later, the door opens and Destiny steps out.
Scout barks at her and I curse at him to be quiet.
Her coat swallows her tiny frame, making her look fragile and small, but her grin is bright, aimed in my direction as she confidently navigates the stairs with her cane.
“Hi,” she greets. “Where’s my baby dog?”
Scout barks again, trotting over to her side. He leans into her leg and she rewards him with ear scratches.
“Hey,” I say, stepping closer until I’m towering over her. “Good day?”
“Awesome day. I downloaded an app that allows me to read audiobooks. I already started one at lunch.” She reaches forward, her fingers brushing over the front of my coat. “Where are we riding to?”
“I have an idea,” I tell her, “but it’s a surprise.”
This makes her grin even wider. Fuck, why does she have to be so pretty?
It would be a lot easier to ignore her if she looked like a toad.
I wish I had someone—anyone—to talk about this with, but I can’t even admit this to Wild without experiencing condemnation and shame.
There are three people in my family who would get it, but not one of them has a phone or internet access.
“Oh, Destiny,” a voice calls out. “I forgot to give you this.”
Destiny stops and turns to face Gwen, who is hurrying down the steps with a package in hand. It’s a dark, small bag, and when she gets closer, I see that it’s coffee.
“Thank you,” Destiny says with a smile. “I can’t wait for everyone to try it.”
“It’s the best,” Gwen agrees. “This must be Scout.”
Scout, upon hearing his name, barks at her. He doesn’t abandon Destiny’s side, but his tail wags wildly as if he wishes she would come give him snuggles. She doesn’t. It rankles me for some reason.
“I’m going to train him to be my service animal,” Destiny tells her. “He’s so smart. I know he can do it.”
Destiny doesn’t see the pitying smile Gwen gives her. I do. I don’t like it.
“That’s an idea,” Gwen placates. “How about we put a pin in it?”
The cheerfulness my sister was brimming with two seconds earlier is gone. Her shoulders slump and she frowns.
“We can train him,” I tell her, desperate to see her smile again.
Gwen winces and shakes her head. “I’m afraid it’s not that simple. Service animals require lots of training. If it were that easy, all animals could do it.”
Destiny deflates again.
Why is this woman trying to bring her down?
“We’ll research it on the internet,” I blurt out. “Destiny is good at finding useful shit there.”
Gwen’s upper lip twitches as if my voice makes her skin crawl. “I suppose there’s no hurt in trying, but I want you both to have reasonable expectations of the end result. Little Scout here may just be a family dog only and that’s okay.”
Whatever, lady.
Scout barks over at me as if he’s thinking the same thing.
After Gwen passes Destiny the coffee bag and heads back inside, I begin to relax. I’ve been agitated all day, but a calm finally settles over me. About damn time.
I open the truck door for Destiny and she climbs to her seat. Then Scout hops up onto the edge of the seat, forcing her to scoot toward the middle to give him room.
“That dog thinks he’s a human,” I grumble.
She hugs him to her and he barks. After I shut the door, I round the truck and slide into the seat. Destiny sits in the middle, body close to mine. The heat radiating from her makes every nerve in me tingle.
“What’s the surprise?” she asks, shoulder bumping mine. “I’m dying of suspense.”
“If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise anymore.”
She playfully huffs and then hugs Scout again. “I’m glad we’re getting to spend some time together. You going to tell me about Evan’s texts?”
Before I can answer, her phone alerts her to a text from Weston. She instructs it to read out loud.
Weston: Seriously, baby? I wanted to take you on another fun date. Maybe I can pick you up after.
She instructs her phone to reply back that she’ll see him tomorrow. Satisfaction flickers inside me. Knowing she chose me over him feels good. Family first.
Now that I have her all to myself, I don’t really want to talk about Evan. I want to talk about Destiny and all the things she’s learning at school. I want to discuss her audiobook, Scout, and anything else she cares about.
“So?” she implores. “What did he say?”
“He’s pressuring me to go to the gym with him and Alex. Alex can get me a free gym membership. There are only so many ways I can tell him no. He doesn’t get it. Persistent and pushy.”
And that’s on a good day.
At his worst, he was manipulative and hard-core pressured me until I gave in.
“Want me to block him for you?”
“It’s fine,” I tell her. “I’d honestly like to just forget about him. Have fun with you and Scout instead.”
She pats my thigh, sending a zing straight to my groin. It burns hot when she leaves her hand resting there.
Why would she do that?
My mind reels with a lot of wishful thinking. It’s all sick and crazy, but my dick likes it. It’s distracting and I almost rear-end a car that slams on their brakes.
“Learn to drive,” I bark out at the person in front of me. “Idiot.”
Her hand is still there. Still fucking there.
I try to focus on the road, navigating the streets on memory. Most places are the same from when I used to run around with Evan. Thankfully, the farm feed and supply store, and where I want to go next, is also still there.
“We’re here,” I tell her as I shut off the truck and open the door, reluctantly moving away from her hand. “Come on.”
She climbs out and Scout follows after. I shrug my shoulders. If the dog wants to go with her, who am I to stop him? The three of us make our way into the feed store. Once inside, Destiny wrinkles her nose and sniffs.
“Feed store,” I explain with a chuckle. “They have pet supplies here. Thought we could get some stuff for Scout. Uncle Atticus gave me a wad of cash.”
“Really?” She grins at me. “Lead the way.”
I scan the signs hanging to see which way we need to go. We walk past an elderly couple who blatantly stare at my sister and her dog. They mutter something under their breath about dogs not being welcome.
“Service animal,” I growl as I pass. “She’s blind.”
I must terrify the shit out of them because they both gape at me. If I’m being rude, it’s only because they were rude first.
“To your left,” I call out to Destiny when she reaches the end of the aisle. “Then turn right.”
When we’re on the correct aisle, I hurry past Destiny to the pet stuff. I pick up a dog toy and squeeze it at Scout. He barks and his tail wags a mile a minute.
“Toys,” she exclaims. “You want some toys, good boy?”
He jumps up on me, trying to get the toy out of my hand. “I think he likes this one.”
We spend the next half hour grabbing all sorts of stuff for Scout.
There’s even a dog sweater in his size. It’s pink, which I think Destiny would like if she could see it.
I figure I’ll use one of the Sharpies in the RV and write “service animal” on it.
Then nobody will fuck with my sister about it.
After paying and loading up the truck, I take her to a cool drive-through place I used to eat at all the time. They have the best onion rings and strawberry milkshakes.
We sit in the car in companionable silence as we eat our food. Scout works hard on an enormous bone Destiny insisted on getting for him. I realize, for the first time in a really long time, I’m genuinely happy.
Not stressing the fuck out over my feelings for her.
Not agonizing over Evan.
Not jealous over Weston.
Just happy.
“Thank you for coming with me,” I murmur, unable to keep from toying with a strand of her silky hair. “It’s selfish as fuck, but I needed this.”
She turns and peers up at me with unseeing eyes. God, why does she have to be so damn enticing?
“It’s not selfish to need people, Rowdy.” She bites on her juicy bottom lip. “This was fun.”
I run my tongue along my own bottom lip, aching to lean in and kiss her pretty mouth. What would she do? Would she kiss me back? Would she smack me? She’s dating someone, for fuck’s sake.
My phone buzzes, stealing my attention from my obsession. Grunting, I fumble around in my pockets until I find it.
Wild: They found another body, man. Just like the other one. What the fuck? Send proof of life.
Another body?
Nerves rattle me to my core. At least when Destiny’s with me, I can keep her safe and can relax. It’s whenever she’s not with me I’ll have to worry. Especially with someone out there murdering people.
“Wild wants me to send a picture,” I say, voice gruff. “Want to be in it with me? I learned how to do it this morning. He gave me training.”
She leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder, and smiles. “I’m ready.”
After I take the “selfie” of the two of us, I stare at the picture on my phone, chest aching. The people in this picture are vibrant and happy. They belong here. A far cry from the hurting, depressed pair on the homestead.
Selfishly, I keep the picture to myself, instead shooting Wild a text for proof of life.
Me: no way that sucks but i’m still alive with dez and scout we got onion rings and milkshakes i bet your jealous
Wild: You’re.
What the fuck ever.