Chapter 8 #2
And no wonder. After working in the insufferable heat all morning, he probably wanted nothing more than a nice cold shower.
Shelby’s heart quickened as she considered what to do. She’d had possession of her family’s second vehicle ever since Caleb
went away to college. It was parked just down from Gray’s truck.
There was that slice of Dutch apple, served à la mode, waiting for her, but it wasn’t the thought of the pie that had her
stomach clenching. It was the idea of offering Gray Briggs a ride home.
As she approached he was tinkering with something under the hood. A trickle of sweat dripped down the back of his neck and disappeared under the collar of his white tee. His neck was shaved smooth and summer bronze. Three freckles dotted the landscape.
She wet her suddenly dry lips. “Car trouble?”
He nearly bumped his head on the underside of the hood and spared her a scowl. “Sneaky much?”
“You should be nicer to the person who could offer you a ride home.”
“And why would you do that?”
She considered. “Because I’m on break, you’re obviously stuck, and I’m nice that way.”
“I can probably fix it.”
She stared for a good ten seconds as he continued to tinker. Finally, she hitched her purse higher on her shoulder. “Suit
yourself.” She continued down the sidewalk. Why did she feel let down? Why did the pie suddenly seem like a sad backup option?
She’d just wanted to do a good deed, that was all.
“Hey, wait a minute.”
Shelby turned, shaded her face with a hand as she regarded him.
“You’d really give me a ride?”
She rolled her eyes. “Why wouldn’t I?”
He stared at her for a long second, seeming to consider. “Thanks.”
He dropped the hood and followed her to the old Civic. The one time her boyfriend had ridden with her, she’d been so embarrassed.
He drove a shiny new BMW his parents had gifted him for his sixteenth birthday. The old Civic was in pretty rough shape. The
interior had definitely seen better days, and the mats were long gone, exposing the worn, stained carpet.
But she had no such qualms with Gray riding along, given that he drove that old beater and, until recently, had lived in a
run-down trailer park in the worst part of town.
She started the car and lowered the windows to let out the hot, stuffy air. Her hands shook as she put the gear in Reverse and backed out. Gray made the space feel small and cramped. His muscular leg was right there . His earthy smell filled the interior and she drew in a long breath full.
“Romance, huh?” He held her copy of My One and Only .
She snatched away the Kristan Higgins novel, going warm all over. “One of the many genres I read. Anyway, there’s nothing
wrong with romance.”
“Didn’t say there was.”
“Your tone said plenty. Romances are hopeful and inspiring and feature strong protagonists who fight for what they want. They
examine deep-rooted issues and promote healthy relationships and, laugh all you want, but love happens to be an emotion common
to the human experience, and exploring it is a worthwhile endeavor. You’d know that if you ever bothered to read one.”
He glanced her way, the corner of his mouth tilting with amusement.
“What?”
“Nothing. I just wondered when I’d finally see that spark of yours, that’s all.”
Shelby frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“I don’t know. It just seems like you’re Little Miss Sunshine around school, and ever since I started working for your grandma
you’ve been slinking around—”
“Slinking?”
“—the store. I knew you had it in you. Are you finally going to ask me now?”
The boy made no sense. She gave her head a shake. “Ask you what? What are you even talking about?”
He smirked. That steady gaze seemed to penetrate through her irises and into the neurons of her brain where all her secrets
resided. “If the rumors are true.”
She dragged her gaze back to the road and couldn’t even pretend she didn’t know what he was referring to. “If you really did all those things, you could just lie about it.”
He shrugged. “Guess you’ll just have to believe whatever you want then.”
“Guess I will.” She slowed for the light but it turned green so she continued on.
“I live on Juniper, down near Timber Bay.”
“I know where you live.” She could practically feel the arrogance rippling off him and resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
“I know where Miss Dorothy lives. She and my grandma have been friends for, like, fifty years, you know. I couldn’t care less where you live.”
He chuckled.
The low rumble ran right up her spine. “What? What is so funny?”
He stared at her for a long minute. Not that she even glanced his way, but his laser-like attention made her skin prickle.
Just when she thought she couldn’t take it another second, he spoke.
“Little Miss Sunshine’s all riled up. Why do you suppose that is?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Because you’re condescending and boorish?”
“Boorish?”
She notched her chin up. “It means ill-mannered.”
“I know what it means, Sunshine. I’m just not sure what I’ve done to deserve such an insult.”
She spared him a withering look. “Stop calling me that.”
“Most people consider sunshine a positive thing. It provides light and warmth. Life on planet Earth wouldn’t exist without
it, you know.”
“It’s quite obvious you have nothing but disdain for me.”
“Oh, you think it’s disdain, do you?” Amusement laced his voice.
Shelby huffed. The boy was maddening. Why had she offered him a ride?
Sometimes she was just too darn nice! She should’ve left him there, broken down in the heat.
Should’ve let him walk home. She just wouldn’t engage him.
A few more minutes and she’d be dropping him off and she wouldn’t have to speak to him ever again.
“Got no answer for me?”
Nope. Wasn’t going to do it. She clamped her lips shut.
“Just going to sit there in silence for the rest of the ride, huh? It’ll be a long few minutes...”
He sure wasn’t kidding about that. The speed limit around the lake was fifteen miles per hour, and with all the turns in the
road, she couldn’t exactly speed.
She raised the front windows.
Gray jerked his arm out of the way.
Her lips twitched as she kicked the air on high. She slowed for a kid who ambled across the street in a pair of neon-green
trunks, heading toward the lake with an inner tube twice his size.
“Still not talking to me then?”
That stupid slow drawl of his jangled her last nerve. She glared at the boy and his ridiculously large tube as she drummed
her fingers on the steering wheel. Any day now, kid.
“So you’ve got a stubborn streak too. Good to know.”
Once the boy made it across, she accelerated only to slow down again for a speed bump. This ride would never end. This was
what she got for doing a good deed. For thinking that maybe Grayson Briggs was just a poor, misunderstood youth. That everyone
deserved a chance.
“Well, since we’ve got the time and you’re not up for conversation, guess I’ll fill the gap. I’d like to circle back around
to that word you used before— disdain. ’Cause, see, it’s not disdain I feel at all, Shelby.”
What the heck was he implying? Heat climbed her neck and flooded her cheeks. So maybe she’d stared at him a time or two. He
was interesting to look at, that was all. And she was maybe a little intrigued by him. He had an air of mystery about him.
But that was it. That was absolutely it.
His gaze burned into the side of her face.
Do not respond. She gritted her teeth together.
“See, what I’m feeling is altogether different from disdain, and for the record, I suspect I’m not alone here.” He paused
as if waiting for her reply. When it didn’t come, he continued. “This is where you tell me you have a wonderful boyfriend
and the two of y’all are just so in love. But I happen to know a little about your boyfriend. He’s actually a total jerk.
You just don’t know it yet.”
Shelby pressed the accelerator harder, took a speed bump too fast, and the car rattled. She couldn’t care less. Maybe it’d
shake some sense into Gray. All she cared about was getting him out of her car as quickly as possible.
And thank You, Jesus , she could see Miss Dorothy’s cottage straight ahead.
“Not going to defend him?” He paused. “All right. I’ll take that as a sign that you’re more perceptive than I gave you credit
for.”
Now in front of the house she pressed the brake, bringing the car to a bracing halt.
Gray took his time releasing his seat belt, then eased out of the car. He turned and flashed a grin. “Good talk, Sunshine.
Thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow.” He closed the door before she could respond.
Not that she was going to. He swaggered toward his grandma’s house, and she growled as she put the car in Drive, then muttered
a few things she was sure Gram wouldn’t approve of. Her tires spit gravel in her rush to escape. Tension throbbed at the base
of her neck, and her palms were slick with sweat. She wiped them one at a time down the length of her shorts. Thank God that
was over.