Chapter 12
My phone beeps. It’s Axl calling.
“Senna, I have to go. Axl’s on the other line.”
“Yeah, okay. Talk to you later.”
“Axl?” I say, switching over to his call.
“Babe, I’m really sorry. It’s been a shitty day and I haven’t had a chance to call.”
“It’s okay. What happened?”
“Some guy tried to rob the store. Rhonda was working the register. I was in the back.”
“Is she okay? Are you?”
“I’m fine. Rhonda’s freaking out. She thought the guy was gonna shoot her.”
“Did he get away?”
“No, the cops were just down the street. I called it in and they were there before the guy even had a chance to take anything.”
I take a breath, relieved he’s okay. “Axl, you’re a hero.”
“Not really. I just called the cops. Anyone could’ve done it.”
I spent the day thinking he was cheating on me when the truth was, he was saving people from an armed robber. I seriously need to stop this. Axl’s a good guy. A good boyfriend and a good person. Why was I even considering he’d cheat on me?
“My mom heard about it on the news and called me,” he says. “Right when I was about to call you.”
That’s why his phone was busy. He was talking to his mom.
“I’m glad you’re okay. Did they close the store?”
“Just for today. It reopens in the morning. I’m taking Rhonda’s shift, so I’ll be doing a double.”
“Sounds like you’ve been working a lot of hours this week.”
“I have to. It’s the only thing keeping my mind off you being gone. I miss you like crazy, Rumor.”
“I miss you too.”
“You think you’ll make it back here anytime soon? Like next week?”
I smile. “I wish I could. Maybe Thanksgiving. Think your mom would let me come over?”
“You know she would. She loves you. But I don’t think I can wait until Thanksgiving. You sure you can’t fly out here next month? Even for just a weekend?”
“Maybe. My uncle will tell me I can’t but he’s never around. I’ll just wait until he goes back to LA, then get a ticket.”
I hear a noise coming from behind me. It sounds like someone trying to unlock the door.
“Axl, I need to go. Can I call you later?”
“I’m going to bed. I know it’s early, but I feel like shit after everything that happened today.”
“Okay, we’ll talk tomorrow. Love you!”
“Love you too.”
As I’m heading to the door, it swings open, and a girl walks in. She’s really beautiful with wavy blonde hair and a face like a model with high cheekbones and bright blue eyes. She’s short and petite but has big breasts.
“Hi,” I say, going up to her. “Are you here to see Jackson?”
She eyes me suspiciously. “Who are you?”
“Rumor. I live down the street.”
She glances at my body, then up to my face. “Jackson didn’t tell me about you.”
“We just met. It was kind of by accident. Are you his girlfriend?”
She looks to the side, toward Jackson’s room, then back at me. “I’m Kristen.” She extends her hand to me.
“Rumor,” I say, shaking her hand.
“And who are you again?”
“A neighbor. I live in that big white house near the corner.”
“Braden’s house?”
“You know my cousin?”
“Cousin?” she asks, sounding surprised. “You’re Braden’s cousin?”
“Yeah. How do you know him?”
“He goes to my school.”
“You go to Twisted Pine?”
“Yeah, I’ll be a senior this year.”
“Me too, and I really need someone who can tell me the truth about the place. All I get from Braden and Trystan are these cryptic warnings about following the rules, but then they don’t tell me what these rules are. Knowing them, they’re just making it all up.”
“I’ll come back later,” she says, turning and walking out the door.
“Wait!” I run after her. “I didn’t mean to scare you off. You’re obviously here to see Jackson. I’ll just leave.”
She looks back at the house. “I should go. Jackson wasn’t expecting me. Tell him I’ll call him later.” She hurries off, and I watch as she gets in a silver BMW convertible.
I go back inside and find Jackson coming down the hall, wearing only a towel on his lower half, making my eyes linger on his perfectly sculpted abs.
“Who was that?” he asks, walking toward me.
“Your girlfriend,” I say, although she never confirmed that.
“You mean Kristen?”
“Yeah. She’s really pretty. Does she model?”
He goes to the door and opens it. “Where’d she go?”
“She left. She seemed kind of upset I was here. I told her I’m just a neighbor. I offered to leave but she took off. Sorry. I hope I didn’t mess up things with your girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.” He slams the door shut. “Stop calling her that.”
“But didn’t you—” I stop before I tell him what I saw that night. He’d be angry I was on his beach, and even angrier that I was watching him through his windows.
“Didn’t I what?”
“Nothing. Never mind.” I walk to the door. “I think I’ll go.”
“You don’t have to. If you need to hide out here longer, it’s fine. I’m going to get dressed.”
He returns to his room while I remain at the door, trying to decide what to do. Going home will mean fighting with Brock, but staying here feels awkward after that unexpected visit from Kristen.
Maybe I’ll stay just a little longer, but I really need a restroom. I go down to Jackson’s room and stand outside his door.
“Jackson, can I use your bathroom?”
He doesn’t answer.
“Jackson?”
I’m about to knock but then hear him talking.
“She’s not — that’s not what happened. Kristen, don’t be this way. We had an agreement.” He continues to talk, but I can’t hear what he’s saying. He must’ve walked away from the door.
Turning around, I see the bathroom just across from me. I’m sure Jackson won’t care if I use it.
“Nothing happened!” I hear Jackson say, his voice raised.
“We’re not doing this again.” He pauses.
“Kristen, listen to me. I’m not getting in the middle of that shit.
I’ll still help you, but I can’t do what you’re asking.
I’ve already done more than I should. And leave Rumor alone.
She’s not part of this, and she’s not staying.
She’s leaving at the end of the year.” He’s quiet, then says, “Yeah, see you then.”
As I turn to go to the bathroom, his door swings open. “What are you doing?”
I turn around. “I was going to use your bathroom. Is that okay?”
“Yeah. Go ahead.” He goes past me, still only wearing a towel, and seeming angry.
My heart’s racing, and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m agitated by his sharp change in mood or because of what I just heard.
What was he talking about? What agreement does he have with Kristen? What is he helping her with? And why did he tell her to leave me alone? What did he think she would do?
After I use the bathroom, I go find Jackson in the kitchen, staring at the open fridge.
“I’m gonna head out,” I say.
“Yeah, okay.”
“Guess I’ll see you around.”
He doesn’t respond, still staring at the fridge.
I leave and walk back to Brock’s house. As I approach it, I see him pulling out of the driveway. I duck behind a shrub in the neighbor’s yard and wait until he’s gone before continuing to the house.
When I go inside, I run right into Maria. She’s holding a basket of laundry.
“Sorry,” I say. “I wasn’t looking.”
“No worries,” she says, smiling. “We’ll leave at two. Will that work?”
“Yeah. I’ll be in my room.” I walk off.
“Thank you for what you did,” I hear her say.
I turn and walk back to her. “Sorry he blamed you. I can’t believe he accused you like that.”
She shrugs. “The help always gets blamed.”
“Thanks for covering for me about the phone.”
She smiles. “I saw you with that boy. I figured you didn’t want your uncle to know.”
“He’s just a neighbor. There’s nothing going on with us. I have a boyfriend.”
“A boyfriend?” She winks at me. “You’ll have to tell me all about him on our outing this afternoon. See you then.”
She goes up the stairs with the laundry while I go into my room.
I get out my phone and open my photos to one of Axl.
He’s hot, but in a different way than Jackson.
I never thought I’d be attracted to a guy like Jackson, and yet I can’t stop thinking about him.
I even caught myself imagining what it’d be like to kiss him.
I felt guilty for even letting my mind go there.
I told myself it’d never happen again, but then it did when I saw him today at the door, and then later when he was only wearing a towel.
Why is this happening? Is it because I miss Axl? Or am I having feelings for Jackson? Feelings I shouldn’t be having?
Just before two, Maria knocks on my door.
“Ready to go?”
“Yeah.” I open the door and find her standing there with her purse over her shoulder and keys in her hand. “Do I need anything?”
“No. I’ll pay for everything with Brock’s card. Oh.” She pulls a card from her purse. “This is yours.”
I take the card. “Is this my debit card?”
“Yes. The money is in your account.”
We walk through the living room and go down the hall that leads to the garage.
“Does Brock track what I use it for?” I ask, shoving the card in my pocket.
“He doesn’t with the boys, unless they use up their allowance before the end of the month. They’ve learned to keep some in there, so he doesn’t check.”
“I bet he’ll check mine. The rules seem to be different for me.”
We go out to the garage, and Maria walks over to a rusty white van. When I get in, I see the back is filled with cleaning supplies and vacuums.
“Give it time,” Maria says as we drive away from the house. “Brock has a hard enough time being a father to the boys. Now he has a girl and he’s not sure what to do. Raising girls is different than raising boys.”
“But I’m not his kid. And I’m already raised. I’m practically an adult.”
“He has responsibility for you, so he’ll worry about you just like he does the boys.”
“I don’t think he worries about any of us. I think he only worries about himself.” I turn to her. “Don’t tell him I said that.”
She smiles. “It’ll stay between us.”
I sit back in my seat. “Do you like working for Brock?”
“It’s a job,” she says. “I can’t complain.”