CHAPTER 3
ANDI
Hand in hand, we walk out of the commons area.
As we step out into the sunshine, I lift my face.
The cool breeze flushes my cheeks, and I can smell spring in the air.
It’s days like today that I would have been on Raine’s back, riding across the fields back home.
It makes me think of getting to know Callum.
“Do you ride horses?” I ask, wondering how much of a cowboy he really is.
“No.” He takes a deep breath. “I miss it, though. I grew up on a ranch in Wyoming. Someday I’ll settle down and buy enough land to have a couple of horses.”
He’s not ready to settle down. That thought hurts my heart for a moment, but I’m not sure I’m ready to settle down myself.
“Where is your dorm room?”
“This way.” I take the lead, and he follows along with his hand on my back.
Am I ready for a relationship? Especially with a man who isn’t ready to settle down. A man who could walk away from me at any moment.
We reach my building, and I swipe my key card to get inside. He follows me to the elevator. I punch the fourth-floor button, and he just stands there, a quiet presence at my side. My nerves start to fray. I can’t stop worrying about what’s about to happen.
When the doors swoosh open, I nearly burst forward, like Raine running out the gate. I walk down the hall to the end, where my corner dorm room waits. I enter my code into the keypad, and we step inside.
As I turn to ask him what he wants, he lifts me up and kicks the door closed. My back is pressed to the wood, and I’m locked eye to eye with Callum.
“Nymph, I need your lips. I knew if I kissed you in public, we’d get in trouble,” he says, and his lips are on mine.
My heart skids to a stop before taking off like a racehorse. His hands move to the sides of my head as his body holds me in place. I wrap my arms around his shoulders, and his hat hits the floor as I knock it off.
Now his hands are in my hair, tugging the messy bun free so he can guide my head with a firm pull of my hair. I move as he wants, and he dominates the kiss just like last night. When he’s done with my mouth, he starts nibbling at my neck, tracing down to the collar of my shirt.
“Fuck, beautiful. I want to get those breasts in my mouth again, but if I undress you, I’ll lose it and fuck you long and deep. Your body needs to recover from what I did to it last night. I was a bit rough on you.”
My breaths come in pants as I let my head fall back against the door with a thump. “I have an appointment in a couple of hours, and I’m meeting Lia.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were related to Striker and Amelia?” he asks as he sets me down.
I walk over and drop my bag on the long dresser by the door. My desk faces the window so I can look outside while I’m studying. I turn back to him, thinking about his question.
“I thought you knew.”
“No, I fucking didn’t know. I remember Amelia saying she was related to a barrel racer, but I never put two and two together.”
“Oh, okay. It’ll be fine.” I shake it off and walk over to straighten the blankets and sheets on my bed.
“We should probably keep us a secret for a bit,” he says.
I slowly turn to look at him.
“Why?” I ask, my voice quivering.
Everything keeps ticking against us being together. He contradicts himself every time he speaks. One minute I’m his, and the next he wants to keep me a secret.
“Andi, I want to tell the world about you, but I have to talk to Striker first. It’s club politics. I won’t always be able to tell you everything when it comes to the club.”
“I understand.” I try to hide my disappointment with a small smile.
“Good girl. Come give me a kiss again, then I’ll get out of here before I take you on that bed.”
My chest tightens, and I know I’m not being naive. I understand what’s club business and what isn’t. I don’t know why he’s claiming I’m club business.
I step toward him, and when he pulls me into his body, all my doubts vanish.
I go with the feelings he evokes in me. I want this.
I shouldn’t, but I do. It’s new and something the old me never would’ve done.
He kisses me so thoroughly that my head spins and I’m breathless when he pulls away.
Callum leans down to kiss my forehead before stepping out the door, leaving me alone.
I fall back onto the bed, going over everything that just happened.
Pulling out my phone, I text Lennox that he’s gone, and not thirty seconds later, she’s knocking on my door.
Her room is down the hall, across from mine, closer to the elevator, which makes me wonder if she saw him leave.
I open the door, and she barrels in, plopping onto my bed.
“So I know you didn’t do the nasty because he wasn’t here long enough for that. I thought there was a lot of chemistry between you two, but you decided to keep it to a one-night stand?”
“No, we’re going to see where it goes, I guess.”
“What do you mean, you guess?”
I walk over and flop onto the other side of the bed, propping myself up on my elbow to face her.
“I don’t understand it all myself. He said he wanted me and still does.
He called me everything, but then…” I pause, trying to hide the hurt in my voice.
I want to be mature about this relationship.
“He said he wanted to keep us a secret.”
Lennox pops up so fast the bed shakes. “He what? Oh no, he didn’t. You aren’t going to be his dirty little secret. He’s in another relationship, I bet.”
“He said it was club business. He has to talk to Striker.” I try to defend Callum, but it sounds hollow even to my own ears.
“About what? Striker isn’t your brother or family.”
I shrug. “I don’t know.”
My phone buzzes, and I roll from the bed to get it. It’s a text from Lia, asking if we want to meet at the bakery in town near the salon. I tell her sure, then grab my bag and keys. We head to Lennox’s room to gather her things, and then we head out.
I find my brand-new shiny black GMC Sierra HD in the student lot and climb in. I bought the biggest truck I could without going to a small semi so I could pull the horse trailer I purchased too. The trailer has a small living quarters area at the front and space for two horses, plus a tack room.
It was going to be perfect for another season of racing. I wouldn’t have to stay with my mother and grandmother. But that season never happened. The trailer now sits in storage at my grandmother’s place.
“Well, well.” Lennox chuckles from the passenger seat, and I look over to see her holding a deep red rose. It’s beautiful, with a gold ribbon wrapped around it. “I guess he might be into you. There’s even a card.”
I take the rose from her and lift it to my face, inhaling its scent deeply. I love roses. Opening the envelope, I find a simple card written in his flowing script.
Nymph, I wish you hadn’t run from me, but I’ll make it right. Thank you for the gift you gave me last night. I saw this ribbon, and it reminded me of your eyes while you were lying in my bed.
I press the card to my chest. How can this mean nothing? My heart gives a hard thump as I tuck the card into the center console. It’s for my eyes only. I rest the rose on top of the console before we take off.
We head into the art district Lia likes to visit.
There’s a tattoo parlor a friend of hers owns, the salon she goes to, and the new bakery that just opened.
I park in the lot next to the bakery. Lia is already here, waiting.
She meets me at my door. Her belly is so round from her pregnancy that she waddles full on.
I was only three when she had Jude, so I don’t remember her being pregnant with him.
“Hey, Andi.” Lia smiles. She spots the rose on the console and looks between Lennox and me. “Okay, whose is that?”
“Don’t look at me.” Lennox throws me under the bus. “Must be the late-night queen here.” She backs it up and runs me over again.
I slide out of the truck. “I met someone, and it’s really new. I’m not ready to talk about it yet.”
“Okay, keep your secrets.”
This is why I love her so much. My mom and grandma would say that being in a relationship now is stupid because I’ll be moving as soon as I get my degree. They’d also say shit like I don’t need the distractions from classes or from healing.
“I will.” I sass back and hold out my arm for her to walk with me.
“Girl, I feel like a beached whale right now. These boys are so big.”
I lean forward and hold out my hand, silently asking before rubbing her belly. She nods, and I place my hand on her stomach. “How are Auntie’s boys doing?” I whisper to her belly when she comes to a stop. “Be good for me. I’ll see you soon.”
“I love that you’re so excited for them.”
“Aren’t you?” I ask as we start walking again.
“I am. I just mean that… Well, with you not…” She trails off, leaving it open, and I take a deep breath.
“Don’t listen to them,” I say, knowing exactly what she means.
“I tell you that all the time. They don’t know what I want from my life.
I can’t wait to have children. I got on birth control to regulate my periods.
When I find the right guy, I’ll stop and have kids then. When I want, not when they want.”
“Dang, girl, your family makes me glad I don’t have one.” Lennox chuckles as we open the bakery door.
The woman behind the counter is a pretty blonde, with a cute, small boy with dirty-blond hair beside her. They’re signing back and forth, and she turns to us before he does.
“Just a moment.” She smiles at us before turning back to the boy. She signs something to him, then starts talking. “You can use your voice, Mace. Practice. No one will laugh at you, and if they do, Mama will kick their butts.”
The boy laughs, and then tries to speak.
“They told us to practice.” His voice has a high-pitched quality to it, different from other children his age.
He also fluctuates his sounds, taking his time with each word.
The boy skips over to a table and starts working on something before the woman turns to us.
“Hello, welcome in. I’m Keighley.”
“Hello, I’m Lia. Do you own this place? I’ve been in a couple of times before. I love it here.”
“Thank you. No, I don’t own it. I help my friend part time when I don’t have a shift at the hospital. She’s out today.” Keighley informs us, then proceeds to tell us what she has fresh in the cabinets.
I order a raspberry tart, while Lia and Lennox each order cake pops. We all get cups of tea and sit down at a small table, biding time until my appointment.
“Have you changed your mind about cutting your hair?” Lia asks me.
“Nope. I’m tired of it being this long. I want something easier to manage and that won’t give me headaches.”
“Joely is awesome. You’ll love her,” Lia says.
“I’ve never had a hairdresser cut it. Grandma always just trimmed my ends.”
“And that’s why you’ve never had another style but the long one. I like your grandma, but she can be overbearing.” Lia takes a bite of her cake pop.
“So let me get this straight. You’re both cousins, but Andi’s grandma isn’t yours, correct?” Lennox asks Lia.
“Yeah. Our moms were sisters,” I answer for her. “My mom was the oops baby, so there was a huge age gap between them. Lia’s mom passed years ago. Mine married her high school sweetheart and lived on his ranch with his family. He died when I was ten.” I give her the condensed version.
“Sorry for your losses.”
“Both of them were murdered,” Amelia adds. “My mom was dying, but my father’s mistress couldn’t wait and killed her. And Andi’s dad was killed by a woman who wanted the ranch.”
“Dang. Drama follows you all. Remind me not to drink that water.” Lennox chuckles.
I know it bothers my friend, though. She’s from somewhere out west and was raised by adoptive parents who recently passed away. She doesn’t have any other family.
After we finish our sweets, we gather our things and head for the door.
“Hey, Keighley, take care. If you ever want to talk to someone who was a single mom for a long time, give me a call.” Lia hands her card to Keighley.
“How did you know?”
“I know.” That’s all Lia says, and we walk out.
The salon is bustling when we enter. The mix of scents overwhelms me for a moment, but I’m excited for the new experience.
A woman in heels walks over to greet us.
She’s curvy, with full breasts and cute dimples in her cheeks when she smiles.
Her hair is dyed black, blond, and bright pink.
Her eyebrows are perfectly sculpted, though a scar runs through one, and her makeup is on point.
She has a nose piercing, and both ears are pierced multiple times.
“I’m Joely. You must be Andi.” She reaches out her hand, and I shake it. She’s beautiful, with her tattoos and edgy look.
“Yeah.” I reach up, pull the messy bun from my hair, and let it cascade down to my waist.
“That’s a lot of thick hair.”
“It gives me headaches, and I’m tired of it. I want something shorter.”
“Come with me. You ladies can come too.” She turns to Lia and Lennox. “How is Mama doing today?” Joely asks Lia.
“I’m tired. I swear these boys are going to eat me from the inside out. Maybe they’re parasites.” She jokes.
“Parasite. Parasite. Take it back,” Joely says, and Lennox laughs.
I don’t get it. They all look at me when I don’t respond.
“Oh, it’s a line out of Venom. That’s a good movie with a sexy guy. You should see it,” Joely says.
“I will.” I chuckle.
Joely leads me to her chair and instructs me to sit and look at her in the mirror. She adjusts the seat to the height she needs before brushing out my hair.
“It looks wavy a bit, but not too much. No curls either. Have you ever noticed them?”
“No. Just long, thick, and straight. It’s only wavy because I braided it last night after my shower, and it’s been mostly up all day too.” My mind briefly flickers to Callum freeing my bun to kiss me.
“Ah, okay. How short are you thinking of going?”
I point out where I want it, and she puts it in a ponytail before cutting it off.
She assures me she’ll shape it up, then spends the next hour pampering me as we visit and get to know each other.
She tells Lennox and me that we should come hang out with her in town and check out the clubs that allow underage people.