CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
Colson
High School
“He’s a menace,” Mason brushes past my shoulder, glaring across the soccer field at Bowen.
He’s not wrong. After four years, Bowen’s gotten pretty good. Unfortunately, it’s because he’s perfected his dirty plays. He could’ve been captain, but his penchant for throwing elbows and starting fights got in the way.
Dire Ridge and Canaan only play each other once per season, but everyone knows him and what he does. And I know what he does off the field, too, which is pretty much the same thing.
He’s a menace.
Not that I’m any better, I just don’t run my mouth as much.
Thoroughly displeased, Coach O’Malley paces along the sideline in front of the bench where Alex is laid out with a medic and a couple of trainers hovering over his face. They poke his cheeks and shove gauze up his nostrils while they try to determine whether Bowen broke his nose just minutes before. He was the obvious target—one of our best players second only to Aiden, who throws just as many cheap shots as Bowen.
O’Malley just finished chewing out the ref, but to no avail. Then again, chewing out is relative. He’s all about sportsmanship and the love of the game, so he’s not about to start throwing hands, even over elbow shots. Instead, he stalks along the edge of the field, red-faced, focusing on smart plays instead of revenge.
Strolling back onto the field, I survey the landscape. Bowen saunters back to his position, wiping the sweat from his brow over his shiny black mop tied into a bun at the crown of his head. Then I shift my focus over his shoulder at the stands. Scanning the bleachers, I find her in no time. Her bright crimson hair always gives her away, which is why I never lose her in a crowd.
Evie’s standing between Hildy and Hannah, all three of them in the first row leaning over the concrete ledge stamped with the giant blue Dire Wolves logo. Although it’s a home game and our side is much larger, the stands are split neatly down the middle, the left side a block of red and the right a block of blue. When Evie sees me looking at her, she starts waving her arm wildly. I flash her a smile and then turn my attention back to the game.
I glance back at Alex, reclined on the bench with his bloody nose, and then I look to my left, where Mason is about to throw the ball in. It’s a split-second decision, but what kind of player are you if you can’t seize opportunities when they present themselves?
Ignoring the play, I set my sights on Bowen and begin moving across the field. He’s focused, eyes darting between Rory guarding him and Aiden with the ball. He pivots in my direction and starts running at full speed, eyes trained on the ball as he tries to get into a good position.
He’s blind-sided and has no idea what hits him.
Matching Bowen’s speed, I come in like a freight train, drop down, and slide at the last second, knocking his ankles out from under him and flipping him head over heels. He catches so much air, he doesn’t even touch me before he comes crashing back to earth. When I stand up, Bowen’s lying on his back, rolling from side to side, his jaw hanging open and his eyes rolling back and forth.
The stands erupt in a mixture of outrage and cheers. Nobody seems to care about the red card I get for that one, least of all me. In the meantime, Aiden scores, which only riles up the crowd further.
I’m prepared to get reamed out by O’Malley as soon as I get within earshot, but it never happens. To the untrained eye, O’Malley looks unfazed, glaring out onto the field with his arms crossed as he paces back and forth. It’s only when he turns to the assistant coaches and gives a shrug that I catch his mustache twitch in a momentary snicker.
When Bowen finally makes it to his feet, he heads straight for me. Frankly, I’m surprised he can still walk. I spin around to face him with a smirk.
“Come on, Lutz!” he lunges at me, shoving my chest, “Come at me, motherfucker!”
But I have a good two inches on him and it’s not long before a buffer of players from both sides rushes in and he’s restrained, shouting obscenities at me as he’s dragged the other direction. I flash my eyes at him, backing away as the ref tries to keep control of the situation.
Aiden shoots me a devious grin from across the field as I stroll along the bench, throwing my arm out to smack palms with Alex and the other players cackling on the sidelines. I raise my arm as I pass the stands, drawing screams of bloodlust from the crowd as I curl my fingers in a beckoning motion.
The cheers turn to rage as soon as I cross the invisible line dividing Dire Ridge and Canaan. When I reach Evie, her jaw is nearly on the concrete. Hildy is scowling at me, yelling something about that being a dick move, as if she can fucking talk.
Colson …Evie mouths as she stifles a laugh.
Lingering in front of her, I give a shrug before slowly circling back to the bench. Who doesn’t love a little bloodlust? And it seems to work because we end up beating Canaan after Aiden scores another goal.
The post-game handshake is no different. While everyone else is busy giving their usual congratulations, I’m content to call it even with Bowen until he seizes my hand and doesn’t let go. When I whip around, he’s glowering at me with a little smirk, clenching my hand at his waist.
Mason bumps into my back when I stop short, and immediately brings his fist down on Bowen’s arm as soon as he sees what’s going down. Behind Bowen, Jay Rhinehardt gives Mason a shove and immediately earns a body slam from Aiden. Jay tries to lunge forward again, but is immediately grabbed by one of Canaan’s coaches and thrown back toward their bench while Aiden chortles maniacally. The field is about to descend into chaos when the scuffle is interrupted by Rory’s deep voice.
“Beasts of waste!” our team captain booms behind us.
“Beasts of desolation!” yells another, drawing our attention.
“We die alone!”
“But together—”
“ Rulers of creation! ” the entire team roars in unison, finishing the Dire Wolves cheer with a cacophony of howls into the night sky as we turn to jog toward the entrance to the field.
When Mason and I emerge from the gymnasium doors with the rest of the team, Evie’s making her way across the lawn. “Hey, stone cold stunner,” she laughs as she stops in front of us.
“Eh, it was closer to a leg sweep,” I give a half shrug, “but we could’ve played better.”
“You know that’s not what I’m talking about. You and your sweet moves are all over social now.”
I arch my brow at her, “Already?”
There’s a snicker from Mason and he nudges my arm, holding his phone out in front of me. He lets out a howl at the point in the video when I slam into Bowen, launching him into the air. I have to admit, it’s pretty impressive from a distance.
“Shit,” I steal a glance over Evie’s head at the Canaan bus parked in front of the school, “poor Bowen. ”
“Not gonna lie,” she rolls her eyes and mutters out of the corner of her mouth, “it was pretty freaking funny.” Then she reaches up and pokes me in the chest, “Hey, can we go to the outlets when I come up this weekend?”
“What makes you think I want to spend my Saturday shopping with you?”
Evie gives me a side-eye, “Because you like shopping with me.”
“Why don’t you ask Mason?” I nod to my right, “He’s been wanting to take you out for a while. He’ll buy you whatever you want.”
Mason’s brow shoots up and I watch with amusement as he opens his mouth in shock, but nothing comes out.
Evie rolls her eyes, brushing me off, “Anyway, I’ll text you when I’m heading up.” She raises her arms and I do the same, wrapping her in a tight hug before she runs back across the parking lot.
Once she’s gone, Mason furrows his brow, “What the hell, dude?” he hisses.
“I’m trying to help you out,” I lean against the column of the awning, “she would’ve said yes if you asked.”
He ignores me and shoves his phone in his bag while we continue to wait for Aiden and Alex. I’m about to toss another jab his way when I catch him staring across the grass at the sidewalk. He’s tracking four girls as they make their way past us toward the line of cars on the street. The two in front, Bryce Decker and Logan Parrish, wave and yell at someone in the distance while the other two girls lag behind them.
The one with long dirty blonde hair and olive skin, Tyler Nixon, walks slowly while digging through her bag. She surreptitiously glances up as she passes, only to avert her eyes in panic when she realizes she’s been caught. Mason looks on, biting his lip so hard it’s about to bleed, but I don’t say anything. He flinches when Aiden appears out of nowhere and plants his hand on the column next to his head.
Spotting Sydney Van Doren at Tyler’s side, Aiden cranes his neck like a cat tracking its prey and bounds down the steps, taking a few strides into the grass before he makes a show of whistling to her. But it’s not flirtatious so much as he sounds like he’s whistling for a dog. Sydney whips her head around, tossing her icy blonde hair over her shoulder as she scowls, searching for the source of the sound. But she knows it’s him. Sydney glares at Aiden for a few moments as he squares off with her, but when Tyler stops to see what’s happened, Sydney continues down the sidewalk, hurrying her along to catch up with the others.
“That poor girl…” I mutter with a half-smile.
Alex appears at my shoulder, having just arrived to witness the scene, “I can’t believe Sydney hasn’t left town yet because of you,” he chuckles at Aiden.
“She won’t,” is all Aiden says as he watches her go .
Just as the girls disappear behind a row of cars, I see Bowen standing with the rest of Canaan’s soccer team next to the bus. He’s leaning against the back bumper, staring at us with a deadass vacant look in his eye that lets me know how much I got to him. As much as Bowen wants to ignore me, he can’t. But he doesn’t try to pick a fight when I see him in Canaan or Hellbranch at parties, or at homecoming when I go as Evie’s date, or on the nights we all meet out in the corn fields to race on the desolate country roads. He acts relatively normal, and to anyone else, we might even appear to be friends.
But they would be wrong.
Instead, Bowen waits until spring and then texts me out of the blue.
BOWEN (9:26PM): Saturday. Let me see how fast that car can go.
ME (9:31PM): it’s a date sugar pie
Leland Wiltshire’s farm backs up to Hellbranch Creek on the west side of the Wyandot Nature Preserve, hidden behind a grove of pines where you can park an entire convoy of cars without drawing the wrong kind of attention.
Whether you go north or south around the preserve, you’ll hit Grisham Road, which slices the forest in half. At the intersection, there’s an abandoned motorcycle shop decaying into the cracked asphalt, threatening to get swallowed up by honeysuckle. The sign outside used to say Grumpy’s , but now it’s just a rotting, faded slab of wood. Whenever I come to Canaan to race, we always meet at Leland’s.
By the time I park my black Civic behind the grove of pines next to the Wiltshire’s pole building, the clearing is already filled with cars and people milling around. I round the front of the car, meeting Evie on the other side as she grabs her backpack out of the backseat.
“Are you riding with Hildy to Grump’s?”
I don’t need to ask. I assume as much since she’s staying the night at Hildy’s. Evie usually rides with me wherever we go, but I won’t let her race with me.
“No…” Evie gives a little smile before quickly glancing over her shoulder.
Bowen’s leaning against the hood of his car at the opposite end of the pole building, talking to Jay while he smokes a cigarette.
“No,” I give a curt shake of my head, “no fucking way you’re getting in that car with him.”
I know exactly what he said to her, because I’ve said the same thing before strapping some girl into my car so I can get off on her screams when I slingshot around a blind curve into a straightaway and hit 90 all the way to the bridge at the creek.
Be my shotgun, then I’ll be yours later …
Some dumb shit like that. And it works like a charm. Every…single…time.
Evie knits her brow in confusion, “Why not?”
“Because he’s racing me and I know how he’s going to drive trying to beat me.”
She lets out an exasperated groan, “Come on, Col, don’t do this…”
“Don’t do what?”
“Girls ride with you all the time!” she exclaims. “Besides, Bo’s not some rando asshole. He’s my friend.”
“Bullshit, he’s your friend!” I hiss, towering over her.
Friend …I don’t know whether to laugh or punch someone. The thought of Bowen Garrison watching a romcom with Evie or listening to her fret about Carly Buchignani, who plays for St. Iggy, looks like a linebacker, and throws the fastest pitches in the state, sounds ridiculous. Has he even been to one of her games?
He would only do that kind of shit if…
“I don’t need your permission,” she states with conviction, “I’m riding with Bo.”
“The fuck you are,” I invade her space even more.
When I glance over the roof of the car, I realize Bowen is watching us intently. He tips his chin up, peering at me as he sucks on his cigarette. The louder my voice gets, the more it draws him in like a moth to a flame. The last thing I need right now is him wandering over here to see what’s going on.
I let out an irritated groan. Since when does Evie describe Bowen as her friend? Hannah is her friend, Hildy is her best friend, and Bowen is neither.
Then it dawns on me. Maybe this is what he’s been doing since last fall…
“He’s not bad, Col,” Evie softens her voice, “why do you hate him so much?”
I tighten my jaw, “Because I know him, Evie. And you should, too, by now. I know the kind of shit he does and who he does it with.”
She narrows her eyes, but there’s hint of disappointment in them, “And there’s no possible way he could be interested in someone like me .”
Shit…
“Don’t you fucking do that, Evie,” I grit my teeth, “you know exactly what I mean. He does what he wants, when he wants, and doesn’t care who gets in his way.”
“Like you?” she glares back at me.
I just stare at Evie, because she knows me, and she’s right. And fuck Bowen.
I’m standing here trying to convince her why she shouldn’t give him the time of day, and it’s because of what happened two months ago in the pole building right behind his car. And I can’t say shit because it would mean I’d have to tell her about the last real conversation I had with Bowen, when I was sitting on a rodent-infested couch behind a back hoe getting my dick sucked by some girl from Hellbranch.
●●●
Everyone else is at the other end of the building with three coolers worth of beer and a few handles of whiskey. Any suspicious noises are easily drowned out by the bass pumping through the speakers on the workbench and the distant hum of a snowmobile somewhere out in the fields. Out of nowhere, a tall girl with dark hair appears from behind the John Deere back hoe with Bowen on her heels.
When she sees me, she immediately freezes in surprise and raises her hands apologetically before turning around. But instead of leaving, Bowen blocks her path and nods to the couch.
She glances between us with apprehension, but Bowen steps past her with indifference, “Col doesn’t mind.”
The blonde Hellbranch girl between my knees startles and her eyes go wide. But before she can lift her head too high, I grasp the back of her neck and push her back down, massaging the center of her shoulders until she relaxes again.
Bowen collapses onto the tattered cushion next to me, so close that his arm bumps mine. I don’t know why he’s over here, it’s more commonplace for him to bend a girl—or two—over a folding table and fuck her in front of 15 people holding Solo cups. He likes to be center stage.
He peers into my lap, “Well, she’s just as cute as a button,” he comments before swinging one arm behind his head and beckoning for the tall girl.
She looks slightly unnerved at first, but complies, stepping up to the couch and sinking down in front of him. She must not know Bowen very well. But she doesn’t waste any time in tearing open his jeans and going at his dick like it’s a goddamn Rocket Pop.
Once she gets to work, Bowen turns to me, “Is Evie here?”
Are you fucking kidding me right now?
Bro seriously has zero chill.
“No,” I mumble, sucking in a breath as Hellbranch Girl slowly deep throats me.
“She was talking about Evanescence the other day,” he stares down at Tall Girl as she runs her tongue up his dick and closes her mouth around his tip, “that’s her favorite band, right?” It doesn’t seem to bother him when I don’t respond. “They’ll be here this summer, do you think I should take her?”
At that, Tall Girl glances up at Bowen. He catches the affront in her eyes and pushes her face back down. She clearly doesn’t know him if she thinks any of this involves feelings or will continue past tonight. I just try to ignore him, watching Hellbranch Girl as she wags her tongue back and forth under my shaft.
I run my fingers through her wavy hair, “You like taking me deep?” She looks up at me with her blue eyes, rimmed with sharp black liner, and moans in response. “You going to be nice and swallow because you’re my little fuck doll tonight?” She nods, eager to please. “Yeah, you are,” I smirk.
I suddenly realize Bowen’s staring at the side of my head like he’s waiting for a response.
I glare at him in my periphery, “What the fuck are you doing?”
“Evie—” he breathes, letting his head fall back and closing his eyes, “should I take her to Evanescence?”
Shut the hell up about Evanescence. I don’t fucking care about Evanescence.
“No,” I mumble, staring down at Hellbranch Girl while she swirls her tongue around my tip.
“Why not?” Bowen lifts his head, taken aback, “Are you already taking her?”
“Jesus Christ…” I mutter, starting to lose my patience.
“It’s not like that, Col. Evie’s not like these two, ” he nods down to the girls at our feet, “she’s next level. She’s 10 times the effort, but I bet she’ll make you see God once you make the cut.”
I swear to God, if he wrecks my night…
But before I can even open my mouth, Tall Girl pauses and lifts her head, seething with anger. I roll my head back and close my eyes, trying to block out everything except Hellbranch Girl bobbing up and down on my dick, seemingly oblivious to Bowen’s commentary. Either she doesn’t care because I’m not the one dunking on her or she doesn’t have the audacity to stand up to Bowen.
“Say something,” Bowen challenges, glaring down at Tall Girl, “then you can swallow my kids and I’ll find another cunt out there that needs a good fucking.”
She glares at him for another moment, then slowly lowers her head and decides she’d rather stick around and take her chances. Granted, with the look he has in his eyes, she better like getting hate-fucked.
“I got your back, Col,” Bowen continues, “I take care of Evie when you’re not around—make sure she’s safe, that no one fucks with her, because things are different, now,” he turns and looks at my profile, “she wants my attention.”
My eyes fly open and I lift my head, staring straight ahead at the green siding of the back hoe. When I finally turn to Bowen, he’s watching Tall Girl, the corner of his mouth twitching into a snarl as she deep throats him. When she slides him halfway out, he grabs her by the back of her hair, making her yelp .
Holding her still, he leans in close and gets in her face, “You done being a little bitch?”
She presses her mouth shut and winces in pain as he clenches her hair tighter.
“Speak up, princess,” Bowen murmurs, his voice dripping with malice.
Tall Girl rakes her teeth over her bottom lip, “Yes,” she whispers.
His mouth curls with satisfaction, “I’m going to have a lot of fun fucking that self-righteousness out of you.”
I can’t help but roll my eyes, that’s rich...
Bowen stills for a moment, then suddenly his hand flies up and he pops her across the jaw. She gasps in shock and her eyes dart to me, then back to Bowen.
“Don’t look at him,” Bowen gives her head a jerk, “he’s not going to help you. I run your shit.”
Hellbranch Girl peers at them out of the corner of her eye but doesn’t break rhythm. Once he’s finished his reprimands, Bowen pushes Tall Girl’s shocked face back down onto his dick and turns his attention to me. Because now he knows he has mine.
“She was in our hot tub last night when I got home,” he shoots me a sideways glance, “they were drunk as skunks,” he chuckles.
Bowen reaches behind his back and pulls his phone out of his pocket. A few seconds later, he rotates the screen toward me and my chest tightens. It’s a picture of the hot tub on his deck, but Evie takes up most of the screen. She’s at the edge, holding her royal blue bikini top up so her glistening wet tits are on full display. Hildy’s on the other side of the hot tub, facing away, engrossed in her phone.
“She’s so fucking cute,” Bowen smiles and gazes at the screen with a twisted sense of endearment, “I don’t think she even remembers.”
But he doesn’t put his phone down. Instead, he props it up on the back of Tall Girl’s shoulders and stares at the screen while she bobs up and down. A few seconds later, he rotates the screen toward me with a grin. I curse under my breath as I stare at Bowen’s phone, squeezing Hellbranch Girl’s neck and pulsing her up and down on my dick.
I should look away, but I don’t. “Stay—” Hellbranch Girl sucks harder, but staring at the picture is what brings me to the edge, “the fuck away from her , ” I say through gritted teeth.
“From who, Col?” Bowen twists his mouth into a feral grin as he gazes at the screen.
“ Evie! ” I bark as my abs tense and I clench the back of Hellbranch Girl’s neck as I shoot my cum into the back of her throat.
My head collapses onto the back of the couch and I close my eyes as she fists my base, sucking every drop out of me. Bowen’s shoulder bumps against mine as he starts pumping Tall Girl’s head down harder .
“But I can’t stop thinking about her, Col,” his voice grinds through each breath, “all I want to do is lick her needy little clit and— oh, fuck, ” he throws his head back onto the cushion next to mine, “come in her tight little pussy.” His mouth falls open and he lets out a barrage of groans as he unloads into Tall Girl’s throat.
I cringe when I feel Bowen’s hair brush against my temple.
Why is he so goddamn close to me?
I stay still and try to disassociate, pretending that what just happened didn’t actually happen. After a couple of minutes, the cushion sinks down under me as Hellbranch Girl crawls into my lap. When I feel her bare legs and her wet skin against my stomach, I realize she’s naked from the waist down. She reaches down and starts working my dick to get me hard again, undeterred by Bowen’s stifling presence.
“Just imagine it’s her, Col,” Bowen murmurs, my stomach turning as his mouth brushes my ear, “I won’t tell…” he chuckles.
●●●
And now, here I am, back at Leland’s pole building, figuring out how to undo all of Bowen’s hard work. He wasn’t just trying to mess with my head, he had a plan. But there’s no way I can tell Evie about that shit. Ever.
Her soft voice brings me back, “I know what he does, Col,” she gazes up at me intently, “I’m at their house just as much as my mom’s.”
I hesitate for a moment as an idea comes to mind, “Is that why you like him, because he’s like me?”
Evie looks down at the carpet of pine needles at our feet and smiles.
Fine, I’ll play dirty.
I look over her shoulder and grin like I’m laughing, wide enough so Bowen can see and doesn’t think he needs to interfere because I’m not about to yell at her in front of everyone.
I lean down and speak softly next to her ear, “Hey,” I get her attention so she looks up at me, “you know why you like me so much?”
“Why?” Evie purses her lips in annoyance and waits for my answer.
“Because I think you’re better than everyone else, especially him,” I slowly drag my eyes up and down her figure, then lower my voice to a whisper, “and I don’t like sharing you.”
Evie lowers her eyes and stares at my chest, just breathing.
I lift my hand and slide it around her back to the space between her shirt and backpack, “You know what the best part is about you and me?” I gently push the back of her shirt up with my fingertips, “I can be your brother when you want me to be…” then I flatten my hand and push it down the back of her jeans, making her suck in a sharp breath, “I can be your best friend when you want me to be…” her soft cotton thong disappears over her curves the lower I go, “and when you get bored of that…” I hook a finger beneath the thin s trip at the top of her ass and give a slow tug, making her hand fly to my chest, “I can be everything else you’re afraid to ask for,” I finish as my mouth brushes against her ear.
Bowen’s still watching, but oblivious to what’s going on behind my car. Hildy and Hannah appear next to Jay, distracting them for a few moments. Evie looks up at me and opens her mouth like she wants to speak, but nothing comes out.
Keeping my eyes on Bowen, I give her ass a gentle squeeze, “If you do this one thing for me, just for tonight, I’ll do anything you want.”
Her smile is gone, replaced by something that falls somewhere between excitement and discomfort. I shift her slightly to the right, so we’re obscured by one of the pines, “You want me to spread your legs and ask you nicely?” I dip down and brush my lips across hers, making her hiss through her teeth.
She squeezes my shirt, “ Col …” she says with a shaky breath.
Brushing my nose against hers, I can feel her try to pull me in, but I don’t let her. Staying hidden behind the trees, I slide my hand up her neck and cup the side of her face. My other hand still on her ass, I press her against my hips so she can feel the hard ridge growing in my jeans.
“If you want me to kiss you,” I sharpen my tone, “tell me what I want to hear.”
Evie gazes up at me, cheeks flushed, and finally nods, “OK, fine,” she murmurs, “I won’t ride with him.”
I grin as I pull her face to mine and slide my tongue over hers. As soon as I do, she clenches the front of my shirt and walks her hands up to my shoulders, wrapping her arms around my neck. Reaching down, I grab one of her thighs and hike it up to my waist, pinning her back against my car while I keep one eye on the trees.
“Do you want to leave?” I ask between breaths, grinding my dick against her while she pants into my mouth, “Say fuck it and go home with me?” I shoot a Hail Mary just to see what’ll happen—to see how much I can get away with.
Evie squeezes my neck, kissing me hard, and then pulls away, clasping her hands and covering her mouth. She pauses, her eyes darting across the ground, and when she looks back up at me, a grin spreads across her face and she starts laughing nervously.
“Mm-hmm…” I love how flustered she is, fidgeting and adjusting herself like she doesn’t know where the hell she is, “it’s just as well. You wouldn’t be able to walk, much less run bases, by the time I finished with you.”
Evie’s jaw drops, “ Shut up! ”
“See you out there?” I smirk.
“Yeah,” she straightens her backpack straps and looks up at me with a smile, back to her normal self, “promise you’ll be careful, don’t do anything stupid. ”
“You got it.” She doesn’t promise to totally stay away from Bowen, but it’s enough for now. “Don’t get Jay’s seat wet…” I laugh as she turns away.
In a flash, Evie spins back around and slams her fist into my shoulder, knocking me back against my door, “Shit!” I laugh, grabbing my shoulder.
She’s trying not to laugh, and failing miserably. I shoot her a smug look and she responds with an eye roll before turning and continuing across the clearing to Bowen’s car.
I didn’t lie to Evie. I don’t know what I would’ve done if she agreed to leave with me. Scratch that—I know exactly what I would’ve done. I would’ve taken her back to Dire Ridge, done whatever she wanted me to do, and gladly accepted Bowen’s shit-talking. Nothing else matters; I’ll do a lot of things if it means Evie doesn’t end up wrapped around a tree with the twisted wreckage of Bowen’s car.
I turn and nearly have a heart attack. I startle and almost run straight into Mason, who appears out of the shadows like a creep. He’s standing motionless next to the hood, staring at me with his mouth ajar, and a smile playing on his lips.
Fuck…
The longer I look at him, the more I’m sure that he just witnessed the entire exchange, which is all but confirmed when he glances over his shoulder at the pole building and starts sniggering. Soon, he turns and collapses against the car, letting out a whoop of laughter.
“Laugh it up,” I say with a smirk, “I have my reasons. Just like you have yours for turning into Tyler Nixon’s shadow.”
Mason stills, my words slicing through him like a knife through butter. He shoots me a look, indicating we’re even, and leaves it at that. We head through the trees toward the rest of the cars and I do a doubletake as soon as I see Jay clearly for the first time.
He’s still standing next to Bowen’s car, but he’s wearing a large black brace on his knee. How could I have forgotten… I chuckle to myself. Good thing he’s not heading somewhere on sports scholarship next year since someone decided to go Tonya Harding on him a couple weeks ago and shatter his knee.
No witnesses, no arrests, but apparently, he survived and he’s recovering well. And Hildy doesn’t look deterred, she’s been following him around all night like a dog on a turkey bone.
I guess that’s what happens when you insult the wrong girl…
●●●
The route is a half-loop that begins at Leland’s driveway and ends at the ramshackle motorcycle shop. Technically, it crosses into Grayson County at the bridge over Hellbranch Creek and then back again as the road circles around Wyandot. I’ve never raced the southern route, only the north, and just once.
Bowen grins over at me from the left lane, revving his Lancer as he pushes his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose. As soon as we peel away from Leland’s house and explode out of the pines lining the road, it starts veering east and the sun is low enough that it’s not blinding anymore.
Not surprisingly, my Civic is faster than Bowen’s Lancer—if only slightly. I’m also a fucking amazing driver. It’s enough that I can pull away after drifting around the curve at Becker Road, just missing Bowen as he nearly fishtails into me. We slingshot down the straightaway and gun our engines, heading for Hellbranch Creek.
It only takes a split-second, but I catch a glint of blue off to the right side of my windshield, further up the road.
“ Fuck! ” I roar into the dashboard as my eyes dart back and forth across the road.
Catching the reflective street sign for Arvin Road, I slam on my brakes just in time to skid around the corner and still stay on the pavement. Bowen doesn’t follow, shooting past me and flying toward the bridge. I glance in my mirrors in enough time to see the lights flash to life and a Canaan Police Explorer dart out from behind a catalpa tree and take off after Bowen’s car.
Then the realization hits.
“ Mother —” I bring my fist down so hard on the wheel, I’m shocked it doesn’t snap the steering column, “ fucker! ”
They’ll chase Bowen to the bridge at Hellbranch, but they won’t pursue him further. And he knows it. And with that bit of knowledge, he’s already won and we’re not even at the halfway point.
I have to circle around even further west to make it back to the route and continue on to Grisham Road. By the time I get there and roll into the parking lot at Grumpy’s, it’s just as crowded as it was at Leland’s and Bowen’s car is parked next to the blown-out garage door. I come squealing to a halt, throw open my door, and storm across the asphalt without bothering to shut it.
Ignoring everyone around me, my eyes are trained on Bowen as I march across the lot. When Mason jogs over to my side, he quickly realizes what’s about to happen and grabs my shoulder, but I shove him away before he can stop me. As soon as Bowen turns around, and I see that shit-eating grin of his, I want to smash his fucking teeth into his throat.
I seize him by the front of his shirt and slam him up against his car, triggering an eruption of shouts around us.
“You think I don’t know what that was, motherfucker?” I snarl in his face.
Amidst the chaos, I can hear Evie somewhere over my shoulder yelling my name. Then Hildy’s shrill screams drown out Evie as she bellows in my ear like a fucking banshee .
“How was I to know?” Bowen drawls, that stupid fucking grin still on his face, “You never know where those assholes are hanging out.”
I pull him forward and slam his back against the passenger side door again, “But you know where they hang out…”
Everyone goes quiet.
“Oh, shit,” Mason murmurs.
“You know they won’t stop you,” I growl, just inches from his nose.
“Be a mistake if they did,” Bowen looks me up and down, studying my face for a few seconds, “just like it’d be a mistake if you don’t calm the fuck down,” he winks.
He fucking winks.
Suddenly a shout cuts through the air from the back of the crowd, “ Cops! ”
As the red and blue lights get closer in the distance, the parking lot bursts to life and everyone scatters. Mason shouts in my ear, pleading with me to forget Bowen before we all get hauled off to jail. I finally release Bowen and let him and a few others drag me off toward our cars.
I spin around, looking for Evie. She’s gone. I need to find her.
Three Jackson County Sherriff SUVs whip into the lot on the other side of the building, lights flashing. Mason’s right, the Canaan police might not care about Bowen, but the county doesn’t give a shit who any of us are. My head on a swivel, I scan the tree line where people are darting around and jumping in and out of cars before tearing out of the lot.
Then I see her.
She’s standing at Jay’s car and Hildy’s grasping her arm through the passenger window. Evie looks over her shoulder and then turns to say something to Hildy. Hildy is protesting, tugging at Evie, but Evie pulls her arm away. Jay yells something at both of them before Evie backs away and waves her arm at them. My eyes round as Jay guns the engine and peels out of the lot, leaving Evie behind in a spray of gravel.
A second later, I finally realize what the hell she’s doing.
As soon as Evie turns around, Bowen’s car skids to a stop in front of her. When she turns to run around the side to the passenger door, she sees me. Her eyes dart across the lot at the flashing lights and then back at me. I clench my jaw, knowing that, even now, she’s paralyzed with indecision. She’s too loyal for her own good, and she doesn’t want to break her promise.
“Just go!” I wave my arm and start backing away.
Evie spins around and as soon as she dives through the passenger door, Bowen speeds out onto the road and disappears. I turn and jump into my car, Mason cursing me the whole way for wasting time.
She should’ve just gotten into Jay’s car.
But all of us got out of there in one piece, and not in handcuffs, which is all that matters. A minute later and Bowen’s face would be broken and I’d be in custody, taken off to jail to be booked by Pappy Garrison .
About two hours later, I’m back in Dire Ridge at Mason’s house and I finally hear from Evie again.
EVIE (8:02PM): Don’t be mad…now you don’t have to drive me to Hildy’s house!
ME (8:03PM): nice save. R u there now?
EVIE (8:03PM): Yes
ME (8:04PM): text me if you need a ride tomorrow
EVIE (8:04PM): OK, love youuuuuuuuuuu!
ME (8:04PM): love you too
I drop my phone in my lap, and then pause before reaching down and deciding to shoot one last text off to her. Mason sits down next to me and tosses a beer into my lap as I snicker to myself.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” I shake my head, dropping my phone again and trading it for the beer.
ME (8:06PM): don’t feel bad. I bet your jeans were too wet for you to make it back to my car fast enough
EVIE (8:07PM): If you tell anyone about that, I’ll red card you like you did Bo.