5. Chapter Five
Chapter Five
Betty
A Year Ago
Screams of laughter float up to the sunny skies, and I toss back my hair and shout up to the heavens. “Let’s go!” I hop on Laredo’s back like a cowgirl, swinging one arm and leaning back, confident that he has me. He has all week.
His powerful hands grip me by the thighs, a warm tingle racing up my legs as his laughter joins mine. We are two carefree souls enjoying the summer. Laredo navigates through the crowded boardwalk in Seaside. The uber-popular music festival ended last night with Laredo’s sister as the surprise performer for the featured spotlight concert.
It feels like the perfect capper to what is turning out to be a reckless week for me. Rather, an insanely, ridiculously pleasurable week that I wished wasn’t about to end.
“I think I’ll giddy up all the way to the airport with you.” Laredo reminds me that our joyous week is concluding. An end date we both knew was in the cards from the moment we hooked up on day one of the music festival.
He stuck around the bar I work in until close, hitting on me all night long. I’ve seen his type before. I’ve enjoyed his type before. They come through Seaside every summer. I knew full well what I was signing up for when he kissed me at the bonfire party that first night.
“You think you’ll fit in the overhead compartment?” I smack the back of his shoulder. That’s the second time he’s hinted at prolonging this festival fling. Last night, a different joke, same intent. I won’t react. I can’t.
Laredo has the word heartbreak written across his forehead. I won’t be that foolish with my heart. I’ve learned my lesson. This is what it is. A week of sun, music, and fun. I’m sure some other girl will ride his back on a different boardwalk in a different city next month. I won’t get attached.
“Have you seen my rear?” My joke lands as intended. His right hand slides up my bare legs, up to the cutoff jean shorts that he’s been admiring since day one. A quick squeeze of my bottom.
“I’m going to be dreaming about your rear.” His carefree laugh is one of his most attractive traits. Yes, he’s a looker, with that confident swagger I adore. Long, wild, dirty-blond hair, a scruffy beard that tickles me every time we kiss, and intense, dark eyes that are always focused on me. He’s gorgeous.
But it’s the I really don’t give a crap attitude that won me over. It’s not a projection. I’ve discovered there are only a few things and people he really cares about. His music, his sister, sometimes his brother, and apparently me.
“You think you can do one of those wax sculptures like Kim Kardashian once did? I’d place that on a mantle right next to my guitar.”
I slide down his back, and his arm immediately wraps around my waist. We’ve been like this all week. Can’t keep our hands to ourselves, devouring every second we’ve been in each other’s presence. For the first time, a sting hits me. “That’s high praise. Right next to your most prized possession.”
Laredo shared with me the other night the history of his guitar. The guilt he carried, the rift it caused between him and his brother, and now the reconciliation and joy he gets to finally experience holding it. I know a thing or two about desires, disappointment, and waiting.
“You’re quickly becoming a close second,” he teases and sneaks a kiss into the crook of my neck.
I spin away from him and race ahead, hoping to outrace his words. Jokes that felt like flirting a few days ago now carry an unexpected weight. Don’t. I remind myself what this week has been. A festival fling. Nothing more.
Laredo has never taken anything seriously in his life. Why would I think I’d be any different?
After he gets on that plane, I don’t expect to hear from him again. If he hits it big, maybe someday, I’ll be in the audience at one of his concerts, but that’s the closest we’ll ever come to being together in the future.
My feet slow when my eyes take in the scene ahead. Laredo’s brother, Adam, is pitching balls at dented milk jugs in the carnival area. He doesn’t see us, and I look for their sister. Her striking auburn hair is nowhere to be found. I’m sure after her concert performance last evening, she is probably being mobbed every time she shows her face around town.
“He’s always early,” Laredo whispers over my shoulder, his focus on his brother. “It’s freaking annoying.” His tone doesn’t match his words. I twist in time to catch the fleeting glance of admiration he has for his brother. Adam lives his life opposite of Laredo’s, and I’m hoping they learn to take the best from each other.
“Well, you guys have a flight. Punctuality is kinda expected.” I poke him in his side and place a soft kiss on his cheek. “I guess this is it?” I’m not sure why I pose it like a question. This is it. This is goodbye. No matter how incredible this week has been, it’s history. Just like the memory of me will be in Laredo’s head this time next month.
“Looks that way.” He slips his hand into mine, both hanging down by our sides. “This week has been amazing.” I nod, already sensing his every word. Laredo is a musician. He’s been down this road dozens of times. He probably has a prepared speech for this expected escape. “You are a special lady, Betty.”
I nod and poke him in the chest to keep the mood light. “Yeah, and you’re a fun guy despite the size of your ego.”
His body shakes with a laugh my humorous line doesn’t warrant. His arms wrap around me in a hug, his lips pressed to the top of my head.
“Thank you.” His voice cracks with emotion, and my body tenses. “Thank you for this week. It’s been an emotional roller coaster between the music festival, my sister shocking us with her performance, and the drama with my brother. You’ve held me together. You’ve continued to shine the brightest and remind me of the joy we should bathe ourselves in.” He fingers the corner of his eye, and for a second, I swear I see water building up.
I sense Laredo doesn’t lower his guard around many people, and I feel honored he feels secure enough after knowing me for a few days to be this vulnerable. “That’s what I’m here for. For a good time… yada yada yada,” I deflect. I must.
“The best of times,” he whispers and tilts his chin down, and we lock eyes. His are filled with a whirlwind of emotion that I can’t read. It has been one of the best weeks ever. But it’s over. I won’t allow myself to believe for one second we will ever be more than what we are.
“The very best. Go. Your brother is waiting.” I press my cheek to his chest and close my eyes. His heart is beating fast and hard. Just the way he lives his life. “Safe travels.” I look up and once again am met with a gaze that speaks volumes.
His lower lip trembles, and I press my lips to his before he can speak. The kiss catches him off guard as intended. His lips go from stiff to soft when I tilt my head. When my lips part, I know he won’t resist. We are I don’t care who’s looking public displays of affection.
We stay like that, inhaling the last bits of each other for what feels like an eternity. We part only when Laredo pulls away, a familiar hand on his shoulder.
Adam. “Good seeing you again, Betty.” He gives his brother a short nod and a whisper filled with love. “Sorry, we gotta go.” His finger points to the watch on his wrist, and he steps back to give us a moment of privacy.
“I know.” I cut Laredo off before he can speak. We both knew this was how it was going to end. No words will change what this is. “Go. Don’t miss your plane.”
Gone is the confident swagger from earlier in the week. Gone are the sexy one-liners and innuendos that filled our week. Standing before me is the uncensored version of Laredo—guards down, heart in his hand, and a vulnerability he hides from others. It’s a combination that makes him even more attractive.
“I don’t have the words today…” He stumbles, and my heart leaps to attention.
“You don’t need them. We both know.” I give him an escape clause; one my heart desperately seeks. Please take it.
He freezes. A nervous glance over his shoulder at his brother before his gaze returns. I wait three heartbeats and force myself not to read his mind. I get the sense he is doing the same. His chin dips a few degrees, a soft, knowing nod. “Right.”
When his feet retreat, I expect to feel relief. It arrives, but it’s blanketed by disappointment. A sense of loss I shouldn’t feel. I lean forward when he pauses, hope pushing away reality.
“No woman has ever rendered me speechless before. That’s gotta mean something?”
I lift a hand and wave at him. “It means we’ve said all that needs to be said.” The lie slides across my lips with an ease that catches me off guard. I’m not sure if the words of comfort are meant for him or for me.
His brows furrow with my words, and I brace for a retort. Instead, he gives me a slight wave in return. “Goodbye, Betty.” He spins before his last syllable reaches me, his brother grabbing him by the elbow and shouting something I can’t hear.
Adam points down the boardwalk in the opposite direction, and they race walk, disappearing into the late morning crowd.
And just like that, he’s gone. A man I’ve given every available minute for the last week. A man who showed me parts of himself I would have never expected he possessed a week ago. A man who thankfully is leaving town because if he stayed another week, there was no way he wouldn’t own my heart.