Chapter 24 Amy #3
I’m just about to move us onto something a little lighter when he clears his throat.
“That was one of the games that we really couldn’t afford to lose.”
“I thought you needed to win them all…”
“There were scouts there tonight.”
I frown. “Scouts?”
I’m picturing a bunch of kids with neckerchiefs and flags, trying to get the team to buy cookies.
“The NBA recruiters.”
“Is it really such a big deal, though? I mean, even the best teams lose, every now and then.”
He swallows hard. “I just don’t like it. I’ve spent the past three years working my ass off to get the best possible stats, and now it looks like they’re going to drop within the last six months before the draft.”
I think for a moment. “You put yourself under so much pressure—I’m surprised it doesn’t suck all the joy out of playing.”
“It does, sometimes. I guess the secret is just to find a way of catching your breath every now and then.”
“I guess the Campus Drivers gig is good for that,” I say innocently, and he shoots me a look.
“I guess so.”
We sit there in silence for a while, dipping in and out of the ice cream and having him here next to me is weirdly soothing.
“How was your day?”
“Me and Esteban worked on a Buick.”
He twirls his spoon around in his fingers and tuts. “Why’d Raven think he would be in here?”
“Because she’s clinically insane.”
“Were you guys sleeping together in Brooklyn?”
“Who were you sleeping with in LA?” I ask, matching his tone.
He glances at me. “How’d you know I went there? Fuck… Don’t tell me Dexter Drake snitched on me.”
The name rings a bell—I remember he mentioned it when he caught me roughing up Casey.
“Who is that guy, anyway?”
“Adam’s cousin. Nice guy—way less freaky than your BFF Esteban.”
“Does he scare you?” I tease. “Trust me, I’m scarier than him, by far.”
“So, are you guys still sleeping together, or what?”
“Excuse me?” I stiffen. “I think that orgasm you gave me back there messed up my hearing, or something—I could’ve sworn I heard you ask whether I was screwing someone else on the side.”
“It’s not—”
“I don’t actually have time to fuck around, you know,” I drawl.
I keep my voice steady to hide how nervous I suddenly feel. We’ve never discussed what we’ve got going on, but one thing’s for sure—if he’s sleeping with other girls, he won’t survive tonight. That’s a promise. Should I ask him, or should I…
“Me either,” he bats back.
This would be the perfect time to shift over into what we are and where we’re going, but I don’t want to come across as needy.
“You just seem pretty close, that’s all.”
I nod. “We’ve known each other a long time. He was there for me when my dad died, so…”
Why are you even mentioning Dad?
“What happened to him?”
I stare up at the ceiling. This wasn’t part of the plan for tonight.
“He died in a car crash,” I say after a while.
“A race?”
I laugh. “No.”
“Why’s that funny?”
“Because Dad was El Mago, you know? A magician when it came to anything to do with cars.” I smile.
“He drove like a dream. He could drive anything; he could fix anything—source any part you can imagine. He could sniff out problems just by listening to an engine. Other racers didn’t even hate him—that’s how much they admired him. ”
I breathe in sharply. I miss him so fucking much.
“Mom always thought he’d die behind the wheel, and in a way, she was right. The sad part is, he just ran out to grab us dinner and got hit by a guy driving the wrong way up a one-way street.” I shake my head. “Can you believe it? After all the dangerous-as-fuck situations he put himself in…”
“I’m so sorry, Amy.”
I’ve never told anyone any of this before. My friends back in New York already knew all about it. I suddenly really want to curl up in Lewis’s arms, but I’m too scared to move.
“How old were you?” he asks softly.
“Ten. Don’t get me wrong, we didn’t exactly have the dream childhood—my dad wasn’t perfect, but he loved Mom and Raven and me. We were happy, despite what Mom seems to think since she remarried.”
“So, your stepdad is an asshole?”
“The biggest. Narrow-minded. Obsessed with what people think of him, you know?” I sigh. “When Charlotte and my sister fell in love, he lost his shit.”
I could say more, but I decide to dial it back.
“My dad was no angel,” I continue, “but he would never have disowned his own daughter for something like that. Ever.”
“Sounds like he was a great guy.”
I burst out laughing. “You would’ve hated him!”
“Why?”
“Well, you think I’m a rebel… My dad was ten times worse.”
“Sometimes it’s nice to bend the rules a little…”
I peer at him. “You sure you didn’t get hit on the head tonight?”
He shoots me a strange smile, and a shiver ripples over me.
I turn back to stare at the ceiling. As I ease into the moment, Lewis fires off questions about life with my dad, and the words just come streaming out of me—all those hours we spent changing engines side by side, buying cars, selling cars, watching him race.
Opening up like this is new to me, and it’s not how things usually play out with me and Lewis.
To my surprise, I’m finding I actually enjoy it.
I fall silent. I can’t untangle the feelings sparking inside me now, but it’s something like a combination of nerves and contentment and nostalgia for my dad, all rolled into one.
“Amy?”
I turn to look at him, and in that split second, I can tell he knows exactly how I’m feeling. I lose all sense of control when I’m around him, everything I keep under wraps floats to the surface.
“Dr. Conley has a free slot, if you’re interested.”
“Right now?”
He wrestles the cover off and straddles me.
“What’s wrong?” He smiles. “Too tired for round two?”
“Pipe down, big man. You’d always lose a one-on-one against me.”
“That’s fighting talk, but for now”—he eases my spoon out of my hand and peels off my T-shirt—“just let me handle this.”
He still has that weird look in his eyes as his gaze drifts down from my face to my breasts and stomach, and just as he leans in to kiss me, I find the courage to finally admit what I’ve been struggling to acknowledge for a while now.
I’m in love.
With Lewis Conley.