I twist the seat belt between my fingers, unsure where all this self-doubt is coming from. Sometimes our differences are so glaring and I don’t know what he sees in me.
He grabs my hands, lacing our fingers together, and stroking my skin with his thumb. “I like who you are,” he murmurs, like he can see inside me, reading all my little insecurities. My eyes sting. I blink, forcing the tears to dry up. He starts driving again. “I’ll give you anything you want. If you wake up tomorrow and want a tattoo, I’ll take you. Got it?”
I nod, staring out the window as his words replay in my head, same as before.I’ll give you anything.I’m starting to believe it now.
After several minutes of quiet driving, I expect us to be close to his place, but when I start paying attention, I notice the road isn’t familiar anymore. I don’t see any city lights and haven’t for miles.
“Where are we going?”
He wiggles his eyebrows. “To do something spontaneous.”
I straighten my spine. “Like what?”
“I hope you’re prepared to get dirty.” He eyes my clothes. I’m wearing jeans, an oversized blue-and-white checkered sweater, and my oiled leather Birkenstock boots.
“What are we doing?” He doesn’t answer me, only grins as he continues to drive farther from civilization.
When he pulls off the main road and hits a dirt path, I start to get nervous. “Penn…” I grab onto the handle above me as we bounce down an unpaved road.
He presses the button on his dashboard for four-wheel drive. “Hold on, Barbie.” He gives me a devilish smirk, sending my insides into overdrive just before he rolls the windows down.
“Penn!” I shriek. Cold air blasts across my face, sending my hair flying in every direction. I grip the bar with both hands as he picks up speed.
His eyes flick to me every few seconds. I know my own are open wide, a little in terror and a little in giddy excitement. I have no idea what we’re doing, but I’m having fun.
He yanks the wheel, sending the truck fishtailing, and I open my mouth to laugh or scream, I’m not sure, which. Instead, it gets filled with mud.
“Ah!”
I release the handle and wipe my mouth with my sweater. Cold, wet mud smears across my sleeve. I stare down at it. I’ve never played in the dirt before, as crazy as it sounds. Even askids, my mom never liked my sister and I to get dirty. We always had to look our best, even at home.
The truck slows to a stop.
“Barbie?”
I run my fingers through my hair, feeling mud there too. It’s been half rain and snow today, making the mud a thick, cakey mixture. It’s already starting to dry on my face. I look down at my cute sweater, which is now painted with splatters of mud.
“Olivia?” he asks cautiously.
I glance over at him, frowning. His window isn’t even down. He doesn’t have a single fleck of dirt on his handsome face.
I unbuckle my seat belt and tug on the door handle, but it’s locked. “Let me out, please.” It’s pitch black out, and we’re in the middle of nowhere, with only his headlights lighting a path. That’s okay, I’m not planning on going far.
“Olivia, I’m sorry. Shit, I thought?—”
“Unlock the door, Penn,” I say sternly, biting back my smile.
He does and I hop out, not bothering to inspect the area first, and regretting it instantly when I slip on the slick ground beneath me and fall to my ass in a foot-deep hole. Coldness seeps into my bones through my clothes, and I gasp. I hear Penn jump out next, and I quickly scramble to my feet and round the truck, meeting him in the front.
I throw my hands out. “Don’t.”
He freezes, searching me for damage. His face scrunches when he notices how muddy I am. My ass is soaked, and my jeans are sticking to me like a second skin. I know it’s cold out. I can see my breath, but I don’tfeelcold. My heart is racing, my blood pumping, keeping me warm.
“It’s funny. Don’t you think?” I ask, cocking my head. He approaches me slowly, hands up in surrender. “I’m allwetanddirty,”I say the words tauntingly, and it stops him in his tracks. “But you’re not.” I take a small step toward him as he watches me closely. “Is this how you wanted me? Hm?”
He’s lit up by the headlights, and I’m glad because I get to see the way my words surprise him. Penn is normally the quiet one of his group, rarely saying a word unless he needs to, but with me, he’s always taunting and teasing. This is the first time I’ve rendered him speechless.
It’s kind of adorable how concerned he looks for me. “I’m sorry, okay? Please get back in the truck. It’s cold and you’re soaked.”
