I strip the sheets, and take them to the laundry room, throwing in some detergent and turning it on.
Guess I’m sleeping on the bare mattress tonight.
The masturbating was enough to somewhat calm my racing thoughts, but it’s not enough to stop me from doing what I do next even though I know I shouldn’t. I pull out my phone and type up a text to Mae.
Cody: I hope you had a nice birthday.
It’s well past one in the morning, and I’m not sure what I’m expecting from this text. Hell, maybe nothing. But I can’t shake the hope that she’s still awake. I drop my phone onto the bed beside me and stare up at the ceiling, replaying the way she smiled earlier. The gentle ping from beneath the covers pulls me out of my thoughts, and I snatch the phone up immediately.
Mae: I did, thank you.
Cody: You’re still awake?
Mae: I am. Can’t sleep.
I hesitate, debating whether to ask if Georgia’s asleep. I want to seeher. To feel her eyes on me again, even if it’s just for a few minutes. But am I overstepping? Does she even feel the same pull I do? What is it about Mae that’s got me tangled up in this mess of desire and need?
Screw it.
Cody: Is Georgia still awake?
Mae: Fell asleep ten minutes ago.
The clock ticks onward. Her birthday is officially over, and she’s eighteen years plus one day now. It’s not like me to second-guess my own instincts. I usually trust my gut, but Mae? She has me questioning every damn thing.
Cody: Want some company?
Mae: Sure. I’d like that. ? I’ll be on Georgia’s back deck waiting for you.
And just like that, I’m already halfway out of bed.
Chapter 9: Cody
Twenty minutes later I’ve parked my car far enough down the driveway of Cameron Ranch where Georgia lives to avoid drawing any attention, especially from my uncle Wylie or Aunt Stevie should they wake up.
That’d be the biggest ass whooping of my life.
Stealthily, I make my way around the side of the house to the deck where I immediately spot Mae. She's wearing tiny sleeping pajama shorts, her blonde hair cascading in waves, seemingly dried that way from the swim she took in the pond. From where I'm located a few feet away, I can see her nipples protruding through the thin fabric of her tank top as she stares out over my uncle and aunt’s back yard, leaning back with a smile across her face.
“Hi,” I whisper.
“Hi,” she smiles.
“Mind if I join you?”
She nods and moves over to make space for me on the patio couch.
“Did you have a good birthday?
“The best,” she says sighing, “It got me thinking about how much I despise the way my parents control my life. Now that I'm eighteen years old, I wonder if that will change."
I nod. The little that Mae has shared about her reason fortransferring to Lonestar Junction has caused me to have minimal interest in ever meeting her parents and the people who pull the strings on her life. She’s always kept the details to a minimum, but I can tell when she’s speaking about them that they seem to have plans for her that might not align with what she wants to do.
"I thought you and Wilder were joining us for a swim tonight?”
“My dad and mom said we needed to leave you and Georgia alone.”
She smiles. “That’s probably for the best, but I wouldn’t have minded.”
