I closed my eyes and rested my forehead against the steering wheel. Despite our history that I refused to think about, I felt safe with Hayden. Ever resourceful, reliable, and protective, he would do whatever it took to help me. He was an absolute teddy bear on the inside, total mush when it came to people he cared about. I’d seen how he treated my brother, his parents, his daughter, even me. Shame hit me hard, almost harder than the steering wheel to the face. Of course Hayden would make sure I was safe. He’d never let me remain hurt because he viewed me like a little sister, and if there was one thing Hayden cared most about? It was family.
“Okay. Okay,” I repeated, my too-tight muscles relaxing at the thought of him saving me.
“What time did you leave this morning?”
“An hour ago.”
“Perfect. I left forty-five minutes ago, so I shouldn’t be too far behind. Now, do you remember passing the tractor store?”
I blinked. “Yes, because it reminded me of the time I tried to steal a tractor as a prank but didn’t realize I couldn’t drive one. Too many clutches.”
“Ah, yes.” Hayden laughed. The bastard had a rich, joyful laugh that made angel wings double in size and rainbows shoot out of flowers. “That was a fun summer.”
It was also the summer I went from crushing on Hayden to falling head over heels, madly in love with him. I cleared my throat. That summer didn’t contain the best memories for me. “Right, uh, the tractor store.”
“I’m passing it now.”
Neither of us said anything, but his breathing carried through the phone. It was enough for me. The dark confines of the car had started to make me nervous, claustrophobia creeping into my mind. What if I never got out? I could joke about being mayor, but my sense of humor had limits. Especially when it came to potential death. I must’ve whimpered or something, because he sucked in a breath. “Charlotte, are you hurt?”
“Not really. Bruised my face, but that’s it. I’m… not loving the car right now. I don’t want to be mayor anymore.”
“Mayor?”
“Of the Mazda Igloo. I’m the only resident, so I’d be the de facto mayor,” I said. “Obviously.”
“Only you, Charlotte.”
He said my name all grumbly and soft, and once upon a time, I fantasized about him saying my name as he declared his love for me.Yes, Charlotte, I love you too and want a life with you and to be your best friend and have inside jokes and coach a team with you.But I learned all too well that would never happen. I tried. He rejected me. Not even a littleno thank yourejection. It was adon’t touch me ever againrejection and ayou’re like a sister to merejection, which, on a list of the worst ways to have your heart broken, was in the top five.
That was three years ago, and it still stung.
Had we ever talked about it? No.
Would we? I’d rather die mayor of the Mazda Igloo.
But neither of those facts kept my imagination in line when he said my name that way. It brought back all the memories—and unrequited feelings—that dominated my early twenties. Where I swore his gaze lingered on me a few seconds too long or he’d always put his hand on my lower back. I misread every interaction we had, and that was on me. It just sucked my heart never got the memo that we werenotin love with Hayden Porter, single dad to the cutest baby girl ever.
“Wait, I think I see something up ahead. Shit.”
“What?”
“There’s a semi off to the right side of the road and skid marks into… oh, honey.”
“Don’toh, honeyme. What do you see?” My heart raced at all the scenarios in my head. Did he somehow read mymind thinking about our kiss that night? Did he know I still thought about him even though he made his feelings very clear?
“I think… I think your clothes fell out of your trunk, and well, you have a red bra and panties hanging on your exhaust pipe.”
CHAPTER TWO
HAYDEN
Charlotte Calhoun had a unique talent for making me smile while simultaneously making me lose my shit. She’d lived under my skin for years due to her quick wit and sense of humor. That was her dark green Mazda alright, jam-packed into a monster of a snowdrift. The trunk had popped open, and sure enough, Charlotte’s clothes were strewn about. She took what she needed and tossed them in the back like that was enough.
I’d seen her do that a hundred times before. Once when we went to the lake, once when we went to the beach with our families together, and hell, even on a road trip.
Maybe, after this trip, she’d learn her lesson and bring a fucking suitcase. There was no reason everyone had to see her red underwear in the wind. Especially with all the lace and strings…
Not her. Never her.I forced the blip of attraction away.
