“I put it there! Yes. To be flagged down!” she said, her voice going an octave higher.
She almost made me laugh.
“Thought you were stuck and couldn’t open the door.” My lips curved up, but I was desperate not to smile. That was the thing with her. She was utterly ridiculous in the most charming way. The damn woman had no idea her personality pulled in people like a magnet. Even in high school, she never realized her charisma. It’s why she was a hell of a teacher; she made everyone feel special for being authentically themselves. Her confidence and genuine heart were hard to find. She was one of the best humans, and you knew it after being around her for even three minutes.
“I can’t. Couldn’t. I crawled through the back seat and put it there.”
“You found your way into the trunk, tied a pair of red panties and bra on the exhaust, and instead of waiting outside the car like a normal person, you crawled back inside?”
“Ew. Don’t saypanties. That’s on my no list. But that’s what I did. Yup.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “We’re revisiting your no list later, but, Char, we both know you’re lying.”
“Fine. Fine!”
I shook my head, my damn grin stretching across my face. Life was never boring with Charlotte around. The woman got herself into the most bizarre situations, the present one included, and each time, she acted surprised, like she had no idea what happened. I put on my signal and pulled over, making sure not to be a hazard on the road before backing up toward her car. My truck would easily pull her out if I had enough traction.
And to think my parents convinced me to get four-wheel drive. They were right, this time. I’d be sure to tell them it happenedoncein all my years. When I was a teenager, they had installed a chalkboard in our living room with two columns. One tally for every time they were right, and one tally for every time I was, and it annoyed me to no end that they ended up right more than me. They said it kept me humble, but it only made me more competitive.
The momentary joy formed a rock in my gut. I’d have to erase that board, which was another harsh reminder that they were moving away. The constant pressure in my chest flared, the absolute sadness fighting with understanding. I loved my parents. They were my rock and helped me take care of Gwen. After playing in some crappy bar bands on and off for two years, the perfect opportunity showed up. They were offered to play together in a rock band and tour retirement homes in Arizona for one year, for a crazy amount of money. It was a dream for both of them to do something like this, and I couldn’t let Gwen be the reason they wouldn’t chase it. I’d always support them, but Gwen went to their house three times a week, saw them more than I did, and with their move… I had no idea what the hell I was gonna do. They were watching her for this damn pre-wedding trip, and it was their final weekend here. A goodbye weekend with Gwen. And finding a nanny or babysitter was becoming a nightmare.
I coughed into my fist, pushing the ache away. I’d worry about that after this weekend. Right now? I wanted to help Charlotte.
“I’m going to hook your car to my truck and try to tow you out,” I said, still on the phone.
“Am I safe… in here?”
My chest tightened at how small she sounded. Charlotte was bold with a big personality, and hearing her sound scared felt like someone reached inside my body and squeezed my heart. My circle of people was small, six people whom I’d do anything for, and she was one of them. She might not know that, which was how I intended it to remain, but I’d move mountains for her. “I’ll make sure you’re safe.”
I put on my gloves and hat, zipped up my coat, and grabbed the chains I kept under the driver’s seat. Gwen’s car seat was covered in Goldfish, and for the second time in minutes, my pulse raced. I missed my baby girl. I hated leaving her. Not seeing her face and knowing she was safe every second of the day caused me enormous amounts of stress. Becoming her father was singlehandedly the best thing ever to happen to me.
I thought baseball was my sole purpose to walk this earth, and it had been, until Gwen, and leaving her with my parents—people I trusted more than anyone in the world—still gutted me. Was Gwen worried I wouldn’t come back… like her mom? Or did she forget about me? Either option seemed worse than the other, and my jaw tensed. What was I gonna do without my parents to bail me out during emergencies? Shit.
I willed my emotions down and focused on getting Charlotte out safely. I connected the chain to the back ofmy trunk and then carried it to hers. Her damn clothes were everywhere.
Reds and pinks and yellows. Lace. Small. Silky. I swallowed, hard, and tried my best to not picture my best friend’s younger sister in these things. There was a time, once, for a moment, that I let myself cross that line, and I still hated myself for it. So much had changed since then. Some good, some bad, but the biggest thing was Gwen.
Christian and Penny, and Charlotte even, were the aunts and uncle by choice, not by blood. Christian helped me raise Gwen since Simone dropped her off at my door three years ago with a letter. Not a text or a call. A fuckinglettersaying she couldn’t be a mom and reverted all parental rights to me. Coaching baseball at a D1 college meant long nights, and who would take her whenever I needed? Christian or my parents.
Who helped me when I lost my mind? Christian or my parents. And when my parents were in another state?
Christian had always been my best friend, but he was also… my family. To even think about Charlotte in any sexual way would be a slap in the face to him. I’d seen him react to her dipshit boyfriends, and I damn well knew I wasn’t good enough for her either. I owed Christian the moon, and that was the only reason I agreed to drive up to a ski resort for two nights.
And why I was in this fun situation rescuing his sister, the woman who never quite left my mind.
“Damn, Charlotte.” I had to touch the garments and ensure they were tucked in a weird, oddly smelling sportsbag? Thank the Lord I wore gloves. They gave me a layer of protection from touching her panties.
For one split second, my mind went back to that night in the bar. When Charlotte approached me with cherry-red lips and a sinful matching dress that nearly killed me. The music blared, and the drinks flowed, and her damn smile drew me to her and she tasted like…No.
We never speak of that night, and for good reason. It was locked and tucked deep, much like all the best memories I had of her.
“Put it in neutral and sit tight,” I commanded her. I hid my annoyance, but she got under my skin. So while I thought of Charlotte in theoh, she’s my best friend’s younger sisterway from time to time, I realized we hadn’t been alone in… years.
Shit.
I hooked the chain to the rear of her car and jogged to my truck. It didn’t take much horsepower to pull her out of the drift, and once her entire car came into view, I put my truck in park. A flurry of anxiety nestled in my chest thinking about seeing her face-to-face. Not only was I concerned for her about the accident, but our past… it was messy. I always avoided being around her when it was just the two of us. Even when she helped out with Gwen, my mom or her brother would be there. It was like I didn’t trust myself alone with her, and now there were three years of awkwardness squished into my front seat, where it was gonna be the two of us for the rest of the drive.
I was two steps away from her door when she fell out of the car, headfirst.
