I opened my mouth and promptly closed it. I always did what I was told. That was the right thing to do. My mother planned my life down to the minute, molding me into exactly the kind of man I needed to be to run our family’s business, to impress our social circles, to do well in school. The list went on and on. She even planned my fun for me.
I didn’t know how to be anything else. How to do anything else.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” he retorted as he rolled his eyes. There was no witty reply or snarky remark, just the sound of disappointment in his voice.I hated that.Whatever part of me was fascinated by Maverick and all his rough edges wanted to chase after him. I wanted to follow him and break all my rules for him.
There’d be consequences, but for a split second, I let impulse do the talking for me and chased after him.
CHAPTER 03
maverick
Harley Lowell was something else. Sure, he was my type with that windswept dusty blond hair of his and light blue eyes, but he was so far out of my league that we weren’t even in the same orbit. I had worn biker boots; he had fancy Dockers or some shit. I wore a leather jacket; he wore a tailored blazer. I had a few bucks at most to my name, and his watch cost more than everything I owned.
So why the hell had he spent the whole day following me around like a little lost puppy?
Admittedly, watching him fall apart from a panic attack should’ve pleased me. The Royal Prince of Wilde Bay was nothing more than an anxious mess. It knocked him down a few pegs closer to us normal people. But I also knew what that felt like, and it fucking sucked. I didn’t have them much anymore, but when I was a kid, circumstances got the better of me. I’d been a disastrously emotional child.
And kissing him as a grounding technique?Well, that was just me letting my twisted desires do the talking for me. It was cute the way he crumbled and melted for me.
I had no delusions that Harley and I weren’t remotely similar, but I’d be damn lying if I didn’t say there was a wild kind of satisfaction in knowing that he was interested in me. How interested was the question, and one I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer to. It was better to leave that one unasked. There was no room for disappointment that way.
Watching him ditch school was entertaining. I hadn’t expected it from him. He was too good for that shit, but the longer he was away from the school, the more comfortable he got. Maybe he regretted it, but I liked to think he had fun.
Long after he headed home, I dragged my ass back to the trailer park. I never used the main entrance. Too many idiots hung around near the entrance, and I didn’t want to deal with any of them. That included my own brother. Aidan was a douchebag, and just because I was used to being his punching bag didn’t mean I was dumb enough to put myself in his path. Nah, I snuck around the side woods and wandered in through the back. I had to be careful to avoid Mr. McCreedy’s angry German Shepherd, but it was worth it not to get into a fight.
A second car was parked outside of our house—if you could call it parking. The beat-up thing had practically crashed into a tree.Crap.Mom was home. That was never a good thing.
Sandra Fox wasn’t a bad woman. Not really. My dad had a thing for drugs, and my mom had a thing for making my dad happy. When he wanted her to get high with him, she did and never looked back. She managed to get her shit together twice when she had my brother and me, but kids were a lot of stress.Especially when your dick of an ex decided kids just weren’t his thing and left.Getting high made it easier.
As a result, it was always just me and Aidan. Mom was in and out of our lives. At first, she was around a lot while high. It left Aidan and me to take care of her. However, as we got more self-sufficient, she began to disappear. We got used to it. We didn’t have a choice. Nowadays, she only showed up when she needed money.
And Aidan hated giving her money.
Well, there went my fucking night.I steeled myself for the violence as I went in, walking in just in time for a plate to smash against the wall, complete with cheap pasta. I cringed at red sauce spilling down the stained wall.
“Now, why’d you have to go and do that?” Mom yelled, her hands shaking as she gestured to the wall.Great.She was jonesing for something.
“Why the fuck did you have to show up at all?” Aidan hollered right back. His dark eyes flashed with rage as he towered over her. “You think you can show up and what? I’m supposed to give you my hard-earned money—”
“I’m your mother!”
“The hell you are, you bitch!”
“Okay!” I shouted to be heard over both of them. I planted a hand on my brother’s chest as he made a move in Mom’s direction. Putting my hands on him was a risk because I knew hehad no problem going through me. I was tough, but Aidan was a beast. He had inches on me, was nearly double my weight, and was a solid wall of muscle. The fact that we were related yet so different sometimes surprised me. “Hey! I’ll deal with her!”
“You better,” he growled.
“I will!” I insisted.
“I want her out of this fucking house, you hear me?” Aidan snapped. “Gone, Maverick.”
The tone of his voice held more weight than his words. He’d take his anger out on my ass if she wasn’t. I wasn’t afraid of a lot, but there were moments I was afraid of him. He had no problem reminding me who was in charge around here, and it wasn’t like I had anywhere else to go. I was stuck taking whatever he gave me because I needed him.
“I know,” I said. “I will. Promise.”
“And don’t give that bitch any money, got it?”
“Yeah, I won’t,” I replied. The meticulous way he studied me was stressful, like he could see right through me. I tried to brush it off and act tough. Showing him weakness wasn’t an option. “Just get out of here.”
