Page 19 of Redemption
My mom’s hazel eyes narrow. “What’s with the bitter tone? I’ve gotta say, Presley, I know you’ve been through a lot, but that boy has, too. You have no right to be upset that he’s found his way, especially since you’re...” She looks away. “Never mind. Now’s not the time.”
I stand up. “No, let’s do this. Especially since I’m what, Mom? Especially since I’m the one who left?”
She releases a harsh exhale. “You know I would never fault you for leaving, Presley. I know you were hurtin’ and you felt getting away was the best option at the time. But I don’t understand why you had to cut us out of your life, too. That part never made sense.”
I gesture to my beat-up face. “I didn’t want you to see this. I was afraid you’d know. If we talked too often, or if you came for a visit, I was afraid you’d see right through me. I was so ashamed. I am so ashamed.”
Great, now I’m crying again.
“Oh, honey.” My mom pulls me into her arms and lets me cry on her shoulder until my tears are all dried out.
“Sorry.” I wipe the tears off my face. “Lord, I’m so sick of crying.”
My mother gently frames my face with her hands. “I have a feeling you’ve been saving up a lot of tears. You cry as much as you need to.”
And now I’m blubbering.
“Look, Presley. Why don’t you go upstairs and rest for a while? You look like it’s been an awful long time since you’ve had a good sleep.”
It has.
“Okay. That’s probably a good idea. If... if I sleep through dinner, will you please wake me?”
She nods. “Of course. Get some rest, dear.”
I give her a quick one-armed hug. “Thanks, Mom.”
My mom pats the back of my head. “Anytime, baby.”
Chapter Thirteen
Presley
– Age 17
“Good lord, Beck, where did you learn how to do that?”
He flashes me his sexy smirk. “You liked that, did you?”
I roll onto my side and pull him into a kiss. “I love anything you do. You always know what my body wants before I do.”
It’s Saturday night, so Beck and I have spent the last few hours under the stars in the back of his pickup. It’s been cooler than average lately, but we never have any problems keeping warm when it’s just the two of us beside our pond. Beck rolls me onto my back and hovers over me. I can feel him hardening against my thigh, even though we just finished making love a few minutes ago.
“That’s because you’re part of me, Pres. I’ll always know how to take care of you. In every way.”
I laugh when he wags his eyebrows at the innuendo. “So confident, aren’t you?”
He lowers himself down for a kiss. God, this man can get me going with the slightest effort.
“It’s part of my charm,” he says when he pulls away. “You know you love it.”
I wrap my arms around his neck. “I can’t wait to become your wife one day.”
He flashes his blinding smile. “Me neither.”
We’re not officially engaged, but that’s been our plan since we were about fifteen. We’ll get married right after college and have our first baby by twenty-five. I can’t imagine anything I want more. We have it all mapped out, except where we’ll be living. It’s been almost a month since I gave Beck that brochure on NYU, and we haven’t talked about it since. I’m trying to give him time—I know I’m asking him to go way out of his comfort zone—but the application deadline for the fall semester is approaching. He needs to make a decision soon.
“Hey, have you thought about New York?”
