I shove the rest of my bagel away. I’m no longer hungry. “Yeah.”
“Why don’t you guys just ride together?” she suggests. “Then you guys can split the cost of gas.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
“Jade, stop,” I say as coolly as possible. “I’m sure Boone really appreciates his alone time on the road. I’m not going to cramp his style the whole season.”
I cannot ride in the same truck as Boone every single day for months. I’ll drive myself crazy.
Even trying to picture this, I’m coming up blank. Sure, before the last few months, Boone and I have hung out before, and it’s been just fine. But this is every single day formonths. Surely, we’d get on each other’s nerves and end up killing each other… Or worse, fucking each other. And no matter how badly I want that to happen, itcan’t. That’s so much worse than a kiss. A kiss is a betrayal, sure, but sex is unforgiveable.
Jade would hate me.
She’d never speak to me again.
My parents would find out, and then I’d really be disowned. The black sheep of the family. The pervert who seduced his sister’s ex-husband.
“Why are you being so weird about this?” Jade scoffs. “You’d save so much money, and I know you’re struggling right now.”Once again, she turns to the ghost-white man on the other side of the table. “Why are you being so quiet? You’re both being weird this morning. Since neither of you can seem to speak up for yourselves, I’m making the call for you. Grady, you’re going to ride with Boone. You two can split the driving, split the cost of gas, and Grady, you’re going to sleep in Suzy’s bed in the camper. It’s only a twin, but it’s better than a tent. End of discussion.”
Jade grabs her empty bowl, and leaves the table, the weight of her demands hanging in the air. Suzy gets up and walks away too, leaving me and Boone sitting there in tense silence.
“I-I don’t have to,” I finally say.
Boone’s eyes shift to meet mine, his face completely unreadable. “It’s fine, Grady. She’s not going to let it go, so we may as well just fucking listen to her. And she’s right, it makes sense.”
Then he’s gone.
This can’t be happening.
21
Boone Stanton
Pounding my fist on the bedroom door, I shout, “Let’s go, Grady. We need to hit the road.” We should’ve left half an hour ago, but he’s been holed up in his room, stating he’s finishing packing. Who the fuck waits until the morning of to pack? If this is any indication about how the next four months are going to go, I’m screwed. I’m going to lose my ever-loving mind. I don’t do disorganized or late.
“I’ll be out in three minutes,” he shouts, the sound muffled through the door.
Rolling my eyes, I head back into the kitchen where Suzy is waiting for me. She’s got tears in her eyes, and she’s been in her feels all morning. This is the second circuit season I’ve gone on without her, but it’s no less difficult than the first time.
“I don’t want you to go, Daddy,” she whines.
“I know you don’t, princess, but I have to.” Grabbing the empty plate in front of her, I rinse it off before putting it in the dishwasher. “This is Daddy’s job. It’s how he makes money to pay the bills, sweetie.”
“But I’m gonna miss you.”
My chest squeezes. I hate seeing her cry. “I’m going to miss you too, but we’ll FaceTime all the time, I promise. Remember how we did that last year?”
“Yeah.”
“It’ll be just like that. And I’ll be home before you know it.”
Gradyfinallywalks into the kitchen, leaving his luggage in the entryway. “Morning, Miss Suzy Q.”
“It’s not fair,” she mutters. “Uncle Grady is going too! You’re both leaving me.”
He comes to sit beside her, wrapping his arm around her little shoulders. She looks up at him with her big, round eyes, bottom lip quivering. My heart cracks open a little at the sight. “We are leaving,” he says softly. “But we’ll be back. It’s only for a short while, and we have to go. It’s work. We’re not leaving because we want to.”
“But what if you like it better and don’t come back?”
