He wanted to make Rett happy.
By the time he left Georgie’s Market on the thirtieth, all Calum craved was falling into bed. Sleeping all night and well into the next day. But the party was tonight. She wanted to go, so he’d go with her. If it made her smile that nose-scrunching smile, he’d do whatever she asked of him.
Rett met him on her porch, and he stifled a laugh. She’d done the bare minimum—a triangle of pink lipstick on her nose, blacklines across her cheeks, and a headband with felt cat ears. Her black top and jeans completed the costume, plain and unoriginal as it was. She stood as he approached, shivering in the chilly afternoon, then followed him inside.
No one else had come home yet: Tiffany had gone to Brianna’s house to get ready for the party, and Georgie stayed behind at the market to close up. Charles was still out at the ranch where he worked.
The privacy allowed for stolen kisses on the couch, her hands wrapped in his hair and his hands holding onto her hips. He didn’t dare touch her anywhere else—it could ruin everything if he tried. What if she didn’t want him to touch her anywhere else? He exhaled sharply when she caught his bottom lip between her teeth.
“I missed you today,” she breathed against his lips. “I’m glad you’re helping Georgie, but I hate that it takes away time with you.”
“Missed you, too.”
And he had. More than he thought possible. He still missed his family, and he ached to see them again. Emails and calls weren’t enough. But he wanted to be with Rett all day. He’d gotten too accustomed to walking around town, sitting in their tree, kissing her whenever he wanted.
He’d had girlfriends at home. Ones who tried to change him and ones who enabled his behavior, participated in the destruction to the neighborhood and himself. None of them were like Rett. He wanted to be a better person when she was around. It was a drastic change from the beginning, when he planned to mimic her personality and then escape from Oak Creek.
He’d even started losing some of his accent, according to Rett. He picked up and used phrases the others did. Miss Julia taught him all the curses and blasphemous words he dared notto repeat. He was a ‘good boy’ now. Good kids didn’t say those kinds of things.
It was hard to believe he’d been in the town for over two months already. He hardly believed he could ever have found a second home there, someone who spurred him to be better at his core. He still loathed his father for walking out, but the pain wasn’t nearly as suffocating. Knowing he would go back to his responsibilities to his family didn’t bother Calum as much. He was ready for it.
He wasn’t ready to leave Rett.
She sighed and pulled away from the latest kiss—their third. Or was it the tenth? “We better go. Party started a few minutes ago, and Johnny won’t wait much longer.”
“Okay, kitty cat, let’s go.”
She giggled and ruffled his hair, pressed her lips to his. Chaste but intoxicating. He followed her out of the house, holding her close to his side as they trekked the two streets to Johnny’s house. Rett gave him a sly smile but stayed silent as they clambered into the cab of Johnny’s truck.
The vehicle bounced over the ruts in the field, harvested crops no longer standing tall, and Rett laughed aloud when Johnny yanked the wheel. The back end of the truck skidded to the right, and Calum held tightly to the handle as the vehicle spun. How did Rettenjoythat? His stomach lurched when Johnny let the truck spin once more, passenger side tires coming off the frozen ground.
“I’m never doing that again,” muttered Calum when they finally reached the edge of the party, dropping to the ground. He turned to help Rett out of the cab. “That was terrifying.”
“You get used to it,” she replied with a grin.
“I won’t. Because it’s never happening again.”
“Fine. We’ll walk home in the morning.”
He knew they would ride back with Johnny—the heart of town was too far to walk to while hungover, and Calum was aware of his own laziness. He’d never force Rett to walk that far because of him.
The party was only the second he’d attended since he arrived, and he stared in awe at how different it was from the one by the river. Where it had been sedate, calm, on the bank, it was wild and enthusiastic in the field. Perhaps it was the distance from water—less of a danger—or maybe it was the holiday. Calum would never know. He watched Rett disappear toward Pete’s car, coming back with two bottles of beer.
“Drink up, sweets. It’s gonna be a long night.”
He took the bottle she held out to him before tugging her in for a kiss. They weren’t the only ones, but he didn’t give a damn about anyone else. She pulled away long enough to swallow a mouthful of beer then dived right back in. No liquor he consumed tonight would compare to her lips.
Rett was right: The night was giving way to day before the last of the partygoers climbed into the makeshift beds in the back of the various trucks. He’d already pulled Rett into the bed of Johnny’s an hour ago, but he couldn’t sleep. Kellie Marie’s elbow pressed into his neck, her knees against the back of his thighs. The five teens crammed into one truck made for very little space, but Calum was thankful for it.
It meant feeling Rett against him more closely than they’d been the night she slept in his bed. The night that truly started it all.
Rett snuggled impossibly nearer, shivering despite the body heat trapped beneath the blanket, and he pressed his lips to her hair. She’d lost her headband at some point during her dancing, and the makeup on her cheeks had smeared across her skin. She was gorgeous as she slept. Leaving her would kill him.
He made it home and sprawled on his mattress before falling fast asleep. His aunt and uncle would be angry that he skipped church, but it was for a good cause: He’d made Rett happy.
Somehow, he wasn’t surprised to wake three hours later and find Rett tucked under his arm. Calum tugged her closer, smiling to himself, and watched her sleep before his eyes slipped closed once more.
Before he knew it, three months passed in Oak Creek. How had he spent so long in the town without realizing it? But he had. His first Thanksgiving with the Stones came and went. He’d wanted to spend the day with just Rett, in their tree or exploring the truck near the mobile home. She’d refused, though:
