“Thank you.”
All Eliza did was kiss Rett’s hair again. Rett stayed where she was at her mother’s side until Matthew emerged from their bedroom. He raised a brow at the sight of the two curled up together, and his face split with his smile. Rett smacked the cushion beside her with a wide grin, giggling when he dropped to sit next to her.
Every movie she had ever seen depicted teenagers and their parents as enemies. The moms and dads only wanted to control their child or be their best friend, while the kids wanted freedom of choices with no supervision. Rett was lucky that her life wasn’t like that. Her parents were strict but fair and trusted her to make the right decisions. They would never be her enemies.
She settled in between her mom and dad to watch the old Western show Matthew enjoyed so much. Rett never really got into the show, but she liked seeing him happy. His smile as his family watched TV together was worth the hour of boredom. Besides, it was Christmas. He could count this as his present along with the book she bought for him.
New Year’s Eve came and brought with it the usual party in old man Wilson’s field. Calum let loose like Rett hadn’t seen before; he drank and danced, laughed and chatted. Everyone had finally accepted him as if he had lived in Oak Creek his entire life, and he acted like he knew it. Like he belonged. Rett knew he always would.
She sat on the tailgate of Johnny’s truck watching as Kellie Marie coaxed Calum into a dance to some old country song. It should make her jealous, Rett knew, but all she felt right now was the heat from the fire and the buzzing in her chest. Her blood. Calum was it for her. No one else would ever compare.
Her mama always talked about first loves, how all-consuming they could be. She’d warned against believing wholeheartedly that they would last forever. “Sometimes they crash and burn,” she said. But Rett knew her mother had never been with anyoneelse, and Eliza and Matthew had made it nineteen years. Her mother was wrong.
First loves could last forever if one put in the work, and Rett was willing to give it all she had.
“Can I have this dance?”
She giggled, setting aside her beer, and allowed Calum to take her hand. He led her closer to the flames, held her tightly against him, and swayed to the song promising a fairytale love for the rest of their lives. As she stared up at Calum—the way the fire highlighted his sharp cheekbones and painted his eyes orange, the lips she tasted far too many times—she knew she wanted it.
No matter how rough their start was, Calum had turned out to be worth it. She ached to prove it every day.
The fire died down after hours and copious bottles of liquor. Rett clambered into the bed of the truck between Calum and Sofia, and her boyfriend plastered himself against her back. His lips found her neck as she draped her arm over Sofia’s waist. Giggling, Rett nudged him with her shoulder and let out a soft sigh when he settled down behind her.
His whispered ‘I love you’ sent her stomach fluttering and heart racing. She loved hearing it. She lovedhim.
January melted into February, and February turned to March. Rett and Calum’s relationship only grew stronger over the months, and she spent more time in his bed than not. His afternoons were taken up by working at Georgie’s, and she was left to her own devices while they were apart.
Gossip still flooded the town as it always had, but none of it was about the Wilson boy and little Loretta. No one cared now. Calum was part of the town, and never again would he be an outsider. A troublemaker not good enough for Rett. He was a bona fide Oak Creek citizen, and the community called him their own.
Of course, it came with the rather unpleasant punishment of Calum being dragged into town events whether he wanted to go or not. He went to church every Sunday with the rest of them, but now he sat with Rett and her parents. Eliza had tried scolding the teens for holding hands during the sermons. She gave up when Rett refused to let go.
Georgie invited Rett over for dinner on Saturday nights. The first time had been awkward. Despite growing up with the Stones in her life, Rett hadn’t known that night what to say or do. It felt more like a criminal being assessed than a guest attending a family dinner. Calum hadn’t made it any easier—he’d sat so close she could feel his body heat, and his gaze kept cutting to her. As if he was afraid he’d blink and she would be gone.
She wasn’t going anywhere. She only had to prove it.
“Know what we should do?” asked Rett as she threw another rock into the river. The March morning was bright, already warm, and she’d rolled up the sleeves of her sweater. “We should get married.”
Calum stumbled to a stop, but she kept going. There was a perfect rock for skipping just ahead. He cleared his throat and scrambled to catch up. Rett took the joint from between his thumb and forefinger, and picked up the rock as she drew in a long inhale.
“What?”
“Yeah. I mean, we love each other, right?”
Calum’s hand wrapped around her wrist, and Rett let him turn her toward him. His dark eyes widened above pink cheeks; his knit hat—the one her mother made for him—pushed his hair flat against his forehead. The tan had left his skin sometime in November, so he was the same pale kid she’d met seven months ago.
“We do. But Rett, we’re kids.”
She shrugged, tugging him closer. “We’re adults, Cal. No one could stop us. I love you. And I—I know it ain’t been that long, but I also know I wanna be with you for the rest of my life.”
“You’re high,” he sighed after scrutinizing her. Something in his face tightened, and he released her arm. “You’re—”
“Dead serious. Like, more serious than being allergic to bees and locked in a room full of ’em.”
“That’s serious.”
His lips twitched, and Rett rolled her eyes as she swatted at his chest. His smile broke free, wide and pure. She stretched up to kiss him, tasting the coffee and mint on his lips. He laughed and pulled her to walk with him down the bank. Sunlight glinted off the water, dazzling shards of light refracted and dancing in the air.
“Don’t make fun of me,” she grumbled. “But I’m serious. I wanna marry you.”
