Page 16 of How We Loved

I’ll see you tomorrow. ;-)

Always with the smiley face. I swear that girl can’t send a text without using a damn emoji. It’s in her happy-go-lucky nature. One she tends to rub off on me every once in a while even though I’m so not that type.

I know she wasn’t with Natalie because Dalton was there all day—something I’m still in fucking shock about. Never did I think Dalton Wick would be able to step foot on the Spencer Ranch, let alone be welcome in their living room, but it looks like hell does freeze over.

He’s stayed here the past few nights since the drama went down with his dad. My parents offered for him to live here permanently, but I get how he doesn’t want my father’s work relationship with his dad to be troubled with us taking him in. Over the years, I’ve noticed my dad and Maya’s aren’t as close with Mike Wick as they once were, but I never really thought why.

I guess, now that I know more about his personality and what he’s capable of, things make more sense.

Our parents have kept their friendship to more of a business relationship, and that seems to work perfectly for all who’s concerned.

Dalton still hasn’t talked to his father, and I’d be surprised if he ever did again. They’ve never had what you would call a good father-son relationship, so he doesn’t even seem to care about the loss.

After school but before the game on Friday, he went and got his things, planning to never go back. His mom is still gone to lord knows where, and I’d bet she has no clue what all went down. I did, however, see him talking to his sister before he left yesterday, so I’m glad they at least have each other.

Thankfully, he’s eighteen, and he already received some of his trust on his birthday, so he’s lined up places to look at. I’m not sure exactly how much he got, but I can only imagine it will be enough for him to live on for a few years while he figures out where he wants his life to go.

Not really wanting to call anyone else yesterday, I found myself playing video games and lying on my couch with my dog, Jesse, an English springer spaniel, until I was so bored that I thought about doing homework. I didn’t actually do said homework, but just the fact that I thought about it showed how fucking bored I was.

Maya’s never blown me off like that before, and knowing she met a guy after my football game on Friday is not sitting well with me.

Was that why she’s vague-texting me? Was she with him?

Yes, she’s dated. It’s a free country, but that doesn’t mean I don’t watch after her. I haven’t met this guy. Someone needs to vouch for him before he takes my best friend out. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

She’s my tiny little Maya, no bigger than four foot nine. This world can be a scary place. She needs a guy like me who will look after her and honestly protect her from guys just like me.

I ain’t afraid to admit that fact either. I know what goes through my head when I see a girl like her. She’s too innocent to realize it though. To her, the world is full of butterflies and rainbows. That’s why I call her Sunshine. She lights my world like the sun does for everyone else, and I never want to see her light go out. After we lost her mom, I swore she would never know sadness like that again.

I head out of my bedroom to see what my parents are up to. Yes, my dad is on the board and a major stakeholder of TimeLand, but, no, if you came into my house at any given time, you would never know it. Dalton’s parents, on the other hand, have maids, handymen, and nannies running their household, and his mom is always off, living a life of luxury in foreign countries—without her kids.

My mom is about as down-home as they come, and my dad goes along with whatever she wants in life.

You’ll either find her cooking in the kitchen; in her craft room, making blankets for kids who are sick in hospitals; or volunteering at the preschool here in town.

She said she wanted a big family, but, as she tells me, “God just wanted me to have you so I could help all the others in need.”

As I walk down the hallway, the smell of bacon permeates the air, and I smile at how blessed I am to have a mom just like her.

“Morning, Mom,” I say as I kiss the top of her head.

She puts down the spatula she’s holding and turns to give me a hug. “Morning, baby. How’d you sleep?”

No matter how old I get, she still calls me baby. It always makes me laugh because I’m a foot taller than her. She says she doesn’t care how big I get; I’ll always be her baby.

“Good. Whatcha making?” I lean in to steal a piece of bacon that’s sitting on a napkin, looking ready to eat. Even though she tries to swat me away, it’s too late, and I stick a piece in my mouth.

She tries to push me away for doing so. “Get out of here before you eat everything and leave nothing for your father and me. It’s almost ready.”

I laugh as I head to the fridge to grab the juice so I can pour myself a glass.

“Is everyone coming over today?” she asks.

“You know it.” I sit on one of the stools at the kitchen bar that faces her.

“Where was Maya yesterday?”

I yawn. “Not sure.”

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