Page 27 of XOXO, Valentina

Doubts which hadn’t left my mind all weekend grew stronger. Jealousy flared, hitting every nerve in my body like a pinball machine.

Joey never seemed to be lacking in female company. There was the BJ bandit—Caroline—Kaitlyn, and undoubtedly countless other women in his life.

I probably wasn’t the only woman he’d had breakfast with this weekend.

Their laughter pierced the air again, and I ducked behind a row of tall bushes before they spotted me. From my vantage point between the holly bushes, I watched them take turns at the water fountain. I should have hightailed it out of there while they weren’t looking, but I waited too long. The next thing I knew, the woman took off in one direction, and Joey headed down the hill, straight toward me.

I cringed and shrank back into the prickly bushes, hoping he would pass by without seeing me. My breathing slowed, and I held perfectly still as his footsteps neared. I listened to the even rhythm of his footfall, not daring to move as he zipped along the path.

He’d almost made it out of sight when my phone blasted to life in the pocket of my shorts. I scrambled to silence it, but I was too late. Shane’s ringtone filled the air.

I was so busted. Joey’s footsteps halted and his head turned. When he saw me crouching in the bushes, his eyes widened and then a slow smile curved his mouth.

I swiped to answer my phone. “Hello?” I whispered, even though the damage was done.

“Hey, Mom. I was just wondering… Can I go to the shooting range with Papa?”

Joey retraced his steps back to the row of bushes where I was only partially hidden.

My skin tingled as his eyes roamed over me. “You’re supposed to be working on your English paper,” I told Shane.

“You sound out of breath,” Shane said. “Are you okay?”

“I’m running.”

Joey heard me, and his grin burst to life. My cheeks burned with embarrassment, and I looked away.

“I’ll do my essay tonight,” Shane said. “Promise.”

“Okay,” I said. “You can go. But be careful and follow all Papa’s rules. “

“I’m always careful around guns. Papa taught me.”

“And don’t forget your earmuffs. I’ll see you at supper.”

“Thanks! See ya!”

I swiped the phone to hang up and slowly lifted my gaze from Joey’s running shoes to his face. He crossed his arms over his chest and nodded his chin at me.

“Lose something in the bushes?” he asked, barely holding in a laugh.

I plucked a holly leaf from my sleeve and tossed it to the ground. “I’m good. I found it.”

He reached down and grabbed my hand, then hauled me to my feet. His arm wrapped around my waist, and he held me against him for a moment. The tall holly bushes gave us privacy, but not much. My heart raced both because Joey was holding me against the hard wall of his chest and because someone might come along the path and see us.

“Spying on me, again?” His voice was a soft whisper with a scorching hot edge.

My heart hammered as our eyes met and locked. “I didn’t see anything good this time.”

He let me go with a soft bark of laughter. “Have you met Coach Madison yet?”

“Who?”

“The woman I was running with,” he said. “She’s the other track coach at Mossy Oak High.”

“Oh.” My cheeks went up in flames.

He laughed again. “You’re still coming to my place for breakfast, right?”

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