Page 20 of Double Trouble

I’m still planning on later, though. If that’s okay…

Maybe he’s having second thoughts about sneaking me in after hours. I suppose I could try to get to Troublemakers before they close, but I won’t get much practice time, and with the competition looming, I need all I can get.

Yep! Planning on it.

I know I should feel terrible about putting him in this position, but I can’t help the grin that spreads across my lips.

Sweet. See ya then.

I tuck my phone away and turn, jumping at how close Luke is. How does he not make a frickin’ sound when he moves around? I’m like a walking hurricane around the barn.

Is Tanner your boyfriend?he signs.

I jerk back. I must’ve misread that. “Sorry… what?”

He smirks, exposing his bright white teeth. He signs much slower.Is Tanner your boyfriend?

Okay, wow. I did understand right.“No.”I add a laugh for good measure.“I’m too old for him.”

I maneuver around Luke, but he gently taps my elbow, letting me know he’s not done with the third degree.

He’s too young for you or you’re too old for him?

“Isn’t that the same thing?” I ask, forgetting to sign, but Luke gets it.

No.He holds up a finger and starts tapping against his phone. I wait patiently—sort of—for what he wants to say. Jitters run up and down my arms, and I furiously rub them out. I don’t know why this conversation has me all up in knots.

He flips his phone toward me, and I read deliberately slowly.

You said you’re too old for him, implying that he wouldn’t desire you because of your age, not that you don’t desire him because of his. And I’m no romance connoisseur, but even I can tell he’s interested in you.

I blink a few times. Make sure my heart’s still beating. Tanner interested in me? An unexpected laugh bursts from my lips, and I thrust Luke’s phone out to him. “Because of a text, Luke? Really?”

And the party, he signs.He seemed… nervous. Until you two sneaked away.

I shake my head. There’s no way. If Luke knew what Tanner was helping me out with, he wouldn’t be bringing this up. He’d know it was all about my boarding competition.

Besides, Tanner had a thing for Candace way back when. I wonder if the engagement is getting to him, too. Hmm… maybe I’ll ask.

I wave Luke off and head toward the chicken feed. I have many more things on my checklist before taking Dem to the middle school, and I don’t need all these super fun talks about whether or not Tanner likes me, likes me. I grew out of those conversations long before now.

Well, come to think of it, I’ve never had this conversation before now. My romantic history is sad and empty compared to almost everyone my age. My focus has always been on my family, paying bills, getting out of my house, finding things my own way… and boarding. Of course boarding. Occasionally Star Wars.

I stomp outside and shield my eyes from the afternoon sun. Gosh, why am I so defensive over this? What if Tanner likes me in that way? Would that be completely out of the realm of possibility?

I toss out the feed, letting the chickens come to me. I mean, he is risking his job just so I can skateboard. He always has a giant grin on when I walk through the doors of the Wheel Zone. He fills my water when I’m running low, texts me when there’s something wrong, knows me a lot better than anyone else.

And come to think of it, there is a hint of nerves that run through his actions when I’m around. The jerk of his fingers when they get too close to mine, the shallow breath when I nudge him, the heat rising through his neck when I rest my chin on his shoulder.

Holy hell… Tanner could totally have a thing for me.

A chicken screeches near my leg, and I jump three feet into the air. My heart patters against my chest, and I laugh away my surprise. I dump the rest of the feed and let the chickens take advantage of my distracted mind.

If Tanner does like me, I suppose I have to figure out how I feel about him.

My parents live on the outskirts of town, in the rundown parts on the complete opposite end of Sherman Farms. Their house is a one-level three bedroom, with a small living roomI and kitchen. The dining area has been used a handful of times, and none of them in the past decade. So when I walk into my parents’ house and the table is set up like the king and queen are coming, I step back into Pete purely out of shock.

“Hey kids,” Mom says, a nervous smile playing at the corners of her lips. She wipes her hands down a dirty and worn apron and rushes to the front door where Pete, Dem, and I stand frozen.

---