Page 41 of Rebellious

“Is he mad at Aspen about last night?” I have to know. I wanted to ask her last night, but things spiraled, and it never came up.

“Uh,” my dad pauses. “I don’t think so.”

“He didn’t say on your run this morning?”

Dad laughs. “He says a lot of things on our morning runs.”

I almost whine. “Come on. You know what I want to know.”

He grins good naturedly. “Maybe you should ask Aspen then.”

And maybe everyone in my family shouldn’t be so fucking difficult.

“I would,” I grit. “If she were talking to me.”

“I knew it!” Drew hollers. “Didn’t I say she was ghosting him?” He’s talking to Dad, not me.

“What’s up with you two, anyway?” Dad says, ignoring my brother. “You’ve been acting weird since graduation.”

“They act weird every day,” Drew adds.

“Can you shut the fuck up?” I blurt out at my brother. Why does coming home bring out the immaturity in us? “We’re fine,” I snap at my dad. “We’re just tired with finals and the move.”

It’s partly the truth.

Dad shrugs, slowing his pace to a walk and cooling down. “Okay. Whatever you say. I just think you should probably clear up whatever problem you may have before things spiral out of control and Aspen leaves after the summer.”

Does he not think that thought goes through my head every single day? I can’t sleep thinking about the pain I cause her. What am I supposed to do, though? I can’t choose between my family and her. I want them both, and for the life of me, I can’t figure out hownotto ruin the two most important relationships of my life.

“I’m sure you have it handled.” My dad pats me on the shoulder. “I’ll see you both later. I need to talk to Theo before he leaves.”

I nod, slowing my pace to be in line with Drew’s. He rolls his eyes. “For the record, I don’t think you’re handling yours and Aspen’s relationship at all. You’re basically a walking time bomb. All I can hope is when you explode—because you will explode—you’ll only destroy yourself and not take the rest of us with you.”

Drew’s words had me on edge all day.

After everything I’ve done, implementing the rules, keeping Aspen at arm’s length… will our friendship—our love contained by rules—ultimately destroy our families?

The one thing I worried over and it’s going to happen regardless of my efforts. Losing Aspen will devastate me. It will—there’s no question. I can lie to myself and my family, but the reality is I love her and nothing I’ve done has changed those feelings.

But I can’t lose her.

And I can’t destroy our families.

But I can minimize the damage we cause. Aspen and I are friends. All we need to do is stay calm—and not look at anymore of those tit pictures—until we’re far away from our families.

Outside of the main house, I walk around the cobblestones to the pool where Aspen is floating. The sun is setting, and it casts a faint glow around her golden hair piled on the top of her head. She would look like a real-life angel if it weren’t for the bubble rising above her lips.

“Can I help you remove your eyes from my daughter, Bennett?”

Shit.

I cut my gaze to the pergola where Theo is reclining back on the outdoor sofa, his wife lounging sideways across his lap, reading a magazine—in a bikini. Theo’s beer rests on her abdomen, his finger swirling lazily around her belly button.

I look away. I don’t want Theo thinking my eyes are drifting anywhere but his face. “No, sir. I just came to ask Aspen a question.”

Aspen pops her bubble and grins. “I can’t hear you from that far away,” she lies. “Come closer and ask me.”

Anniston snickers and Theo smirks. “You heard the lady.” He shoos me with a flip of his hand.

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