Page 134 of Reaching Avery
Chapter Thirty-Three
Maverick
Spring
Avery:You know I’m at work, right? Stop sending me those pics.
I grinned as I read his text.
I’d sent him a photo of me in my tight baseball pants—which he loved—and no shirt. I’d had to stay after school for baseball practice that day and had hit the weight room afterward. Before getting in the shower, I’d gotten the brilliant idea to tease him a little.
Opening the camera, I took another selfie, this one showing most of my face, but more importantly, my sweaty chest and abs from the workout I’d just had.
Me:I need a good cleaning.
After attaching the pic, I hit send.
Avery:Jesus. Getting a phone was a horrible idea. I’m now sporting a boner at work. Thanx. If Ruth fires me, it’s your fault.
Ever since he’d gotten his phone a few weeks earlier, all we’d done was text when we weren’t around each other. And we’d talk every night just so I could hear his voice before I went to sleep.
Me:That lady luvs you. Ain’t no way she’d fire you. Go rub one out in the bathroom real quick and you’ll be good as new.
Deciding I’d help him out with that, I checked to make sure no one else was around before taking another—uh, more revealing—picture. When I saw the stamp that he’d read it, but I still hadn’t heard from him minutes later, I walked to the showers with a smile on my face.
When I dropped by his work later on, the first thing he did was punch my shoulder like the feisty little emo demon he was, and then he kissed me.
“I get off in ten minutes,” he said, stepping away and facing the shelf of sculptures and modeling materials.
When he had to put something on the top shelf, he had to stand on his tiptoes.
“Need help there, shorty?” I asked, crossing my arms as I watched him.
He ignored me, but there was a small curve to his lips.
He was wearing black skinny jeans and a black band tee, as well as the bracelet I’d gotten him for Christmas. The only thing he was required to wear to work was the red apron with the store logo on it and his nametag. He didn’t have toconform to normalityas he put it because Ruth basically let him wear whatever he wanted.
Ruth was pretty liberal for an older woman.
Once Avery was off work, he closed the store and walked outside with me. His mom had dropped him off at work before she’d gone to the restaurant, and I was his ride home. I grabbed his hand and guided him to my car, being a goofball by trying to swing him out and pull him back in.
We should’ve learned that lesson from the one time I’d tried to do it at the train tracks. It had the same effect. Avery slammed against my chest, and we both stumbled onto the hood of my car.
“A ballerina, you are not,” Avery said, slapping a hand to my right pec. “And yes, that is Yoda speak.”
“Mmm,” I said, doing my best Yoda accent. “Kiss me, you will.”
Avery shook his head before sliding off the car and holding his hand out to me. “Come on, you will, or kick your ass, I shall.”
“I love when you’re feisty, baby.” I grabbed his hand and led him to his side of the car. After unlocking the door, I opened it for him. “Did you eat dinner?”
“Yeah,” he said, getting in the car. “Ruth bought us Mexican.”
“Want a coffee then?” I asked after getting in and starting the engine. “I can make a quick stop by Brew E. Garrett should be working tonight.”
Avery agreed, and I drove down the strip toward the coffee shop.
Port Haven was beautiful in the day time, with the picturesque bay and green hillside. But Port Haven at night was like a different world. The night life on Main Street was amazing—so many stores lit up, people of all shapes and backgrounds going from shop to shop. Sometimes the bars. Okay, most of the time the bars.
