Page 140 of Late Nights & Love Lines
Alexei’s reaching for something else to throw when a low rumble hits our ears, and we all turn to the left, then the right.
“Someone’s coming,” Beck says, pointing down the road where a plume of dust is kicking up.
The music hits us first, and I know it’s my girl. She rolls to a stop in front of her parent’s driveway with the sexiness ofa pinup girl with windblown hair, rosy cheeks, and sunglasses twice the size of her face.
She’s driving a brand new bright yellow Jeep. The paper license plate and her sunshiny smile tell me she’s embracing her future.
“What the heck are you all doing here?” She pops the Jeep into park and jumps out. “Is everything okay? What’s wrong with the kids? Is it Miles? Is he sick again?”
I reach her with three long strides, grab her face in my palms, and kiss the ever-living hell out of her.
34
THE EASIEST GOODBYE I’LL EVER HAVE
ROWAN
I’m drowning in a sea of Sebastian. It’s the only way to describe this kiss. It’s an all-consuming, goosebump-inducing, fear-stealing kiss that leaves me mindless and maybe a little punch-drunk.
When he finally pulls back to rest his forehead against mine, we’re both panting hard, and someone is whistling in the background.
“Don’t run,” he whispers, and my shoulders begin to relax.
“I’m not running.” I say it like a vow because it is. I’m done running. “Please tell me that the kids are okay.”
“They’re fine.” He inhales sharply, as if he’s hanging onto his sanity by a thread.
“But we couldn’t have you running all over the East Coast trying to fix shit either. That’s our job as the merry fucking meddlers,” Beck says, cracking his first smile of the day.
“I—I tried. I tried to make Coleman stay with you. Why would you tell him to go to hell? Why would you put yourself in jeopardy that way? Jacob would have done what I asked, I’m almost sure of it.”
Sebastian growls against my cheek. “That would have only eased his guilty conscience, and I’m not making anything easy for that fucker.”
Beck snorts. “Neither is he. I saw this morning he’s dismantling his father’s company piece by piece. He works fast.”
“He’s by no means innocent,” I say. “But I think Haley did some shitty things that impacted his life too.”
“Don’t make excuses for that sack of shit,” Pappy barks from the front seat, and my stomach crawls into my throat.
“Pappy’s here too? What the heck?” I hurry to the front seat and open Pappy’s door. He grins and pulls me in for a hug. “Why are you all here?”
“Isn’t that obvious to you yet, Row?” Pappy asks softly.
I shake my head, too afraid of the emotions clogging my throat to look at him.
“We’re here for you,” Seb says.
Pappy pats my back once, and then I pull away from him. Seb takes the opportunity to tug me straight into his arms.
“But…why? I was going up there to get closure, and nothing they say or do can hurt me anymore. I could have done this myself and been home in a couple of days. It wasn’t necessary for everyone to come.”
“It was,” Beck huffs.
“If there weren’t kids at home, the girls would be here too,” Leo says, shoving his hands into the pockets of his shorts.
More confused than ever before, I try to pull answers from each of their expressions before Seb cups my face in his palms.
“We’re aware that you could have faced your past alone, Peach. We’re pretty sure you can do anything and everything you set your mind to. The difference is you don’t have to do this by yourself anymore. You don’t have to do anything alone ever again—unless you want to.”
