Page 20 of Find Me
I pointed toward the porch. “Next to the steps, please.”
Creed and Keelan grabbed the remaining two bags from my trunk and followed Colt.
“What are you planting?” Keelan asked.
“Flowers,” I said, shutting my trunk and pocketing my earbuds. The three of them aligned the bags next to the steps. “Thank you.”
Keelan brushed dirt off his hands. “No problem.” He eyed my running attire. “Have you eaten yet?”
“Not yet,” I replied.
“Perfect. You can come out to eat with us,” Keelan said.
The twins frowned at their older brother, giving me the impression that they didn’t want me to come.
“I don’t want to impose—”
Colt’s frown dropped as he looked at me. “You won’t be imposing. Knox is the cook in the family, but he’s working late tonight. The three of us have to fend for ourselves.”
“Plus, we need to make it up to you for making breakfast for us twice this week,” Keelan added.
I glanced at Creed to see if he was alright with me going.
He gave a slight shrug. “We were thinking about going to this diner down the road. They have good burgers.”
A burger sounded amazing. “Do I have time to take a quick shower?”
“Of course,” Keelan said. “Forewarning, though, Creed gets grumpy when he’s hungry.”
Creed went to punch Keelan in the arm, but Keelan easily dodged and pulled Creed into a headlock. Colt sighed at the both of them and I chuckled as I headed inside.
I took the world’s fastest shower. I only had time to smear on some foundation and apply mascara. After running a comb through my wet hair, I braided it to the side. I threw on jean shorts, a black T-shirt, and tennis shoes. On the way out the door I grabbed my purse and sweatshirt. I slid into the latter as I walked next door.
Creed was the one to answer after I knocked on their door. His eyes roamed over me with a look of irritation. “It’s hotter than hell out. Lose the sweatshirt.”
“No.”
Creed held out his hand. “Just take it off.”
“Whoa, what are you asking her to take off?” Keelan asked, appearing behind Creed with Colt. They looked from Creed to me.
Colt seemed to pick up on what we were arguing about right away. “Leave her be, Creed. It makes her feel comfortable.”
Creed ignored his twin and didn’t remove his stern gaze from me. “No one is going to say shit about your scars and if they did, I’d kick their ass.”
“Why would she need you to kick someone’s ass? She can clearly do it herself,” Keelan stated. His flattery was definitely good for the ego.
I held Creed’s stare as I debated. He was right about it being hot. Sweat was already rolling down my spine. With each passing day I lived here, wearing athletic jackets and sweatshirts was making me more miserable.
Without backing down from our stare-off, Creed added, “You’ve got to stop caring about what other people think, Shi.”
Hearing my name shortened by someone other than Logan did something to my heart. Woke it up, maybe? Sure, it beat fast when I was scared, and it hurt when I was sad. But I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt the warmth of happiness. Shayla had been the first to call me Shi. As a baby, she hadn’t been able to fully sayShiloh. Thinking it was cute, my parents and Logan had adopted the nickname as well.
Creed was right. I needed to stop caring what other people thought. Knowing I had him and Colt in my corner made the decision easier. I slid my purse off my shoulder and held it out to him. He took it and I shed my sweatshirt. Keelan’s gaze roamed over my scars with a schooled expression. I battled with myself to not care—to ignore the heavy weight of his eyes. Creed saved me from my overwhelming nerves by pulling my focus back to him. He plucked my sweatshirt from my hands, balled it up, and tossed it into their house.
I opened my mouth to tell him that I’d need it back. He cut me off by saying, “One down. Only fifty more sweatshirts to go.” Then he handed me back my purse.
“Alright, let’s go,” Keelan said before I could tear into Creed, who had the audacity to smirk at me as we all walked over to Keelan’s silver Jeep Wrangler.
