Page 2 of Tequila & Lace
Now I only had one more year until I was an adult. I wasn’t sure what was after high school for me. I didn’t want to stay home and take care of Bryce. I loved him, but I wanted to get a job, save up money, and move out on my own. I wanted to be roommates with Cat, go to parties and live wild and free. But I knew college wasn’t in my future, not even community college. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to afford my share of the rent, pay bills and obtain a degree. Hell, I didn’t even know what I wanted to be when Igrew up.
As I stared out the window, thinking about my future and the year to come, there was a slight knock against the screen of the front door. “Mrs. McKenna,” I greeted. I always used her formal name. I was introduced to her as that and it had stuck.
“Happy birthday, dear. You have a phone call.” She smiled and reached her hand out to pass me her cordless house phone. “I’ll watch Brycie. Go ahead and use my phone inside.” She motioned with her head toward her trailer.
I took the two steps down while holding the screen door so it didn’t slam and wake Mother. “Thank you.” I beamed and switched spots with her. I walked a few feet before speaking into the phone to Seth. “Please tell me for my eightieth birthday you’ll show up and not just call?” I grinned then gave a slight chuckle into the receiver while I stepped into the other trailer that was less than twenty feet away.
Seth’s mature voice rang through as he spoke. Over the years, I’d heard it change into a deepmanlyvoice and now it did things deep in the pit of my belly that made me grin like a complete fool whenever we spoke. “I’ll show up as your knight in shining armor. Should it be on a white or black horse?”
I laughed again. “How about a white or black car?”
“I could do that if I picked you up at the airport here.”
“Oh my God. I could just see the look on people’s faces as I got in the back of a D.C. squad car.”
“Want me to handcuff you too?”
“No way!” For a split second, images of being handcuff naked with Seth kissing his way down my body flashed in my head. Teen hormones were no joke, but I was waiting. I wasn’t sure if I was waiting to be with Seth when I turned eighteen and legal—since he was a cop and twenty-one, or if I was waiting until I found someonespecial. All I knew was I didn’t want to treat sex like my mother did.
“I’m only joking, Joss.”
I smiled as I envisioned him smiling on the other end. I loved his smile. When he did, his mouth curved enough to cause his cheeks to meet his eyes, and when they squinted, you knew you had a genuine smile out of him. I knew at that moment—on the other end of the phone—he was giving me that smile. We were silent for a few beats as I looked around at the pictures of Seth from his childhood that were scattered throughout the small living room.
“It’s actually white.”
“What?” I asked, my eyebrows scrunched in confusion.
“The squad car. It’s white with red decals and blue writing.”
“Oh. Well, I’ve never been on a plane before. Not sure if I’d even make it up to see you.”
“You’ve never been on a plane?”
I frowned. “Nope.” I’d actually never left the trailer park for more than one night.
“All right. For graduation, I’m taking you somewhere on a plane.”
I sighed and fell back onto the cream colored velvet couch with burnt orange roses. “Aw, man. I gotta wait over a year?” I was teasing, but getting away sounded like heaven, especially with Seth.
“Not my fault you’re a baby. We gotta wait to get you an I.D. so you can go places since Cruella won’t let you get one.”
“I have my school I.D.”
“Tempting, but you’re still a baby.”
I rolled my eyes. “And you’re still an ass.”
“Not my fault you don’t have an older brother. I have to step up.” I cringed at the word brother. “Anyway, birthday girl, I gotta go. Duty calls and all that shit—”
“Yeah, yeah, go catch those bad guys.”
He chuckled. “Have Grandma cook you something good for dinner. You know she will.”
“I know,” I sighed. “I just want cake.”And candles… And to make a wish as I blow out the candles.
“She’ll bake you one, Josie. She makes a mean ‘better than sex’ cake.”
“Come again?” I covered my mouth with my hand as the words spilled from it.Sex. Cum. Talking to Seth about sex and cum. Fuck my life.
