“We can get you there, we just need to come at six when it’s cooler.”
“Six a.m.? During summer vacation?” I snort.
“It’s not that bad.” He shrugs.
“Anyway, I was thinking we should climb the water tower tonight.”
“Yeah?” I ask, feeling a smile take over my face.
“Why not? But first… Race ya!” he calls out as he takes off running.
“Not fair!” I call back and break into a sprint.
I try my hardest to catch up with him, but he beats me to the parking lot by a good few yards.
“You cheated,” I pant, trying to catch my breath.
“You’re fast,” he says, his muscular chest heaving with deep breaths.
“I was going to go easy on you, but shit, princess.” He shakes his head with a laugh.
? ? ?
At nine that night, I’m looking out my living room window waiting for Mason to pull up. The second I see his headlights, I run outside and jump into the passenger seat.
“Someone’s excited,” he laughs as I put my seat belt on.
“I am.” I smile widely. It’s a short drive there, but the nerves build the whole way.
“Is this illegal?” I ask when Mason pulls up in the field surrounding the water tower.
“You’re not going to chicken out on me, are you?”
“No,” I say, biting my lip as we get out of the car.
I grab the bottom rung of the ladder and start pulling myself up. It’s a long climb and my stomach is churning the whole way.
Mason is right behind me though, which makes me feel safer. We finally make it to the top.
“Whoa,” I say, looking at the view. I can see the whole city from up here.
“Crazy, right?” Mason says, sitting down and sliding his legs through the railing.
“It’s so quiet out here,” I whisper as I sit next to him. All I can hear is our breathing and crickets. It’s like we’re the only two people in the world.
“I have to say, I’m surprised you did this,” he says.
“Rumor is you’re a goody-two-shoes, and here you are doing something illegal.”
“You said it wasn’t illegal!”
“I never said that.”
“Well, I guess rumors aren’t always true, are they? Like, you’re not as big an asshole as everyone says.”
“That’s what everyone says?”
“Some people,” I say quietly, embarrassed.
He shrugs indifferently.
“So, tell me, princess, what else did your crazy ex-boyfriend not let you do?” he asks, pulling out his phone.
“He never let me try marijuana.”
Mason laughs and says, “Try marijuana? No one says it like that.”
“He never let me smoke a fatty?” I say.
“Okay, that’s worse. I’ll just put it on the list and we’ll move on.” He types it into the notes app on his phone, then says, “Next?”
“Get my nose pierced.”
His eyes widen.
“I’m not getting my nose pierced.”
“You don’t have to,” I laugh as I picture it.
“I’ll come with you though,” he says, adding it to the list.
“I always wanted to try eating that seventy-two-ounce steak just out of town,” I mumble.
“Eat a giant-ass steak, got it.” He smiles.
“Drink a whole bottle of wine straight from the bottle.” When he finishes typing that, I whisper, “Quit the cheer team.” He raises a questioning brow but doesn’t say anything as he types.
“That’s it,” I say, looking over his shoulder at the list he’s made.
“Don’t forget the waterfall,” I tell him, and he adds it at the bottom.
“Why are you doing this for me?” I can’t help but ask.
“Because you’re fun to hang out with,” he says with a smile. Then his face darkens and he looks out at the city lights.
“And I could use the distraction.”
“From what?” I whisper.
He looks at me and his lips part to speak but then close again and he turns away to avoid my gaze. I reach out, placing a gentle hand on his arm.
“I’m a good listener,” I say.
He closes his eyes, and the words finally come.
“My brother died last month,” he murmurs.
I don’t know what to say, except, “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” he mumbles, opening his eyes. Even though it’s dark, I can see tears welling up in his eyes.
“I’m happy to be your distraction,” I say, putting my head on his shoulder.
“Thanks, princess,” he whispers back, resting his head on top of mine. We stay that way for a minute or two. It’s nice.
“Are you really going to quit the cheer team?” he asks.
“It’s on the list, so I have to,” I joke.
“But yeah,” I say, no longer joking.
“I don’t want the summer to end,” he says quietly.
“Back at school, everything will be more…complicated.”
I’m dreading going back, too.
“People are going to gossip about me and Olly, and when I drop out of cheer, it’s going to be worse. Nobody knows how to mind their own business.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.