HIDDEN CREEK LOVE: a hidden creek high novel, page 6
When we got to my SUV, I faced her.
“Nobody can do that to you, darling,” I said.
Aira swallowed hard and nodded. “I get it. I really do.”
“I have to make it clear. Or else it’ll keep happening.”
“I know,” Aira said. “We should get out of here, Wes. Before anything else happens. Or anyone sees anything. I don’t know. I just… I don’t want to be here right now.”
We got into the SUV and I drove away from HCH, leaving the campus falling down to the horizon.
I drove with my right hand, focused on road, not even noticing something obvious happening.
Aira did.
“You’re cut and bleeding,” she said.
“I guess I am.”
“You have to clean that up.”
“You worried about me?” I asked, grinning.
“Of course I am,” Aira said.
There were a few too many seconds of silence between us.
“Aira?” I asked. “What are you thinking?”
“Thinking of why it’s like this. And when it ends.”
“I don’t have an answer for that, darling,” I said. “But I won’t ever stop fighting for you.”
Aira reached for my messed-up hand and took it off the steering wheel. I had to use my left hand to drive then.
She kept looking at the cuts and blood on my hand.
And I was pretty sure I caught her almost smiling at one point.
Which made it all worth it.
She needed to know she was worth fighting for.
* * *
The peroxide stung like fire and bubbled.
“Gross,” Aira said.
She sat up on one of the workbenches and I stood there with my hand flat against a towel. She made me smile as I watched her clean up my hand.
“You should be a doctor,” I said.
“Yeah, right,” she said. “This is making me sick.”
“Just a little cut.”
“A little?” she asked.
I shrugged my shoulders. “He has hard cheekbones.”
Aira started to laugh. “That sounds so weird to hear you say.”
I touched her chin with my other hand. “Hey. You’re beautiful.”
“Stop it.”
“I’m serious. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when this started.”
“It’s okay.”
“It’s not. You should have told me sooner. We have to get better at that.”
Aira nodded. “Yeah, I guess we do.”
“Darling, I need you to know that you have nothing to worry about with Noelle. I’ll never stop helping her. But she’s like a sister. That’s it. And no matter what, Ryland is going to use that to piss you off. And I get it. But I don’t want to see you hurt or worried. Or playing into his games.”
“I know,” Aira said. “And I didn’t want to say anything about the plastic knives because…”
She looked down at my hand.
I sucked in a breath. “That doesn’t matter. I’ll always stand up for what I believe in. I’m not worried about HCH or Henders.”
“I am,” Aira said. “I hate when you’re not there.”
“Of course,” I said. “I’m here right now. So don’t worry about anything else.”
Aira wiped my hand and I slowly made a fist. The cuts would heal up on their own.
I heard footsteps and saw Jett walking into the garage.
He ripped his sunglasses off his face and looked at me and Aira. Then he looked at my hand.
“Should I ask?” Jett asked.
“You just did,” I said.
“He bumped his hand on something,” Aira said.
“Something, huh?” Jett asked.
“Nothing to worry about,” I said.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Jett said. “I have to worry about all of this. Just tell me it has nothing to do with Ryland.”
“Eh,” I said.
“Dammit, Wes,” Jett said.
“He didn’t hit Ryland,” Aira said. “If that’s what you’re asking.”
“Okay, good,” Jett said. “I have to deal with Alexander and Rosemary in a bit. You might want to head out of here.”
“Who’s that?” Aira asked.
I loved how comfortable she seemed, just sitting there on the bench with her feet dangling, kicking back and forth.
“Ryland’s parents,” Jett said. “They’re coming to get his motorcycle today.”
“Wow,” I said. “He can’t even get it himself, huh?”
“Guess not,” Jett said. “Probably for the better. Now I just need to keep Pop busy. If he sees them…”
“He’ll lose his mind,” I said.
“Why?” Aira asked.
Jett and I locked eyes.
“Just old stuff, darling,” I said to Aira.
“As I said, you should take off,” Jett said. He looked at Aira. “Think you can keep him out of trouble?”
“I could try,” she said. “But Wes does what he wants.”
“See?” I said. “She gets me. That’s why I love her.”
I pulled Aira off the bench and hugged her.
Jett sighed. “I’m serious. Stay out of trouble. It’s been a little crazy around here. We could all use a breather.”
Jett walked toward the office.
“Think you can keep me out of trouble?” I asked Aira.
“Actually, I think I can.”
“Oh yeah? Let me guess… it involves you and me… in a bed… for hours. No. Days. That would keep me out of trouble.”
“I’m pretty sure that would get both of us into a lot of trouble,” Aira said.
I laughed. “Well, then what’s your plan?”
“I need to go back.”
“Go back where?”
“Highland,” she said.
“Where your…”
She nodded. “Yeah. I just need to go back and see it. Talk to my mother, if she’s anywhere near there. I don’t know. This whole arson thing is… I almost don’t believe it. So I want to go see it.”
“Then you should.”
“I want you with me.”
“Yeah?” I asked.
“I need you with me, Wes. It’s the only way I can face it. We can sleep there too. There’s a place I know of.”
“So it’s just you and I alone, huh?” I grinned.
“Yeah,” Aira said. “Just us.”
I cupped her delicate face in my hands and gently kissed her.
She had a hold on me.
Getting her out of Hidden for a break was a good thing.
Even if it meant going to look at the ashes of what was once her house.
Sad to admit it, but that was better than dealing with the secrets of HCH.
Chapter 7
Aira
“Are you really sure about this?” Julia asked me for the tenth time.
“Positive,” I said.
She looked at Wes. “And you don’t drive like an idiot, do you?”
“I only cut off old people and I only text when I’m on the highway,” Wes said.
“Wes,” I growled.
He laughed and showed his hands. “Julia, we’re fine. It’ll be good to get out of here.”
“That’s what I don’t want to hear,” she said. “That it’s good to leave here. I don’t like that. That means things are still happening.”
“You can come then,” I said, regretting it.
Because I feared she would call my bluff.
“I’m not going anywhere near that,” Julia said.
Whew.
“Did you tell your mother?” Julia asked.
“Yeah. She’ll be back from one of the wineries,” I said.
“Does she know about Wes?”
“Nope.”
Julia let out a ooohhh sounding sigh. “That’ll go over great then.”
“That’s my problem.”
“I’m quite charming,” Wes said. “When I want to be.”
“Yeah, right,” Julia said. “Okay, here’s the deal…”
Julia started to wag her finger at us like she wanted to give a long lecture. But she must have remembered who we were and how old we were. That telling her we were leaving was more of a courtesy than asking permission.
“We have to go,” I said.
“I know you do,” Julia said. “I already talked to Miss Carson about this. Just so you know.”
“Of course you did,” I said. “You two are…”
“I can deal with that,” Wes said.
Both myself and Julia looked at him with disgust.
“What?” he asked. “My girlfriend’s older friend and the guidance counselor… that just writes itself in my head.”
“I need a shower now,” Julia said.
“You like it that much?” Wes asked.
I grabbed an apple from the fruit basket on the counter and threw it as hard as I could at Wes.
Of course, Wes being Wes, he caught it and took a big bite and tossed it back.
God, why is everything he does so sexy?
“Just please drive safe,” Julia said. “Keep in touch. And whatever happens… I don’t know, Aira. Just know I’m happy you’re here. And I’m proud of you for fighting through all of this.”
“That I agree with,” Wes said.
He walked to me and took my hand.
“Thank you,” I said. “Now let’s go look at my burned down house.”
It was supposed to somehow be funny but nobody laughed.
But, hey, at least nobody cried, right?
* * *
Wes popped the top on another energy drink.
“You really go for this whole road trip thing, don’t you?” I asked.
“How can you not?” he asked. “We’re alone with the open road.”
“Weirdo,” I whispered.
The wind ripped through the open windows of the SUV and I had a mental countdown of when I’d arrive back in Highland. It really wasn’t the worst place in the world to live. But… those who were born there were treated differently than those who came to live there.
“Hey, darling,” Wes said. “What was the deal with your parents? They were always a little fucked up, right?”
“Always,” I said. “Trying to be something they never were. Which was why we moved.”
“And you hated it there?”
“It wasn’t my favorite place.”
“Make me a promise,” Wes said.
“Okay…”
“You tell me what we’re doing. And what you want to do. I’ll go anywhere with you, Aira. But if you need to get away, walk away, need me to cause a scene, I’ll do it.”
“That’s why I wanted you to come. You’re crazy enough to balance out the crazy we’re going into.”
Wes took a big drink from the energy drink and smacked his lips together. “I love crazy. It gets me as excited as seeing you naked.”
I snorted. “Thanks for that.”
It was less than an hour later when we got into town. My mother was staying at a luxury apartment just outside town. It was the kind of place where everything came fully furnished and was normally used by business people on trips or those on vacations. It wasn’t rare for someone to live there, and all things considered with the house, I guess my mother didn’t have much of a choice. Not like money mattered to them.
“You sure you want to go there first?” Wes asked.
“Turn right up here,” I said, not answering the question.
My heart started to race when Wes took that turn.
My old street was wide with large houses that had plenty of land between them. That made the street extra long. In the middle there was an island of trees. Everything to give it a rich and comfortable feeling.
I looked down at my feet on the floor of the SUV as Wes kept driving. There was no need for me to give him any further directions. He’d know… because there was only house left as charred remains.
When I felt the SUV come to a slow stop, I shut my eyes.
Tears instantly filled my eyes and I sighed.
One of the best things about Wes was that he knew what to do and what to say. He didn’t make a comment about the destruction of the house. Instead, he put his hand to my back and gently rubbed up and down.
I collected myself and lifted my gaze, refusing to let a tear fall from my eyes.
I turned my head and saw the house.
I covered my mouth and felt Wes wrap an arm around me.
The house was big enough that it technically didn’t burn to the ground. However, half of it was gone. The house looked black and crooked, like something out of a scary cartoon movie. Even the side that wasn’t as heavily damaged still had black smoke marks on it. And most of the windows were broken. There were signs hung up on the door which I figured were warnings to stay away.
I pointed and said, “That front corner that’s missing was my parents’ room. Or wing. Or suite. Whatever they wanted to call it. And around to the back was where my room was. The fire spread really fast. I remember them saying that. That it just took off. The part that doesn’t look all that bad is really damaged inside. From the smoke and heat and everything.”
“What a fucking mess, darling,” Wes said.
That’s when I turned my head. I smiled. “Yeah. It’s a fucking mess.”
I wasn’t sure why but that was exactly what I wanted to hear him say.
He brushed his lips to mine.
I swallowed hard and cleared my throat.
“We can come back later or whatever,” I said.
“Or just stay here,” Wes said. “No rush, Aira. Tell me about the house. Everything.”
I pointed and sucked in a breath. “Okay. Through the front door there was this large staircase. It was off to the right though. That always bothered me. The outside of the house looks so white and bright but the inside was actually a little darker and comfortable. I liked the house. Even if everything surrounding it just felt fake all the time. I mean, even the night of the fire… I wasn’t supposed to be home.”
“I know, you told me,” Wes said in a low voice. “I can’t believe what happened.”
“I mean, there’s nothing special about the house, you know?” I looked at Wes again. “I mean that. It was just a house. So… why…”
“Why does it bother you?” Wes asked.
I nodded.
Wes touched my cheek. “Because you came close to getting really hurt. Or worse. And now it turns out someone did this on purpose. That’s intense, darling. Someone set that house on fire.”
I shivered.
The chills ran down my back.
I almost wanted to just go back to Hidden.
It felt safer there.
“I want to get out of here,” I said. “I don’t want to see the house ever again.”
“We’re gone,” Wes said.
He released his hold on me and put the SUV into drive and took off.
I gave directions to the apartment building where my mother was living.
When we arrived and Wes parked, I reached for his hand.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“I love you, Wes.”
“I love you too,” he said with a laugh. “Is this you warning me about something?”
“My mother…”
“Who I’ve met before.”
“Right.”
We held hands and were greeted at the door by a man who had to call up to Mom’s apartment to verify who we were. I thought about causing a scene by yelling and crying but I didn’t have the energy. I secretly couldn’t get the sight of the house out of my mind. It was different looking at it now. Especially now knowing the truth.
Someone set the house on fire on purpose.
“Right through here,” the man at the door said after getting confirmation from Mom.
The entrance reminded me of a luxury foyer. A large glass chandelier hung overhead with a set of steps on the left and the right. Straight ahead was an elevator.
“Quickie on the elevator?” Wes whispered to me.
I blushed and smiled. “Let’s go.”
He pulled me to the elevator, my heart racing for a different reason.
It opened and we rushed inside.
The second the doors shut, he turned to face me, pinning me against the wall.
The elevator moved as we started to kiss.
“You have to stop the elevator,” I said in between kisses. “Or this won’t work.”
“I hit for the top floor,” he said. “I’ll stop it then.”
He kissed my neck and I groaned.
His right hand moved down my body fast, cutting around to the top of my jeans.
I ached and loved how he knew I needed this. I needed to wash away the bad from seeing the burned down house.
Wes’s fingertips flirted with the top of my jeans and inched down.
I put my hands against the wall and was ready for him.
The elevator came to a jerking halt and the doors started to open.
I pushed Wes away but the look in his eyes hinted he didn’t care who was entering the elevator.
“Aira.”
I looked around Wes and saw my mother.
“Mom,” I said.
Wes spun around. “Mrs. Freeman.”
“Weslee Jackson,” she said. “Well, look at you all grown up. My goodness…”
“Mom,” I said.
I felt embarrassed for the way she looked at him.
“I was just coming to greet you. Harry said he wasn’t sure who was at the door.”
“He told us to go up,” Wes said. “Or…go down…”
Wes looked at me and winked.
My eyes went wide as I fought back wanting to blush.
The doors tried shutting but Mom waved her hand and they opened again.
“Are you coming?” she asked me.
Wes kept a big grin on his face.
Not only did he have me turned on in front of my mother, he was going to mess with me about it.
Even still, I couldn’t imagine being here without him.
* * *
I saw the look on Wes’s face when a woman handed him a fancy bottle of water.
That same woman handed me a glass of iced tea.
I sipped it and my jaw dropped. “This is amazing.”
“Thank you, Miss Aira,” the woman said.
She walked from the dining room to the kitchen, where she began to hum. The song faded as she kept going to another part of the apartment.
