“But there is someone?” I probe further, wanting to make sure that the girl isn’t beating around the bush if there’s a real problem at hand.
“A few guys. I told Gabe all about them. They make fun of me because I’m still a virgin.”
A chunk of honeydew rolls off my plate and lands on the red-and-white-checked plastic tablecloth.
“And what did Gabe do?”
“Threatened to come to school and kick all their asses. Thankfully, it hasn’t come to that yet.”
I can totally picture him doing exactly that. Part of me wants to smile, but I keep my expression neutral. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
Melanie blinks at me. “You’re Scarlett Priest. I just met you like ten minutes ago, and you already want to help me?” She says it skeptically.
“Of course. If I can help, I’d be more than happy to.”
Melanie nabs the rogue melon and pops it into her mouth. After she’s done chewing, she points a serious expression in my direction. “How old were you when you lost your virginity?”
Oh God. This is not where I expected this conversation to go. I’m panicking inside and hoping like hell it doesn’t show on my face.
“That’s probably a good subject for your mom to handle,” I say quietly, and hate when Melanie’s young face falls.
“She told me to wait until I was in love and wanted to marry the guy. I don’t want to get married. So I guess that means I should stay a virgin forever, and I can tell you I’m not thrilled about that idea at all.”
I reach for the spoon in the baked beans and pause. “I was twenty and in college, and I was tired of being a virgin when everyone else was out hooking up all the time.” I cut my eyes to Melanie. “I wish I’d waited for someone special, but I’m really, really glad that I didn’t have to see the guy every day in class for the rest of my college career, because he graduated shortly after.”
I’m trying to make a point without saying it directly, because I’m totally out of my depth with this subject. Melanie’s a pretty smart girl, though, obviously, and she picks up what I’m not saying in so many words.
“Oh my God. You’re right. What if I did have sex with one of them, and he dumped me right after, and I had to see him every day until graduation? Ew. That would suck.”
My head slowly bobs as realization floods her face. “Yeah, that would really suck. And you know what, Melanie? I’ve only known you for about fifteen minutes now, but I think it’s safe to say that you’re a bright girl, and you’ll know when it’s right. Don’t listen to anyone else. Not your friends, definitely not the boys. You will know, and who cares if you’re as old of a virgin as I was. Guess what? It didn’t hurt me any to wait longer. It was my choice, and I was good with it.”
A smile spreads across her face. “I make the decision. No one else. Just me.”
“Exactly.”
“Thanks, Scarlett. You’re way cooler than those assholes on your social media say in the comments.”
I choke out a laugh. “Thanks. And I have pretty thick skin, so I don’t even worry about what they call me.”
Her grin grows wider. “I like you. Gabe did good. I was totally prepared for you to be a stuck-up bitch, but you’re totally not. I’ll even let you do my share of the dishes,” she says with a giggle. She has charisma in spades.
“I heard that, little girl! You know better than to put your chores off on guests. Guess who’s doing all the dishes now?” Joanie says as she sneaks up behind us.
“Nooo. That’s not fair.”
“Welcome to being fourteen,” her grandmother says in a singsong tone. “Life isn’t fair.”
Thirty-Two
Legend
Scarlett and Melanie have their heads together, as thick as thieves near the food.
I’m glad that Q’s family is welcoming her with open arms. Part of me worried that Joanie and the girls would be standoffish because of who Scarlett is, but Scarlett broke the ice right at the front door by offering to do dishes.
Oddly, she fits perfectly into all my worlds. Who the hell would have guessed that would happen? Not me, but she’s the best damn gift I’ve ever been given. Seeing her laughing and smiling with the people I love makes me fall even harder for her.
Once we get through this shit with Moses and the fight, Scarlett and I are going to have a serious discussion about our future. I already know I’m not going back to the service station. I don’t want to live that far away from her. Shit, I don’t want to live anywhere but right in the same damn place as her.
I’ve got it bad. She’s it. The one. If I had the money to buy her the ring she deserves, I’d go get it tomorrow and put it on her finger. I want her and the whole world to know that she belongs to me, and I’m never letting her go.
But, first, I have to survive this fight.
My training is all on schedule. Jeb is a master of all aspects of MMA, but he’s also a drill sergeant. I can barely lift my arms or climb stairs when I leave the gym, but it’s all worth it. Every area I didn’t have formal training in before has been shored up to the point where I’m confident about attacking with any of the skills in my arsenal. I can stand and bang, take him down, clinch, grapple, whatever.
We know Bodhi will be trying to take my head off to end the fight with a knockout, but I won’t go out that way. I’m quicker on my feet than he is, and my footwork and head movement are top notch. If I’d had this level of training back in the day, there’s no way in hell I wouldn’t be a pro fighter on the biggest stages in the world right now.
But then you wouldn’t have met Scarlett. It’s the one thing that takes away any chance of regret.
She’s . . . everything.
“You gonna just stand there and stare at her, or you gonna take some food and eat?” Big Mike asks from the grill next to me.
I jerk my head to the side and catch his narrowed eyes. “Sorry. Can’t help it. Staring at her is my favorite thing these days.”
The older man’s chest bounces beneath his you can call me big daddy apron. “Damn, kid. Not even trying to be subtle about it, are you? No playing hard to get?”
I shake my head. “Nope. No games. Not with her. Just straight shootin’.”
Bump waves Scarlett over to his chosen seat at the picnic table in the backyard, and she smiles and winks at him.
“I guess that’s probably smart. Any games she’d play would be way out of your league anyway.”
I cut my gaze to Mike’s face, wondering what the hell he’s getting at here. “If you got something to say about Scarlett, you might as well get it out, old man.”
Mike flips a brat with his grill tongs. “Not really my business—”
“But you brought it up, so you’ve clearly got something on your mind. Might as well say it.”
“Bump’s getting pretty attached to her. You think that’s smart?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I watch as Scarlett sits down across from Bump and playfully slaps at his fingers when he pretends to steal fruit off her plate. He throws his head back and laughs. He deserves someone good like her in his life.