Deciding I’d had enough, I tossed back the bedsheets, shoved on my flip-flops, and snuck from my bedroom and the house. Ready or not, Jameson John Buchanan would just have to face me. Tiptoeing through the backyard, I made my way to the tool shed, hoping it was still there. As I slipped inside, relief and nostalgia flooded my heart when I spotted my old, red Huffy. My bike, the harmonica, and my journal were the last that remained of Bee.
Quietly, I pulled the bike from the shed, hoping the chain hadn’t rusted too much. After a quick inspection, I swung my leg over the seat, feeling giddy. I had to pedal a little harder than necessary since there was a little rust, but in no time, I was flying down the dark, empty road.
It was dangerous.
Completely reckless.
I’d never felt freer.
I was out of breath by the time I reached the huge mansion. It wasn’t until I stopped in front of the closed gates that I realized just how rashly I’d acted. It was after midnight. Of course, I wasn’t getting through. Not unless I called Jamie.
But it was also the night before graduation, which meant there was likely a party happening and even more likely that Jamie wouldn’t even be home.
So much for carpe diem.
Or however that saying went when it was the middle of the fucking night.
Giving up, I started to turn around when the sound of creaking metal filled the night. The gates slowly opened, and I realized someone was coming. I quickly ducked inside the bushes and hid as best I could with a bike for a beacon.
The sound of an engine roaring made me hold my breath. Moments later, I saw a flash of red as Jamie’s Jeep flew through the gates. “Gold Digger” by Kanye West was blasting from the speakers.
Where the hell was he going in such a hurry?
I stared at his taillights until they disappeared. The gates began creaking as they slowly shut, and I realized this was my chance. Without a second thought, I slipped through them. There wasn’t enough time to talk myself out of it. I left my bike behind in the bushes and decided it would be safer there hidden from sight.
Jogging up the long drive, I bypassed the front door, knowing it wouldn’t be unlocked, and slipped around the side of the house. I wondered if Mr. McNamara ever had the lock fixed on the window in the butler’s pantry.
It was a long shot, but it was my only one.
This place was huge, which meant there were a thousand places to hide a key. Jamie could return before then. I’d come here to confront him, but now I was more interested in satisfying my curiosity.
Reaching the window, I nearly clapped and jumped for joy when I pushed up on the glass, and it slid open. I wasted no time swinging my leg over the sill and climbing inside. The pantry was dark, but I could still make out the fully stocked shelves and the door a few feet away. Pushing it open, I peeked to confirm the kitchen was empty before stepping inside.
Memories from my time spent here as a kid helped me navigate the dark home. I climbed one of the winding stairs to the second floor and wondered if Jamie still slept in the same room he had as a kid. He and Ever had to share a bathroom then.
There was one memory in particular that still mortified me to this day. I’d come over and shown myself up and somehow walked in on them, measuring their dicks to see who was bigger. Luckily, I hadn’t seen much before slapping my hands over my eyes. I ran from the room and all the way home.
I didn’t talk to either of them for an entire week after that.
Reaching Jamie’s room, I pushed inside. I didn’t doubt that it would be unlocked. Jamie didn’t hide, and when people told him what they thought of him, he’d laugh in their face.
“No fucks to give” should have been tattooed on his forehead.
Every day, I wished that could be me.
The faint smell of cigarette smoke and potpourri filled my nose as I stepped inside. On one of the black nightstands was a small guitar-shaped tray filled with ashes and several butts. There were several other things cluttered on the surface, including his iPod and speakers.
Black rumpled bedding covered the headboard-less bed. Above it hung the American, Scottish, and Irish flags. I smiled. It was so like Jamie to embrace every part of himself.
Seeing his father’s guitars—two Stratocasters, a Firebird, and a Fender Jaguar—I rushed across the room, stepping over piles of dirty clothes, video games, and magazines. Slowly, I reached out, rubbing my fingers gently across the surface of each one.
I’d only met Jamie’s father a few times, but I could instantly tell that he’d been a soulful, spirited man.
Like father, like son.
I was bent over, busy admiring the vinyl records that weren’t hanging on the wall when I heard the snick of the door shutting behind me. I barely had time to stand up straight before Jamie was across the room, gripping my arms and pulling them behind my back.
“There you are,” he said, sounding mostly amused but a little pissed off too.
I swallowed hard. He must have been looking for me. I was the reason he sped out of here fifteen, maybe twenty minutes ago, like a bat out of hell.
“Here I am,” I replied. I only hoped I sounded braver than I felt.
“What the fuck are you doing here, and how did you even get in?”
“What? You think you’re the only one with skills?”
His only response was to trap me against the wall. My head was resting between the Firebird and the Jaguar, my breasts mashed against the wall. His breath tickled my ear when he leaned in close. “Well, now that you’re here, let’s discuss some things, shall we?”
“Let me go!”
“In a minute.”
I started to scream, to wake his uncle if I had to, but he spoke again, turning my world upside down once more. “How long has your father been broke?” Before I could answer or even ask him how he knew, he said “How long have you been plotting to marry my cousin for his money?”
I gritted my teeth as I struggled to break free, but his hands simply tightened on my arms, keeping me imprisoned. With a huff, I decided to answer him, hoping he’d free me.
“I was never going to marry Ever.”
Jamie chuckled, but there was nothing humorous in the sound. “Hard for me to believe, kitten, since you’re still wearing his ring. Even Jennifer knew when to let Brad go.”
Suddenly, the band felt too tight around my finger, the weight too heavy, the implications scalding. I knew what he thought, but typical of us, nothing was ever as it seemed.
“I’m still wearing the ring because my father still thinks we’re engaged.”
And when I was finally free of him, I had every intention of pawning it and starting a new life with the money. Ever must have known it too, which was why he hadn’t asked for it back. Even after he’d bowed out, he was still searching for ways to be there.
My eyes stung with fresh tears.
Friends like that came along once in a lifetime. It only made me sadder that I had to leave them behind.
I felt Jamie’s grip on me loosen in surprise before tightening again. “Why haven’t you told him? Surely, you’ll be eager to search for your next mark?”
I knew then that neither Four nor Ever were the ones to tell Jamie about my father being broke. If not them, then who? Whoever the culprit, they clearly hadn’t told Jamie everything. Suddenly weary of the secrets weighing heavy on our souls, I finally decided to free us both.