“Tell me about Troy. Should I be worried about him? I mean, I know he’s a little wild, but he won’t hurt her, will he?”
Maverick shakes his head. “No, he’s a good guy. We’ve been best friends since the day I started at Sunnyville PD.”
“Where did you live before?”
“Albany, then I was a cop in Oakland. I got shot during a domestic disturbance and I just couldn’t do it anymore. I know crime happens everywhere, but the first time I came here I fell in love with the place. I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.”
I turn my head, my eyes wide. “You got shot? What the fuck, Maverick. Where did you get hit?”
He grabs my hand in his, pulling it up to his lips, and kissing the back of it. “Baby, it’s not as bad as it sounds. It was a clean shot, right through my bicep.”
I watch him for a moment, and he doesn’t seem to be bothered by it, but still that’s crazy. He’s so nonchalant about it.
I turn my head to look out the window, smiling as I look at the passing scenery. My town is so beautiful and the perfect place to live and start a family. “When I was younger, I couldn’t wait to leave this place—now, even though I’ve been to some of the most beautiful places on earth, I miss this place when I’m gone.”
Maverick pulls into his driveway and I jump down, meeting him at the front of the vehicle. He surprises me by grabbing my hand and holding it as we walk into his house.
While he lets Butch out I kick off my flip-flops and grab a glass of lemonade. I stand at the sink, drinking it down when two arms wrap around me.
“Mmm… you smell good.” I turn my head to look up at him, pushing up on my toes to kiss him. “You taste good too.”
Maverick lifts me up and sets me on the counter. He leans in to kiss me again, but I yawn, loudly. He laughs and then wraps his arms around me. “Why don’t you go get ready for bed. We’ll do another movie in bed night.”
He helps me down and then kisses me. “I’ll meet you in bed,” I say as I walk away from him. In the bathroom, I brush out my hair and quickly braid it. My tan is still pretty dark so I didn’t bother with makeup.
I strip down to a tank top and my panties before climbing into his bed. Once I get the pillows stacked behind me, I settle in. I’m flipping through the movie channels when Maverick comes in with Butch.
My buddy hops up onto the bed and he lays his head in my lap. “Hi baby boy,” I say in a high-pitched singsong voice. “You’re so sweet. I give you kisses.”
I look up and find Maverick in just his boxer briefs, smiling at me. He gets on the bed and crawls toward me, not stopping until he’s covering my body with his. I wrap my arms around his neck. I kiss his jaw and then grab it with my teeth.
He pulls back. “Don’t tempt me. You need sleep.” Maverick kisses me chastely before leaning back against his pillows. He puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me to him so my legs tangle with his, and I lay my head on his chest.
Maverick is like my own personal sleeping pill because in no time I’m asleep.
Fourteen
Gwen
I step into my parents’ house and find my dad sitting on the sofa. He smiles when he sees me. “There’s my girl.” Dad stands up and comes toward me, pulling me into a hug. “How was your trip?”
“It was good. I’m glad that I went.”
He looks at me closely. “You’re not sleeping.”
The truth of the matter is I only seem to sleep well when I’m in bed with Maverick, and if I wake up while in bed with him, he usually knows how to get me falling back asleep. I haven’t seen him in a week. He’s been working crazy shifts, and I didn’t want to be in his way while he was trying to sleep in between shifts.
Maverick asked me to watch Butch and occasionally walk him while he’s working. I love that freaking dog and we’ve spent a lot of time together. He even went with me and my brother hiking the day before and goes with me on runs in the morning.
We’ve talked some, but not as much as I’d like. I hate to admit that I’ve missed him and every night we’ve slept apart, I wake up at some point and can’t fall asleep again. Luckily I’ve been able to hide it from my parents by staying at the apartment at Wings Out.
Not wanting to get sucked into the abyss of using TV to fall asleep, I’ve started writing about my travels and doing it on a budget. The most expensive part of my trips is always the airfare.
I let Dad lead me into the kitchen. He grabs us both some water and we sit side by side at the kitchen counter. “You look tired.”
“Wow, thanks Dad.” I knew I should’ve used the concealer before I left.
Dad shakes his head. “No, I’m sorry I didn’t mean for it to sound like that. You’re beautiful and have been since you were a tiny baby.” He brushes my hair back from my face. “Your mom and I are worried about you. I know you’re spending a lot of time with Maverick. Do you think that’s a good idea? He’s got a reputation.”
I shake my head. “If the stories are true, the Malone brothers had a bit of a reputation too. You have nothing to worry about. Plus, we’re just friends. He took care of me when I thought we were gonna die.” I say that last part quietly.
He pulls me into a hug, holding me so tight it is almost suffocating, but I know he needs this. “You’re my baby girl. I’m always going to worry about you.”
My eyes begin to burn, but I blink it away. The truth is that I don’t know how I feel about Maverick. If I think about it or him, everything gets jumbled in my brain. “I love you, Dad.”
“I love you too, sweetheart.”
Marcie and I sit at a table at Lulu’s Diner for lunch. My bestie grabs my hand from across the table. “I’ve missed you. I feel like I’ve barely seen you since you’ve been home.”
“I know. I’m sorry—things have been so crazy since I’ve been back.”
She smiles. “Don’t be sorry. I’m just glad we were able to do this.” Marcie is a nurse anesthetist and is on call a lot since she doesn’t have kids yet. When she and Chad decided to get married right out of high school, we thought her parents would be happy because they loved Chad, but instead of that, they kicked her out of their house. They told her she was ruining her life and they weren’t going to support her.
My parents love her like she was born a Malone—they tried talking to her parents, but it didn’t work. That was when Marcie moved in with us until she and Chad got married. Mom babied her, trying to give her the love of a mother.
“We may have found a house.” Marcie holds up her phone and shows me a picture of an adorable bungalow. The siding is gray-blue with red brick and flowery shrubbery on both sides of the steps.
“Oh my God, I love it. It’s super cute.”
She spends the next twenty minutes telling me about it and showing me pictures of the inside. I absolutely love the open floor plan, the laminate flooring and the huge bedrooms.
After lunch, instead of having Marcie drop me off at home, I decide to walk. I stick my earbuds in and turn on one of my workout playlists. As Britney sings “I’m a Slave 4 U” I start walking down the street. The Sunnyville Police Department is up ahead and Dad should be there, so I decide to stop and say “Hi.”