Drifting into Darkness (16 page)

“Sadie,” she said, using her motherly voice, “why do you have to make such a big deal about it? You said yourself that he doesn’t do relationships. Maybe he thinks of you as a friend. Just go hang out and have fun. And who cares if it’s a date. You deserve it. Live your life and do something crazy. Plus, you’re not a shy person. Stop acting like one. It’s annoying,” she said matter-of-factly.

I laughed out loud. “See, this is why I wanted to call you. You always help me make sense of things.”

Everything she said was right. I don’t need to make such a big deal about it and I knew it. I just wanted reassurance.

“While you have me on the phone, I have some news of my own,” she said, interrupting my thoughts.

“And what news is this?” I asked curiously.

“Trent and I are going out,” she blurted.

“Really! Wow, that’s great. When did this happen?” I asked excitedly.

Trent was a guy she worked with at Al’s ice cream shop in Chicago. It was family owned and she’d been working there for a really long time. So long, I didn’t even remember how old she was when she started. He, Trent, was the owner’s son. She’d had a thing for him since…forever.

She giggled. A serious, girly giggle. 
Oh, damn, she’s got it bad.

“Well we’ve been talking for a while. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to make a big deal about it. But then a month ago, he came into the shop one night when I was closing. He said he had to get something from his dad’s office, but he stayed and we talked for like, two hours. Then he asked me out on a date.”

“I’m so excited for you, Erin,” I gushed. “I seriously have a huge grin on my face.”

“Thanks. Anyway, I’ve got to go. I’ll try to call you tomorrow. I need to jump in the shower. I have to run some errands before I go into work tonight.”

“Okay, thanks for chatting with me.”

“You bet. Just go with the flow. Isn’t that what you always tell me?”

I laughed. “Yeah, it is.”

“Okay, then. Just have fun. You can tell me all about it tomorrow. Talk to you later.”

“Bye.” I sighed as I hung up the phone. I really missed her being a few miles away.

I should probably get up and take a shower, but taking a nap sounded so much better.

~*~

I woke up with the pain in my bladder alerting me that if I didn’t get up and pee soon, it would be all over the couch.

After taking care of business, I groggily turned the shower on. I needed to get presentable. It was five thirty and I still had no idea what I wanted to wear. We were only going for a ride in his car, but I wanted to look nice.

I decided to dress in white jean shorts and a blue shirt that draped in the front. I dried my hair and flat ironed it, making sure to put a hair tie around my wrist just in case he drove with the windows down. Then, after putting on a little bit of makeup, I was ready to go.

I took a seat on the couch to wait for him and decided to check my phone. I missed a text from my mom while I was getting ready.

Mom: Your dad is taking me out to dinner. You’ll have to fend for yourself.

Me: That’s fine. I’m going out for a little bit too. Might go bowling with Lisa.

Mom: Ok, be careful. See you tomorrow.

Me: K.

A knock at the door caught me by surprise. I looked at the clock on my phone. It was six forty-seven. Landon was early.

Nervous butterflies swarmed in my stomach. I didn’t know why I was so nervous.

Get it together. It’s just a car ride.

Standing up from the couch, I smoothed my shirt down and walked to the door. I took a deep breath and opened it.

A smile lifted to his lips as soon as he saw me. I swear my heart skipped a beat. His smile lit up his entire face. I could see why all the girls were tripping over their own feet when he was around.

He stood there in jeans and a light pink polo. Not a lot of men could pull off a pink shirt, but Landon, with his tanned skin, looked sexy as hell. Especially with his disheveled hair and bright blue eyes. He could definitely be a southern boy model.

“Hey,” he said, continuing to smile at me. I was sure he noticed me again, checking him out. At this point, I didn’t care. I’d probably be staring at him the rest of the night so he’d better get used to it.

“Hey,” I smiled back. “Give me just a second. I need to get my purse.” I left my door open as an invitation for him to come in while I went looking for it. I usually left it in the living room, but I brought it to my room after my shower to get some makeup out of it.

I picked it up off the floor on the side of my bed and turned to exit the room and stopped short when I saw Landon leaning against the doorframe.

“This is a nice place you have here,” he stated as he looked around my messy room.

I looked toward his line of sight and noticed some lacy underwear hanging out of my drawer. I quickly walked to my dresser and shoved them in the drawer and closed it, then made my way toward him. He had a smirk on his face and he moved away from the door so we both could leave.

“Yeah, I like having my own space. I think it’s the one thing that made moving worthwhile. Having my privacy.”

“Privacy? Yeah, I need some of that,” he joked as we walked out to the stairs.

I laughed at his statement. He was twenty-four and he still lived at home. “Do you plan on moving out of your parents’ house?” I loved my parents, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to live with them for as long as he had. That’s why I loved this arrangement so much. At least I could still live with them, but not actually live with them.

He sighed as we got into his car. “I actually don’t know what I’m going to do. I thought about moving out so many times. It’s just so much easier to stay for now.” He pulled out from my driveway and drove down the road. “I plan on building a house in a couple of years, so it seems smarter to stay and save than to spend money on rent.” He looked at me and smiled.

“Yeah, that sounds smart.”

“We’ll see how it all works out.”

I looked out the side window as he turned down some unfamiliar roads. I had no idea where he was taking me. I turned and looked at him to ask. “Where exactly are you taking me?”

He looked at me with a smirk. “Just some back roads I do my test runs on. Don’t worry. I promise, it’s safe.”

“Aren’t you worried about cops? I mean, I know you’ll be going over the speed limit.”

He laughed. “Nah, I’m not worried. This road is hardly ever used. Farmers mainly use it for driving their equipment to and from the crops.”

“Oh.” I looked out the window again as we drove along, while biting my bottom lip. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about him speeding down the road. I’d never gone more than ten miles per hour over the speed limit. I’d always been too nervous about getting caught. “How fast do you think we’ll be going?” I asked as I turned to look at him and rubbed my hands up and down my legs.

His eyes drifted from my legs up to my eyes with a smirk. “You’re not scared are you? Because I promise, I’m always careful. But if you are, I don’t have to take it on a test run.”

“No, No, No,” I said holding a hand up. I didn’t want to seem like a wuss. “I was just wondering.” I laughed and shook my head. “I never understood the need for speed. I’m more of a cautious driver.” I scrunched my nose at him, knowing he’d probably laugh.

He didn’t disappoint.

“I’m a cautious driver too,” he smiled at me. “I don’t always speed.”

“Then why the
need
for speed?” I asked using my fingers as quotations. “Explain to me what the big deal is.” I knew this would be an interesting conversation.

Looking ahead at the road, he rubbed his hands around the steering wheel. I watched him curiously. He looked lost in thought. Then he finally spoke.

“There’s just something about being in control. You control the speed. You control the drift. It’s all about knowing your car. Becoming
one
with it. The adrenaline rush is unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. And then to race your car, knowing you did all the work on it to make it better, faster, more precise.” He looked at me with a smirk. “Nothing is better than that.”

I smiled at his enthusiasm. “Well, then. Show me what ya got.” I said I was nervous, but now I was curious to know what he was talking about.

“Oh, so now you’re ready?” he gibed.

“Yes, I am,” I mocked.

He came to a stop in the middle of the road with cornfields on either side. We were definitely in the middle of nowhere.

He turned to look at me with a mischievous grin on his face. “Are you sure you’re ready?” I nodded. “Okay, put your head back on the seat. I don’t want to jolt you too bad.”

I did as he said and gripped the door handle for added measure. My heart was racing and my breathing was heavy. Anything girly that was going on in my stomach earlier had taken a hiatus and was replaced with a nervous eruption of bubbles. It was never a good sign when bubbles were involved.

He looked straight ahead and revved his engine causing me to laugh. The saying, ‘boys and their toys’ kept popping up in my head. The look on his face could only be described as focused, like he was becoming one with the road.

Then, without warning, he took off. The force of it pushed me further into the seat and I realized why he told me to rest my head back. He shifted faster and faster as the car reached speeds I’d never imagined before.

A smile was plastered on my face as the needle rose higher and higher, but I could promise I wasn’t smiling out of joy. I was nervous as hell. My nails were digging into the leather trimming on the door and the bucket seat I was gripping with my other hand.

The whole time, he had full control of the car. I watched him as he shifted gears. His body tensed with every move he made and he never took his eyes off the road. The facial expressions he made every time he shifted were quite funny and I was sure he didn’t realize he was even doing it.

The car slowed down as we approached a curve in the road and my grip loosened on the door and seat. He turned and looked at me, but only for a moment.

He was still going way too fast as the curve got closer and closer.

“Uh, Landon. You better slow down,” I said nervously.

A small smirk appeared on his face right before he turned the wheel and shifted gears. The car spun to the side and drifted us around the curve. A small scream left my lips as my hand held onto the door in a death grip, thinking the car would spin out of control. But just as soon as it happened, Landon turned the wheel and straightened it. He slowly brought the car to a stop and put it in park.

My eyes were closed and my chest was heaving. I knew he was staring at me, but I had to wait a minute so my stomach could dislodge itself from my throat.

Slowly, I pried my eyes open and looked at him. He had a huge smile on his face. I was sure he wouldn’t be too happy if I threw up in his car because those bubbles in my stomach had now turned to nausea.

“What the hell!” I chastised, as I slapped him in the arm. “You scared the shit out of me.”

He laughed and cowered away, trying to block my playful hits. “Come on, Sadie. Admit it. You now have the need for speed.”

“Like hell I do,” I wailed. “You could have killed me.”

He laughed openly, holding his stomach. I had to bite my lips in order not to laugh with him. I’d never admit that he kind of looked adorable making fun of me.

“You were never in any danger, Sadie. I promise. I know what I’m doing. I’d never do anything to put you in danger. I swear it,” he said sincerely. “But admit it,” he beamed. “You felt the rush.”

A smile slowly spread, not being able to contain it. “Okay, yes. It was awesome. Your car is awesome, but that doesn’t mean that’s something I’d ever want to do again.”

He gave a slight chuckle and agreed, “Okay, you’ve got my word.”

I straightened myself in the seat. “So is that all you do for your test run?”

“It is. Everything seems to be working fine now that I got the clamp fixed.” He put the car in drive and did a U-turn. “Do you have any plans for the rest of the night?”

The butterflies were back in my stomach. I didn’t want to say yes, just in case he wanted to take me for another drive, but I didn’t want to say no either. “Um…nothing concrete yet. Why? What did you have in mind?” I smiled. I was doing my best to flirt, but I wasn’t sure I was pulling it off.

“Do you mind spending a little bit more time with me?” He arched a brow at me.

“I suppose not,” I needed to pinch myself. Was he really asking me to spend more time with him? Should I consider this a date now? No, it’s not a date. It’s just two friends hanging out, two friends who kind of flirt with each other. “I guess it depends on what we are going to do,” I replied.

He turned to look at me with a smirk. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

He drove down back road after back road until I had no idea where I was. I wouldn’t even remember how to get back to the farm. Twenty minutes later, he turned down a road with a sign that read Stu’s Race Track.

“This is where I go racing,” he said, pointing.

I looked around and saw cars parked everywhere. “This place is packed.”

“Yeah, it usually is on a Friday night,” he said as he found a parking spot in the grass. “Come on and I’ll show you some real racing.” He got out of the car and I followed suit.

“Shouldn’t you be racing, too?”

“Nah,” he replied as we started walking. He stuck his hands in his pockets and looked around. “I had some work to do on the car so I backed out of the races tonight. So tonight is just for watching.” He turned and smiled at me.

“You know, the tone of your voice completely changes when you talk about cars,” I blurted. I bit my lip and turned my head away as my cheeks started to flush.

“Oh, really?”

I didn’t have to look at him to see his smile. I could hear it in his tone.

“Yeah,” I said, looking around. Avoiding eye contact. “You’re really passionate about it and it emanates through your words.” As soon as the words left my lips, I knew they sounded corny, but it was the truth.