Linden: Rocking Pleasure: New Adult College Romance (Coral Gables Series Book 3) (38 page)

It takes almost an hour to get home. As I expected, my parents and my brothers are all outside on the front porch. They have their arms crossed across their chests when we get out. It looks like a freaking movie poster! “Ready?” I ask Linden under my breath as we walk toward the house together.

“
I don’t think so, but now it’s too late to run,” he answers quietly.

“
Mom, Dad,” I greet them as we stop in front of them.

They glare at Linden.

“
Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Leroux, my name is Linden Priest,” he greets them and holds out his hand. “I’m the reason Thalia was out the whole night. I’m very sorry you were worried about her.” My dad snorts, while my mom merely lifts an eyebrow. They all stiffly shake hands.

“
Let’s go inside,” Dad says gruffly.

We follow my family into the house. I bet the holy inquisition has nothing on them. I won’t end up in thumbscrews or an iron maiden, but the next half or full hour will be horrible. I just know it.

We sit down in the living room. Linden and I are sitting across from my parents, while my brothers take the armchairs to the left and right of the couch. All four of them study us with critical expressions.

“
I’m very disappointed, Thalia,” my father begins his imminent tirade.

I lower my eyes, knead my sweaty hands, and nod slowly.

“
Your mother spent half the night crying because she thought you were lying in some ditch bleeding to death,” he says coldly. “Your brothers drove all over town for hours, looking for you, and we had a bunch of policemen here early this morning, who were also looking for you until I called them back once you finally thought of notifying your family that you were alive.”

“
I am sorry that y’all were this worried, but I’m twenty-one years old,” I reply firmly. “You don’t need to hold me accountable if I stay out overnight.” I’m fed up with being treated like a little kid.

“
And you think you can speak to us like that, young lady?” my dad says, his anger flaring up.

“
I’m speaking like the adult that I am. Dad, I live several thousand miles away from home, and I don’t always come home at night, and I don’t always let my roommates know in advance.” I look him straight in the eye. “I am very grateful that you’re paying for my tuition and everything, and that you’re always there for me when I need you, but you still need to let me live my own life.”

Linden clears his throat. “I think what Thalia is trying to say is that … she knows quite well what she’s doing.”

“
We told you the day would come,” Aidan suddenly speaks up, “when she flips out because you keep trying to coddle her.”

I give him a grateful look.

“
Mom, Dad, just let her go her own way,” Tyler agrees. “Thalia is old enough to know what she’s doing, and she will certainly make sure she doesn’t get into any serious trouble.”

I rise. “I’d like to go to my room now. I’ll see that I get some rest and get back at work early tomorrow morning, Dad. Promise.” Then I look at Linden. “Do you want to come upstairs so we can talk?”

He nods slowly and rises, too. “It was nice meeting you,” he says to my brothers.

“
Nice meeting you,” they echo.

We walk up the stairs to my room. I lock the door behind us so we won’t be disturbed.

“
Sit down,” I say, pointing at the bed.

Linden plops down on it. “Your bedroom is pretty.”

“
And my family treats me like a child. What grown-up woman has a pink shag rug in her room?”

He laughs. “I know men that have shag rugs and are very partial to them.”

I sit down next to him. “I think last night was good for us. It felt good to spend time with you, Linden.”

His fingertips brush my bare arm. “The seat wasn’t very comfortable, but I still slept far better than I have in weeks,” he murmurs, and then his fingers slide around the back of my neck.

I close my eyes and revel in the sensation. “Same here,” I whisper. “But for me, it was very comfortable.”

“
Do you want to lie down?” he asks softly.

I look at him and nod. We scoot backward and lie down on my bed. Linden pulls me into his arms and strokes me tenderly. I lay my head on his chest. “I hated you,” I whisper.

“
I’d have hated me, too, if I were you.”

“
You even followed me to Miami and tried to talk to me, but I sent you away,” I murmur. “A friend of mine punched you and … oh, I should have just listened to you.”

“
I think I deserved that punch from your friend Delsin. But he wasn’t the only one.” Linden grimaces.

“
Who else hit you?” I ask, astonished.

“
Gavin. He was mad at me for giving in. He wanted me to fight for you.”

“
I’m sorry.”

“
It’s nothing. I deserved that … and more.”

“
As for us … ” I start.

“
What about us?” he asks warily.

“
How do you intend to prove to me that we can make it?” I ask. “I mean, we’ve already failed once.”

“
Since when does anything in life come with a guarantee? Either it works or it doesn’t, but we have to try! I’d take the stars out of the sky for you if that would get me another chance.”

“
That sounds good enough,” I say quietly.

“
A star? You really want a star?”

“
Yes.”

Linden sighs heavily. “Well, let me call my friends at NASA to see whether they’ll let me fly into space this weekend.”

“
Maybe you can still get a last-minute ticket.”

“
Maybe,” he mumbles. “We have a gig here in Austin on Saturday. Are you coming?”

“
Do you think Gavin will be back on his feet by Saturday?”

“
I think we could play a gig without him if necessary … If you played the guitar and sang.”

“
Are you kidding? That’s ridiculous. I couldn’t do that.”

“
We really can do it without him, but I thought you and I might get to sing another duet.” Linden chuckles.

“
That’s never going to happen … on stage.” And I suddenly realize, the way he’s joking, he thinks = everything is back to normal … “Linden, I … I’d like to keep things casual for now. No pressure, no expectations, no declarations of love.”

“
Okay,” he says.

“
Okay.” I nod with a sigh and close my eyes briefly. “Aren’t you still tired?”

“
Yeah, I am. And it feels so good to be lying in a real bed.”

“
How about taking another nap then?”

“
Good idea. But I need to call one of the guys first, in case they freak out and call the cops as well. I sent Alexis a text last night, but better safe than sorry.”

“
Yeah, go ahead.”

“
I’ll be outside for a minute, okay?”

I nod and sit up so he can get off the bed.

Linden unlocks the door and goes out into the hallway. I can hear him speaking in a low voice, but I can’t make out the words. It’s probably because I’m so tired my lids are unbearably heavy again. I nod off quickly.

***

I’m woken by stubbly kisses. I open my eyes and see Linden smiling down at me. “Hello, Sleeping Beauty.”

“
Hey,” I mumble.

“
It’s already afternoon,” he murmurs. “I have to leave.”

“
Where are you going?”

“
I want to see Gavin again and then I need to go home … or rather, to the house we’re currently living in. Home is Miami.” He smiles.

“
If you can wait just a little bit longer, I could drive you,” I offer.

“
But you’re all cute and sleepy.”

“
If I take a shower, I’ll be wide awake in no time.”

“
Okay, I’ll wait here. Or maybe … do you have a spare toothbrush?”

I nod, sit up, and stretch. “I’m sure there’s an unused one in the bathroom. Follow me.”

We enter the bathroom, and I undress behind Mom’s folding screen. She put it up for decorative purposes, but I’m glad he doesn’t see me naked right now. I wrap a towel around my frame and tiptoe into the shower. “Oh, right … The new toothbrushes should be in the cabinet over the sink,” I add.

“
Thanks.”

“
You’re welcome.” I close the frosted glass door and turn the water on, letting it pour down on me, slowly waking me up. Suddenly the water turns icy cold, and I squeal. “Fuck! Are you running the water in the sink?”

“
Oops. I’m sorry. I just needed to rinse my mouth.”

The shower starts getting warmer again. “Just warn me next time, okay?”

“
Next time?” he echoes.

“
Uh … forget it,” I mumble and shampoo my hair. “By the way, why did you dye your hair?”

“
An act of rebellion” he answers. “I didn’t want to be the cute blond lead singer anymore.”

“
You little rebel, you,” I giggle. “One moment, I can’t hear you.” I put my head under the showerhead to rinse out the shampoo. When I open my eyes again, I give a start.

Linden has stepped into the shower in his boxers.

“
What are you doing in here?” I breathe.

“
Taking a shower,” he says, feigning innocence. “Does it bother you?”

“
I … yes, it bothers me.”

He grins. “It doesn’t bother me. And I know exactly how you look naked, and … wow, you still look hot, even though you lost a lot of weight.”

“
I should get out of here.” I slide the door open.

Linden grabs me by the wrist. “I’m still wearing my boxers, you’re perfectly safe. I just wanted to save us some time.”

I take a deep breath. “It really does bother me, Linden. I don’t feel comfortable.”

He lets go of me. “I overstepped the line. I’m sorry.”

“
Yeah, that was more cannonballing into it, not just stepping past it. It’s okay, I’m done here.”

Linden stands behind me and breathes a light kiss on my collarbone. “I’m sorry.”

“
It really is okay, Linden. I’m not angry, I was merely surprised,” I say calmly and step out of the shower. I take a towel from the shelf and rub myself dry, while he takes a shower. Then I brush my teeth.

“
Watch out, I’m turning on the water here,” I warn him, so he won’t be surprised by the same cold flood that hit me earlier.

“
Thanks for the warning.”

I rinse the toothpaste from my mouth, turn the water back off, and then leave the bathroom. I quickly put on a pair of jeans and a green top. Then I braid my wet hair.

Linden follows me shortly afterwards. He has a towel around his hips, which he holds with one hand. He’s holding his jeans in the other and makes a face. “Not my brightest idea to shower in my only pair of underwear.”

I laugh softly. “I sometimes sleep in boxers, and I have a few pairs that are too large for me. Maybe they’ll work.” I fetch them from the closet, and he puts a pair on. “Do you also need a t-shirt?”

Linden nods sheepishly.

I find a shirt that used to belong to Aidan, and luckily it fits Linden. “Which hospital is Gavin at?”

“
St. David’s Medical Center,” Linden recites.

“
Okay. I know where that is. My sister-in-law had her baby there.” I look at him. “Are you ready? I’ll drive you to the hospital, and afterwards I can drop you off at your current home. I think I’ll head to Camille’s then.”

“
Are you … are you still single, Thalia?” he asks hesitantly.

“
Yes, I am. Why are you asking?”

“
Because Nathaniel picked you up and … kissed you.”

I smile in spite of myself. “Nate and I are only friends. He … actually, he’s the one who told me I ought to give you another chance.”

Linden nods slowly. “I guess I was jealous for no good reason then.”

“
Yep,” I agree.

“
Let’s go,” he says with a sigh.

“
Yep.”

We leave my bedroom after we’ve put on our shoes and I’ve grabbed my purse. As soon as we get to the car, I switch on the GPS.

“
I thought you knew where we’re going?”

“
The GPS tells me where the traffic jams are.”

“
Oh.”

“
Very handy when you want to avoid getting stuck during rush hour.” I smile. The radio station I’ve tuned into is playing one of my favorite songs, and I start to sing along softly.

Linden joins me, and his singing voice puts mine to shame.

“
That reminds me, how’s the recording going?” I ask. “For your new album, I mean.”

“
It’s always do this, do that, everything they want to. I don’t wanna live that way.
NO
!
” he sings loudly.

“
Could you focus on me, instead of Five Finger Death Punch?” I ask with a grin.

“
Sorry. That song is about ninety percent of my life. Where were we? Oh, recording is going well enough, and we were able to negotiate a few things. The three songs we wrote in Miami will be on the new album.”

“
Including the one where I helped with the lyrics?” I am too nosy.