Rewind to You (11 page)

The past week with Sienna has been different. And if I have to compete with Brian and Kyle, I’ll do it.
Good luck finding a night when I’m not around.
I meant it.

FLETC—the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center I work at on Saturdays—didn’t need me today, so I’m free to make good on that promise I made Sienna last night.

I step out of my uncle’s car after the gym and a strategic stop by Milo, Tolby, and Freedom’s hangout spot in Chippewa Square.

Catherine, the lady next door to my aunt, gives a wave. “Who’s the lucky girl getting those?”

I look down at the palm-leaf roses in my hand. A dozen of them. No, I didn’t make them all by myself. The hippies helped. “I don’t know if she’s lucky . . .”

She pops opens the trunk of her rusting car with a smile. “Oh, she’s lucky, and if she doesn’t think so, I’d still be more than happy to set you up with Kayla.”

Kayla is her daughter. My age. Catherine has talked about setting us up ever since I moved here.

I set the flower thing down on my porch and start unloading her groceries.

“I’d say you don’t need to do that, but I already know you won’t listen,” she mumbles.

I take a load inside her house, which has been falling apart since her husband left. Her situation reminds me all too well of the one I grew up in, and when I get back to Deb and Mark’s house, I find myself at my computer. Again. Looking at online bank statements, a semester’s worth of possible expenses scribbled down, and my scholarship letter from the University of Florida.

I’m staring at freedom—freedom from living with barely enough to get by. Yeah, $11,600 isn’t a lot, but it will get me to where I want to be. I won’t have much time for work this fall, between football and studying. Insurance, food, repairs on my motorcycle, and gas. Thank heavens for football and a full-ride scholarship.

That’s my ultimate goal, professional ball. Still, I’m not stupid enough to count on it. I’ll get a degree; what exactly that will be, I have no idea. All I know is football is the best thing that happened to me. I can’t thank my dad for much in life, but at least the jerk taught me how to catch a ball.

I snag my wallet and the keys to Uncle Mark’s car. I pick up the bouquet of palm-leaf flowers and close the door behind me, heading for Tybee Island to see Sienna, the girl who has given me one more reason to smile about the future.

CHAPTER 15

Sienna

M
ake sure it’s the last.
My mom’s words repeat over and over like an echo in some awful nightmare. The motorcycle ride, the Pirate’s House restaurant, the boat ride: that was our first and last date.

Everyone talks about one’s eighteenth birthday as some magical rite of adulthood, like an invisible switch flips on inside of you and everything changes. Well, I’ll be eighteen in a little less than two months and I don’t see any change in sight. My mom’s past is filled with nothing but pain. The only time I see her smile these days is when I achieve something she’s proud of. How do you say
no
to your mom when her happiness rides on your future?

I awake to a vibrating sensation at my leg, and I jolt. The light streaming through my window nearly blinds me, like the sun has been up for hours. I reach under the sheets and snag my cell. “Hello?”

“Sien!” Haylee’s voice sings on the other end. “Oh. My. Gosh. It’s so good to hear your voice. Texting just doesn’t cut it, girl.”

“Hey,” I say, still trying to shake off dreams of Jack Sparrow dueling Austin for a kiss. “What’s up?”

“Missing you, that’s what. The whole dance team misses you.”

“You’re with the team?”

“Mm-hm, at this rest home doing service. Well, at least one of us is doing service. I’m pulling weeds and shoveling crap while the other girls complain about their lack of thigh gap.”

“What a joy.” I turn over and smile as I pick up the palm-leaf flower, the one Austin made for me.

“Tell me about Georgia so I don’t have to think about worms,” Haylee pleads. “Has it been totally lame?”

I twirl the flower under my nose and smile. “It’s been
amazing.
”

There’s a pause on the other end, like Haylee’s pulling the phone closer to her ear. “Who’s the boy? Is it that Brian guy?”

“No, it’s not Brian.”

“So it
is
a boy! Who?”

“It’s nothing,” I say, failing to convince even myself.

“Yeah, right.”

“I promise, it’s nothing. Come on, Haylee, I’m with Kyle.”

“Sienna, we can argue all day, but we both know I’ll win in the end. Spill it!”

“All right, all right. He saved me last weekend on River Street from a couple of creeps.”

“Ew, you had creepers after you? I hate pervs. Nothing you couldn’t have handled on your own though, right? I mean, they didn’t hurt you, did they?”

“No.”

“Good. But you said this guy saved you. This is
you
we’re talking about, Sienna. Spunky. Quick. Smart.”

This is why I love Haylee. I replay the scene in my mind, me fainting in the clutch of two drunks like some idiot damsel in distress. I contemplate telling her about my fainting spells. “I was feeling kind of off that night, not myself.”

“Well, so this guy saves the day and then . . .”

“He bought me some shoes.”

“What? Shoes! He saves your life and then buys you shoes? Girl, he’s a keeper.”

I laugh. “You don’t even know him.”

“I’ve heard enough.”

“It was nothing, Haylee. We just got ice cream and walked around and—” I pin my lips together. Really, I should keep the rest quiet and pretend it never happened.

“Just tell me one thing, Sienna. Does he have anything that belongs to you? Do you have anything of his? Tell me you don’t already have his sweatshirt!”

I glance down at my pajamas—Austin’s
Property of Meadowbrook Monarchs
shirt.

“You do!” Haylee exclaims.

“It’s just his T-shirt.”

“Oh, okay. Yeah, that’s nothing,” she says sarcastically.

“It really isn’t. It’s a long story.”

“That’s fine by me. I’m here all morning, shoveling crap and pulling weeds.”

“There’s nothing to tell.”

“You said it’s a long story.”

I pull the neckline of Austin’s shirt up to my nose and search for his scent, remembering how he held my hand last night. On our first date that wasn’t even officially a date. “Hay, this can’t go any further than it already has.”

“Why not?”

“Because of my mom. She doesn’t like me seeing him, not one bit. Haylee, she’s worse than ever these days, hanging on by a thread. Staring off at nothing. Weeping when she thinks no one is around. Watching my every move like a hawk.”

Haylee lets out a deep breath—she knows my mom. “That stinks.”

“Yeah. And anyway, I’m with Kyle.”

“So?”

“Haylee!”

“I didn’t mean it like that, Sienna. All I’m saying is Kyle is here in Virginia. Dream Boy’s in Georgia.”

“You’re saying I should play them both?”

She exhales. “Sienna, you’ve been with Kyle on and off for, like, ever. Think about it. You and Kyle have four years of college ahead, and you’ve never seriously dated anyone else. Right?”

I didn’t expect Haylee to take this side, but I see her point. Makes me sound pathetic, actually. As shallow as it was, dating Kyle Price had been a major boost for my social life. Everyone suddenly knew me, admired me. But then it became more. Our families are so close, and Kyle was there for me after my dad died like no one else was. We’re magnets. Inevitably, we end up together.

“Listen, we don’t have to talk about Dream Boy if you don’t want to. I just want to know one more thing.”

I roll my eyes, highly doubtful. “Uh-huh.”

“His name. That’s all.”

“His name is—”

“Aaand a picture. If you have one.”

“Actually, I do.”

“Ooh, send it to me!”

Just then, the doorbell rings, and I wait for someone to get it.

“Sienna. His name! The picture!”

“Austin Dobbs. He went to Meadowbrook High. Haylee, he played football against Kyle.”

A long pause. “You. Are. Joking! I’m gonna Facebook him. See who knows him. Hey, what’s he doing in Georgia?”

“Good question. He doesn’t say much about himself.”

“Ooh, mystery man. Not exactly your type, girl. More like mine.”

“No way, he’s taken. Listen, Hay, you have to promise you won’t tell a soul.”

“Cross my heart.”

The doorbell rings again. “Gotta go.”

“Don’t forget the picture!” she shouts before I hang up. I punch buttons as I jump out of bed, bringing up the picture from last night on my cell. The sight of Austin, his head turned, his eyes glued on me, pulls me to a stop at the top of the stairs.

I went to bed confused after talking to my mom, wondering what on earth possessed me to so openly trust a boy I’ve known for one week. Now everything feels right, and I can’t wait to see him again. I thank Haylee for that as I sprint down the stairs, sending her a text with the picture on my way.

I fling open the front door and glance up. Shock pulses through me, and the doorframe rattles as I slam the door shut. He didn’t even have a chance to look at me. His back was turned like he’d given up on anyone answering. Did I honestly see Austin on my front porch?

I run my fingers through my hair and open the door again, finding an unbearably handsome and somewhat bewildered Austin Dobbs.

I smile, excited and shocked all at once. “Hi.”

“Hey,” he replies, those incredible dimples sneaking out.

It takes a minute for me to notice the bouquet of flowers, palm-leaf roses to be exact. “You made those?”

“Ah, kinda.”

“The hippies,” I say.

“Yep.”

My cell vibrates in my hand. I glance down to see Haylee’s reply.

My type 4 sure. Hand him over. SO hot!!!

I glance up at Austin, not about to argue with the “hot” part. My cell keeps vibrating. More texts from Haylee. I ignore. I don’t need to check the mirror on the wall to know what a nightmare Austin is looking at.

I glance anyway, color draining from my face as I meet my reflection.
Wildebeest
. That’s the first animal that springs to mind. My blond hair hangs in unwieldy strands around my face, beside two cowlicks on the top of my head that look horrifyingly similar to—yep, horns. To top it off, I’m wearing my comfiest frayed shorts and Austin’s shirt, which looks like a navy blue tent on me.

I rub my cheek nervously, trying not to make eye contact. I slip my fingers through my hair, an attempt to tame the wildebeest mane. Then, instinctively, I cross my arms over my chest.

No bra?

This couldn’t get worse.

Austin clears his throat, regaining composure—no doubt from the shock of such a ghastly sight. I catch a nervous grin on his face. “You look good in that shirt.”

“Sorry. I—ah—I’ll wash it and give it back.”

He chuckles, and his gaze meets mine with a look that leaves my knees feeling like something loose and jiggly; Jell-O, maybe. He steps up the last stair and crosses the threshold, coming far too close. “Don’t bother washing it. It smells better on you anyway.” His eyebrows climb a notch as his eyes slide down the length of my body. “And it looks a whole lot better on you, too.”

Heat rises in my face, but the thought of my mom seeing Austin here pulls my mind back into focus. “Spencer?”

“What?” he calls back, sounding perturbed.

I peek around the corner and find Spencer at the TV playing some Captain America Xbox game, Marvel action figures scattered on the floor around him. “Where’s Mom?”

“Shopping with Brian’s mom,” he replies. “Said she’d be back later and that I’m in charge.”

“Uh-huh, right.”

“She did too!” Spencer insists, and I decide to drop it. He and Mom haven’t exactly been buddy-buddy lately. Spencer puts up a tough fight about taking his antidepressants, which doesn’t go over well with Mom. “Okay,” Spencer admits, “she said shopping and the part about being home for lunch. But she didn’t say you’re in charge, so that means I am.”

“Fine.”

Spencer looks past me. “Who’s that?”

I turn around. Austin takes a step forward so he can see Spencer. “Hey, man. I’m Austin.”

Spencer only glares at him. This is great. Austin comes here to give me flowers, finds a wildebeest instead, and meets my little brother on one of his down days.

“Do you play Xbox?” Spencer asks with a snobby tilt of his chin. This is an eight-year-old boy’s way of sizing someone up.

“Um, yeah,” Austin replies. “Only if I get to eat Lucky Charms while I’m playing, though.”

Spencer’s face lights up with the biggest smile, the kind only my dad could draw out. With a twist in my heart, I notice the football lying beside him, the one he and Dad used to toss around on the beach together. “You like Lucky Charms?” Spencer asks.

I smile at the fact Austin remembered.

Austin smiles, too. “Oh, yeah. But I’m pretty crappy on Xbox, to be honest. My buddies always beat me.”

“Well, I’d ask you to play with me,” Spencer says, “but I’d probably just kill you.”

Austin laughs. “Probably would. But, hey, I’ll toss that football around with you instead.”

Spencer’s paddle hits the floor. “You will?”

Austin looks to me for permission. He can’t possibly know what this means to Spencer.

“Go ahead,” I say, happy for a moment to steal myself to the bathroom to transform the wildebeest. I run up the stairs and stash the flowers in my room so my mom won’t get suspicious. Then I dash for the shower. I dab on a touch of makeup, throw on my swimming suit, and cover it with a shirt and shorts. I snag my perfume and spray, walking into the mist before running back downstairs.

I look out back, smiling as Austin wades through the water to catch a stray ball Spencer threw.

“Catch?” Austin asks me as I approach.

I try to stand confidently as the ball zooms toward me. Despite my football skills—I don’t have any—I make a decent catch. Austin holds his hands up to catch a return toss.