Ruined by You (13 page)

“What did they say?” Haden asked.

I shook my head. “The guitarist was so mad.” I tried to swallow again and pain rolled through me. “So mad,” I repeated. “But they were
so
good. It was the best performance I’ve ever heard. I didn’t know people could do that in real life. I’ve heard the CD’s, but I thought it was all computers.”

Haden actually cracked a smile and chuckled when I said that. “Most of the time it is,” he said, half under his breath. Then, his face pinched together in a frown. “Sorry,” he said.

I waved a hand. “It’s fine,” I said. “They threw me out. They have no interest in working with the high schooler who got lost on her field trip.”

Haden’s face tightened. “What?” he asked.

“Nothing,” I said. “It doesn’t matter. It’s over.”

We drove on in silence for a long time. The truth of the situation began to sink in. There wasn’t going to be any fixing it. Maybe Scottie would have someone else I could talk to, but what reason would he have to ever trust me again? I knew I shouldn’t have taken the job in the first place.

Haden’s face looked as troubled as I felt. I wondered what he was thinking. He was probably thinking the same thing I was - that I had messed everything up. He had gone out on a limb for me, and I had let him down, too.

“Thanks for listening to me,” I said. “It means a lot. Everything you’ve done for me, means a lot.” I took a breath and swallowed again--the pain was going away with time. “I’m sorry I let you down.”

He frowned at me. “Maggie, you didn’t let me down,” he said. “I should have been in there with you. I promised to help you out, and then I backed out when you needed me.”

I could feel the hurt in his voice. He meant every word he said, and it took me off my guard. Who was this man that could so easily disarm me? And, what had I done so right, that I got to spend time with him?

“Maggie, I’m sorry that happened to you,” he said. “I’m going to make it right. You’ll see. I promise I’ll make it right.”

A smile spread across my face, and a weight lifted from my chest. The pain was loosening, like a knotted shoestring tugged free. My breaths came with less effort, and it didn’t hurt so much to smile.

“I think you already did,” I said.

Haden mouthed something, but his words died before they came out. My eyes lingered on his lips, unable to look away. I wanted to feel those lips. I wanted to taste them.

A rush of something went through my body, from my core down to my toes. It was something I’d never felt before, and I nearly groaned out loud.

I just need to feel those lips on me.

Green Falls wasn’t far, anymore. Soon he would drop me off, and he would drive off into the sunset. The thought of it pained me. I didn’t think I could bare it. I wanted him to take me with him. I wanted to get lost somewhere with him. Anywhere.

I just want to get lost in those eyes. I could spend a lifetime in them
.

A distant voice tried to warn me. It tried to remind me of all the reasons that I kept my distance. But I ignored it. Those reasons didn’t matter. Not anymore. Haden was different--the rules didn’t apply to him.

The sun was halfway down the horizon when Haden pulled off the highway.

“Should I drop you off at your aunt’s place?” he asked.

I bit my lip, and didn’t answer for a long time. Then I nodded, and gave him directions. I wasn’t certain, but it felt like he drove the long, windy roads especially slow. The car crawled around every dip and turn, and a drive that should have taken fifteen minutes stretched into thirty.

We didn’t say anything the whole way, and when he parked on the curb outside, I turned and looked at him.

“Thanks for your help today,” I said. “I don’t think I could have survived it without you.”

“I wasn’t there when you needed me the most,” he said, a hint of anger creeping its way into his voice.

I gave him a long look. “Actually, I think you were,” I said.

His mouth pinched into the barest of a smile, but some of the anguish disappeared.

“I should go,” I said, but I didn’t move.

He nodded. “Yeah, you should,” he said. But, his eyes held me pinned to the seat.

Our bodies leaned closer to one another. The space between us grew smaller, and smaller.

His eyes dipped down to my lips, and I felt another rush.

Kiss me
.

The desire was so powerful that it startled me.

Heat flamed in that tiny space between us. He licked his lips, and I licked my own.

Is this it?

I could see it happening. I could
feel
it happening.

His voice came out in a whisper. “I know what you need,” he said.

“Yeah?” I said, my voice barely a breath.

His eyes dipped to my lips, again.

“Tomorrow…” he said, with a concerted effort. “Tomorrow morning.” He paused again, his words labored. “Tomorrow morning, meet me at the Walmart.”

What the hell?

I scrunched my brow, confused. “
Walmart
?” I repeated. Surely, I’d heard him wrong.

He nodded, his eyes never breaking from my lips.

“I think I know what will cheer you up,” he said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and then he opened them again. “You’ll have to trust me,” he said.

I leaned back in the seat, bewildered.
 

“Just, promise me you’ll be there,” he said. “Eleven o’clock?”

I nodded, slowly, trying my best to mask my disappointment. “I’ll be there,” I said. “I promise.”

He smiled. His eyes had a new hope in them, a new intensity.

I just wished he would share some of that hope with me.

I stood at the door for a long time after Haden drove away. I wondered what had come over me that could possibly make me feel the way I did. I looked down at my feet and shook my head. I couldn’t make any sense of it.

It wasn’t like he was hitting on me, or whispering sweet nothings in my ear. He wasn’t telling me how much he adored me, and he wasn’t doing all the things I’d come to expect from a guy that was interested.

He was just being honest with me. He was just being there for me. It was a simple thing, but it managed to shred a hole straight through every wall I’d ever built. It was getting harder and harder to turn him away. It was getting harder and harder to leave his side. It was like the gatekeeper of my heart was determined to let him in - with or without my permission.

Sarah was sitting on the couch when I went in. She had the biggest smile on her face, while she frantically pecked out a text message. When she saw me, her face managed to shine even brighter.

“You’re back,” she said, excitedly. She dropped the phone on the couch and bounced over to me. “I want to hear everything… Are you alright? Your eyes are red.” Her smile faded into concern.

I groaned out loud. I probably looked like a complete mess. That was why Haden had been so eager to get out of there. I probably scared him away with all of my crying, and all of my emotional, girly, trauma.

“It’s nothing,” I said.

She quirked her nose and scowled at me.

“You’re not getting off that easy,” she said. She took my hand and led me to the couch. “Tell me everything. Don’t leave out a single detail.”

So I did.

I told her all about the meeting with Lisa, and all about the disaster that happened at the Warehouse. I told her how I’d messed everything up, and how I was certain that Scottie was going to find someone else to do the job. I even told her how Lisa had said she didn’t know why he had considered me in the first place.

I told Sarah all about the car ride home, and how Haden had tried to comfort me. I told her about how I thought he was going to kiss me, but asked me on a date to Walmart, instead.

“Walmart?” she said, confused. “That’s the most random thing you’ve told me. And, considering the day you’ve had, that’s saying a
lot
.”

I cracked a smile and laughed with her. The laughter felt good. It also felt good to get everything off my chest. Well…
almost
everything. I wasn’t ready to share everything, just yet. I didn’t know how to explain just how hopeless I was for him. I was still trying to figure that out, myself.

“You had a busy day,” she said.

I nodded. “Now, I have to go back to Scottie and tell him that I failed,” I said. “I turned his one lead into a total disaster.”

She grimaced. “I’m sure he’ll think of something. You’ll see.”

“I’m sure he will, too,” I said. “It’s just not going to include me.”

“You don’t know that,” she said. “He’s a good guy. He’ll make it work.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know if I want to make it work. Maybe I should just cut my losses and get a restaurant job like Mom suggested.”

Sarah didn’t have a response for that--she just gave me a pained look.

“Well, on the bright side,
I’ve
got some good news,” she said, after a time. Her brow rose with excitement.

“Huck?” I guessed.

She shook her head. “Something even better,” she said, winking.

In a flash, she grabbed me by the hand and darted off, dragging me behind her. I laughed and raced along as she bounced her way to the kitchen. She plucked something from the hook next to the phone. It clinked and rattled when she spun and tossed it to me.

I looked down at the thing in my hand, my jaw dropping open in amazement.

“I talked to my parents,” she said. “They’re going to be out of town for a couple more weeks.”

My eyes grew even wider. “They want me to drive the ‘Vette?” I said, incredulously.

She grinned. “Someone has to. Mom says she didn’t buy it so it could collect dust.”

“But, it’s such an expensive car - what if something happens?” I said.

Sarah giggled. “I’m pretty sure they have the best insurance policy money can buy.”

I studied the keys in my hand, amazed.

“I don’t know what to say,” I said.

“Well, I’ll let you thank them, personally, when they get here. For now, just say you’ll go have a good time tomorrow.”

A huge smile spread across my face when I thought about Haden. I couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when I pull up in a Corvette.

“I will,” I said. “I, most definitely, will.”

* * * * *

There was only one Walmart in town. It served as one of the only super retailers in the area. When I pulled up the next morning, I was still riding high on the thrill of driving a sports car. The Corvette was the fastest car I’d ever been in, and it took a few minutes to get used to its power.

I spotted Haden’s car sitting at the far back of the parking lot, near the road. He stood outside the car, wearing a bright blue Hawaiian shirt, and cargo shorts. He had a little blue bag, in his hand, when I pulled up.

“What’s this?” he said, excitedly, when he saw me.

I grinned. “My new ride,” I said.

He laughed. “Where did you get it?”

I winked and gave him a wry grin, holding him in suspense for a moment. “It’s my aunt’s,” I said. “She said I could use it while she’s on vacation.”

He stepped around me and checked out the interior, the smile still on his face. Then, he took a lap around the car, inspecting every inch of it in a way that only a guy can manage.

“It’s a pretty nice ride,” he said, approving.

I grinned at him.

“So what’s with all the mystery?” I said. “What are we doing out here?”

Across the street was a Starbucks, next to a Chilis. I glanced back at the Walmart, behind us. Even at eleven in the morning on a weekday the parking lot was full.

Haden grinned at me and then let his eyes fall to the Walmart bag in his hands. He hesitated for a second, then thrust bag toward me.

“This is for you,” he said.

I gave him a quizzical look as I took the bag and looked inside.

“What’s this for?” I asked, confused. I pulled out a thin, blue bikini. I held it in front of me, and twirled it around, inspecting it in a way that only a girl can manage. “I mean, I know what it’s for, but… why?”

His head tilted to the side as his shoulders lifted. I wondered if he was taking pleasure in teasing me like this.

“Do you like it?” he asked. “It’s no Victoria’s Secret but it was kind of last minute.”

“I don’t understand,” I said, my attention shifting from the bikini back to him.

His hands sunk into the pockets on the cargo shorts, and he looked back over his shoulder at the Starbucks across the street.

“You ever been to the river?” he asked.

“The river?” I said, confused for a second. I followed his gaze to the Starbucks, and then I realized what he was talking about.

Behind the Starbucks and Chilis, the ground sloped downward out of view. It was there, that the river ran. Memories of my childhood flashed in my mind. Happy times spent with Sarah, Grandma, my aunts and uncles. It felt like a lifetime ago.

It was a lifetime ago.

“It’s been forever,” I said. “We used to go there every summer when I was a kid.”

“After everything that happened yesterday, I thought it might be nice if we just took a day to ourselves.” He nodded at the bikini still in my hands. “So I got you that.”

I looked down at the bikini, again. My stomach fluttered when I realized that Haden had bought it so he could see me in it.

“I don’t know,” I said. “I mean, it’s very sweet of you, but I don’t exactly look good in a bikini.”

His eyes drank all of me in. They sunk down the full length of my body before returning all the way back up.

“I don’t believe that for a second,” he said, his voice intense.

Heat washed over my cheeks and nervous jitters shot through me.

“I’m not dark and tan like all of these other Texas girls,” I said. “I’m from back East, where we’re all pasty and white. Or, in my case right now, red like a lobster.” I glanced at my shoulders, still red from the pool on Sunday.

He took a step closer to me, and a wall of heat came with him. My body trembled despite its every effort not to.

“I don’t care about any of the other Texas girls,” he said. “I just want you to leave all your troubles behind--even if only for a few hours.”