Veer (Clayton Falls) (15 page)

“Do you really want to cross Molly and Becca when they’re mad?” Ben asked. “Two angry girls can be brutal.”

“I’ll risk it.” I stood up, putting my beer
,
of which
I’d yet to have a sip, on the table.

Chapter
Fifteen

Becca

“Open this door up immediately, Becca!” Molly yelled.

I pulled the covers over my head. I’d actually r
esorted to getting into bed at eight o’clock
on a Saturday night.

“Becca? I mean it, or I’m getting the key from Ben’s mom and then we’ll both come in.
”

That did it. I was up and at the door within seconds.
“Hey.”

She pulled me into a hug, propelling us back into the room. For such a petite girl, she was strong.

“I know what happened.”

“Oh. Listen, I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring you, I just couldn’t face you.” I walked over to sit on the couch.

“Couldn’t face me? You can always tell me anything.”
Her voice revealed a level of hurt I wasn’t expecting to hear.

“Not this.”

“I knew you liked him. That much was obvious.”
She took a seat next to me.

“Really? I didn’t even really know it…”

“Well
,
I did. I knew it was just a matter of time before you guys got together
.
I just wouldn’t have thought it’d be like this.”
She squeezed my hand reassuringly.

“Yeah. I know I’ve been blowing it out of proportion
.
I just felt dumb, and like a failure yet again.”
I buried my face in my hands.

She moved closer. “Why’d you think you were a failure?”

“I can’t even have sex well
. W
hat does that say about me?”

“Becca, please tell me you don’t actually believe that. It had nothing to do with the sex. It was just Gavin being a jerk. Although I have my suspicions there t
o
o.”

“Suspicions?” I wondered what she was implying.

“I kind of think he got scared.”

I half coughed-half laughed. “Scared? Of me?”

“Of how he felt. This just doesn’t feel like Gavin. Tell me, what was it like?”

I shook my head.
“I’m not going there, Mol. No w
ay.”

“Not the details, but what was it like to be with him?”

I dared to look at her.
“It felt good. It felt safe.”

“I
think he felt something t
o
o, but he knows
you’re
leaving at the end of the summer
. That’s the only explanation I can think of. I think he was shocked when Jake told him you cared—he thought he was giving you what you wanted—a clean break.”

“When Jake told him? What? Oh my god. I am going to kill that boy
!”

Molly laughed. “Finally,
you’re making sense.”

“Who else did Jake tell? Please tell me, it was just you and Gavin.”

She looked away. “Tom, Kelly, and Ben were there too.”

“What!” I couldn’t believe it. “How am I going to face anyone now? I just need to leave and go home.”

I got up, ready to start packing. I’d have to find a job back in Boston. “Becca, stop it. They’re your friends.”

“No,
they’re
your friends. Big difference.”

She looked hurt by my words, but they were the truth. “They want to be your friends too.”

“I can’t do this.”

“If anyone should be humiliated
,
it’s Gavin, not you. What do you have to be embarrassed about?”

“You
’
r
e
joking right
? Because
being completely inexperienced and flipping out when a guy di
dn’t want me isn’t embarrassing?”

“Being inexperienced isn’t
shameful
, and you got upset because a guy treated you badly—it’s not that he didn’t want you
.”

“Whatever you say.”
Even I could hear the coldness in my voice.

“You could have told me though. You didn’t have to shut me out and hide.”
The hurt in her voice was
crystal clear, but I was the one who had to live through the experience
. Still, my telling her brother-in-law first might have been a slap in the face.

“I didn’t want to be that girl, you know?”

“I know.” Something about the way Molly said
it
made her words ring true. She’d certainly been through her share of hard times, so
she probably understood
the need to keep things private.

“I don’t see how I can face any of them
,
e
specially not Gavin. He’s probably regretting what happened even more now.” It hurt to say
those words.
I didn’t want him to regret it.

“I already told you he didn’t regret it. You don’t have to be embarrassed to face him, and it’s no reason to leave.”

There was a louder knock on the door
.
I knew with a sinking feeling it wasn’t Kelly.

I looked at Molly, letting her know I wanted her to deal with it. She opened the door and slipped outside, but not before I saw Gavin looking in at me.
I wanted to disappear
.

Molly came back inside, closing the door most of the way. “He wants to talk to you. But you don’t have to, you know.”

“What is this, sixth grade again?”

I tried to fix my hair a little,
glad I was wearing yoga pants and not pajamas,
and walked to the door. “Yes?” I made myself look up at him.

He looked
nervously
down at me. “Can we talk?”

“Sure.” I walked over to sit on the lounge chair I’d been sitting on when I opened up to Jake
about my non-existent sex life
. Real great decision that was.

Molly looked at me.

I nodded.
“You can go
.
I p
romise we’ll hang out tomorrow.
”

“Okay, if you’re sure
.” She waved and
slowly
walked away.

I looked back at Gavin, who
sat down
next to me. “So…”

“I’m sorry.”

“What exactly are you sorry for? For sleeping with me?”

He shook his head and looked alarmed. “No! No, that’s not it. I’m not sorry for that.”

“You sure seemed that way last week.”

“I was just being an idiot.”

“So why are you here exactly?”

“I can’t stop thinking about you, Becca. I only said those things because I thought it would make
everything
easier, but obviously all I did was screw things up more.”

“And?”

“And, well, would you maybe want to go out some time?” He gave me this half smile that did something to my stomach—but I ignored it.

“Is this a joke?”

“No, of course not.”

“Listen, Gavin. You didn’t have to come here to apologize. I’m a big girl, and I can handle it. I’m only going to be around another few months—so it’s not that big of a deal.”

“But it is a big deal. I don’t want to avoid
you
.
I want to see you more.”

“You had it right the first time.”
I picked up my chin and forced myself to meet his eye
s
.

“What are you saying?”

“Let’s just pretend it never happened. Good night.” I got up and headed inside.

“Becca, wait. Please, let’s talk about this.”

I
closed the door behind me without turning around
.

Chapter
Sixteen

Gavin

Of all the stupid things I’d done, letting Becca slip out of my place was the dumbest. The full reality of it hit me as I walked throu
gh the gate and down the
Mathews’s
driveway. I don’t know what I was expecting her to say, but throwing my own words back at me, and telling me she wanted to forget it ever happened was as bad as it could get.

“I never took you for being an idiot.” Molly leaned back against Ben’s truck where she
’d
parked it along the street.

“Thanks, I needed that.”

“I heard what you said to her.”

“Eavesdrop much?”

“Do you want to give me a hard time, or do you want my help?” She crossed her arms, daring me to argue.

“You think you can help me?”

“Yes. But only because I think it’s what’s best for Becca.”

“You think I’m what’s best for Becca?” This could be good, really good.

“Yes. She likes you. She obviously trusts you, or she wouldn’t have been with you.
Becca’s always been afraid to trust people, and she’s so worried about her safety that it comes across as OCD or something.
She deserves to feel safe, and to be happy, and you might be able to help on both accounts.”

“I know I can.
A
t least
I
want to try.”

“She needs to stay the summer. I don’t think there’s anything for her in Boston anymore, and I want her to know she can have a place here if she wants.”

“You sound like Jake
.
”
I shifted from foot to foot
.
I was anxious to do something, anything.

“Ugh. Don’t say that. But if he’s on board
,
then all the better.”

“So how do you think you can help?”

“I’m working on a plan.”
She kicked around a rock with her flip flop.

“When’s it going to be ready?”

“I need some time, but why don’t yo
u start by getting her car back
.
Dale went out of town for the
weekend
, but I’m sure you can find someone with whatever that part is
they need
, can’t you?”

“Yes. Okay, her car. I can do that.”

Molly smiled. “Good.”

“Are you going back to Tom and Kelly’s?”

“Yeah, are you?”

“No, I think I’ll just go home.”

“All right,
but start thinking of ways to fix this mess
. I know you didn’t mean to hurt h
er, and she’ll see that one day if you can make up for the fact that you were a total jerk.
”

“I hope so.” I didn’t add that I hoped she’d realize it soon.

***

I decided not to go straight home. Dale, the owner of the garage may have been out of town, but Greg was around.
I stopped by his house without calling first.

“Listen I need you to do me a favor.”

“I’m listening.” He didn’t move to open the door
wider
,
so I figured we’d have the conversation on the front step.
Maybe he had company he didn’t want me to know about.

“I need you to finish up that little bug you have in the shop.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m sure Dale got the part
. H
e just didn’t want to be bothered before taking off for the weekend.
”

“So what do you want me to do about it?” He leaned against the door frame.

“Fix her car, Greg.”

A slow smile spread across his face
. “Why are you s
o
concerned about the bug, Gavin
?
”

“Because Becca deserves her car back.”

“So this is just the chivalrous side of you? It has nothing to do with trying to get with her?”
He grinned.

“Listen,
y
ou owe me. Do this
,
and we’re even.” I didn’t feel the need to bring up exactly why he owed me
:
I’d made sure to keep his brother’s ass out of jail
.

“Fine. I’ll go tomorrow and finish the job.”

“Thanks, man. Call me when it’s done, okay
?
”

“Sure, I’m guessing you want to bring it
to her
yourself?”