Chapter 6

MAY 15 – MONDAY 1:13 PM

T heo

Walking into the garage, I whistled low as I stared at the pair of cars. Who knew that Neil had the kind of money to purchase a Lamborghini Veneno? This was a limited- edition car. I circled the silver car and stared at the sleek design. The other vehicle was a GMC Yukon, which was more realistic for all of us to get around. I checked the Yukon door, and it was unlocked, so I pulled out the paperwork to see if the insurance was still valid.

"What are you doing," Ren asked as she stepped into the garage.

"Checking to see if we can use this to get around." I held up the paperwork. "The insurance is valid, and I'm guessing you'd be on it." She walked around the black vehicle, and the look on her face told me this was her mom's, not that I was surprised. From what she'd told me about her parents, her mom didn't seem like the type who wanted to be driving around in a limited-edition car. "You good with that?"

"Yeah, there's no point in it just sitting here, but I don't know when it was serviced last."

I shrugged. "All good. It'll give me something to do." I pointed to the Veneno. "Your father's?"

She nodded. "I have no idea why he bought it because we definitely didn't run in the right circles to show it off. Honestly, I have no idea what he did or with who anymore."

Crossing my arms, I stared at the sexy car. "You mind if I take it out? I mean, a car like this really shouldn't be left sitting." I smirked, and she laughed.

"If you can find the keys, go for it. Just don't crash it. I don't feel like going to the hospital again anytime soon. I have seen more than my fair share of our local hospital."

"O ye of little faith. Trust me, I can handle this girl and a whole lot more." Ren's brow lifted, and I could see the question in her eyes, but I wasn't saying anything right now. Keeping her in suspense was amusing.

"Wow! Come to Daddy," Myles said as he stepped into the garage, his eyes wide. He stared at the Veneno like it was a lover. I watched him in fascination as he strutted over and then ran his hand over the lines of the car. "Yer sexy, ya know that, right? I'll treat ya right."

"I think you have some competition," I said and nudged Ren's arm. She smiled but rolled her eyes as Myles continued to baby-talk the car. "Paws off, McCoy, I already claimed her." Myles looked over, his eyes darting between me and Ren, and I glared at him. "The car, you dumbass. I claimed the car."

"Why do you get the sexy car?" Myles pouted.

"Cause you already have the sexy girl. Fair is fair," I said. "Or you can have the car and…." I put my arm around Ren's shoulders. "I can have the sexy girl." Ren shook her head and sighed, and I could almost see the words, what the fuck, in her eyes.

"Naw mate, not trading. I still have the much better deal." Myles ran his hand through his hair. "Ya wanna take it out," he asked with a glimmer of excitement in his eyes.

"What is it with guys and fast cars," Ren said, throwing her hands in the air as she walked away. "I'll go see if I can find the fob thing."

I opened the car door and slipped into the driver's seat, my hands running over the steering wheel. Myles hopped in the other side. His energy was excited, like he'd just sniffed sugar. "I put out feelers last night to some racers. Just to see if there was any underground action here."

"And?"

"We're going to see if I can find a local pit boss. His name is Ransom. I've actually heard of him. He was one hell of a rider until he had to drop his bike in a race and got lodged under a truck. It messed him up pretty bad, and he hasn't raced since."

"Damn, that's fucked."

I spotted Ren as she rounded the back of the car and came to the driver's side door. "How long are you two going to be gone," Ren asked, holding out the fob through the open door. I took it from her open palm.

"Not sure yet. Why? Are you going to attempt to cook?" She scowled and tried to snatch the fob back, but I smiled and dropped it into the center cup holder.

"So funny. Who says I can't cook?"

"Oh really? You can cook more than microwavable dinner or mac and cheese out of a box?"

"Yes, really."

"In that case. We'll have a cook off one day soon. They'll all try the dishes blindfolded," I said, laying the gauntlet down.

"You're on," she said. I really did love how she was always ready to pick up the challenge, giving me a real run every time. "And since you don't know when you'll be back, I'm going to head to Lizzy's house. I called my Aunt Nadia, but she is working doubles till the weekend."

"Send me the address, Snowflake. When we're done, I'll check in with ya." Myles slipped out of the car, and I suddenly felt like a perv sitting here while he kissed her. Myles never gave a soft peck. No, it was like he was going to devour her as he bent her backward like they were in their own private movie goodbye.

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel. "Can we please stop with the porno session?"

"Ignore him. He's just a grumpy ‘cause he ain't gettin' any," Myles whispered, then shot me a smirk.

"Get in the car, or I'm leaving you behind," I said and punched the garage remote clipped to the visor.

"You better go before he decides to run you over or leave you in the Canadian wilderness," Ren said, laughing.

"Both are splendid ideas."

Myles made a face at me as he jogged around and jumped into the car. Revving the engine, I shifted into first and waved at Ren as we pulled out. Excitement flooded my system as I stepped on the gas, and we flew down the street.

Hell yeah, now this is what I'm talking about. No more back seat of a minivan.

MAY 15 – MONDAY 5:33 PM

Ren

If Blake cared that he was dumped in the middle of three chaotic women, he didn't show it. Lizzy was fawning all over him, and if you didn't know her, then you'd wonder if she was serious, but this was just her normal. When she was genuinely into someone, she could hardly form two words and turned shy and reserved. She'd always been backward, but I loved her.

"This one," Blake said and held out a bottle of blue nail polish.

"He has excellent taste," Lizzy said, making us laugh as she plucked the color from his fingers. "Do you want yours done?"

"No thanks, I prefer to watch the magic happen." Blake smiled as he walked over to Lizzy's desk and sat down. Lizzy mouthed, "He is adorable," as he spun in a circle on the chair. I blushed as Lizzy and Ivy giggled.

He'd already sat through me getting my hair done, where I had an entire argument about not having blue put in my hair. Then, a whole fashion show for no reason at all, and now I was getting my nails done. I didn't care what anyone said. This was exhausting.

My phone dinged, and I picked it up expecting Myles, but it was Fiona. She'd messaged me for the first time not long after the text went out from Vicky. She hadn't been removed from the text chain yet and was disgusted when she saw what Vicky had done. We'd been texting ever since.

F: Did ya make it home?

I loved how she texted exactly how she talked. I could hear her thick accent in my head.

R: I did. I'm in the middle of getting my hair and nails done.

F: LOL! That's good, ya deserve ta chill. I found more pics for ya.

My phone vibrated as three images came through. You couldn't wipe the smile off my face as I stared at young Myles. He was wearing a pair of coveralls with one strap undone, his hair a mess, and his face dirty as he smiled for the camera. Not much had changed. The next image was of him on a bicycle with Fiona next to him on one as well. The last image pulled at my heartstrings as I looked at the picture of Myles with his mum. They looked like they were going some place special or maybe church. She was beautiful, and Myles looked so much like her.

R: These are great, thank you so much.

F: I dunno if he'll tell ya or not. He dinnie likes ta talk about it much, but his ma's birthday is the 27th of May.

R: He hasn't mentioned his mum much. He just says that he got her killed.

F: Loada bollox! Feck that! He did nothin' of the sort. From what my da says, she died due to a fall. The injuries were too substantial, and she passed away. But the weird part is that Owen wanted her ta be buried on the family property. So, there is one lone grave in the field.

I shivered. I didn't like the sound of that story. From what I'd already seen of Owen and heard about Devin, it wasn't a far leap to think that one or both of them had something to do with her death.

R: Thank you for sending these and letting me know. I will think of something to do for him.

F: Have a great time, and next year ya have ta come here. I really want ta show ya around.

R: I'm looking forward to it.

I smiled, and Lizzy nodded to the phone. "Is that Myles?"

"No, Fiona. We've become friends," I said.

"Isn't that weird? I mean, don't you find it weird being friends with Myles's ex-arranged-fiancé," Ivy asked, and I shrugged.

"It was a little strange at first. But Fiona's really nice and sends me photos of Myles. Plus, she hates Vicky." I waved my completed hand with the wet nail polish in the air.

"Still seems weird. I don't know if I could be friends with the girl who had a contract to marry the guy I like," Lizzy said.

"Has." We all looked at Blake. "Technically, the contract still exists. It's just that Myles is breaking the contract by not marrying her. If Fiona hadn't said that she didn't want to go through with it, she could've caused major issues. So, I'd definitely stay on her good side," Blake said, and a pit opened up in my stomach.

"You mean Myles may still have to marry her?"

He shook his head no. "I doubt it. Fiona has already told her family that she doesn't want to marry Myles. But to get her father to stop pushing, she had to say that the McCoys were not worth marrying. Owen is pissed." I looked down, fear filling me. I'd already seen what Owen could do once. There was no way I was going to let him get his hands on Myles again.

"What do you think Owen will do?"

Blake lifted a shoulder and let it drop. "Myles's dad is crazy. I have no idea. He could do nothing, his point already made, or he could retaliate again. It's hard to say."

That didn't make me feel any better.

"Wow. Is this a picture of you," Blake asked, changing the subject as he picked up a frame on the desk. I pushed the conversation about Myles and Owen out of my mind for now. We were in another country, so for now, Myles was safe.

"Yeah, that was when my hair was still dark."

His eyes glanced back and forth between me and the photo.

"I still love the color you have now."

"Come on, don't say that. I'm still hoping she'll let me dye the ends. It would look so pretty," Lizzy said.

"She isn't wrong. It would look amazing on you. You could totally pull it off, and Myles would drool no matter what you did," Blake said.

"See!"

"You're not helping Blake," I said and shook my head at Lizzy, who was pouting. I hadn't seen Ivy laugh this hard ever, and it was great to see. After the phone call with her father yesterday, she'd been so quiet that I was starting to worry.

"Oh, that's a great idea. You two get over here and squeeze in." Ivy and I shifted around so that Lizzy could take more pictures. She was worse than the paparazzi.

"Do you have any more photos," Blake asked, and I groaned as Lizzy shot up off the pillow on the floor.

"You want to see pictures? I have pictures." Lizzy marched away, knocking over the bottle of nail polish, and I scrambled to get it picked up before it made a huge mess. Lizzy didn't even notice that her cream carpet was almost ruined, making Ivy laugh even harder. I grabbed a wipe and began cleaning it off my fingers.

"Here, check these out." I watched in horror as she dropped a pile of photo albums down on the desk in front of Blake. I shook my head. Next, she was going to pull out naked baby photos or something.

Ivy jumped up to see as well, and I was left sitting on a pillow in the middle of Lizzy's bedroom. I took a moment to stare around at the soft, buttery walls and sunflower border that suited Lizzy's personality to a T. Her room had been the same for years, other than updating her pictures and calendars. Every corner was filled with memories, as many, if not more than my house. The two of us laughing and talking about random things or plotting out our futures right down to who we wanted to marry. I'd claimed Ryan Reynolds, and she'd taken Ryan Gosling like we were doling out cards.

Something my mum told me for whatever reason was hitting me now. " Some people will be in your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. It's not until they have come and gone that you know which group they fall into." Lizzy was my lifetime. I didn't have a single memory without her, and no matter how freaking crazy my life got, I promised myself that I wouldn't let the friendship we shared slip away.

The roar of a motorcycle pulled me out of my thoughts, and I glanced over as Blake, Lizzy, and Ivy looked out the window.

"Who the heck is that," Lizzy gushed. "Talk about making a girl's panties wet."

I smacked my hand off my forehead, but I was up and looking out the window with the rest as my father's car pulled into her driveway. I spotted the shiny silver and black bike that looked like a bullet and the guy sitting on it in a matching outfit, and I had to admit that it was hot. Myles got out of the driver's side of my dad's car, and my mouth fell open as the guy straddling the bike pulled his helmet off. Holy shit. I bit my lip, my body getting hot all over as Theo looked up to the window at us and winked.

I swear Lizzy fainted. "Slap me stupid and fuck me sideways. I'll take him. Can I have your brother? Damn, he's hot."

Blake crossed his arms over his chest. "We're identical."

"Yeah, but he's on a hot bike. He can ride me any day."

It hit me at that moment that if I removed the accent and the fact that he was a guy, I was basically dating my best friend. Lizzy was the female version of Myles. If that didn't screw with your head, I didn't know what would.

"So what? It's just a bike. Anyone can buy one. I can play the guitar and do other stuff," Blake argued, looking totally put out.

"But would you look that hot on a bike?"

"Yes. We're identical. I give up," Blake mumbled and walked out of the room. I left Ivy and Lizzy gushing over Theo from the second-story window and chased Blake down. I wrapped my arms around his waist, and he stopped walking.

"I love that you play the guitar," I said and kissed his back.

He turned around and smiled. "I know. I'm not really upset, and I mean, he does have that thing when he's on a bike."

"And you have it when you play."

"See, this is just another reason why I've fallen so in love with you. You're always right there to make sure that I don't get lost in the weeds of what doesn't matter," Blake said and then kissed me, his lips soft and tender like his embrace.

Blake wasn't wrong. I'd seen Theo almost every day since I first arrived at Wayward, and there was something very different about him on the bike. He was giving off a vibe I never expected. Who would've guessed that under the button-up guy, obsessed with beating me academically, was a speed demon who rode motorcycles?