Chapter Twenty - Remy"Hanes, you got a phone call."I felt in my pocket for my phone, realizing it wasn't there before I climbed down the ladder from the roof.My boss handed me his work phone, and made a gesture for me to wrap it up. Roger was a no-nonsense kind of man. It'd been a good few months since I started, but I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize my position."Hello?""Remington.""Jane, baby, what is it? You know my boss gets pissed when I'm on the phone—,""Mrs. Johns is in the hospital about to die."My hammer fell to the ground. Die? Was she sick? Has there been an accident? "What? How do you—,""She called me and asked for us to come see her quickly." Jane's voice broke at the end. She must not have long."I didn't even know she was sick, what's the matter with her?""I don't know, but we need to go see her now.""Okay, which hospital?"I flew from the outskirts of Dallas toward the Baylor Scott & White Medical Center uptown. Jane met me downstairs in the lobby an
Chapter Twenty-One - JaneRemington hollered from downstairs for me to hurry. He needed to understand it wasn't as easy to pick out what I wanted to wear as it was for him.He looked good in everything.I bounded down the stairs, twirling my way into the living room. "I'm ready, da-umn," I said. Remington pressed his palms to the back of the sofa, his dark eyes raking me of every piece of clothing I took forever to pick out. "You look damn good," he said.I twirled a piece of hair around my finger and winked at him. Things were different than they were but in a good way. It'd been three years since Mrs. Johns passed, leaving us with the restaurant and her house. I couldn't stand the thought of living in the house Lucas grew up in, so we let my mother move in, because she'd lived in that rundown shack for far too long.We owned the restaurant but let my mother's best friend manage it because we trusted her and knew she'd take care of it. Not that we didn't stop by to eat every other nig
Chapter One- Jane I sat with my back to a hard, plastic airport seat and my knees tucked against my chest. My entire Spanish II class stood around in a semi-circle with giddy laughs and thoughts of an entire week in Andalucía, Spain in the name of learning. As badly as I wanted to be happy, I couldn't think about anything other than Remy Hanes, my boyfriend's best friend, and how he kissed me two weeks before. No matter how many times I told myself that it was a careless act of alcohol and late night delusions, I knew that wasn't true. The two years I'd spent with Lucas Johns made me feel content, safe and desired. Now that safe feeling wasn't enough, because Remy held me a if I was his and every touch of his hand sent me higher than I'd ever been. So high I felt my body quiver from the need to feel grounded again. No matter that I tried to blame it on the alcohol, we both knew it wasn't just that. His rough palms stripped me of any insecurity I wore on my sleeve. His dark eyes pie
Chapter Two - Remy"Hanes, lunchtime."I glanced up from the roof we worked on, and covered my palm over my eyes, to see Timmy waving me down."Be down in a second," I hollered, grabbing my hammer and tools before climbing down the ladder.Timmy sat on the tailgate of his truck, leaned back against his palms, his short legs not touching the ground.The hot Texas sun beamed down on me, so I ripped my shirt over my head and wiped my face with it. I grabbed my spare t-shirt hanging from my back pocket and slid it on."You want to go to Lucas' for lunch?" he asked.The name still shot nerves down my back to this day. After we got back from Spain, Lucas' Momma opened a restaurant in his name.It was southern food, fried chicken and blueberry pie, his favorite kind. To support his Momma, I went to eat th
Chapter Three-Jane"You look amazing."I twirled in my knee-length blue and white striped skirt, and examined myself in the floor-length mirror in my bedroom.I tucked my white t-shirt into my high waist skirt, and my white opened-toed wedges gave me a few inches that I needed. My braid hung near my ribs, over my shoulder, and my bangs drew attention to my eyes.I looked cute, a little under-weight for my age, but overall good—on the outside at least. The things that ran rampage on the inside were a different story all together.Stephanie, my first cousin, sat on my bed behind me, a supportive smile on her face. She'd been my rock when I came back home after the crash. It was because of her I had
Chapter Four -RemyJane's head rested against my lap while I stroked her dark hair from her face. After thirty minutes of realization that ended with screams, rants and cursing, she fainted onto the sand.I knew it wouldn't be long before she broke down. At first, nothing seemed real. Not the crash, the situation or everyone's deaths, but the little girl crying broke through Jane's shield and everything spiraled afterward.She moved after a few minutes, looking up at the darkening sky. "Where are we going to sleep?" she asked.I glanced over at Taborie sitting on a broken log, sharpening what looked like a rock into a spear.
Chapter Five -JaneRain soaked my clothes to the bone. I'd never been one to be afraid of a little water, but this was pure Hell. Not only did the rain leave me with a shiver but the wind left my teeth chattering.Sarah curled into me, what extra clothing we found swallowed her tiny frame. It hurt my soul to do it, but I let Remy wrap his big arm around my waist and hold me close. His warm breath on the back of my neck felt like a little drop of water to the driest desert.I hated hating him. I hated myself for fighting with him because I knew he was right. I took out my frustration on him when really I was mad at this entire situation and myself.Since I couldn't sleep, my mi
Chapter Six -RemyJane disappeared out into the night, leaving an entire room full of people speechless. Mrs. Johns said something beneath her breath and chased after her.I wanted to follow her, but I knew Jane well enough to know she was already gone. Mrs. Johns walked back a few moments later shaking her head. "Y'all go ahead and finish eating. I guess the talk of Lucas was too much for her."I felt like a dickhead for touching her.Who was the selfish one now?When I saw her standing in front of me after three years, I f