Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 57804 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57804 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
“Sounds great,” I said before getting into the passenger seat.
Amos grinned as he pulled away from the house, hitting a back road and then a trail through some nearby woods. He drove through the trees, birds chirping and flying overhead. Squirrels darted through the leaves on the ground, and we even spotted two does.
I breathed in the fresh air, enjoying the breeze as it ruffled my hair. We were on the cusp of fall, so the leaves were starting to change colors as they danced in the gentle wind. Honestly, it was beautiful.
The side-by-side suddenly rolled over an overgrown root, making it jolt. I automatically grabbed Amos’s arm with a surprised gasp, prompting him to chuckle.
“Hold on,” he said as he drove past the tree line to a grassy clearing, the sun sinking ahead of us. Strokes of orange and yellow filled the sky with tinges of pink as sunset approached. When he parked, he turned to me. “I’ve got a blanket in the back and a cooler full of beer.”
I lifted an eyebrow at him.
“Sounds like you prepared for this,” I stated.
Amos smiled in a manner that made my heart flutter.
“Maybe,” he said. “All the others have managed to steal you away. Figured I should take a chance now since I never did when we were younger.”
A surprised look crossed my face as I angled my body to face him more.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
Amos glanced away from me and chuckled, almost seeming a dash bashful.
“You were my teenage crush, Delilah. Thought you were the most beautiful girl in town,” he admitted before looking back over at me. “But your eyes were on Ryder for as long as I can remember.”
Heat lit up my cheeks as I looked down at my lap. I didn’t realize it had been so obvious to some people. I tried not to let my crush on Ryder show, but he meant so much to me. It was hard to hide my smile, my laugh, my adoring looks.
“Well, that was a long time ago. A lot has changed since then,” I murmured. “You’re different.”
“Just had to grow up a little. Figure out what I wanted,” Amos replied. “Did that happen to you?”
I scoffed lightly as I looked up at him.
“I thought I’d know everything at this age, but I know just as much as I did when I was a teenager,” I told him. I knew making the trip here wouldn’t be easy, but I didn’t expect it to be this confusing.
Or this fun.
“You and Ryder seem to be getting along fine after all these years,” Amos commented.
I gave him a pointed look.
“Do you really want to sit here and talk about me and Ryder?” I asked. I didn’t even know what to say on that subject. I wanted him so damn badly, but it pained me to even look at him half the time. The only time I could tolerate getting close to him was when we were in the studio. At those moments, I could pretend that we didn’t have an extensive, twisted history.
Amos laughed lightly and shook his head.
“Guess you have a point,” he said.
I chewed on my bottom lip for a moment before tilting my head at him.
“I didn’t know you had a crush on me,” I told him.
Amos’s eyes moved over me briefly.
“I was so awkward as a teenager. I didn’t know how to talk to you. How to approach you,” he said.
He was doing a damn good job now.
“I’m sure you’ve got girls lined up now,” I replied as I let my own eyes roam. He had gained some muscle, grown out his hair a little, and his stubble looked good too. Plus, he was the lead single of a great band. Lead singers always attracted a lot of girls.
Amos smirked as he leaned back against the seat, peering ahead at the vibrant sunset.
“It was nice for a while. Then, I dated one of them,” he said, his amused expression wavering.
I leaned a bit closer, our shoulders brushing as we huddled close in the seat.
“What happened?” I asked, sensing that there was a story to be told. I could see it in his eyes. How they turned down slightly.
Amos shrugged.
“We dated for a while. I was convinced that she was the one,” he said before sighing. “I was even looking for an engagement ring. I searched for two weeks for the perfect one.”
I frowned as I nodded.
“And I found out that she was sleeping with one of her co-workers at the coffee shop,” Amos finished. “I was pathetic enough to tell her that I wanted to propose to her, and she laughed in my face. Ever since then… I just haven’t been interested in dating. Who wants to go through something like that again?”
I placed my hand on his knee as I gave him a sympathetic look.