Broken Rebel (Sparrow Sisters Book 2) Read online

  I patted her hand. “You’re a good sister.”

  “And you are a sneaky secret-keeping sister.”

  I laughed. “It’s not my fault you went to the beach with Destiny all day today. You could have come and talked to me on my break at work tonight.”

  “I didn’t want to get the details of your date with Johnny crammed into fifteen minutes while sitting by a smelly dumpster. Anyway, we’re here now. Spill it.”

  A laugh popped out of me.

  “Audrey. Did you kiss that boy?”

  I couldn’t stop laughing.

  “You did. You kissed him and you liked it,” she accused, grinning like a fool.

  I nodded, my grin matching hers. “We went dancing.”

  She gasped. “Dancing? Where?”

  I told her the details of Hannigan’s, and how I was a terrible dancer but that it didn’t matter because of the way it felt to be held by Johnny. “Then he took me horseback riding.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “He’s giving it his all, I’ll give him that.”

  “Yeah, but the thing is, he wouldn’t even have to. Even if I’m just sitting on the grass with him, I’m not bored at all. I’m the opposite of bored. My insides are all lit up. I can’t explain it.”

  She sighed happily. “Maybe I’d consider sticking with the same boy for a while if he made my insides glow.”

  I laughed and shoved her arm. We talked a little more, and then she left, and I immediately picked up my phone. Johnny and I had texted earlier, confirming dinner plans for tomorrow, but I had to talk to him again. I couldn’t go five more seconds without contact.

  Are you awake? I texted.

  He wrote back immediately. Yes, I’ll never sleep again because I can’t stop thinking about you.

  I’d never been flirted with like this. Never. Giddy, I pressed my pillow to my mouth and giggled. I wish you were here right now.

  If I were there I’d be kissing you.

  How could he make goose bumps rise on my arms from a few typed words? I’d kiss you right back. Twice.

  Chapter 22

  Johnny

  I wrapped the cord on the vacuum cleaner and tucked it in the closet. I sat on the couch and tapped my fingers on my knees. The fan sitting on the window ledge was on high, but it was still warm in the living room. Unable to sit still, I hopped up and pulled out the mop. I gave the kitchen floor the scrubbing of its life, then, hot and sweaty, I took a cool shower.

  I tried to take my time, but when I got out, it was only two o’clock. Three more hours until I was due at Audrey’s.

  Clay and Adam were out of town visiting their mom for the day, and Graham was spending his day off with Christina. Mom had picked up an extra shift at work, so the only thing to do was wait until five, when I could see Audrey again.

  I both wanted the hours to pass, and I wanted time to slow down. If Audrey’s mother didn’t want her daughter to see me, I would respect it. I needed five o’clock to get here so I could be with Audrey, and I needed it to never come so I could hold out hope.

  The house was as clean as it had ever been, so I did the only other thing I could think of that would take my mind off of it—I went out for a little wind therapy.

  Winding down back roads, my bike humming beneath me and the wind whipping my body, I was able to settle. I let my mind wander, let myself daydream. I pictured Audrey and I next year. In five years. Tomorrow night.

  Any time a worry about her mom hating me tried to push its way into my mind, I thought about Audrey. The soft sounds she made when I kissed her. The light in her eyes when she spoke about traveling the world. Her joy at riding Timber. The feel of her behind me on this bike, clinging to my waist, her breath in my ear.

  I didn’t want to lose her. I couldn’t. And I didn’t want to waste what were possibly the last few hours when she was mine. Cursing myself for driving so far out of town, I turned around and headed toward her house.

  I stopped down the street from her house, feeling slightly embarrassed. I couldn’t go a few more hours without her? It was ridiculous. But it was also true. I shut off my engine and took off my helmet. I rested my feet on the ground, turning my phone over in my hands. I shook my head and laughed at myself as I made the call.

  Audrey answered on the first ring. “Hi,” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice.

  “Hi, Baby.” Her breath hitched in her throat and I smiled. I hadn’t been sure if she’d like me calling her that, but she seemed to. I’d never done the pet name thing, but it felt nice. Right. “Can I see you?”

  “Isn’t that the plan? You’re coming over in two hours, right? We’ve assembled a huge lasagna.”

  “I’m still coming for dinner, but I meant now. Can I see you right now?”

  “Oh,” she dragged the word out, teasing me, and I knew she was on to me. “Do you want to come early?”

  “Can you come out?”

  “Sure. I can escape for a little bit to meet you. Where are you?”

  “I’m down the block from your house, by that big oak tree.”

  The phone was silent for a moment. Then she laughed.

  “I couldn’t wait to see you,” I admitted, my eyes on her front door as it opened. She looked down the road toward where I was, and when she saw me, she grinned. She kept her phone pressed to her ear, so I did, too.

  “Hi,” she said.

  “Come here.”

  She lowered her phone and put a hand to her chest, before turning to shout something into the house. Then she hurried across her yard and down the street. I didn’t have time to hop off my bike, so I braced my feet on the ground and held out my arms. She flung her arms around my neck, laughing. “What are you doing here?” she said softly into my ear.

  My hands resting on her rib cage, breathing in her scent, I held her to me. “I couldn’t wait any longer.”

  She pulled back to look at me. “I’m so glad. I was going crazy. Am I crazy? Is it normal to...to crave a person like this?’

  My chest swelled with emotion. Her eyes were so earnest, her expression so trusting. I cupped her cheek in my palm. “I have no idea, but if you’re crazy, I’m crazier.” I kissed her then, and it was everything I needed. Her fingers played in the hair at the base of my skull, and I let my hands wander up and down her sides. This felt so good. Everything about being with Audrey felt good.

  Audrey pulled away and looked back at her house. Nobody was out, so she kissed me again. When she stepped away again, I thought we were going to say good-bye, but she surprised me by throwing a leg across my bike and straddling it, facing me. I scooted back so she’d have a more comfortable place to sit, but she followed, curving her legs over mine and staying close. She brought a hand to my cheek, and looked at me with heavy-lidded eyes. She brought her mouth to mine and kissed me, her tongue slipping out to brush the seam of my lips. Breathing hard, hands on her hips, unable to stop myself, I kissed her back.

  Then I came to my senses and pulled away, resting my forehead against hers. I was thankful she lived in a neighborhood with big yards where the houses were far apart, but anyone could come upon us. “Audrey, anyone could see us here.”

  She pressed a kiss to my mouth. “Let them look.”

  “But what if people—”

  She shook her head and placed a finger over my lips. “We’re together. It’s you and me. Those are the only people I’m concerned about.”

  “And your parents.”

  She grinned. “Nah. I’ve already talked to them about you. It’s fine.”

  My brow furrowed. “Just like that?”

  “Well, I can’t promise they won’t be a little stiff, but they trust my judgment. I do feel sort of weird, though.”

  “Weird? Why?”

  She looked away but I caught her chin with my fingers and brought her back. “Tell me.”

  “It’s silly. I know it is, but I kind of…” She bit her lip.

  “Audrey.”

  “I feel like I’m a new pers
on. Like I’m in on the secret.”

  “The secret?”

  “Yeah.” Her cheeks blazed pink. “My parents know I’m falling in love. And I feel exposed. Like I’m the focus of the whole night. Usually it’s Valerie or Cat in the spotlight, but tonight it’s me. They’re going to be watching me, seeing how I interact with you, and taking note. My sisters will tease me later. I don’t like being the center of attention.”

  I put both arms around her and pulled her to me. Resting my face against her hair, emotion coursed through me. This girl. This tenderhearted, honest, open, beautiful girl. “You’re falling in love?” I whispered roughly.

  She stilled. Then her arms held me tighter. “I said that?”

  “You said your parents know you’re falling in love.”

  Her breath was a quiet whisper across my neck. I waited. When she didn’t respond, I held her apart from me and looked in her face. Her eyes were wide with surprise and worry. I laid a kiss on her lips, then set about easing her fears. “I think that’s what this is,” I said. “I think this is the beginning of falling in love.”

  A shaky smile emerged on her face. “I think so, too.”

  We watched each other for a long moment. She bit her lip shyly, then rested her head on my chest. She laughed, and I put my arms around her.

  A door slammed and voices rang out, and Audrey sat up. Over her shoulder I saw her sisters on the porch, talking. One of them walked toward a car. “It’s your sisters.”

  “I need to get back and help them get things ready for tonight.”

  “Okay.”

  “Will you be able to wait until five now?” she teased.

  I shook my head. “Probably not.”

  I knocked on Audrey’s door at five minutes until five, a boxed pie in one hand and flowers in the other. They were just tiger lilies, but she seemed to like them last time I brought them, so when I drove past a ditch full of them, I had to stop.

  Dr. Sparrow answered the door and when he smiled warmly at me, my shoulders dropped in relief. “Hello, Johnny, come on in.”

  I looked around the entryway, at the beautiful wooden staircase and the stained glass lamp on a little table beside a vase full of pink roses. I looked at my lilies and wanted to fling them out the door. Instead I walked in and said, “Hello, Dr. Sparrow.”

  “Wait a minute,” he said, his eyes bright, “Is that pie from Heidi’s? I’d recognize that pink box anywhere.”

  Happy I’d decided to make the drive to Juniper to fill the time and retrieve this peach pie, I nodded. “It might be a little squished from riding in my saddle bag.”

  He smiled. “It’ll taste the same.” He took the pie from me and led me to the kitchen. The hallway walls were filled with pictures of the Sparrow sisters through the years, and I hoped I’d get a chance to look at them later.

  “Look what this young man brought for us, Blythe,” he said to Mrs. Sparrow, opening the pie box and showing her.

  Her mouth popped open and she smiled at the pie. “I haven’t had pie from Heidi’s in years. That looks delicious. Thank you, Johnny.”

  Then she met my eyes. I held my breath as she set down the spoon she held and walked toward me. “Lilies are Audrey’s favorite.” She patted my shoulder. “Welcome to our home. Can I get you something to drink?”

  Dinner went better than I expected. Audrey finally came downstairs, kissing my cheek right in front of her parents, and took the flowers from my hands with a squeal of delight. When I saw her, I focused on her and tried not to let the rest of it—the big house, the fancy furniture, the parental judgment—overwhelm me.

  Her sisters helped. Audrey told them to stop making spectacles of themselves, but Valerie just smiled at me and continued peppering me with questions about the dance barn, and Cat told story after story about the caves where she works.

  For the most part, I listened. It was fascinating to learn how they related to each other. There was a lot of good-natured teasing, as well as honest discussion. They were close, and being there with them made me feel lucky. I didn’t completely escape the microscope. Mrs. Sparrow centered her questions to me around my mom and our home life, and Dr. Sparrow centered his on my job and my future plans.

  After pie on the back deck, Audrey grabbed my arm and tugged me from my chair. “You’ve had plenty of time to interrogate Johnny. Now I’m taking my turn with him.”

  Valerie stood and joined us on the grass. “Oh, where are we going?”

  Audrey shot her twin a deadly look.

  Valerie pouted. “You’re so busy these days, I never see you.”

  “Come carry this tray in,” Mrs. Sparrow said to Valerie, “and leave Audrey and Johnny alone.”

  Audrey blushed, but led me across the grass, keeping a grip on my arm.

  “Where are we going?”

  She scanned the yard as if looking for the answer. “There,” she pointed. “Our old tree fort.”

  I followed Audrey up the ladder of the tree fort, and once we were up, I stood at the waist-high wall and looked out at the expansive lawn. “Wow, I’d have loved this as a kid.”

  “You didn’t have a tree fort?”

  I shook my head. “That seems like something a dad would help with, and I didn’t have one of those around.”

  Audrey ran her hand along the rail. I waited for her to ask about his criminal past. Most of the time people wanted to know about the bank robbery in particular, and I didn’t like talking about it. The idea of telling Audrey wasn’t terrible, though. I thought it might be nice to talk to her about it. But she didn’t ask me about his crimes. Instead, she surprised me by asking, “Do you miss him?”

  I smiled at her, and then shook my head. “No, but I feel sad sometimes that I didn’t have a dad around.”

  “You miss what could have been.”

  “Yeah. I do. My dad wasn’t like yours. He wasn’t nice to me. Or my mom.” She squeezed my hand and, having said all I could manage on that subject, I turned and looked around the fort. “Tell me about this place.”

  “I haven’t been up here in ages. We all used to spend so much time out here. We’d read books, play board games, eat cookies we sneaked from the kitchen, have sleepovers. I wonder what I did the last time I was here.”

  “Isn’t it strange how we lose memories? Pieces of our lives just disappear from our minds.”

  She smiled at me and tugged the hem of my shirt. “Sit with me?”

  We sat and leaned against the wall, now hidden from view. With my legs stretched in front of me, my feet almost touched the other side. Audrey tapped my leg with her toes. “It’s smaller than I remember.”

  “I don’t fit.”

  She looked straight into my eyes, threaded her arm through mine. “Yes,” she said, “you do.”

  Chapter 23

  Audrey

  I lay back on the blanket, my stomach full from the ham sandwiches and watermelon Johnny packed, and sighed happily. Johnny pushed remnants of our lunch out of the way and lay beside me, his shoulder resting against mine. I scooted away, so there was space between us. “It’s too hot for touching.”

  It was over ninety degrees, and though we were in the shade, I was still sweating like crazy. Johnny turned on his side and placed his palm flat on my stomach. Butterflies danced under his touch, but I had started this game so I lifted his hand off. He retaliated by sitting up and grabbing my waist with both hands.

  I shrieked and scrambled away. “I’m sweating through my clothes, Johnny. You really want to feel that?”

  His eyes grew dark. “Yes.”

  I laughed and shook my head. “You’re awful.”

  “I’ve been trying to tell you that, but you seem to think I’m a good guy.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  He grinned. “If you won’t let me touch you because of the heat, then it’s time to get in the water.”

  I looked down. We were at the quarry outside of town, and when we arrived I marveled that there was another place in Alden I had
never been to. I thought I knew all the secrets this town had to offer, but Johnny showed me all the time that there was more to discover. “Is it safe to get in there?”

  “The guys and I swim here all the time. I don’t jump in, because you can’t tell how deep it is, but Graham does. Drives me crazy. There’s a path that leads down to that ledge.” He pointed to a spot where the limestone blocks formed a patio-like structure near the water.

  “I want to come here sometime when you come with your friends.”

  He smiled. “You do?”

  “Yeah. I want them to be my friends, too.”

  “Okay.” He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “But right now, swim with me.”

  This time was different than the night at the waterfall. Johnny was mine, and I was his. I knew what I wanted and I trusted what we had. I kicked off my sandals and unbuttoned my jean shorts, letting them fall to the ground. I slipped off my sheer top, until I stood before him wearing only a camisole and my underwear. “Let’s go,” I said, hoping I was driving him crazy.

  Johnny’s jaw clenched as he stared at my face. He pulled off his shirt and slipped out of his shoes and jeans. I kept my eyes on his, not letting them wander to his chest even though I wanted to.

  He wound his fingers with mine and walked to the path. Weeds brushed against my legs and I kept my eyes on the path so I wouldn’t stumble, and so I wouldn’t look at his broad back. Things were moving so fast within me. My feelings were growing at an exponential rate, and it was all-consuming. I wanted to let my feelings take over, I wanted to follow them wherever they led, but I was trying to maintain some semblance of rationality.

  It was a bit treacherous climbing down to the water, and I had to let go of Johnny’s hand to brace myself on the rocks. When we made it to the ledge, I took a moment to look around and catch my breath, but Johnny slipped right into the water. He swam out a good distance, dunked under, and when he surfaced he was grinning. “It feels amazing.”

  I walked to the edge of the rock and sat, dangling my feet into the water. It did feel good. I peered under the surface, but I couldn’t even see my feet through the dark water. “Are there monsters in this water, Johnny? It seems like a perfect place for them to hide.”