Page 45 of Drive

“It’s depressing, right?” Paige remarked about the song.

“It’s the best kind of love song,” I defended. “He knows her so intimately, no one else can be to her what he can.”

“I like it,” Neil said with a wink in the rearview.

Quickly changing the subject, I grasped for straws. “If I get published inAustin Speak, I get to cover City Limits.”

Paige looked back to me with wide eyes. “That’s awesome. Oasis is one of the headliners! Dad would freak!”

“They are, and I know,” I said with a widening smile. A small pang hit me dead center when I thought about my dad. I missed him and our long talks. He had been my biggest supporter when it came to my passion for music. While my mother taught me all things Tejano, my father had spent hours dancing with me in the living room to the oldies and other American classics. He’d also played the biggest role in my education when it came to music. Like me, he had eclectic taste and played a pivotal role in fueling the fire. He was a connoisseur, and I his eager student.

“You miss him,” Paige gathered from the look on my face.

“Yeah,” I said, looking out the window.

“Maybe we can drive up to Dallas in a few weeks,” Paige offered. “I miss them, too.”

I nodded, trying to stifle the sudden burn in my throat. I still felt a new kind of alone in Austin, as if I really didn’t have anything keeping me there except my dreams. And the more I lived in the reality of Austin, the more far-fetched they seemed. Still, I had two years of school to get through and a semi-promising agreement with a gorgeous editor in chief, but nothing was guaranteed. Lexi must have sixth sensed my sudden desperation.

Lexi: I really can’t believe this kid. I have some questions for his father if I ever find the son of a bitch.

What did he do now?

Lexi: He peed off the porch like a caveman. Like we live in the woods and not the suburbs with neighbors on all sides. You would think he would only pull his pants down slightly, right? No, not this guy. His pants were around his ankles. His little pecker and bare ass on display for all the world to see.

I threw my head back with a laugh.

Hang in there. Only a few more weeks.

Lexi: You have a place yet? I’m about to lose it!

Almost. I promise.

Lexi: Thank God. X

Optimism gave way as I shook off the doubts about my future. It was all up to me.

After another few hours at Todd and Ana’s—the bartenders at The Plate Bar and couple who owned the house we frequented when we all had the same night off—I was itching to be alone with Reid again in the back seat. I was like a new addict, craving his attention, the intensity in his eyes, capturing his rare smile just for myself. But that night, despite his relief to be out of the house, he stood in the shadows, beer in hand, in his jeans, black boots, and faded black T-shirt that had seen better decades. The silver link chain from his wallet hung as the only jewelry on him. He was completely organic. What you saw is what you got. His day-old stubble and dark skin mixed with the black ink that covered his toned arms made him more alluring. Most of the time, Reid looked uninterested, as if he expected more wherever we went. He never drank too much, just enough to take the edge off. I assumed it was because of his parents’ addiction. He hit the joint every time it was passed. I, however, had decided that night to immerse myself front and center. I was on my fifth beer when Paige nudged my shoulder, ripping my gaze from Reid.

“What?” I asked, aggravated. She gave me a pointed look that told me I’d been staring too hard. Still, every few minutes, my eyes slowly drifted back to him. I felt safe, though, because that night he was far off, as if he was somewhere else but stuck where he stood.

“HEY,MOTHERFUCKERS!” we all heard called from Ana’s front door.

“Brodi must have gotten cut,” Ana laughed as he walked out onto the patio, where we gathered as sweat-covered victims of the horrific heat, too buzzed to care. Brodi sat a fresh bottle of tequila on the table, and we all groaned in anticipation of the hangover. Two shots in, the music got louder, and the party got more animated. Reid had surprised me by taking shots of the tequila, and I surprised myself by walking up to him after my third.

“Why do you look so bored?”

He shrugged. “Same old shit,” he muttered.

“Where would you rather be?”

Sea glass eyes drifted over to mine. “Doesn’t matter.”

“You miss her?”

He frowned and then shook his head. “No, and stop analyzing me, because you’re getting it all wrong.”

“Fine, sorry,” I whispered. I backed away then because I felt the frustration rolling off of him. Even in the midst of friends, that edge was always there, as if any minute he would break or blow or both. It scared me, but in a dangerous way, I was drawn to it. Reid was unpredictable in his moods, careful with his words, and constantly skirted the line between pissed off and pissed on. Paige thought the world of him, Neil, too, which should have eased my mind, but it didn’t.