Page 4 of Drive Me Wild (Owl Creek #2)

B eing alone in a room with Zoe is not a good idea.

I could tell she was uncomfortable, and she was right to feel that way.

Though I’d never do anything to hurt her, she doesn’t know that.

She doesn’t know that I feel an inexplicable need to protect her—even if it’s from the guy I’m trying not to be anymore.

She only knows what she’s probably heard about me being a player, which isn’t what a woman like her deserves.

The cool water is exactly what I need to get my brain back to where it needs to be. I promised myself that I was going to make some changes in my life, and that is where I have to focus.

I slip into the house to change into my suit and grab a water bottle.

It’s late enough in the day that I need to switch away from beer, or I will have to camp out here, and that is the last thing I want to do.

Cole and I have been butting heads ever since he made me compete for the contract to service the fire trucks.

While I was helping Zoe unload her car, Cole had blown up some ridiculous float toys for everyone. A car, dragon, zebra, and shark. When I step out with my towel and water bottle, I see there’s only one left. A giant pink unicorn.

I look out to the lake and see my parents and brother trying not to laugh.

“Are you kidding me?”

I shake my head and drag it down to the water. I am knee-deep when I turn to see Zoe alone on the shore, covering her mouth and trying to hide her smile.

She’s wearing a yellow bikini that sits low on her hips, and I notice two little indents at the top of her runner’s body legs. Kissable indents. I shake the thought from my mind and push the unicorn toward her. “It’s all yours. I’ll just do some laps.”

Maybe she feels bad for me, but she shakes her head as she wades in and pushes it back toward me, her eyes locked on my chest.

“It’s big enough for both of us,” she says through pink, puffy lips.

Not what I needed to hear. Not what I need to be thinking about.

I look around and see no room for her on the other floats. Cody had already left, leaving Serena and Avery to share one.

“You know what? There’s enough room for you three gals on this unicorn. Why don’t I switch with you so you can be together?”

Avery shoots a look at Serena, and the two of them start paddling my way.

“If I thought you just didn’t want to ride the unicorn—” Avery huffs.

Everyone bursts out laughing.

She rolls her lips, trying not to crack up, and continues. “I wouldn’t think of trading. But us babes need to stick together.”

Avery and Serena flop into the water and drag their shark my way while Zoe wades toward the unicorn to hold it in place while the other two climb on.

Once we are all settled, I dangle my legs over the side of my shark and lay across the top, letting the water take me where it wants.

I must have fallen asleep, because I startle when I hear someone shout my name.

I look up and realize I’ve floated halfway across the lake, and I’m damn near to Avery’s parents’ place. Everyone else is hauling their toys out of the water while my stepdad, Buzz, is waving his arms and calling my name.

I wave back and start paddling. When I reach the shore, everyone is dried off and cleaning up.

This is the part of the event when Cole determines who stays and who is allowed to drive home. Being the fire chief of Owl Creek means he’s stricter than almost anyone I know about drinking and driving, and to be honest, I’m damn proud of him for that.

Serena, Trevor, his wife, and Avery all pass muster, so they load their things and head out. Mom and Buzz gather wood for the fire pit, so I slip into the new outdoor shower to rinse the lake off and then grab my clothes to change.

When I walk out to toss my swimsuit in my truck, I catch Buzz as he’s loading the car with cleaned salad bowls.

“Hey, can I talk to you about something?”

Buzz’s blue eyes pierce me with kindness. This man is the best thing that could have happened to my mom, brothers, and me, even if there were times I disappeared between perfect Cole and brainiac Cody.

He reaches out and puts a hand on my shoulder like he always does to let you know you have his attention.

“What is it, son?”

“The robotics team.”

“What about it?”

“I want in.”

He quirks his head to the side. After Buzz retired and sold me his auto repair shop, he got bored and started a robotics club at the local high school.

“Aren’t you a little old to join a high school club?”

I shake my head as a low chuckle erupts from my chest. “Not as a student. I want to lead it with you.”

“It’s going to be a big commitment this year. We’ve got more students interested than last year, and they are gunning to qualify for a national competition.”

I nod vigorously. I want him to know I’m all in.

“There are certain clearances. You have to do background checks to be around students, and—”

“You know I never got into enough trouble that I can’t pass a background check. Besides, that was all when I was a minor.”

“True. True.”

“So?”

He crosses his arms and studies my face.

“I’m curious. What’s the sudden interest?”

I pick at a callus on my hand. “I want more.”

“More what?”

“Just more. You know I love the shop and fixing cars. You know that because you taught me everything. But…”

My mind trails off because I don’t know how to put words to what I’ve been feeling since late spring.

Since I met Zoe.

Those brief encounters with her woke something in me that had been asleep for a long time.

I’ve been trying to put words to what I’ve felt all summer, but I’ve never had that ability.

I’m not my twin, Cody. He’s quiet as a mouse until he has something to say.

Then he has all the words in every dictionary and encyclopedia, and you just fight to keep up with what’s coming out of his mouth.

He squeezes my shoulder before I can muddle my way through an explanation.

“It’s alright, son. I understand. I wanted more, too. And then I got your mom and you boys. I’m not saying that is what you need in your life, but it was for me.”

I was still in diapers when my mother loaded us in the car one night and drove us out of California.

Cole was old enough to remember most of what happened, but I don’t.

When Mom’s car broke down outside Owl Creek, Buzz picked us up, and the rest is history.

For me, it’s all I’ve ever known. He’s all the father I’ve ever known.

“So am I in?”

“I’ll talk to the administration about sending you the paperwork. It’s not much. School starts on Monday, and we meet on Mondays and Thursdays from three to five. More often when it’s close to competitions. Can you work around that schedule?”

Relief blooms in my body. This is something. This is the start of something.

I nod and try to shake his hand, but in typical Buzz style, he pulls me in for a hug.

“I’m proud of you, son.”

He pats my back and then I break away to throw my towel and swimsuit in the back of my truck, giving me easy cover for wiping the mist that escaped my eye.