Page 20 of Send It
Colson
I pull into the parking lot at Willow Hills and pass the front desk like always, walking straight to my Nana’s room, surprised to see her bed made and the room empty.
“Her son picked her up earlier,” the nurse announces from the doorway and I freeze. Her son. My dad.
He’s here?
I pull my phone out and dial his number for the first time in weeks.
“Hello?” He answers.
“You’re in town.” I state.
“I’m in town.”
Feeling the irritation bubble up I try to remain calm, “You weren’t going to tell me?”
“I’m telling you now, aren’t I?”
“Well yeah,” I agree. “A little warning would’ve been nice.”
He scoffs, “I didn’t think my presence in my own home called for a warning, Colson.”
“It does when you are gone for nine months,” I state. “It calls for something, dad.”
“You’re grown Colson, I didn’t think you cared. I figured you’d be busy riding. Why aren’t you training? I stopped by the Bane’s first and no one was there. It’s Saturday and Nationals are next month.”
“Well aware,” I say. “See you around I guess. I’ll be home later.”
I hang up before he has a chance to say another word and instantly go to snapchat. I click the stories one by one until I get to Lincoln’s. The second it fills the screen I hold my thumb over the picture to freeze it in place.
Lincoln looks like an absolute dream. A pink bikini and a wide smile, yet I can’t help but notice the hat on her head. One that I know doesn’t belong to her or Reiss.
The jealousy oozes out of me. The next picture is Lincoln and Reiss and the next is a video of Lincoln and Stassie jumping from the boat. I could’ve been there, right next to her, watching Jackson’s every move. Instead, I’m here with my fucking self. My stubborn ass self.
I pull up my messages and type one out to Reiss.
Colson
My dad is here.
Reiss
What?
Colson
Yea. Busted my Nana out of Willow Hills and is currently pretending like he’s interested in my racing career and wants to know why I’m not training.
Reiss
Ryan doesn’t let us ride on Saturdays. It’s a rest day, he would know that if he came around.
Is your mom here?
Colson
Of course not.
Reiss
Meet me at Lakeside at 8.
Colson
K
I kill some time with a much needed haircut and a trip to the next town over to get the screen fixed on my phone. It’s been cracked for a month.
By the time I’m done, it’s a little after eight and I head into Lakeside to meet Reiss.
The first thing I see when I walk through the door is Lincoln dancing in her bikini top with that fucking hat on.
Stassie is right next to her and every guy in the place has his eyes on the two of them. I watch as Jackson stares at her, without a hat on his head, and I feel my blood boil.
I want to walk straight over to him and knock that Michelob bottle down his throat but I know that will come with a million questions from Reiss. So I keep it bottled in, but I make no promises if he puts his hands on her.
“Bro,” Reiss says, taking my hand in our special bro- shake and motioning over his shoulder, “Come on, we got a few buckets.”
I follow Reiss to a few tables the guys have pushed together and pull a beer out of the tin bucket, wiping it off with a napkin.
“How drunk is she?” I ask Reiss, pointing with the neck of my beer bottle to Lincoln. “Looks like she’s borderline 4 th of July last year.”
“Jackson brought jello shots out on the boat, she’s been hammering them back all day.”
Of course he did .
“He knew that was the only way she’d fuck him.”
Reiss retracts like I slapped him, “The fuck did you just say?”
I now realize that my words weren’t just internal, I’d said them out loud.
“I just mean she’s not interested in Jackson, not really. So the only way to get her attention was to get her drunk. He’s not stupid.”
Reiss sneers, “Can we not talk about my little sister getting fucked please.”
“I’m just saying that’s all he wants. He doesn’t give a shit about her.”
Reiss’ head snaps in my direction quickly, “And you do?”
“As a matter of fact I do. I don’t want her getting drunk and being taken advantage of by some guy who just wants to get his dick wet.”
“You need to chill the fuck out,” he laughs. “She’s eighteen and she’s gonna have some fun.”
“Yeah, it’s all fun and games until your baby sister is pregnant at eighteen and her life is fucked. ”
“You sound so fucking crazy right now, Colson. You know he would be smart enough to wrap it up. What is your problem with him anyway?”
I don’t answer him immediately because my only problem is that he wants the same girl I want.
Reiss continues, “Plus, I could think of worse baby daddies than Jackson Fairbanks.”
Me?
I bite my tongue, “And if he hurts her?”
“Then I guess I’ll kick his ass,” Reiss shrugs, changing the subject. “Lets find Mira. She has some friends coming.”
The fact that he isn’t at all concerned about Jackson with Lincoln irritates me, when I know he would freak out if I told him I was interested in her. He said it himself.
“I’m good,” I say. “I’m gonna drink a few then head out.”
He shakes his head, “You are acting so weird, bro. Get off these crutches so I can have my best friend back.”
“That’s the plan,” I whisper as he walks away.
Reiss is always so unbothered. It is almost annoying sometimes. I’m an anxious person, he’s not. He’s always calm and collected while I’m a hot head with an attitude. We’re like night and day, which is probably why we get along so well and have since we were little kids.
Reiss is sunshine and I am a goddamn tornado.
“Why did you lie to Reiss?” Lincoln slurs as she plops herself down onto the stool next to me. “About your leg. You don’t want me and that’s fine but you can’t race like that.”
“I’m gonna do what I’m gonna do, baby Bane.”
And believe me, I want you.
“No you aren’t,” she says .
“Yeah, I am, Linc. I don’t have a back up plan. Going pro is the only plan and I’m almost there.”
“So you wanna risk everything for it?” She closes her eyes, the alcohol catching up with her fast, “You’ll risk it all to ride, but you won’t take a risk with Reiss for me.”
“It would be too weird for him,” I say. “He’d lose his fucking mind if he knew, Lincoln.”
“He’d be fine.” She smirks. “I can make my own choices. I’m going to tell him.”
She’s so drunk she nearly falls into me.
“No you aren’t,” I snap, straightening her back on her feet. “You can’t give him a mindfuck like that right before Nationals.”
“Then let me ride,” she sasses, crossing her arms over her bikini-covered chest.
“Let you ride?” I question.
She lowers her voice, “At Nationals. I ride in your place, in your jersey, on your bike. Then when I win and get you that factory team spot, you will have time to get your surgery.”
“Pffft!” I laugh, “You are drunk and delusional. No fucking way.”
“Okay,” she shrugs and starts to walk off, but I reach out to grab her wrist, unsure if she’s bluffing.
“Wait.”
A giant grin spreads across her face and I know I’m totally fucked.