Page 45 of Take My Name

It’s impossible not to smile at how much fun it is riding with him. Although he’s going fast and moving up and down little mounds throughout, I feel safe with him. He knows exactly what he’s doing to stay in control while making it fun.

“Is that laughter I hear?” he taunts, smirking over his shoulder.

Grinning wide, I reply by jabbing a finger in his rib cage.

“Hey, cheap shot.” He covers my hand with his but doesn’t remove it. Instead, he continues driving one-handed while softly rubbing a finger over my knuckles.

My words to ask him to stop doing that get caught in my throat. It shouldn’t feel as comforting as it does.

Warren slows us down, and I notice we’re close to where he took me to when he first asked me to be his girlfriend. He’d packed us lunches of PB&J sandwiches and little bags of chips. At fifteen, I thought it was the most romantic thing ever.

It was pretty sweet, though.

“We’re here.” He turns off the four-wheeler, then shifts until our gazes meet. “Do you want help gettin’ off?”

I realize my grip on him has tightened. “Oh, um, no. I think I can manage.”

I, in fact, cannot manage.

Forgetting I tucked my dress under my thighs, I nearly fall to my death when I stand to slide my leg over. Luckily, Warrencatches my waist and pulls me into him before I steady myself on the footrest.

Wrapping my arm around his neck, I hold on to him tightly, breathing through the panic.

“Oh, shit.” Our faces are close—tooclose—so I pull back and try to brace myself to step down.

“You alright?” The look of concern on his face makes my chest ache.

I nod. “Yeah, thanks for catchin’ me.”

“Always.” Then he fucking winks.

Was he always this charming or did I forget?

Once I’ve safely mastered putting two feet on the ground, Warren climbs off next.

“Ready?”

“Depends…are you gonna make me BASE jump next?” I shiver at the thought of jumping off a cliff with a parachute.

He chuckles, grabbing my hand and leading me up the trail. “Haven’t done that, but maybe I should add it to my bucket list.”

I’m not even surprised.

“Ugh, I forgot how outdoorsy you are.” I groan when the heels of my feet rub against my boots.

“Outdoorsy?” He snickers. “You used to be adventurous, too. Cliff-jumpin’, swimmin’, horseback ridin’, campin’ in tents, and passin’ out in sleepin’ bags. You never wanted to be inside.”

“I was a teenager who wanted any reason to stay out of my parents’ house. Even now, it’s tense and cold in there.”

The Langstons’ home was the complete opposite. Warm and inviting, we’d hang out in the living room with his siblings and play games or watch movies, laughing most of the night. It was a contrast to the way I grew up.

“Speakin’ of your folks, do they know?” he asks, glancing at me before shifting back to the trail in front of us.

Sighing, I nod. “Only my mother knows about the…deal. She warned me not to tell my father, so he’s only aware that you haven’t signed the papers.”

“Well…I never was on their good sides, no point in tryin’ now.”

I snort. “That’s one way to look at it.”