Goddamn Ford.
What the fuck?
“Yes, sir,” I admitted. “That’s why I moved here.”
His eyes missed nothing. Even my irritation with my brother.
“I’m with the Department of Homeland Security,” he said. “I know a lot about you already. I talked to Ford today when I heard that you and Perry were going out to dinner.”
I blinked.
“You did not just say that,” a woman said from behind Dawson.
“Honey, come meet Banner,” Dawson said, urging his wife closer.
That was when I saw the familiar face behind him.
I grinned. “It’s nice to see you again.”
The woman who’d given me free pizza today at lunch since it was my ‘first day at school’ grinned wickedly at me.
“Awesome pizza lady!” I said, offering her my hand.
The woman laughed, closing her smooth hand over mine. “My name is Autumn. It’s nice to meet you. And, don’t listen to Dawson. He just wants to work for Homeland Security.”
Perry came up moments later, looking irritated.
She was also in sweatpants and a sweatshirt again, making me burst out laughing.
She narrowed her eyes.
“What?” she asked.
I shook my head. “It’s just nice to see that you don’t give a f— crap about what others think. You ready for dinner?”
Perry kissed her mother and father on the cheek, her light golden skin lighter than her mother’s dark skin, but darker than her father’s paleness.
“I’ll be back,” she said to her parents. “Don’t do anything crazy while I’m gone.”
Her mother snorted and closed the door on her the moment that Perry crossed over the threshold.
The moment we were alone I looked at her and said, “So you were adopted?”
Perry burst out laughing. “I don’t know what gave you that idea!”
She snickered, making me grin at her despite the fact that I couldn’t tell if she was offended.
“I know,” she said. “That’s why nobody at the school has caught on when it comes to my mom yet. I love my mom. I’m not ashamed of her in the least. But she’s a lunch lady. That gives everyone at the school something to give her shit for already. I don’t want them to treat her any differently because they know that I’m her daughter.”
“Why do you say it like that?” I asked. “As if they’d treat her differently if they knew she was your mom?”
She sighed. “Symphony and I don’t get along at all. When I first started high school, I was the new kid. My parents had just moved to Kilgore.” She shifted in her seat and brought her knee up to rest against the console that was between us. “I tried out for the cheerleading team because my mom begged me to. I’ve been in tumbling and gymnastics for my entire life. Anyway, long story short, I tried out. Made the team. Then met Symphony. I quit before I even started because she annoyed me… and Symphony knew it. Which she immediately took exception to. I don’t think anybody that she tried to bring into her fold ever gave her the brush off before.”
“What happened for you to say no?” I asked curiously.
“My mom had gotten the job as a cafeteria worker,” she answered, her fingers playing with a strand of hair that’d come down out of her bun. “It was my second day, and I got behind Symphony in line… and she was such an asshole to my mother. When I defended my mother, Symphony just got this really weird look in her eyes. Pissed off maybe that I dressed her down in front of her crew. I don’t know. Needless to say, we haven’t been friends since.”
As I accelerated onto the main drag of Kilgore, I hated to change the subject, but I had no clue where I was going.
“Tell me where to go,” I said. “Because the only place I know is good is Dairy Queen. And I’ve had that twice this week.” I paused. “I would kill for a fuckin’ salad.”
She blinked. “Like actual salad? The stuff with green leaves?”
I chuckled as I said, “As an appetizer would be fine. Just something that has some nutritional value to it. I’m in sore need of something healthy. Especially after today’s practice. Fuck, I was slow.”
Her brows rose. “You were slow?”
I nodded. “All my bad eating has caught up to me. I need to find a new CrossFit gym, too. You know any?”
Her eyes went wide. “You CrossFit, too?”
My brows rose.
“Where to first, then I’ll answer,” I said.
“If you go up to the light and take a left, there’s a place called ‘The Back Porch,’” she said. “That’s where I know they have fairly decent salads. Though, if you’re really wanting a good one, you have to drive into Longview for it. Texas Roadhouse. If you go there, you’re going to end up eating about thirty rolls, and that kind of seems counterintuitive seeing as you’re trying to eat healthy.”
I grinned and started toward the restaurant she’d mentioned.
“To answer your earlier question,” I said. “I do CrossFit in the offseason. I still do it during football season, but not nearly as much. There’s just not enough time in the day for me to fit that in. But on the weekends, I’d still like to get a good workout in.” I looked at her. “And you’re one to talk. You literally run track, do gymnastics, and play volleyball.”
“You forgot cross-country,” she countered. “And how do you know that I still do gymnastics?”
I flashed her a grin. “I don’t. It was just a guess on my part. But you just confirmed it.”
She shook her head. “You do a lot of stuff. You know how it is.”
My brows rose. “You could be right.”
She gave me a grin that made my heart start to pound.
As I pulled into the restaurant, I wondered what exactly I’d gotten myself into when it came to Perry.
Getting out of the truck moments later, I made my way to her side to see her already shutting her door.
“This is a
