Chasing McCree (3 page)

“
I’ll drive
you.”

It occurred to me, that I’d have to
sneak in to my house, disable the alarm, and reset it so my father
didn’t notice. After that I’d have to find a way to my room in the
dark…still off balance and slightly drunk.

Thank God I didn’t have four feet
anymore.

“
You’ve got that green look
again, Briar.”

“
I was just wishing I was
sober.” If Rachel hadn’t turned out to be such a bitch, I’d have
gone to her house. If it were earlier I’d go to Grandma’s. “Did I
have a purse with me?”

“
No, why?”

“
My house key is in it.” I
thought back and realized I’d left it in the girl’s locker
room.

Chase chuckled, leaning forward and
pulling off his boots. He tossed them to the floor and snagged my
left ankle.

“
What are you doing?” I
asked, trying to wriggle away. But I didn’t have a chance. He was
stronger and sober.

“
Making you more
comfortable.” My cheer sneakers and socks joined his
boots.

“
Why?”

“
So you can sleep.” He got
up and locked his door.

I blanched, my mouth opening and
closing like a fish out of water. “I think I should at least try to
sneak in…sometimes my mom forgets to lock the door on the
porch.”

“
How are you going to do
that if you can’t walk straight?” Instead of coming back to the bed
he opened his closet and pulled out a sleeping bag. He unrolled it
on the floor and grabbed a pillow, hunkering down for the
night.

“
I don’t know.” I
groaned.

“
I’d stick you in the
guestroom, but I can’t guarantee my mother won’t go in there in the
morning. It doubles as her office.” He reached up and turned off
the light on the bedside table, plunging the room into
darkness.

I sank down into the pillows, my eyes
straining in the dark. I could feel him watching me. “How did you
get me up here?”

“
I carried you. I beat my
mother to the house by ten minutes.” He sounded relieved. “In the
morning we’ll sneak out the backdoor. She’ll never
know.”

I nodded, and then verbally agreed when
I realized he couldn’t see me. “Right.”

“
Relax and go to
sleep.”

I lay there for a few seconds, thinking
about sneaking out once he was asleep. I’d write him a note, thank
him for his help and be on my merry way.

Of course, I had to be awake to sneak
out.

And wouldn’t you know it, I passed out
again.

Chapter 3

“
Chase?”

I groaned, pulling the covers over my
head. It was way too early.

“
Chase, are you up
yet?”

My eyes flew open and I stared at the
bedroom door.

Chase didn’t answer. I glanced at the
floor to see his sleeping bag was gone. But I could hear the shower
running in the bathroom.

Slowly I scooted back and slipped off
the bed, hoping the woman didn’t hear me. I knocked softly on the
bathroom door. No sudden movements. “Chase?”

Nothing.

“
Chase, have you seen my
phone charger…never mind, your sister took it.” She was still
chattering away, even though no one was answering her. When the
door handle jiggled I gulped, squeezed my eyes shut, and barged
into the bathroom, closing the door behind me.

“
Whoa! Briar?” Chase’s
startled voice cracked. “What are you doing?”

I put my hands over my face, forcing my
eyes to stay closed. “I think your mom was trying to get into your
bedroom.”

“
Oh, well she can’t. I
locked the door.”

Right, “Whoops, sorry.”

“
You can open your eyes,
Briar.”

I cracked one eye open to see he was
wearing a pair of grey cargo shorts, no shirt. His chest glimmered
with water droplets and his hair was wet.

I opened my other eye and bit my lip.
“Boy, I feel like an idiot.”

“
Don’t worry about it. I’m
going to see what my mom wants. You can shower, whatever you need.
There’s a drawer under the sink with towels and stuff. Help
yourself. If I’m not back in ten minutes, it’s okay to come
down.”

“
Thanks.” I shut the
bathroom door and pressed my forehead against it. Dumb. Dumb.
Dumb.

I washed my face, checked out my scabby
knees, and decided I’d be wearing jeans for a while. In the drawer
I found a new toothbrush, still in a nice unopened package.
Honestly, it was the little things in life that made me
happy.

My hair was wild and curly. I managed
to get it up into a ponytail and fastened it with clips that had
been in my hair from the night before.

I looked…well, to be honest, I looked
normal. It worked. I might have to sport the no makeup, curly
haired look more often. It was so different from my usual style.
When I wasn’t in my cheerleading uniform, I sported a preppy, just
came from the country club, look with enough makeup to hide my real
identity.

Feeling like I’d discovered a whole new
me, I went in search of Chase.

I found him downstairs looking out the
living room window. He was wearing a red t-shirt. I wouldn’t have
minded if he stayed shirtless. He had the kind of body that I’m
sure would make every guy at school jealous.

Before making my presence known, I
studied the living room. It was so cozy and homey. The curtains
were blue cotton, the couches cream and worn from use. The wood
floors had faded spots and scuffmarks. But it wasn’t shabby. It was
lived in and loved like a house should be. I could imagine a bunch
of kids piled on the couches after school, or a family gathered
around the coffee table playing a game.

I never wanted Chase to see where I
lived. It would be embarrassing. Compared to his home my house was
cold and uninviting. A rambling museum of marble and glass. He
would look out of place amongst the priceless antiques my parents
prided themselves on colleting. I’m pretty sure I didn’t look out
of place, but on the inside it all felt wrong. I was just another
one of the pieces my parents collected over the years. Afraid to
sit on my mother’s prized French couches, track dirt on the marble
floors. Worried I’d break or dent something. Mostly I stayed in my
room.

“
I’m ready,” I announced my
presence, holding onto the banister at the bottom stair as if it
was my lifeline.

“
Good. We’ve got a limited
amount of time.” He said, letting the curtain drop back into place.
“My mom and her husband left for their morning run, and if I get
you out of here now, they’ll never know. We’ll take my truck. No
horse this time.”

He went silent when he turned around. I
swear time froze. We stared at each other for a while. Not moving.
Our gazes locked. I wanted to say something, blink. But I couldn’t.
I was sober, with a little bit of queasiness and a headache, except
seeing him now was like seeing him for the first time. And he was
amazing. Depthless chocolate eyes, tan skin, real muscles from real
work, and dimples. I gulped, not knowing what to do. How was I
supposed to react to this kind of…attraction? I’d never experienced
it before.

“
We should, uh, get going.”
I whispered, afraid to speak too loud.

He nodded. Rubbing his jaw, voice
rough. “Yeah, you’re right.”

In the front yard an old blue pickup
sat under an oak tree. It wasn’t anything fancy, nothing like the
cars I’d been driven around in my whole life. I was used to
leather, chrome and European engineering. My mother loved her cars.
She didn’t settle for anything less than the best. If she knew I
was riding around in an old truck, probably without airbags and
antilock brakes, she’d blow an ovary.

I reached for the passenger door and
clutched the handle. It didn’t budge. So I grasped it with both
hands and gave everything I had. Nothing.

“
Over here, Briar.” Chase
led me around the other side of the truck, opening the driver’s
door. “The other door doesn’t work well.”

I nodded, climbing up into the cab and
sliding across the wide bench seat. “Okay.”

“
Where to?”

I glanced around. “Uh, first, do you
have seatbelts?”

“
It’s an old truck.” He
laughed, reaching across me to pull a lap belt from between the
seat and the door.

I fastened the seatbelt and tightened
it. “Does it run?”

“
Like a dream.” He started
the engine. I clutched the seat. It was like nothing I’d ever
experienced before. Literally rumbling and roaring to life. Shaking
like an angry animal. Every car I’d ever been in was smooth and
quiet. Sure, I’d seen other cars that were loud and rough, but
never experienced it firsthand. It rumbled down the drive, not at
all smoothly. I felt every bump, bounced in the seat like I was on
a ride at a theme park.

“
You okay?”

I grinned, “I’m having so much
fun.”

“
Really?”

“
Yes.” The truck shuddered
and jerked, sending me sideways into Chase when we went over a
speed bump. “I’ve never been in a truck before.”

“
I’m sorry, did you just
say you’ve never been in a truck?” he choked on disbelief, or
something close to it. How was that so hard to
comprehend?

“
It’s not like I never
wanted to. I haven’t been presented with the opportunity.” I leaned
back in the seat, liking the squeaky sound as I moved. “This is
nice.”

“
It smells like burnt
rubber and gym socks…but yeah, it is.”

“
So,” I said, “I bet I
could prop my feet up on the dash, and you wouldn’t get
mad.”

“
You bet right.”

I did. With my shoes on. And it was
liberating. “I’ve never done that before either.”

“
What else haven’t you
done?”

I thought for a minute, “I’ve never
ridden on a bus.”

“
You’re
kidding.”

“
Well, I take that back. I
have been on a school bus. I’ve never ridden on the public
bus.”

“
You’re not missing
anything, trust me.”

“
It might be nice to try
some day.” And I decided that I would ride the bus, just so I could
say I’ve done it.

“
Don’t go alone,
okay?”

“
Why?”

“
Public transit attracts
more colorful people than you’re probably used to.”

“
How would you
know?”

He took his eyes off the road to send
me a knowing smile. “You’ve got sheltered written all over
you.”

I glared. “Okay, you’ve found me out.
Don’t tell anyone.”

“
Afraid I’ll ruin your
street cred?”

“
My what?”

“
Forget I asked.” He patted
my hand where it rested on the seat. “Now, directions,
please.”

I took him down Druid Road South, past
the Biltmore, and right on to Magnolia Drive. My grandmother lived
in a Spanish style two-story with a terracotta roof. It was still
fancy and in a rich part of town, but much more approachable than
my house.

“
You live here?” Chase
idled at the front gate. I gave him the pass code to let us
in.

“
No, this is Grandma’s
house, and she loves company.” She was an old New Yorker and a
tad…quirky. “So if you’d rather drop me here, I’ll
understand.”

He smirked, “I think I’ll take my
chances.”

“
Great,” I was hoping he’d
say that. I was also hoping my grandmother didn’t scare him
away.

Once we’d pulled up to the front of the
house I led Chase up the dramatically sweeping front steps and rang
the bell. A few seconds later the door flew inward. A little white
haired woman beamed out from under a bright red ball cap. “Briar
baby, gimmie some sugar!”

I gave her a hug and a kiss. “Hi,
Grandma. How are you?”

“
Oh, just swell.” She gave
a little hop. “And who is this strapping young lad?”

“
This is Chase McCree. He’s
a friend.”

She cackled with laughter. “Just keep
telling yourself that honey.”

I rolled my eyes.

“
Nice to meet you, too.”
Chase shook her hand, or he tried to. But Grandma threw her arms
around him and kissed his cheek.

“
Call me, Grandma.” She
winked. “You are a cutie. Briar, he’s a keeper. I like me a
Scotsman.”

I groaned, and Chase went pink as we
followed her into the house.

“
So,” Grandma picked up her
pink skirt and hobbled down the hallway. She was wearing her
Christmas socks with the bells on them. “Who wants a
margarita?”

“
Uh, it’s ten in the
morning.” I said.

She turned back. “And?”

“
Isn’t it a little early to
be drinking?” Chase asked.

She braced her hands on her hips. “Oh,
you kids. So health conscious. But when you get to be eighty, can’t
drive, your husband thinks he could be Larry King if he could find
the right pair of suspenders, and you have hemorrhoids the size of
small planets, call me and tell me how worried you are about
drinking before noon. Trust me, you’ll be knocking back shots with
the best of them.” She clapped her hands and bolted for the
kitchen. “I’ll make waffles and chocolate milk. Then we’ll break
out the blender…never could drink on an empty stomach.”