CROSS (A Gentry Boys Novella)(19)

Cordero was quiet and mild-mannered. He was friendly but didn’t seem to know what to do with us. Creed made it clear he was just going to grumble all the livelong day. But Chase was cool. He asked us questions and listened to the answers. A high school teacher with a beautiful longtime girlfriend he adored, he was funny as hell and didn’t seem put out at all by hanging around with us.

Creed pulled into the station beside a gas pump and Cord hung back with his brother while Chase followed us inside the tiny convenience store attached to the gas station. He bought us whatever we wanted and we all staggered out the door loaded with junk food and soda.

“Hey, it’s the Jailbird Gentrys!”

“How was that hard time, boys?”

“Looks like they’re having some trouble walking.”

There was a crowd of them. The Cortez brothers were hamming it up with a gross pantomime of prison rape. Courtney and her idiot gal pals were squealing and waving. Then Erin came running out of the darkness. I pushed my food on Stone and held my arms out, feeling bad that I hadn’t had a chance to let her know what was going on. Obviously someone had though. She wouldn’t have been hanging out with that crowd otherwise. Erin didn’t have much tolerance for our pranks and that had always widened the rift between her and Stone. But as she ran toward me, her long hair swinging behind her, there was nothing in her face but relief and happiness.

She jumped into my arms and wrapped herself around me. “I missed you so much,” she whispered breathlessly. We hadn’t seen each other since last night and since she lived right next door it wasn’t often that we went a full twenty four hours without a kiss.

“I missed you too, baby,” I told her, now pissed at myself for doing something so stupid that I’d risked causing her a moment of worry. I found her lips and made them mine, blocking out all noise and light as I kissed her with all the passion I could spare. Let Stone and the others laugh and scoff. I knew everything about this girl and she knew everything about me. More than anything, I knew what was real and what wasn’t. Erin was real.

She was shy when I introduced her to my cousins. She would have heard of them since I wasn’t lying when I said the Gentry triplets were legendary. But I doubted she’d ever met them before they left Emblem. I caught Stone’s questioning look when Erin mentioned that she was trying to get me to go with her to Arizona State next year. We hadn’t really talked about it, and sometimes I didn’t know if I was the type who was really cut out for college. But if it meant making Erin happy then I would at least try.

Stone recovered right away and made a crack about joining us in the world of higher education. Erin snapped back at him and then the two of them had a few harsh words for each other until Stone narrowed his eyes and started advancing.

“I don’t drag Con into jack shit, sweetheart. Your golden boy can manage his own life, no matter how much time you waste trying to convince him otherwise.”

That got me riled up enough to interfere.

“Hey,” I warned, glaring. “Knock it off, Stone. You don’t mean it.”

Stone cocked his head and gazed at me flatly. “I don’t mean it,” he shrugged.

The triplets dropped us off at our house. There were no lights on, which was a relief. The last thing I was in the mood to deal with was a lengthy tongue lashing by our loving mother. I knew I deserved it. I just wasn’t in the mood for it.

Stone jumped out of the truck first and said something to the triplets that I didn’t catch before he ambled over to the sidewalk and waited.

I held Erin’s hand as I walked over to the side of the truck. I wanted to let the brothers know how much we appreciated the fact that they came down here for us. I also wanted to let them know that I wouldn’t mind seeing them again. I cleared my throat, feeling weirdly nervous. “My brother’s not really good at gratitude but believe me, we’re both glad you showed up.”

“Not a problem, man,” said Cord.

“You get those grades up,” Chase called from the backseat. “Next thing I want to hear about you is that you’re heading up to Tempe.”

I grinned. “I will.”

And maybe I would. You never know what the future could hold.

Creed leaned out of his window suddenly. “Stay out of trouble,” he said gravely. “Don’t do anything you can’t undo.” He jerked his head at Stone. “That goes for you too. I know you heard me.”

“I heard you,” Stone answered.

As soon as the brothers pulled away a light came on at Erin’s house. Mr. Rielo’s tired figure filled the doorway.

“Erin,” he called with a trace of irritation. “Say goodnight now.”

Erin’s little sister Katie appeared in a pink princess nightgown. She giggled and waved.

Erin kissed me quickly on the lips, looking embarrassed. She would hate this, being responsible for making her father worry and wait up for her. I hated it too. If I hadn’t been so hell bent on proving I could be a bigger badass than my brother then the night would have been a lot more peaceful for everyone.

“Good night, Erin,” Stone called with mock sincerity. I scowled at him. He needed to stop doing that, putting such a sarcastic show. It wasn’t a crime to care about people’s feelings.

Erin whirled around, glared at him for a long, silent moment, then followed her father and sister into the house.