Switching Gears Part 25

Surprise isnt over. He smiles, opens his door, and jumps down in the dirt. Hold on a sec. Oh, and dont look in the back no matter what you hear.

Hes gone for a little bit, and I know hes doing something in the bed of the truck since the truck keeps moving. Before I know it, hes back. He opens my door and smiles. My lady.

I roll my eyes as he grabs my hand and helps me out of the truck. He walks me back to the tailgate and my mouth falls open. There are pillows and blankets in the back, and as he reappears, binoculars and a bag of treats.

The sun is almost set and the stars are amazing up here. He climbs in next to me. Want to eat now or later?

Whenever. He jumps in next to me and hands me a bag. A very familiar bag.

In-N-Out?

Of course.

I could kiss you right now. As soon as the words leave my mouth, my eyes grow wide and I freeze. Uh I mean Cole glances at my lips, but other than that isnt even phased. Heres a bottle of water for you. It might be a little warm by now, but it should be okay.

I sneak a look at him as he holds out the water bottle. Thanks.

Hes still watching me, maybe wondering if my little comment was serious or not. Was it? Im not sure. Maybe. Okay, yes. I really do want to kiss him.

I dig into my burger. How did I not smell this?

I put it in a cooler so you wouldnt.

Nicely done.

He pops a fry in his mouth. I know.

Ive never really been up here while the sun is setting. Its beautiful. Yellows, oranges, and beautiful shades of red kiss the horizon. I close my eyes for a second, imagining the feel of the wind rus.h.i.+ng across my face as I ride my bike down the mountain.

Wish you were riding right now?

I open my eyes to find him staring at me. Always.

Me too.

I look back at the sun disappearing. Knowing me, though, Id run into a tree this late. My eyes arent the best at night.

Really?

When I dont have my contacts in, I wouldnt be able to tell whos sitting next to me right now.

That bad?

I nod. Theyre worse at night, even with my contacts in. Especially when I drive. I think Im a little night-blind.

Note to self: dont let Emmy drive me around at night.

I chuckle. Seriously. I scare myself.

We sit in comfortable silence, each finis.h.i.+ng our food. You know, I almost got bit by a rattlesnake up here once.

Really?

Yep. It was right on the edge of the trail. I stopped my bike a few feet away and it started rattling and coiled. I didnt have a choice but to turn around and go back down the trail. It would have bit me if I tried to pa.s.s it.

Holy cow. Thats crazy. I search my memory for interesting things that have happened while biking. A hornet hit my sungla.s.ses once and fell down my s.h.i.+rt while I was riding. I blush as his lips twitch. It stung me three times before I got it out. It felt like I was on fire.

Youre not allergic, are you?

No.

He s.h.i.+vers. That would have put me in the hospital.

Youre allergic?

He nods and collects our trash to put back in his cooler. Since I was a kid. I stepped on a bee when I was five and swelled up like a balloon.

Oh. Thats scary. Its hard to imagine someone being so allergic to something as tiny as a bee.

Havent been stung since, but they make me nervous. I have to carry an epinephrine shot with me all the time.

Yuck. What else dont I know about you?

He climbs back onto the truck and scoots back to rest against the cab. I follow. Hmm lets see. I have three sisters and one brother.

Older or younger? I know about your one sister you told me about. Older, yes?

Yes. And so are the rest.

Oh. So youre the baby?

Yep.

Huh.

He raises an eyebrow. Why do you say it like that?

I nudge his shoulder with my own. Some things make more sense now.

I have a feeling youre making fun of me.

I laugh. No, not at all. Im the youngest, too, so were twins.

He chuckles again, and before I know it, his arm is around my shoulders.

Your turn. Tell me something else I dont know about you.

A truth?

Yep.

Fine. I cuddle up against him and look up at the stars. I have trust issues I feel him nod next to me. Thats a shocker.

I should feel offended, but Im not. Im getting better. Im sitting here with you, arent I?

True.

So, one more from you.

You want to hear another one from me? Im really not that interesting. He unwraps his arm and grabs my hand. His grip is always so strong. Confident that I wont pull away.

Sure you are. I like to hang out with you, so that says something.

You dont hang out with boring people?

Not usually.

He laughs. Okay. A truth.

And a real one. Not some stupid one like what food you hate the most.

He touches the tip of my nose. Pickles, if you were wondering.

Pickles? I love pickles. Like, love love them. Especially the big crunchy ones. Yum.

They stink, he adds as he wrinkles his nose.

You dont know what youre missing. If they had pickle ChapStick, Id totally use it.

I wouldnt come near you then.

I go to shove him, but he holds me in place instead. I relax against him. Its nice being so close to someone. Hes quiet for a moment and then he drums his fingers on my shoulder. Ive got a good one I think.

Lets hear it. I snuggle closer, surprising myself for being so bold, I guess?

Do you know why I bike?

Wasnt expecting that. I shake my head. No. Ive never thought about it before. I thought he rode because he loved it.

I He swallows. Ive never told anyone this, but you might as well be the first.

You dont have to tell me. If you dont want to.

I do. I promised Id tell you a truth.

Okay. But only if youre alright with it.

He s.h.i.+fts a little, pulling me closer. My heart thumps harder in my chest. If I would have to trust anyone, it would be you.

Thanks. I squeeze his hand. Really. That means more than you know.

Good. He takes a deep breath. Okay. Here goes. My name is Cole Evans, and Im not close to my family. At all.

Really? Im sorry.

My parents arent the greatest parents ever. I mean, they provide and all that, but we kind of had to take care of ourselves when we were little. And me, being the youngest, having no one Im guessing I have the biggest problem with it. He shrugs. My dad got a new job, so thats why we moved here. Hes CEO for a pharmaceutical company. Hes never home. My mom works for a magazine, so shes locked up in her office all the time. You know about my sister, and my other siblings moved out right when they turned eighteen. So, I was pretty much alone. When my parents told me we were moving, I kind of freaked out. I had everything I could ever want in California. Friends, the beach, my cousins all live there. Why would we ever want to move to Utah?

I can see why you were mad. I love California.

Right? Anyway, I had sponsors looking at my riding there and when we moved He shakes his head. It was a rough few months. I still miss my friends. I miss my aunt and uncle. Mia and Madisons parents. They were like real parents to me.

Im sorry.

Dont be. He pulls me closer. Im doing fine now. It was just hard for a while. And if I wouldnt have moved, I wouldnt have met you.

Were you wild in California? You seem like a wild child.

He laughs. A wild child? He grins. I guess you could call me that. I wasnt wild with the ladies, but I did do some stupid stuff.

Like?

I broke my ankle long boarding, which I knew before I did the trick that it would probably happen. Did it anyway. Um I drank a little. Got arrested once. Maybe twice.

You mean to tell me Ive been hanging out with a criminal?

Ive cleaned up my act. Obviously. I was just rebelling to p.i.s.s off my parents. Or to see if they cared. Which, they didnt. Not really. He shakes his head. Anyway. Enough about me. Lets hear about you.

Okay. I think about Mom. Shes one of the truths Ive never told him, but now that hes shared something so personal with me, I feel like I should share something with him as well. So, I do. I have a bad habit of holding in my emotions.

No He drags it out like he totally knows what Im talking about.

Ha. Ha. Very funny. Anyway. I kind of bottle them up forever and they end up exploding every now and then.

Youre not going to explode now, are you?

No. Youre safe.

Phew.

Anyway. Ive never been good at talking about things like my feelings with anyone but my family. But lately, I havent been very good about talking to them either.

Why? I a.s.sumed you guys were close. From what Ive seen and heard.

We are. But I close my eyes and take a shaky breath. We found out about a month ago that my mom has early Alzheimers.

Really? How old is she?

42.