Impacted (Conflicted Encounters #2) (17 page)

"Well, this will definitely be a memorable lunch," she laughed. "You're breaking him down," she added in a whisper.

"I hope so," I said, meeting her eyes in the mirror. "I don't know if he is going to let me in easy this time."

"Well, if it's easy, then it's not worth it."

We came out when we were ready. Ryder unfortunately put on a shirt and I pouted. Adam stood in the kitchen playing with his phone. "We ready?" he asked.

"Yep. You guys riding with us?"

I looked over to Ryder, knowing we should take another vehicle in case a quick evacuation was needed. "Can we take the Comet," I asked him.

He smiled with relief. "Of course."

Ryder rolled down the top, and I pulled my hair up in a messy bun. Summer was peeking around the corner and the afternoons were getting warmer. It was a perfect day for a drive with the top down. I sunk into the leather seats and buckled the seatbelt.

"You ready for this?" he asked as the engine rumbled to life.

"Ready if you are."
 

He nodded and shifted the car into reverse. We followed Adam and Scarlett through the quiet streets of the town. The electrical wire bracelet I made was wrapped around Ryder's wrist and I watched it as he shifted through the gears. I admired the concentrated look on his face and the sight of the muscles in his arms working. It didn't take very long before we pulled down a long gravel driveway on the outskirts of town.

It was a white, two-story farmhouse with a wraparound porch out front. A small red pickup truck was parked in the driveway and a steel windmill spun in the wind. We parked the car, and Scarlett hopped out of the car in front of us. I took a shaky breath and put my hand over Ryder's, which was resting on the shifter.
 

I gave him a swift kiss on the cheek and opened the car door. He soon followed and led me up the porch with his hand on the small of my back. I wasn't sure if I was supporting him, or the other way around. Scarlett was dragging Adam behind her when the front door swung opened.
 

A woman in her late forties stepped out. She had dark, shoulder-length hair and dark eyes like her twin children. She smiled and wrapped Scarlett in a hug. Her eyes shifted over her shoulder to Ryder and me, standing at the base of the steps. I saw her eyes water over, and I stepped closer to Ryder.
 

This was the most awkward situation I had ever been in. I as meeting this woman for the first time while she sees her son for the first time in five or six years, along with meeting the man her daughter is rushing into a marriage with. I don't know if she thinks I'm his girlfriend or not. I don't know how to explain our relationship to her, or lack there of, if she asks.
 

She slowly pulled out of the hug with Scarlett and stepped down the stairs, completely ignoring Adam. "I'm Kallie," I said, turning her attention to me.

"Kallie," she said in a warm voice. "I've heard so much about you, dear." She shook my hand for a second before pulling me in for a hug as well. I stiffened for a moment before relaxing into the embrace. Her eyes were still moist when she pulled away from me. "She's gorgeous," she said, looking over to her son.

I watched Ryder's throat as he swallowed hard. "I know."

"It's good to see you. You look great," she told him. Her body twitched like she was going to make a move to hug him, and I internally cringed. Ryder wasn't the kind to forgive easily, and I wasn't sure how physical contact would be received. Being his mother, she must have sensed this and settled with a pat on his shoulder. Her face was filled with longing whereas his was masked in a distant and hard look.

"Mom," Scarlett interrupted. "This is Adam." Right, the point of coming here.
 

"Nice to meet you, Adam," she said, turning to shake his hand. I guess he wasn't worth a hug yet? "Come out back, kids. I made chicken salad."

We followed her through the front door and through the house. It had a warm and country feel to it. I could picture a family sitting around the worn round kitchen table having meals together. I could almost forget that the happy little family was torn apart by betrayal and lies. Ryder grabbed my hand in the hallway, and I squeezed it.

We came out to a screened in porch off the back of the house. In the center sat a small glass table with glasses and a pitcher of lemonade. The backyard stretched for what seemed like miles, with a small pond and scattered trees. A small barn sat at the edge of the property and a tire swing hung from a tree in the shade.
 

Mrs. Brooks poured us glasses of lemonade as we sat around the table. Ryder's body was stiff and hard next to me. Adam looked terrified, like their mother could see right through him. I hoped she could. I played with my fingers, unsure of what to do with myself.

"Ryder, was that the Comet you drove in here?" she asked as she served up sandwiches.

"Yes," he said shortly.

"It looks amazing. I never thought I would see that running," she chuckled. "I remembered when you boys brought that home. You three came pushing it down the driveway. You were furious."

Scarlett laughed at the memory. "And it was almost a hundred degrees that day. You guys pushed that car for almost three miles."

Ryder laughed a little. "I was pissed. It ran just long enough to be closer to home and back to the prick that sold it to me. He refused to give me my money back so I was stuck with it."

"You know, and don't you ever repeat this," Mrs. Brooks said, pointing to us around the table, "but I swapped his prescription for laxatives up at the pharmacy."

"Mom!" Scarlett scolded. "You could be fired for that, and maybe even kill him."

"Oh relax," she said, waving her off. "It was a pain reliever, nothing he needed to live."

"You did that?" Ryder asked, looking at her with suspicion.

"Well, yeah," she shrugged. "He screwed my boy over. So, Kallie, what do you do for a living? Scarlett said you work at a jewelers."

"Um, yes," I stuttered, thrown off by the change of subject. "Well, I did."

"You don't anymore?"

"No, I'm not sure that's what I want to do anymore."

"What store?" Adam asked.
 

"Oh, maybe you’ve been in one of them," I smiled fakely. "My family owns Adam's Jewelers."

His eyes went wide and I knew he had never been in any jewelry store. He squinted at me, and for a second, I think he may have suspected that I'm on to him.
 

"Why don't you like it? Most girls would love to be around diamonds all day," Mrs. Brooks joked.

"Well, a diamond is really just a piece of charcoal that handles stress very well. I think I've seen enough of them for a lifetime. I used to love it, grading them, cutting them, picking the perfect band, and then setting for them. After a while, it became all the same and I felt like there was a loss of creativity in it."

Their mom smiled and shook her head. "No wonder my kids like you so much."

Ryder

"Wanna go for a walk," I asked in Kallie's ear. My mom had gone back to grilling Adam, and he was getting squeamish. Although she was trying hard to make me comfortable, her kindness was making me even more uncomfortable. This wasn't the woman I grew up with and it was a little late to try and act like none of the past ever happened.
 

Kallie nodded and let me help her out of her seat. I held her hand and we walked across the large backyard. The grass was trimmed and I wondered who’d helped my mom maintain the land. We walked along the property line to the edge. A large maple hung over the pond with a tire swing tied to a low branch.
 

We walked under the shade and Kallie sat in the tire swing. I gently pushed her so she swung slightly, and I looked out over the water. We hung out in a comfortable silence, listening to the wind breezing through the trees and the frogs hopping around in the pond. Kallie pulled her hair out the hair tie and it fell down her shoulders and back.
 

"She's trying," she said to me after a while.
 

"I know. Just a little late."

"Better late than never. You should give people another chance," she whispered.
 

"I'll think about it. Second chances are something that need to be earned. I don't get in the habit of making the same mistakes twice."

I looked down at her, and the sadness in her eyes almost broke my cold heart. She wanted a second chance, too, but I wasn't sure that I could give it to her. She had more power to completely destroy me now than she’d had before. I grabbed the rope of the swing and stopped her. Leaning down, I pressed my lips to hers.
 

She kissed me back and we moved our mouths together in complete harmony. It was tender and nothing like the desperate and needy kisses we had before. I pulled away, knowing we had an audience, and stared down into her crystal clear eyes.
 

"We should head up," I told her, and I helped her out of the swing. Her foot got stuck and she lost her balance. I was able to grab her in time, but she was laughing too hard to keep herself upright. She sat in the grass laughing hysterically.
 

"I'm so graceful," she giggled.
 

"You're beautiful when you laugh," I said as I pulled her up to stand. She smiled shyly.

"You think Adam survived the interrogation?" she mused on the way back.
 

"I hope not," I mumbled.
 

"We need proof that he's a sleaze."

"Preferably before you spend thousands on a trip," I added.

"I'm really looking forward to the trip, though. We are going no matter what. It's non refundable," she shrugged.
 

Scarlett was all but dragging Adam to the car when we got back to the house. Mom must have really laid it on thick. She hugged the girls goodbye while he sat in the drivers seat of his car. Kallie stepped away, and my mom's attention turned to me.
 

"Ryder," she started. "It was so good to see you." She came toward me, and I wanted to step back, but I held my ground as the little woman wrapped her arms around me.
 

"That car is gorgeous," she said, pulling away and wiping her eyes. "You did a good job. I'm impressed. Now, you take care of these two girls."

"He always does, Mrs. Brooks," Kallie said in a sweet voice.

"Please call me Annie. I will see you at the wedding." My mom winked at Kallie.
 

As we drove away, my body slowly released all of the built up tension. I was relieved that whole thing was over with. It was something I dreaded for years, and now it was over. I couldn't say that I would be heading over every Sunday with my sister, but I wouldn't need to feel as bad for saying no for a while.
 

"You should tell your sister we are going back to my hotel," Kallie said, tuning down the radio.
 

"Are we?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. I had been thinking about sharing that Jacuzzi tub with her.

"We need to. I need clothes," she said as an afterthought. "But I was actually thinking we should tail Adam."

"What is this, a spy movie?" I teased. "We need our night vision goggles, but I left them in the Batmobile."

She laughed and smacked my shoulder. "I'm serious. He never stays the night and leaves early. Where does he go?"

"This morning he told her he had some paperwork to work on tonight."
 

"I guess that's possible."

I texted my sister that we were heading to the hotel to get some clothes for Kallie. "You know, this car isn't exactly camouflaged."

"We can stop and get the Batmobile then. Caleb is meeting us at Hank's, so we can just borrow his truck."

"What? When did you talk to Caleb?"

She held up her phone. "Just now."

"You guys talk often?"

"You going to be jealous if we do?"

"Yes."

"Good. And no, we don't. Now eyes on the road."

I shook my head at her and pulled into Hank's, driving around to the back. Sure enough, Caleb was leaning against his truck. He tossed me the keys when I got out.
 

"She lives! Fucking awesome dude," he said, peeking into the Comet. "This is great."

"Thanks," I said, patting him on the shoulder. "We'll meet you back here with your truck in a bit."

"No problem, dude. Go get the bad guy," he laughed. "Oh, and Kallie?"

"Yeah." She stopped and turned to face him.
 

"You look nice today."

"Dude," I scoffed at him. "Get your cute ass in there," I teased her, helping her into his lifted truck.
 

We sat and waited for a while before we saw Adam pulling out the alley from my apartment. "Here we go," I announced as I started the truck and followed him out of town.
 

I was careful to keep a distance so he didn't notice us. Kallie messed with the radio and finally found a country station to play. Caleb's rap music had blasted our ears off when we started the truck back at Hank’s.