Us At First (Carolina Rebels 2.50)

“It’s okay. Proms suck. I went to both of mine and we left early to play hockey because it was so boring. You aren’t missing much.” A plan begins to form in my head. “Hey, I gotta go, but I’ll text you, okay? Forget about the jackass and move on.”

“He’s already forgotten.”

“That’s my girl.”

We hang up and I walk back into my room. Stacy is now naked on my bed. Shit. Do not be tempted, Ian. Do not be tempted. Think of Sydney. Clearing my throat, I say, “You need to go. Something has come up and I have things to do.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, just family stuff I need to deal with.”

She grabs her tits and pushes them together. “It can’t wait?”

Fuck. I shake my head. “Nope.” I grab her discarded clothes and throw them at her, not feeling the least bit guilty when my aim is off and they land on her face. “Get dressed and get out of here.”

“You’re a jackass. Anyone ever tell you that?”

“Yep. Family comes first, though.” Meaning, Sydney comes first. She always does.

The moment Stacy is gone, I grab my laptop to check my bank account. One of the guys on the team does odd jobs and whenever he needs help, I always help him. Thank goodness. It’s paid off. Next step is to check out flights. But shit. That won’t work. Sydney lives two hours from Raleigh and I’m not old enough to rent a car because you have to be twenty-one. It’ll be cheaper to drive, but damn. That’s a long-ass drive.

It’s for Sydney.

It’ll be worth it.

Twenty-one hours in a car is a long time to wonder if I’m making the right decision. Here I am, driving all this way with my best suit in the backseat, and Sydney doesn’t even know I’m coming to surprise her and take her to prom. Thanks to my schedule with school, I’ll be exhausted by the time I get there. I’ll have just enough time to stop by the hotel where I reserved a room, shower, change and get to her house. Yeah, I can book a hotel room, but I can’t rent a car.

I haven’t slept in two days because I had classes, hockey practice, and then I had to leave to drive. There wasn’t time to stop and sleep. Excitement over seeing Sydney in combination with rolling down the windows and blasting music is what has kept me awake so far. Showering is supposed to help, but it makes me want to crawl into bed and pass out.

Instead, I dress and drive to Sydney’s house. It’s a nice house. People are obviously home based on the cars on the driveway. This is the first time I’m nervous about seeing Sydney. I’m also meeting her stepbrother and possibly the rest of her family. I don’t know if anyone else knows about me. It’s too late to back out now.

With a deep breath, I get out of the car, straighten my tie, and walk up to the door. I press the doorbell and wait. Moments later, the door opens to an older woman.

“Hello. Can I help you?”

“I’m here to see Sydney.”

“Who are you?” There’s a guy dressed similarly to me behind her and I’m hoping he’s Logan.

“Ian Rhett.”

“Holy fucking shit.”

“Logan!” Sydney’s mom chides him.

“Sydney!” he yells, ignoring her. “Get down here right now!”

My heartbeat increases with the sound of racing footsteps. “What?” I hear her lovely voice and then a second later, she’s running down the stairs. She nearly trips when she sees me. “Oh my god! Ian!” She runs to me. I have all of three seconds to brace myself before she launches herself into my arms. “What are you doing here? How did you get here? Why are you here? Oh my god! I’m so happy to see you!” Obviously. Her arms are around my neck so tight, she’s nearly cutting off my air.

“You have to go to prom. I just spent twenty-one hours in the car and I haven’t slept in two days, so you have no excuse.” I place her on her feet. “Go get ready.”

“You drove?” Her eyes widen. “You haven’t slept in two days?”

“Minor details,” I say with a shrug. “Get dressed.”

“Excuse me,” her mom says. “But someone needs to explain what’s going on here.”

Sydney seems to snap out of our little bubble as she faces her mother. “Oh, sorry. This is Ian Rhett, Mom. We met when I went to Grandma’s funeral and we’ve kept in touch. Apparently, he’s here to take me to prom. You’re all caught up. Will you do my hair?”