Gifted Connections 4

“See you there.” I smiled and waved before I took Remy’s hand in mine. “I can’t wait for it to get nicer so you can teach me how to ride.” I pulled my hat lower on my head.

I thought about my poor bike sitting in the parking garage with barely any miles on it. Sometimes I would go out there and just sit on it, imagining the feeling of freedom I had felt on the back of Remy’s bike, eagerly anticipating the day, I could ride my own.

Remy chuckled. “Me too. This snow is ridiculous.”

“We do see a lot of it here.”

“Wait up!” Lincoln called from behind us.

We turned and looked at him. I looked up at Remy, and he shrugged.

“I have to pick up those GoPros at the post office, mind if I tag along?” he asked as he caught up.

“Come on.” I motioned for him.

“Come at your own risk,” Remy warned. “This is Blake’s second time driving her Jeep.”

“Hey, I’m an excellent driver,” I insisted. “My first time behind the wheel a long distance ride, too.” I resisted the urge to stick my tongue out at him.

“Why are you just now learning how to drive?” Lincoln asked in confusion. “Didn’t you learn your sophomore year like the rest of us?”

I shook my head and took a deep breath. “No,” I began to explain. “My stepmother had a drug problem. I would have never gotten the required hours of driving. Not to mention, she would have found a way to sell anything I drove.”

We reached the Jeep, and I climbed into the warm vehicle.

“I’m the instructor,” I heard Remy say smugly. “You can climb in the back.”

“No biggie.” Lincoln shrugged nonchalantly before he climbed into the back seat.

“How often does Lincoln Hudgens have to ride in the back if it’s not in a limo?” I teased.

“Never,” Lincoln said with a smirk. “So your stepmother seemed to be a real winner.”

“Oh, she is.” I snorted. I put the Jeep in drive and started to pull out.

“It still smells like a new car in here,” Lincoln breathed in.

Over the last few days, he seemed to strike up more small talk. He even hung out with the boys one night when I had a late session with Dr. Wong. I hated it—therapy, not

the fact that the guys were hanging out and seemingly getting along. Something within me secretly enjoyed it. It almost felt natural the way he fit in. I didn’t want to look too deeply into my feelings of comfort and contentment.

“I got it for my birthday,” I explained to him with a smile.

“And you said Alex was going to be spoiled,” Lincoln quipped.

“I learned the hard way how to appreciate what’s been given to me,” I bantered back. “The kids may have had hard beginnings, but I’ve seen how…they take things for granted. We told Ella not to have any food or drinks around her keyboard, and she spilled juice on it yesterday. When I asked her why she didn’t listen, she shrugged and said Pops would buy her a new one.”

“Blake forgot to mention her bike, too,” Remy teased me.

Lincoln whistled. “Let me guess, bike from Shotgun, and Jeep from Jac Man?”

These nicknames annoyed most of the guys, but I secretly found it hilarious. You would think with having Noah and Jaxson around for so long, they would have learned to not let the little things bother them. Surprisingly enough, No-Action Jaxson and Arkless (Noah) didn’t mind theirs too terribly. Chef Boyardre (Drake) was indifferent to it all. Helen (AKA Troy, like Helen of Troy), Shotgun, and Jac Man weren’t too pleased with their nicknames, though.

I laughed. “You got half of it right. Pops got me the Jeep.”

“What kind of bike?” Lincoln asked. “I have a few myself, actually.”

I looked over at Remy and laughed. I had no clue. All I knew was that it was a Harley.