Never Been Kissed

No more concert dates or contracts holding her back. No more fear of someone trying to take a piece of her. I think more than anything she wants to be away from her father. He’s always trying to get his claws into her for something. Show her off like a pretty prize. Here with Jameson she gets to do and be anything she wants.

“I’m good with you taking some time. But you need to call, peanut. Your other brothers may be too busy, but you know I worry. Give an old man a break.”

I smile knowing that he’s right. That he’d been the one to bear most of the burden when my parents passed away suddenly.

He had gone from being a young man to having to take care of a family. He would never admit how much of his life had been sacrificed for all of us, especially me. I may give him a hard time sometimes for being overbearing, but I’m grateful every day that I had him to raise me. “And don’t think I don’t know you. Something else is up, but I’m going to let you be for now.”

My mind goes to Davis. The man who couldn’t keep his eyes off me. I don't know much about him yet, but I do know that he seems to be a man of few words. He usually grunts or gives simple answers when he really doesn't have any other option. At least that was my take on him in the few hours I’ve spent with him. Some people may be bothered by his staring, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it. The way his eyes roam over me and he hangs on every word I say does something to me. Maybe it was all in my head after seeing the way Price was looking at Bunny. Now I’m trying to find that.

“I do want you to look up someone for me. His name is Davis. He lives near Jameson. I don’t have a last name but I’m sure that won’t be a problem for you.”

“He do something to you?” My brother's voice hardens.

“No, he’s just around a lot and I like to know anything and everything about people around me.”

“Cause you’re nosy as shit.”

“Wonder where I got that from,” I toss back. I am nosy. Even before it was my job to be so. I think it’s because I have a batch of brothers whose whole lives are secret. Sometimes I don’t even know where they are in the world because they can’t tell me. When I was younger, it was hard to deal with, but you get used to it. I knew that no matter where they were in the world, that they loved me.

“All right. I will send you what I find. Keep out of trouble.”

“What’s the fun in that?”

“I guess you can’t get in too much trouble in the middle of nowhere.” This is true. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” I tell him before hanging up. I don’t tell him Jameson offered me a job. I’m not sure it’s something I'm going to take. I also don’t know how my brother would feel about it. It would mean I get to stay close to Bunny.

I jump back, dropping the curtain I was holding when lightning flashes in the sky. It’s in the distance but it still makes me uneasy. I’m not scared of many things. Not the things that go bump in the night or even someone three times my size. No, I am scared of things I can't control. A storm is one of them. Also spiders. You never see them coming. Any of those little bugs make my skin crawl. I’d rather be in a cage with a bear than a spider.

I let out a small scream when thunder shakes the whole cabin. I fall back onto the sofa as the door explodes inward.2DavisI lean up against my truck trying to come up with a reason I could be stopping by. I’m not good at this socializing stuff, so nothing comes to mind. I’m guessing telling her I came over to find out what she tastes like wouldn't go over well. I had been just fine out here all by myself until I laid eyes on her. Now I can’t help but feel as though I’m missing something. And when I say something, I’m referring to her.

“Don’t people stop by for flour or something?” I ask Duke. He doesn’t even look up at me. His eyes are trained on the little cabin. He only wags his tail, letting me know he heard me. I stare down at him, realizing that the answer I was looking for is sitting right beside me. I don’t know why I didn’t think of this sooner. I don’t need to make up an excuse to go to her cabin. Duke is about to go missing and wander to her doorstep.