Even at twelve, it was clear that I’d grow up to look like my dad—tall with a big frame, dark hair, and gray eyes. Whereas Gracie looked like her mom—short, like a little pixie, with pretty blue eyes. Her size just made me want to protect her even more.
Gracie held out her hand, and I placed her reader in it. Then we both scooted around until we were comfortable and started to read.
I didn’t have a clue when we fell asleep, but apparently, my parents had decided not to wake us. Gracie looked peaceful as she slept, so I grabbed her foot and tickled it, startling her hard enough that she flailed and we both ended up on the ground. We laughed hysterically, not bothering to get up. And when we were done, we stayed sprawled out on the deck and I reached out to grasp her hand.
“I’m glad you’re here, Gracie.”
“I know,” she sassed. “Life is no fun without me.”
Life isn’t worth living without you.
* * *
14 years old
“Get the fuck away from her,” I snarled as I approached Gracie’s locker.
Justin, a varsity football player and all-around asshole, turned his head to glare at me even as he pressed his body closer to Gracie. “Get lost, dickhead.” He had her pinned against the locker with his arms on either side of her head.
“Are you hard of hearing as well as brainless?” I asked as I reached them. I’d never been one to stereotype people, but Justin was a prime example of the term “dumb jock.” The dude could bulldoze through a line of defensemen on the field without breaking a sweat, but he couldn’t answer a math question unless it equaled “this many.” “Move your arms before I break them.”
Gracie shifted uncomfortably and glanced at me with pleading blue eyes. Her dad had made sure all his girls knew how to defend themselves, but Justin was at least double her size.
Fortunately, I’d had a growth spurt during the first semester of freshman year and had developed a pretty ripped physique from boxing and weight training. If Justin had any sense, he’d realize he didn’t stand a chance against me.
Instead, the idiot laughed. “Go back to the computer lab, nerd. I’m gonna lick this sexy little cupcake.”
I’d grown up knowing my worth. When people, particularly high school kids, took shots at me, I couldn’t have cared less. But if someone disrespected Gracie, all bets were off.
“Don’t,” she whispered. “You’ll get suspended.”
“Don’t care,” I growled.
When Justin was crying on the floor, whining about his bruised face, and a teacher had me by the arm, dragging me to the principal's office, I glanced back and muttered, “Worth it.”
Gracie sat on a chair in the hallway, and as I exited the office, she stood. “You didn’t have to punch him, Hudson. You and I both know you could have just broken his hold.”
I shrugged and grabbed her bag to sling it over my shoulder with my own. “Now the word will get out not to mess with you. Or they’ll answer to me.”
Gracie giggled. “I doubt anyone expected the computer genius to lay out a football player.”
“Age of the geek, baby,” I snickered.
I expected her to laugh, but Gracie didn’t say anything else as we walked back to the lockers. Once we reached mine, I set our bags down and lifted her chin so I could see her blue eyes. “What’s on your mind, Gracie?”
Her eyes dropped to my chest, then away and she cleared her throat. “Um, it’s just that with you defending me and all, and um...if you accidentally call me things like ‘baby,’ and...and, um, carry my bag and stuff…”
I almost smiled, but I knew this conversation had been hard for my girl to initiate. Gracie could be a spitfire when she was riled up, but she was mostly shy.
It probably started that summer when we were twelve, but through the next couple of years, I began to see Gracie in a different light. I started to notice things like her body filling out into a curvy figure that starred in a lot of my dreams. Her face thinned, making her beautiful blue eyes stand out with their fringe of reddish eyelashes. And at some point, every time I saw her lips, I wondered how it would feel to kiss them.
There were times when I suspected she had similar thoughts about me but was too shy to bring it up.
However, we were both trying to navigate the early teen years, the changes in our bodies and figuring out who we were. So, I set those feelings aside for the day when I truly understood them and continued to be her best friend.
Now we’d reached freshman year of high school, and I’d straightened everything out in my mind, body, and heart. I sensed Gracie was ready too. Waiting any longer just seemed stupid. Although I wouldn’t rush her, I had no qualms about making sure everyone knew who she belonged to.