Starting from Scratch (Starting from 2)

“I don’t want him to get hurt.” Charlie narrowed his gaze. “I mean it, Ky. No broken bones.”

That stung a little more than I let on, but I snorted dismissively, then lowered my sunglasses to give him the full effect of my eye roll. “I’m a professional. He’s in good hands. I promise.”

Charlie nodded. “I believe you.”

“Good. But the thing is, he’s gotta be able to move. Those shin pads are for soccer, not skateboarding. He’s gonna have to lose those.”

“But what if he falls?”

I studied Charlie thoughtfully…his pointed chin, high cheekbones, long eyelashes, and the way he worried his bottom lip, dragging his teeth hard enough to draw blood. And in the baffling way clarity strikes at odd moments, I realized a couple of things at once. Good or bad, Charlie wasn’t kidding about his inability to keep his feelings on the DL. Even when he didn’t say a word, his expressions alone spoke volumes. When he loved someone, he loved completely. I knew without asking that if there was a way for him to personally absorb any scrape, scratch, or potentially serious injury on Ollie’s behalf, he’d volunteer without hesitation. It was kind of humbling to witness. My fingers itched to smooth the crease of worry between his eyes. And if I was totally honest, I wanted to touch his lips. Maybe just set my thumb where his teeth wore at the skin. Or maybe lick it or—oh.

Fuck, what was he saying? Oh yeah…falling.

“Everyone falls sometimes, Char. It’s how we learn.”

He tilted his chin and gave me a wry smile. “You’re right. Just be careful.”

I nodded absently as I glanced over at my bandmates, playing guitars and hanging out by the pool at the other end of the yard. I’d given the guys a heads up about the lessons the day after I’d opened my big mouth. It went something like…

“I told Oliver I’d teach him how to skateboard after school. I need a forty-five-minute break when he’s here three days a week.”

“Did Charlie ask you to teach him?” Tegan had asked, squinting in confusion.

“No, he asked me not to.”

“That makes sense,” he’d replied sarcastically. Tegan had looked like he wanted to ask twenty more questions, but I’d hightailed it out of the studio before he had the chance. I couldn’t explain what I didn’t understand, and let’s face it…Charlie was out of my sphere of comprehension.

I lowered my sunglasses then dropped my board and hopped on. I made a sharp right, crouching low into the turn before grabbing the nose and dismounting in front of Oliver.

“You ready to do this, kid?”

Oliver jumped up and grinned. “Yeah! Can I do that too?”

“You can do anything, Ol. It’ll take some practice, but yeah. No limits. Let’s get to work. First thing you gotta figure out is your footing. I like my left foot forward so I can push off with my right, but there’s no real rule. You can experiment and do what comes natural.”

“Okay.” Oliver put his left foot forward like he was on a tightrope and put his right one behind it…and fell on his ass.

Charlie hurried over. “Oh, my God. Are you okay?”

Oliver brushed himself off and gave a sheepish thumbs-up. “Yeah.”

I shoved my sunglasses on my head again and shot an irritated look at Charlie. “He’s fine. Give him some space.”

Charlie put his hands in the air and shook his head. “You know what? I think you should teach me too. If I know the basics, I can coach Ollie in between lessons. It’s a great idea if you think about it. I’ll get one of Gray’s boards. I hope they have a helmet. A clean one. If not we can try another day. Like tomorrow. Oh, wait. That’s not gonna work. I have an appointment with Sandstone, the record company. Did I tell you they’re interested in Zero? They said they want…”

I crossed my arms and waited until he ran out of steam. When he sucked in a gulp of air, I motioned for him to stop before hooking my thumb toward the house. “Can I talk to you? In private.”

He frowned as he slowly removed his oversized sunglasses. “Um…okay.”

I squeezed Ollie’s shoulder, then pointed at Justin, Tegan, and Johnny. “Do me a favor and ask the guys which foot they put forward on their boards. I bet you anything Justin and Tegan are left footers and Johnny’s a righty. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”

The second he skipped away, I tapped Charlie’s elbow and headed inside to the great room.

“I know that was random, but it’s not a bad idea if you think about it. Want something to drink?” Charlie asked as he moved toward the kitchen.

I grabbed his wrist before he got anywhere. “Hang on. What are you doing?”

He cocked his head curiously but didn’t pull away. “I’m being practical. If you read any further about Virgos you probably found out we’re known for being sensible. And polite. So, I’m politely asking if you’d like a beverage while sensibly suggesting that I help out with your skating lessons.”