American Honey

My shaking hands frantically grab at my blinds for a better look. I watch the dust cloud as he comes down the driveway. It takes me a minute then he’s getting out and I know it’s him for sure.

I can’t see his face but I know that hat and walk. It’s Callan James.

The sight sends a spark through my veins, a reminder in the pit of my stomach of what I did to him in that very truck behind him less than twelve hours ago. I’m. So. Fucked.

He’s wearing that black cowboy hat, the one that kept shadowing his eyes last night and a dark gray t-shirt that meets a worn pair of jeans. One look at him and it’s obvious he’s a hard-working man. There’s probably dirt on those calloused hands that’ll never come off. And I want those calloused dirt-stained hands on me in any way I can have them.

His head is down when he approaches my dad standing near the porch. When he gets near him, his head comes up and reaches out to shake dad’s hand while removing his hat with the other one.

He’s polite, I knew that from last night.

I see Jessie’s truck coming down the driveway next, same dust cloud following behind her. She parks next to Callan’s truck wearing nothing but her bikini and her red cowboy boots. Never glancing at Callan and my dad, at least not noticeably, she comes inside the house.

I watch Callan to see if he looks, but he doesn’t. His attention is on my dad as they talk.

Jessie comes in my room. “Are you ready and do you know him?”

“Yeah…well…kinda.” I’m still staring out my window, watching them talk unable to turn away.

“You know he’s a champion bull rider, right?”

“I know he’s a bull rider based off the belt buckle I took off him last night but I didn’t know he’s a champion bull rider.”

Jessie’s qui

et for a moment, looking out my window with me. Then it hits her that I’ve seen his buckle. “How do you know what his belt buckle looks like and exactly why were you taking it off last night?”

“Gave him a blow job in his truck last night.” I admit, still watching. They’re walking toward the barn now, our vision cut off when they disappear inside the stables.

“Nice…did he return the favor?”

I shrug reaching for my bag. “Nah…it was pretty sexy just doing that.”

We’re walking downstairs when I hear dad come inside and that crackling voice Callan has. He talks slow and with a thick southern accent that rattles me even from twenty feet away.

Jessie and I practically run right into him when we come around the corner. It takes him all of a half second for the grin to appear when he looks at me, remembering who I am.

“This is my daughter, Alanna and her friend Jessie.” My dad says, gesturing to us.

Callan only looks at me, his brow scrunched as if he’s trying to decide what he’s going to say when he sees this is my dad.

I reach out and offer my hand. “Nice to me you…” I wait for him to offer his name, though I already know it.

“Callan James.” He says, shaking my hand. His thumb moves softly over my skin once and then back again, as if he’s not wanting to let go right away. Pieces of the night flash in my head and I know they’re doing the same to him. I feel it in that touch. He grins and I see those eyes for the first time up close and not shadowed by his hat that’s being held in his left hand against his side. “Nice to meet you.”

My dad clears his throat as Callan lets go of my hand running it over his slightly shaggy golden brown hair that’s a tad matted on one side from the hat.

Jessie shoves her hand at him. “I’m Jessie.”

“Nice to meet you too, Jessie.” Callan says, giving her a smile too. I look over at her and see he has the same effect on her too. I want to laugh but I don’t.

And then as if he’s trying to ruin my life, dad says, “She’s seventeen so don’t even think about it.” And then walks into the kitchen expecting Callan to follow.

Callan isn’t moving though, his eyes scanning my face, shocked, and then those blue diamond eyes turn cold, bitter, resentful even and disappear with a heavy sigh. He remembers me alright but he also knows I lied to him last night. I’m. So. Fucked.

I glare at my dad, flip him off behind his back and grab Jessie by the hand heading out the door.

“I can’t believe you gave that guy head last night. I’m totally jealous of your mouth.”