Big Man's Contract

The dream carries over to other dreams, other memories, and only leads to more questions. Was it my fault that Madden thought I would sleep with him back then? If Haley hadn’t read my diary over my shoulder would I have gone through with it instead of it turning into a prank? I really don’t know. All I know is I regret it all. I especially regret breaking Madden’s teenage heart. I can only imagine how humiliated he was when he saw all those faces staring back at him while he was naked in the back seat of his pickup. I had no idea my friends would tell so many people and they were all hiding in the woods, ready to laugh at him. Because of me. It’s gut wrenching to think I did something so heartless.

4

Madden

I sit at my brother Abe’s garage, waiting for Lina to show up. I offered to pick her up since she doesn’t have a car, but she stubbornly decided to take an Uber. Now I’m wondering if she’ll even show up at all. Abe is lying under Lina’s car, the clank of tools being knocked against metal echoing in the garage. He’s had a few too many beers and probably shouldn’t be working at this point, and I’ve had a few too many cups of black coffee and feel as though I’ll vibrate out of my skin. Why am I so nervous to see her again?

“I bet you just about shit yourself when you saw Lina back in town,” Abe says, his words a little sloppy when they’re strung together. “Everyone in this town knows you’ve been in love with her since the move across the street.”

“Loved,” I correct him. “I did love her. I don’t anymore. Not after what she did to me.” I say the words, but I’m not sure how convincing I sound—to him or to myself.

“You’re sure going out of your way to help someone you don’t love anymore.”

“Trust me, I don’t love her. I plan to make her pay for what she did to me.”

He chuckles. “Yeah, okay. Whatever you say, Maddie.” He slides out from under the car and gives me a knowing grin. I frown at him.

When I hear the sound of a car crunching over the gravel as they turn into the driveway, my head snaps up. I scold myself inwardly for looking so obvious, and sigh when Abe laughs again.

Lina opens the door of the sedan. She’s dressed casually in cutoff shorts and a tank top, but she looks sexy as hell. Very California the way she shows off her body. Confidence oozes off of her. Is she trying to get me hot and bothered? Does she have any idea the effect she has on me? I wish that weren’t true, but there’s no denying it. I try to tell myself not to focus so much on her. My body nor my mind wants to listen. She has the same power today she’s always had on me. Maybe more now, since I haven’t seen her in so long. All those years I’ve been craving her and now she’s here.

She drops her purse as she gets out of the car. When she bends over and gives a view of the most perfect ass on this Earth, the world suddenly stops spinning. Nothing else exists. My whole body goes stiff, including my cock. I try to stand in a way that makes it less obvious. Nothing seems to be working, so I grab an oily shop rag off the work bench and hold it in front of me. When my brother starts to laugh hard enough to throw himself into a coughing fit, I glare at him.

Lina glances at me and I tell myself that this, whatever chemistry or spark or witchcraft—whatever this thing is that I feel between us—isn’t going to get serious.

She stands slowly and walks straight over to Abe and her car. She listens while he talks parts and mechanics. I’m hardly listening. Instead, I notice how her hair is a lighter shade of brunet than I remember. She must dye it now. And she’s wearing a touch of makeup that makes her look sultrier than the fresh-faced innocent way she looked in high school. I don’t prefer one over the other. She’s just as beautiful either way. I think she could be covered in grime, wearing ripped clothing and begging for money on a street corner and still look just as stunning as she does now. Even then, the rest of the girls in this Podunk town wouldn’t stand a chance against her. She’s a poodle amongst a pack of mutts. Always has been.

“You really did a number on this thing,” Abe says to her.

“This town really needs a makeover,” she says.

“Maybe if you weren’t so busy staring at my ass as I walked away, you may have paid attention and not hit the hole in the road,” I say, teasing.