Charity Case - The Complete Series - Piper Rayne Page 0,95

chairs.

How many hours before Pete’s on a plane back to L.A.?

Chapter Thirty-Two

“You have got to be kidding me!” Darcie’s steps pound on the pavement, her bullhorn clutched tightly in her hands.

The tow truck lowers the car in the roped off area while Reed’s positions the various sledgehammers, hammers, gloves, baseball bats and other tools we picked up to do some serious damage to this car.

I might even have to buy a handful of tickets myself. Pete hops on a plane tomorrow and let’s just say my patience has worn thin. There’s a reason we’re divorced.

“Oh, hey, Darcie. Georgia,” I say, acknowledging Mean Mom number one and her constant shadow.

“This is your idea of fun?” Darcie asks in a screechy voice.

“Yep.”

“The kids can’t do it, they could get hurt. Do you want that on your conscious? Maybe your boyfriends can afford the lawsuits, but I know you can’t.”

She thinks she’s going to bully me to breaking down. Not happening. I laugh a little that she still believes Pete, Reed, and I are in some kind of relationship. What an idiot.

“It’s a parents-only event.”

“You’ll get no one. I’ll make sure of it.” She stomps away, but she can’t do anything about it because Principal Weddle already okay’d it.

Reed walks over to me. “How angry is she?” he asked with a chuckle.

“Pretty pissed off.”

“Good.”

I step into him, wrapping my arms around his neck and lifting up on my tiptoes to kiss him. We have a little time before the carnival starts. Pete is bringing Jade after she slept over at his parents’ last night.

“Let’s go grab some coffee?”

He checks out his watch behind my back. “We have an hour.”

“Perfect.”

We choose to walk the two blocks to the nearest Starbucks since the weather is nice today. His hand swings in mine on the way back and I think of how I could really get used to this.

“Since we have some time before everything starts, we need to discuss something. I was going to wait until tonight, but I can’t,” he says.

The pit that’s been in my belly since the topic of him relocating elsewhere came up, morphs into a crevice.

“You got an offer?” I ask, hoping I’m wrong. It’s not that I don’t want him to succeed in his career, but we need more time to see what this is before we make big decisions about our future together.

He nods toward the park a block away from the school and leads me over to a bench where we sit.

“Tell me, Reed.”

He sets our coffees down behind him on the bench, both of his hands taking mine in his. “I got an offer.”

My eyes burn, and my nose crinkles and that crevice turns into a gorge. “Of course you did.”

“It’s in New York,” he says.

“City?” I clarify although I already know. Of course, he could be the DA in New York City. How could I ever compete with that?

“Take it,” I tell him. I have to force the words out of my mouth. I know what it’s like to put your dreams on hold for a relationship and I can’t ask him to do that for me.

“Will you come?” he asks, with hope in his eyes.

“So, you’re going for sure? You’ve already made the decision?” My heart shatters, cracks and then splits into two.

“I don’t know. It’s a huge opportunity that will probably never come again. But this”—he motions between us—“I know is the real thing.”

I stand, and his hands drop to his lap. “You don’t know that. We’ve haven’t been together that long.”

He stands, too, and wraps his arms around me, his stubble pricking my cheeks. I lean in to his security. “Time isn’t an indicator of love.”

I rest my hands on his chest. It feels so safe in his arms, but the urge not to repeat past mistakes shouts its mantra in my head.

Protect yourself. Look out for yourself. You can do it on your own.

“Reed, I just got here and besides, I have my mom, Jade, and my schooling to consider. I gave up everything I was working toward for a man before and look where I ended up.”

He steps back, and my hands fall between us.

“I’m not Pete.” His eyes fill with an anger I’ve never seen from him before.

“I know, but you’ve got to see where I’m coming from.”

He steps forward again, taking my hands in his. “I know you’re scared. I know you’ve been hurt, but I’m not him. I’ll take care of you and Jade and your mom