Cocky Notes - Leesa Bow Page 0,33
take a moment when I park my car in our driveway, inhale a single deep breath, and wipe my eyes before heading inside to face Dad.
His door is shut. There are soft voices on the other side of it.
Collapsing onto my bed, I curl up into a ball and allow the tears to flow quietly. The knife in my heart twists—the pain of a fool. Everything I ever thought was true.
The joke is on me.
I trusted him.
I allowed him to penetrate my walls believing everything he told me.
Bellas before Fellas.
Why didn’t I listen to Georgia?
I envisaged spending so much time with him this weekend, surprising him with a picnic on Sunday.
A sob escapes my lips as a sharp pain rips down the centre of my gut. I’m sliced open, raw, and hurting. I muffle the tears, not wanting the sound to go beyond my room.
I close my eyes. All I see is him.
I open them again with no clue how to get Reef out of my head.
What a crappy way to start the weekend.
Chapter Fourteen
MACY
Seven missed calls.
Three texts.
One Instagram message from Chance.
I can’t bear to look at the texts from Reef, so I read Chance’s message.
Heading to the airport now. It’s not too late to change your mind for a road trip.
For the past hour, Dad and Bernadette have been in the kitchen. It’s odd to think someone else is here in our space, and I’m not sure if I’m comfortable with it. I thought this was what I wanted. Like Reef and I. Thought the sex was all I wanted. Last night was too much. Too much emotion. What I do know is I don’t want Reef to say it was a misunderstanding and convince me to go to him. Have me believe it was all in my head. I know what I saw. For him to be with semi-naked girls so soon after I left, I—
I’m acting jealous and insecure.
It’s not who I am, and since I’ve been with Reef, I’m recognising myself less.
Water pipes vibrate inside the wall near my room. It’s how I know someone is taking a shower. I get dressed and head out to the kitchen not sure who I’ll find.
Dad looks up from reading the paper at the table. A dirty frying pan sits on the stove. “Morning, love. I didn’t hear you come in last night.”
“Hey.” I lean over and kiss him on the top of his head. “I changed my mind. Decided not to go out.”
He gives me a pointed look as though he knows something’s up. He’s recognised the signs since I was a little girl.
“You sound chirpy. So, I’m guessing last night went well.”
He winks at me, and I don’t want to think about it further.
“I was thinking maybe Bernadette might like to stay tonight as well,” I say, thinking about Chance’s message. I’ve taken the worst risk by opening my heart to trust Reef, so not much else can scare me. A road trip should be a piece of cake.
“We only planned one night. Taking it slow and all. But we really hit it off, and slow is for you young folk because time isn’t on our side. Guess there’s no harm in asking her.”
“Well, if not, it’s fine. I was trying to be spontaneous. And since you’re always telling me to go out, I had an idea. Remember the road trip with Chance Bateman I was telling you about?”
“Vaguely.”
“It’s today. He sent me a message earlier this morning. I thought it might be a good chance for me to get away for a weekend. One night only. But if you don’t want me to go—”
“Go pack your stuff.” Dad takes my hand from his shoulder and squeezes it. “Even if she weren’t here, I’d tell you to go. You don’t have to worry so much now I’m off the beer.”
“Are you sure?” I slide into the chair next to him to gauge if he’s sincere.
“Yes. I’m happy you’re agreeing to do this. Go… have some fun. And don’t worry about whoever put the sad look in your eyes.”
I stand and want to tell him there’s no-one to worry about, but I know better than to lie to him. “I’ll do my best,” I say and head to my room.
“Where’s the furthest you’ve travelled inland?” Chance asks me.
We’re two hours into the road trip, and I’m loving the rolling green hills of farms dotted with windmills and the fields painted yellow with canola in flower.
“Not far. I mean