Falling Fast (Falling Fast #1) - Tina Wainscott Page 0,37

doing, I’d say, ‘So far so good,’ even years later. I still think it.”

“Shit, the accident and cancer.” Rose was now focused on Mia, studying her face. “I guess we all got our trials. Even rich girls like you. You were in that crash with Raleigh. That’s you, right?”

“Yes.”

Rose took another chip from the bag, crunched it as she shifted to Raleigh, now wrestling with Cody. “Raleigh was sure worried about you. Did you know he checked himself out of the hospital and drove up to Atlanta to see you?”

Raleigh had Cody in a headlock, their bodies tangled together on the sand. Raleigh’s scar stretched down along the side of his deep rib cage.

“I just found out. I wish I’d known earlier.”

“What would you have done?”

Mia turned at the sharp question, seeing it reflected in Rose’s expression. “I would have understood how hard this was on him. I would have…” She swiped her finger down the condensation on the cup. “Tried harder to let him know I never blamed him.”

So Raleigh had talked to Rose about all this. And Rose was, it seemed, as protective of Raleigh as he was of her.

“So you don’t blame him?” Rose asked. “He thought you did, especially after you hung up on him.”

Mia winced. “I feel terrible about that. I just couldn’t process talking to him. We’ve cleared that up. Now he needs to forgive himself.”

“I think it goes deeper than that. I don’t think he believes he’s worthy of being forgiven. When you grow up poor—trailer trash, as we’re called—you take on other people’s opinions of you. Raleigh had it even harder; he had his father’s reputation to overcome. It was even more confusing for Raleigh, ’cause Hank was the lovable jerk. Charming as hell until you realized he’d taken your last dollar. Folks assumed the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, even though Raleigh wasn’t anything like him. Then, like his father, he went to jail. Afterward, he got a lot of hassles. He was the guy who hooked up with the pretty rich girl and then got her hurt bad. It took a while for him to earn back people’s respect. Life’s not fair, you know?”

Rose had called her rich twice. Is that how people saw her? “I know.”

“Yeah, I guess you do. Having cancer, getting hurt like you did.”

“I’m not rich, by the way. My parents have money, yes, but it’s their money.” She met Rose’s gaze. “Just to be clear.”

Rose smiled, showing a gap in her front teeth. “Gotcha. Didn’t mean to offend.”

“You didn’t.” She invariably found herself watching the guys again. Her eyes drank in Raleigh’s unabashed joy as he played. It hurt to think he’d suffered so much.

Rose’s voice pulled her back. “Raleigh said you and him had something special. Said you were the first girl he ever loved.”

Mia’s throat went dry. He’d loved her?

Rose’s voice took on that sharp tone again when she asked, “Did you love him? Or was he just a summer fling?”

Mia might have been offended at Rose’s gruff nosiness, but she knew it came from a protective place. “He was…my first, too.” First of everything, but she wasn’t going into that. “I loved him.” Her gaze went to the guys, who were making their way to the deck. Raleigh still had his arm locked around Cody’s neck, giving him a noogie. And a part of you still does.

“How long are you in town for?” Rose asked.

“Just another week. Then I head back to Minneapolis for my new job.”

“I don’t wanna go,” Cody whined, breaking loose of Raleigh’s hold. His plea echoed some deep part of Mia, she was surprised to realize. He turned to Raleigh, who was pulling on his shirt. “Can’t I stay and help longer?”

Raleigh’s eyes flicked to her, and Mia knew exactly what he was thinking. A buffer? Or barrier?

Rose made the decision, though. “You’re coming home. You can ride your bike or ride with me.” She gave Mia a knowing look. “These two have some catching up to do. They haven’t seen each other in seven years.”

Mia sensed that that was Rose’s stamp of approval. It was interesting to be on the other side of the protective scenario. Her parents had always played that role over her, and they viewed Raleigh as a threat. Rose, ironically, viewed her as one. To Raleigh’s heart. And maybe to her little family.

She’d seemed relieved to know that Mia was in town for only another week. Even she knew that wasn’t