Brady Remington Landed Me in Jail (24 page)

It wasn't long before we had pulled up to my house. The lights were lit, then the door flew open and my grandparents stumbled out. I heard Viola shriek in laughter. Neil laughed in his baritone after.

"Rayna!" She swung her arms in the air and giggled. "Wait there, we'll come to you."

She fell at one point even with her arm draped over Neil's shoulder as they weaved their way towards us.

"Oh god," Brady groaned.

Viola fell again and her feet lifted in the air. I bit back a laugh.

Neil stood and looked down. He'd dropped her, but then bent with his arms outstretched to scoop her up. She grunted, rolled over and scrambled to her feet. Then she threw back her head, let a laugh bellow out, and ran around him. Her fists pumped in the air and her knees followed suit, higher and higher. Neil followed suit, but his coveralls tripped him. Down he went.

My mouth fell open. When had my grandparents become drunken teenagers?

Viola fell beside me first and patted my knee. "Are you okay, honey? What'd that bastard say to you?"

I looked at Brady with an eyebrow raised. He shrugged as he bit his lip, and then he couldn't hold back. He bent over and his shoulders shook in laughter.

"Why are you guys drunk?"

"Oh," she snorted and waved a hand in the air. It took her back to the ground.

Neil cleared his throat and tried to stand tall. Brady snorted and grabbed his arm to help him upright. "We heard the news, honey."

"We did," Viola said from the ground.

"You punched Frank Stephens."

"Yohoo!"

"And your mother stopped by."

Everything stopped. It ground to a halt and I sucked in my breath. "What? What did you say?"

"Yeppers," Viola punched the air. "She came by and told us everything. You two can be together."

"Who?" Brady questioned.

"You two, you two lovebirds. Rayna, your father isn't Frank Stephens."

Neil grunted, "We're going to church tomorrow to praise the Lord."

She kept on, "And your dad died. He left you a bunch of money." Then she shot to her feet and a sobering look filled her face. "You don't have to do anything with it, Rayna. We sent your mom away. She can come another night, but I wanted to tell you first."

"My mom's still here?"

They both nodded at the same time.

Brady narrowed his eyes. "She was here, at the house here?"

Viola sniffed. "We sent her away."

"But your real father died, Rayna. We're really sorry."

"And he left her an inheritance?" Brady looked at her.

I looked down at my hands. They were clenched together in front of me. I knew all of this, but I hadn't cared when Frank Stephens ranted about my inheritance. I didn't care then and I don’t now. It was enough to know I wasn't related to Brady.

"You okay?"

I looked up and met Brady's eyes. "I'm good. I'm really good."

He walked over and pressed a kiss to my forehead. Then he whispered, "I'll be right back. Don't go to bed. Stay out here."

I nodded and smiled when his hand squeezed mine before he left.

"Where's he going?"

Viola turned all the way around. "I don't know."

I sighed, "He'll be back. He wants to do something for me."

Neil leaned against the car and shook his head. "We're sorry we're a bit inebriated right now, Rayna. It's not been an easy night for us."

Viola swung her arms around, her body followed suit. "Yeah, he's right. I was shaking so much from your momma that I needed a drink to calm down. I had a few too many, then I got my hubby to start with me. It reminded us of our honeymoon days. You remember those days, honey?"

"I sure do." He sounded gruff as he wiped at an eye.

"Look at that, he's still so in love with me that he sheds a tear. Just like you and Brady."

Neil wrapped an arm around his wife. "We both love you very much, Rayna."

I blinked back sudden tears. "I love you, too."

"And tomorrow is your graduation. We've got something special planned." She patted my knee. "Congratulations, honey. You and Brady deserve each other. You're soul mates. I always thought it, but I pissed myself when I didn't know whose daddy was whose." She twisted and looked at her husband. "Did you know that? I peed my pants that night."

Neil shook his head. "We should go to bed before we traumatize our granddaughter any more than we already have tonight."

She twisted back. "I love you. I guess that's all I've got to say. For now. Oh—and what a wallop you must've given to Frank Stephens. He deserved it. Good job, Rayna!" She threw a closed fist in the air and her body followed once more.

Neil caught her before she fell, then shook his head before he smiled at me. "Goodnight, honey. Congratulations on your graduation."

My throat was choked up again.

As he pulled Viola inside, I heard her say, "Frank Stephens deserves worse than that. I think Rayna is the best daughter I could ever have…"

Neil soothed her, "Yes, dear. I love you, too."

I took a deep breath after the door shut and muffled their voices. They might've been drunk, but they loved me. They would fight on my side. I didn't know what to think about all of that, but my grandfather was right. It was my graduation tomorrow. I should focus on that. There was nothing else I could control…

"Hey." Brady stood by the house with his hands stuffed in his pockets. He pulled me against his side once I drew near. "I figured those two kids wanted some time with you."

Those two kids, I grinned at that thought. Then he lifted me in the air and hoisted my legs around his waist.

"Brady!"

He chuckled and started to walk around the house, into the woods.

"Where are we going?" The path to his house went the other way.

He held me tighter and put a hand over my head to shield me. "I told you I wanted to do something for you."

"What?"

"You're already demanding in this relationship."

My head turned into the crook between his shoulder and I nipped him lightly.

"And I already know you like it rough," Brady chuckled and hoisted me higher. He turned from the path onto another path. I'd forgotten about the maze from when we were kids. The woods had been home to many never neverlands.

"Here we are." Brady put me back on the ground and I turned to look.

What I saw made me speechless. It was our tree house we built before seventh grade. Brady, Kid, and I had a lot of sleepovers that summer.

"Wait a second." Brady climbed up the tree and ducked inside. Light shone through the windows a minute later and I was able to see that the tree house had new siding and new flooring. He'd been hard at work.

He stepped out on the tiny balcony, smiling. "Okay, come up."

My heart skipped a beat and I shook my head, wiping a tear from my cheek.

"Come on." His smile turned tender. "I want to hold you again."

My heart went into warp speed, but I took a deep breath and grabbed the bottom of the ladder. I could think about how dreamy Brady was later. He stepped aside when I got to the top and my eyes were wide when I saw the inside. Bedding was spread out across the floor with two pillows at one end. Mason jars hung from the ceiling with tea lights inside. They were lit and surrounded by sand. A few of them were in the corner, near the pillows.

Brady stepped around me. "I figure the jars are safe. If they fall or tip over, the sand will put out the candle."

My mouth had fallen open. I closed it now and turned to him. "When did you do this?"

"I did the tree house a while ago, but I grabbed everything real quick just now. I had it all set aside."

"This is so…" I was speechless.

The glow from the candles gave the room a romantic look. The bedding gave it a cozy look. He bent and opened the bed. Inside was a small black box, nestled among the covers. My eyes went even wider and my mouth fell open again. The tears spilled free now.

"It's not a ring, but I bought this a long time ago." He sat down and patted next to him. As I sat, he opened the box and I saw a bracelet made of colorful beads. A small heart hung from it. Brady took my hand and slipped it on. "I bought this last year when I decided to stay and wait for you."

"It has your heart," I teased. Then I looked up and saw how serious he was. My heart continued fluttering away.

Brady leaned down and kissed me softly. One of his hands cupped the side of my face and he deepened the kiss. We lay down slowly, still kissing. Brady rested on his elbow and lifted his head. Looking down on me, he then traced the side of my face and lingered over my lips.

I reached up and held the side of his face with my hand. Overcome with emotion, I barely managed out, "I love you so much. I don't think I'm going to get tired of telling you that. I finally can."

Brady caught my hand and kissed it. He closed his eyes for a moment. When they opened, I saw a small tear at the corner of one. "It's you and me, Rayna. Now. Forever. No matter what."

I leaned up and kissed away the tear. "Deal."

He smiled tenderly and then kissed me as we both lay down. We didn't speak the rest of the night. Later, when I curled in his arms and closed my eyes, I knew everything else would be okay. The next chapter would start tomorrow.

The End

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