Loving Charley (14 page)

Horror flashes across my
face. Please God don’t tell me what I think he’s about to say.
“Don’t go there, Charley. I’m not a monster, and you know it.”
Taking a deep breath, I sit up and continue to listen to a story
that I don’t want to believe. “One night, the night I went out with
Tessa and Sally came, we had them play along. Dustin and I gave
Trent the whole package, made him think we were going to give them
“Z,” and more importantly, Sally and Tessa went along with
it.”

“What do you mean they went
along with it’?”

“Charley, we did everything
Trent told us to do, but with one minor change. When we put the “Z”
into their drink, we actually switched the drinks. We drank
it.”

“You did
wha
t?!” I
shout.

“I couldn’t do that to
those two, and if we were going to do that, we had to have two
people we trusted with us.”

“Question.” Cash waits for it. “How
did you make it home driving if y’all drank it? It took no time for
that to have an effect on me.”

“Well, Dustin and I split
the dose between us first of all, and we were in my truck. As soon
as we were out of sight of the party, Tessa took the wheel. Then,
they took us to the club to sleep it off.”

“I just don’t understand
why?”

“Char-coal, at that point,
you weren’t taking action, and if you weren’t, then I had to do
something.”

“So, why are you just now telling
me?”

“Because I have a feeling
that Dylan is going to try to use that against me in court. I’m
ahead of him, though. My lawyer already knows, and Dustin and I
have video of deals made in Trent’s house, along with documentation
of what we were doing. We have pictures of us that night. We have
everything that the court will need to stop this entire
operation.”

Letting my tense body
relax, I realize that Cash didn’t break me; he freed me once again.
He truly is my knight in an F250 and a pair of Carhartts. A smile
spans across my face.

“You do realize that I thought you
were about to break me into a million pieces?”

No longer wanting to have
any distance between us, Cash moves to sit directly in front of me,
brushing my hair behind my ear. “I could never break you because
that would demolish my soul. Our souls are intertwined forever, and
what you feel, I feel.”

Looking into his eyes, I
see deep into his soul, and I know he speaks the truth. Regardless
of everything going on in my life, he has never lied to me. Placing
my hand on his cheek, I bite my lip and agree silently as we remove
all space between us. His lips are light yet needy. We move in
perfect unison, as we know that there are no walls between us, and
we make use of every moment we have until my phone begins to play
“Hell on Heels,” and Piper interrupts us.

“Hey,” I say
shortly.

“Did I just interrupt
something?”

“What do you think?” I ask in a
smart-ass tone.

“Maybe Cash needs to give
in so you won’t be such a smart ass.” She laughs.

“Haha! You know better than
that. So, what are y’all doin’?” I question.

“Finally moving. I guess
it’s safe to say we missed breakfast, huh?”

“Yeah, but it’s okay. I
needed to sleep in. We can always go to IHOP or something if y’all
still want breakfast.”

I hear Piper ask Joe what
he wants, and I glance at Cash who basically doesn’t care what we
do as long as we are together.

“That sounds great. Give us
about thirty minutes, and we’ll be ready to go.” We hang up, and I
fall right back into Cash Money’s arms. “We have thirty minutes.” I
wink.

“Well, how about you just
let me hold you for a few minutes before we get ready?”

“Sounds absolutely
perfect.”

Cash holds me in his arms,
and we talk about random stuff. When we get up, I take a super
quick shower, get ready, and throw my hair up into a messy bun.
Cash is packed and ready to go, and just seeing him standing there
with his bags makes my heart sink.

“Hey, no need for that,
Char-coal. These next few weeks will be over before you know it.
Then, hopefully, court will be behind us, and we will be spending a
weekend away at the Florida Georgia Line concert. That brings a
smile to my face. I hope Cash gets off easy, and I don’t have to
take Tessa instead. “Whatcha thinkin’?” he asks.

“That I sure hope Tessa doesn’t have
to go with me to the concert.”

Dropping his bag to the
floor, he walks toward me, pulls me in for a strong hug, and tells
me that he promises it will be us. There is one thing I know about
Cash; he always keeps his promises.

“Now, let’s go. I feel a
big ol’ stack of pancakes callin’ my name,” he says as he takes me
by the hand, and we make our way to meet Piper and Joe.

They are waiting for us by
Joe’s Jeep. Knowing that Piper has to leave, she drives separately
from Joe. I decide to ride with Cash since I know I can ride back
to campus with Joe.

After sliding into the
middle of the front bench seat, I rest my head on Cash’s shoulder
for part of the ride. Cash turns up the radio to our favorite
country station. We sing every word that comes through the
speakers, but when Brantley Gilbert begins to play, I think my face
turns a million shades of red.

“Whatcha blushin’ for?”

“I have no idea what you’re
talkin’ about, Cash Money.”

“I know exactly why you’re
blushin’, but there’s no reason for it. Honestly, that’s one of the
highlights of our relationship.”

I gasp. “And to think I was
really starting to wonder if I could make you give in just a teeny
tiny bit.”

“I’d have given in a long time ago,
but there’s always a time and a place for everything.”

“Why do you have to always
be right? It drives me crazy.”

“Hopefully, it just makes
you crazier for me,” he says with a smile.

“Oh, it does.” I give him a
few kisses on his neck as he is driving, and he informs me I better
stop before we wreck.

As we pull into IHOP, we
are greeted by Piper and Joe having a little “them time” in Joe’s
Jeep. I’m not really sure how they got here before us, but, oh
well.

“Um, do we interrupt them,
or just go on in?” Cash questions as he points to them.

“I’ll text her.” After a
brief moment, they break apart and exit the Jeep.

We enter with a little awkward silence
as we are seated. After the waitress takes our drink and food
order, things get back to normal. We just cut up and enjoy the next
hour before we all have to go our separate ways.

After we eat, we hang out
outside as we avoid saying goodbye. When the inevitable is upon us,
each couple goes their separate ways after I tell Piper bye. Joe
and Piper go to her car, and Cash and I go to his truck.

As he places his arms
around my waist, he asks, “You remember the last time I told you
bye in a parking lot?”

As I slide my arms around
his neck, I reply, “I sure do. That was the moment I realized we
would never be over.”

“What do you mean that’s the moment
you knew?”

“Cash Money, I could fight
us from now until the cows come home, but what’s the point? That
day when I drove off and back to school, deep down I knew that even
if I wanted to be on my own, you would be at the finish line. I
love you, and I always have regardless of how stubborn I am. It was
just something I had to do. You. Are. My. Forever.”

He tilts his head to meet
mine, and we don’t talk with words, but with actions until I hear
Joe clearing his throat.

“Sorry to break up the
party, but Piper’s about to head out. Looking up, I see her backing
out of the space. She has her window down and is yelling bye to us
as she pulls onto the main road.
Gosh, I
love that girl.
Cash places his arm around
my shoulder and pulls me in close as we wave goodbye to
her.

“She sure is somethin’,” I
say.

“Y’all have no idea.” Joe
smirks.

“Just give me a minute, and
I’ll be ready. Okay, Joe?”

“Just meet me at the Jeep.
Cash, I’ll take care of her, and I’ll see ya soon,” he says as they
shake hands.

As Joe turns to go to his
Jeep, I realize that this is it. The next time I see Cash will
either be in court or the night before the hearing.

“Don’t. Char-coal. Don’t,”
Cash says in a hushed tone.

Trying my best to force
back tears, I shake my head okay, but inside, I never want to leave
him. I want to throw away everything I’ve worked toward and spend
every moment possible with him until the future is
decided.

“Just think. The next time
you see me, this will be at an end. Dylan will have his verdict and
so will I. We will come out on top, so don’t you worry your cute
little ass about it. Do you understand me?”

“Okay.” I
quiver.

“Promise me,” he says
confidently.

“I promise.”

“I love you, Charley Anne
Rice, and when this is over, our life is truly going to start.”
Then, he kisses me deep into my soul.

“I love you too, Cash
Porter Montgomery, and I can’t wait to spend every mornin’ wakin’
up beside you, and when I close my eyes at night, you’re there,
too.” He hugs me tight and kisses me once more before he walks me
to Joe’s Jeep.

Cash opens the door like
the true Southern gentleman he is and guides me to the seat before
he closes the door. I roll down the window, and he leans in and
brushes his lips against mine one last time then he tells us bye,
turns, and walks to his truck. I swear nothing can brighten my day
better than watching him walk away, even though it breaks my heart
because an ass shouldn’t look that good in a pair of
Carhartts.

Joe starts to laugh.
“What?” I ask.

“You got it bad.”

“Whatever, like you can
talk,” I banter right back.

“You got a point.”

He puts the Jeep in
reverse, and we make our way back to Southern. The entire way back,
I play twenty questions with him about Piper. By the time we
finish, I’ve embarrassed him so much that he doesn’t answer the
questions, but I keep them coming anyway. Finally, I stop because
he’s starting to get pissed off. Personally, I think it’s funny.
Him, not so much.

“On a serious note,
Jackalope Joe, if you hurt her, I’ll kill ya. Ya got
it?”

“If it was any other girl,
I might not take you seriously, but I saw the line of trophies
hanging in the living room at your parents’ house. I don’t doubt
you one bit, but I promise not to hurt her. If anything, I’m
worried about her hurting me.”

That kinda stung when Joe
said it because I know Piper. She’s head over heels for him, but
she also has never been one to settle down. She’s usually on to the
next guy when she gets bored, but she also has never stood up for a
guy like she did for Joe over the break with me. I know that there
is more than just moving on.

“I know her, and I can
promise you this. She has
never
been this way over
any
guy. I believe you’re safe.
Hell, if she hurts you, I just might whoop her ass.” I
laugh.

“Uh, Squirrel, let’s don’t.
That would revoke my man card,” he says like he’s
wounded.

“True.”

Before we know it, we are
crossing the railroad tracks onto campus. Joe parks, and I tell him
bye. As I start to walk to my dorm, he hollers at me. I turn
around, and he’s walking toward me.
Confused. That’s me.

“I wasn’t sure when I
should give this to you, but I figured I better go ahead,” he says
as he pulls a folded piece of paper from his pocket. Slowly, he
hands it to me.

“What is it?” I question.

“It’s from Cash. He wanted you to read
it after he left.”

“Left? What do you mean
‘left’?” Panic sets in my tone.

“Charley, don’t go there. I meant when
he went back home.”

“Oh, okay.” I grip it
tighter in my hand. “Thanks,” I say as I turn to leave, but decide
to ask one more question. “Hey Joe, do you really think he’s going
to be all right?”

“I don’t think he’s the one I’m going
to have to worry about. Squirrel, just promise me no matter the
outcome that you don’t do anything stupid. No more plans. You got
me?”

Trying to avoid tears, I
agree quickly and turn to go to my room. My hands begin to tremble
just thinking about what might be in that note. I want to open it,
but I’m scared.
Why am I scared to open
something from my Cash Money?
Trying to be
incognito from the Kluft girls, I sneak into my room to see what’s
going on, but realize that Georgia has already spotted
me.

“Char, are you okay? I
mean, besides the fact that Cash has gone home.”

Shaking my head no, my face scrunches
together as I force back tears. She sees the note in my
hand.