Teach Me To Live (Teach Me - Book One) (21 page)

“Austin . . .” The sound of the moan that was my name on her lips, lit a fire so deep inside of me, I wanted nothing more than to lay her out across the seat, and lose myself inside her. But her hand on my chest reminded me where I was. She pushed against me and I pulled away, only slightly. “We can’t,” she breathed deeply. “We can’t do this.”

“Why not?” I asked. “We’re only making out.”

“In daylight!” She whispered-hissed even though there was no one else around. We were on a back road that wasn’t even close to being considered popular. “And we’re making out in your truck. What if someone drives by?”

“What if someone drives by?” I repeated, interested in hearing her thoughts on the matter.

“Well,” she sputtered. “I would be embarrassed.”

“Why?”

“Because!” She stammered. “We’re making out in your truck!”

“So what?”

“So . . .” She shook her head. “You’re an odd creature, Austin. We’re making out in your truck like two ill-mannered teenagers who are completely living up to the horny stereotype that comes with being young.”

All right, well the girl definitely had an opinion. But so did I. “We are horny. Well, I certainly am. On top of that, we’re also teenagers. And who cares if we’re living our life, falling into some teenage stereotype, at least we’re
living.
” I lay my palm open against her thigh and she sighed shakily. “We’re feeling, Madison. We’re living. If we get caught kissing in a truck on the side of the road, whoever catches us is going to go on their way, thinking we’re young, in love, and lucky as fuck.”

Her breath caught and her eyes connected with mine. Then, she kissed me. Hard.

She was filled with carnal desire that consumed my veins with something new, something I had only ever felt with her, something I felt for the first time last night. Pure pleasure. Just knowing that I was lighting her on fire was world changing. It was catastrophic and idyllic. Perfect.

She was perfect.

She was my wish. My dying wish.

When we finally pulled up to Austin’s house, it was almost 6:00 pm. We made out in his truck like two kids without any inhibitions at all for nearly an hour. We’d been interrupted only by the sound of Austin’s phone ringing in the pocket of his jeans. Honestly, if his phone hadn’t begun to ring, I think we would have been lost to our make out session all night long. But seriously, I could have kissed him forever.

When Austin answered his phone, it had been his Mom calling. I could hear her through the phone I was sitting so close to Austin. She asked if he wouldn’t mind stopping at the store to grab hot dog buns, as his father had forgotten to look at the list she’d given him, when she’d sent him to the store. In the background, I heard a man yell that she hadn’t given him a list. The man could have only been Austin’s father.

Austin laughed and agreed to pick up the buns. Now, we were pulling into his driveway.

I climbed down from the truck. “Shouldn’t we be going to your parent’s house?”

“I gotta change, sweetheart. This heat is killing me in these jeans.”

“Oh,” I felt my eyes lower to his jeans. “In that case, I’ll use your bathroom and fix myself up. And, I should probably put this beautiful bunch of flowers into a vase.”

His eyes lingered on my mouth after scanning my body. “Yeah, you can totally tell I’ve been kissing you for an hour. You should definitely fix yourself up.”

“Oh, my god,” I covered my mouth with my hands. “Are you serious?”

He laughed, tugging me into his side. “I’m kidding. Besides, no one would care even if they knew.”

“Austin!” I huffed.

“What?” He shrugged. “I’m telling you the truth. They wouldn’t care if we spent the night kissing on the side of the road and missed the barbecue. They’d be happy for me. Kaiden would probably be jealous that I was getting some and not him, but that’s besides the point.”

“Oh, my goodness!” I shook my head, palming him in the chest. “You’re unbelievable.”

“You like me.”

I loved him.

I didn’t say that.

“I do like you, Austin,” I confirmed. “A lot.”

He paused in the middle of opening the front door to his trailer. “I like you too, sweetheart. A lot.” And then he kissed me. Again. And my heart rushed like it was the very first time all over again.

The kiss was over as quickly as it started. I would be totally lying if I were to say that I wasn’t disappointed. I was totally disappointed. I wanted more. So much more.

“Hurry and get changed,” I made a break for the kitchen. I found a vase, filled it with water, and dropped the arrangement of flowers into the liquid. Then I dashed into the small powder room and called, “I’m going to brush my hair and I’ll be ready.”

Austin didn’t say anything as he made his way into his bedroom. I noticed he didn’t bother closing his door and I blushed at the thought of him changing in front of me, even though I couldn’t actually see him from where I stood in the small bathroom. Shaking the totally inappropriate thoughts from my mind, I rummaged through my overnight bag for my comb. Then I worked the teeth through the strands of my messy hair.

By the time we made our way to Austin’s parent’s house, I had worked myself into a seriously tight bundle of nerves. My entire body felt as though it would possibly combust if I took even one more step toward the loud bellows of laughter I heard coming from the back of the house.

Austin tightened his hand around mine, tugging me gently forward. Thank goodness I didn’t explode the way I feared I might.

“It’ll be fine, sweetheart,” his voice was low and assuring in my ear. Still, I was nervous.

“I’ve never done this,” I whispered.

“Done what?”

“Meet a boys parent’s.”

He squeezed my hand. “I’m not just a boy.”

“What are you then?”

“I’m Austin Weir.” He said matter of fact and I giggled. “I’m the man who you’ve employed to teach you to live.”

“Oh, really?” I grinned up into his face. “I’ve employed you, have I?”

“Oh, yes.”

“And how am I paying you?”

“I take payment in kisses.”

“Ah,” I laughed.

Austin caught me quickly around the waist, tugging me against his chest. And then he dropped his head to mine. He kissed me deeply. “Like this,” he kissed me again. “And this.”

I breathed against his lips. “Well, after today I’d say I’ve definitely built up a credit.”

“Not even close,” he kissed the corner of my mouth. “See, I’m very pricy and I take my payment very seriously.” He kissed my jaw. “You’re still in the negative, sweetheart.” He nipped gently at the tender flesh blow my ear and I moaned.

“Austin,” I pushed gently against his chest. “I don’t want your parent’s to see me for the first time paying you in kisses.”

“Paying me in kisses,” he chuckled. “Dad would think I was the richest man alive.”

Again, I shook my head at him in a huff. “Your mother wouldn’t think that.”

“Why not?” He asked sounding mock appalled. “She’s been married to my Dad for over twenty years. She knows how us Weir men are.”

“I don’t doubt that.”

He laughed and it was such a wonderful sound, I found myself smiling with him. When his blue eyes caught sight of my grin, he dipped his head and assured. “They’ll love you, sweetheart.”

“Okay . . .”

“Are you ready to meet them?” He asked gently. “Say the word if you aren’t and we can go back to my place.”

I shook my head. “I’m ready.”

“Good,” he grinned happily. “I was hoping you’d say that. Mom’s excited and I didn’t want to disappoint.”

I groaned unhappily shoving him in his side. “You just had to tell me she was excited. Now I’m nervous all over again.”

He pressed a kiss to my temple and then he led me into the back yard.

I had no reason to fear meeting Austin’s parent’s. They were amazing.

Austin’s Mom, Gracie, was absolutely divine and his Dad, Keith, was quite the character. They were nothing like my parents, not that my parents were bad, because they weren’t. They were just a bit more uptight for the most part. My parents were model law-abiding citizens. Austin’s, however, were like fireworks. They were loud and funny and fun. They were the kind of people who grabbed life by the horns and just rode it. It didn’t seem to matter how rough the ride would be, they pushed on. I knew this by the stories they told of their lives together and the obstacles they had overcome.

Gracie and Keith were high school sweethearts. They were positively adorable together even though they had been married for over twenty years.

“So, Madison, you’re finished High School now?” Gracie came to sit beside me in the chair Austin had just vacated to help his brother and his Dad bring another pile of firewood closer.

“I am,” I smiled. “All finished.”

Gracie tipped her head to the side, studying me. “What’s next for you?”

“What do you mean?” I asked, not entirely sure of what she was asking.

“Are you going to start working?” She paused before continuing. “Are you planning to go to school? Austin tells me you really enjoy writing.”

“Austin told you that?” I asked, stunned.

“He did,” she admitted again.

I chewed the corner of my lip. “Wow.”

“So,” she nudged on. “Do you have plans to do something along the lines of writing?”

“Well,” I shifted, not quite comfortable with this conversation. Honestly, I didn’t have plans for my life. I just—didn’t. I needed a little time to figure out who I was, what I needed, and wanted from my life. Until then, I really didn’t want to make any decisions.

“No need to stress, sweetie.” She patted my knee. “If you don’t know, don’t push yourself. Eventually, it will come. What you are supposed to do with your life, and who you are supposed to become, can’t be forced.” She smiled with assurance. “I was just curious.”

Relieved, I replied. “I do really like to write.”

“There are a lot of opportunities you can take in life with writing.” She said, inspiringly.

“You think?” Dad had said there was nothing. I mean, I knew the stereotypes of the starving writer and all, but that’s really what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to write stories. I wanted to inspire people and make them
feel
and give them something to turn to when the world they walked within simply became too much. I want to be a source of
relief
for those who struggle with the pressures of the world, the way I do. I longed to give to others the peace and excitement I’ve always found within the pages of a book. I wanted to give hope for more, dreams for a future, and the assurance that no matter how bad it is, there is always something worth waiting for another sunrise.