Resisting Ryder(17)
“Not silly at all,” Brooklyn said. “It makes sense. Plus this has been a long week for you. I’m sure you’re feeling all kinds of different feelings right now.”
“That I am,” Stormy agreed. “My emotions are pretty much all over the place. I just want to feel normal again.”
“What the hell is normal anyway?” Brooklyn laughed. “No such thing. I will tell you, though, that you need to stop hiding away in this big, old house. It’s not good for you. There’s a life outside those doors waiting for you.”
“I’m sure I’m the talk of the town,” she said. “I don’t even want to go to the grocery store. Anytime I leave the house, people stare at me with those hateful, judgmental eyes. I’m sure Misty’s trashed my name to three-fourths of the town.”
“Who the hell cares what anyone says?” Brooklyn yelled. “Screw them all. What other people think of you is none of your business. Are you living your life for you? Or are you living your life for them?”
“Good point,” Stormy said.
“So what did this guy want anyway?” Brooklyn asked.
Stormy took a deep breath. “He claims one of his men killed Jett. He wants me to help him find out who it was.”
“His men?”
“Yeah, he’s the VP of the Hellfire Motorcycle Club,” she replied. “I guess they’re rivals?”
“Mind. Blown,” Brooklyn said.
“Want to move to California?” Stormy said as she changed the subject. “I’m completely serious.”
“Why California?” Brooklyn asked. She scratched her head before her eyes widened. “Oh, my God. That’s where his brother lives, isn’t it?”
Stormy couldn’t hide the crooked half-smile that was forming on her lips. “I just think it’d be a good change. This town doesn’t have anything else to offer me. Aren’t you tired of the same old thing?”
“Your family’s here,” Brooklyn said with her head cocked to the side. “You’d miss them too much. You’d get homesick and want to turn around and come back home after a day or two.”
“No, I wouldn’t,” Stormy insisted. “That’s why I need you there. You’re family to me.”
“It’s tempting,” Brooklyn said. “We need jobs though. We can’t just up and move.”
“I’m a nurse. I’ll find a job. I’ll support us both until you get something. It’ll be fine. We can make this work.” Stormy’s eyes pleaded with Brooklyn. “Please? Just think about it?”
Brooklyn sighed as she leaned back into the couch. A smile slowly spread across her mouth as she was clearly entertaining the idea of moving to California.
“Please?” Stormy begged again. “I need something new. Different.”
Brooklyn laughed and rolled her eyes. “I’ll think about it.”
Stormy reached across the couch and hugged her. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
“So tell me more about this brother of his,” Brooklyn asked. “Does he have any hot friends?”
“Ha,” Stormy laughed. “I have no idea. I’m sure you’ll have your pick of the litter in California.”
“I’ve always wanted to be some guy’s old lady,” Brooklyn laughed. Stormy knew she was half serious though.
Stormy knew Brooklyn would fit right in out west with her tall, lithe frame, ocean blue eyes, and platinum blonde hair. She never looked like she belonged in Coleville in the first place.
“Do you think I’m being irrational?” Stormy asked in all seriousness. “Something about spending those few days with Ryder just made me want to leave Coleville. There’s so much more out there. I used to think I’d be content to stay here forever, but now it feels like torture. Every street sign, every building, every tree all reminds me of Jett and the life we’ll never have. I want to get out of here. Away from Misty. Away from the rumors.”
“I think a change would be good for you,” Brooklyn said. “Anything’s better than treading water. I don’t want you to stay here, in this house, reliving the bad things over and over again. I know that’s what you’d do. You need to think about the next chapter. You need to think about what happens after this.”
Stormy nodded as she fought back tears. She knew Brooklyn was right. If she stayed here, she’d be stuck in that awful moment, reliving everything all over again, night after night.
“I don’t want to sell the trailer, Brooklyn,” Stormy sighed. “But I don’t have a single dollar to my name.”