The Last Song(67)
“Ronnie,” Will filled in.
“Whatever,” Scott snapped. “You’re missing the point.”
Will smiled. “Did you ever realize you have more opinions about my life than your own life?”
“That’s because I don’t mess things up like you do.”
Will gave an involuntary twitch, flashing back to the night of the fire and wondering if Scott was really so clueless.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Will said, but he realized that Scott wasn’t listening. Instead, his gaze was focused over Will’s shoulder, on a spot down the beach.
“You’ve got to be kidding,” Scott mumbled.
Will turned around and saw Ronnie approaching. In jeans and a dark T-shirt, of course, looking as out of place as a crocodile in Antarctica. A huge grin spread over his face.
He started toward her, drinking in the sight of her, wondering again what she was thinking. He loved the fact that he couldn’t completely figure her out.
“Hey,” he said, reaching for her.
She stopped, just out of reach. Her expression was serious. “Don’t kiss me. Just listen, okay?”
Sitting beside him in the truck, Ronnie remained as enigmatic as ever. She stared out the window, smiling faintly, seemingly content to watch the scenery.
Ronnie brought her hands together in her lap. “I want you to know my dad won’t care that you’re wearing shorts and a tank top.”
“It’s only going to take a few minutes.”
“But it’s supposed to be a casual dinner.”
“I’m hot and sweaty. I’m not going to come to your house for dinner with your dad dressed like a bum.”
“But I just said he won’t care.”
“I care, though. Unlike some people, I like to make a good impression.”
Ronnie bristled. “Are you saying I don’t?”
“Of course not. For instance, everyone I know loves to meet people with purple hair.”
Though she knew he was teasing, her eyes widened and then narrowed suddenly. “You don’t seem to have a problem with it.”
“Yes, but that’s because I’m special.”
She crossed her arms and stared at him. “Are you going to be like this all night?”
“Like what?”
“Like someone with no shot of ever, ever kissing me again?”
He laughed and turned toward her. “I apologize. I didn’t mean it. And actually, I like the purple streaks. It’s… who you are.”
“Yeah, well, you’ll just have to learn to be more careful with what you say next time.” As she spoke, she opened his glove compartment and began sifting through it.
“What are you doing?”
“Just looking. Why? Are you hiding something?”
“Feel free to sort through all of it. And while you’re at it, maybe you could straighten it up a bit.”
She pulled out a bullet and held it up so he could see. “I suppose this is what you use to kill ducks, right?”
“No, that’s for deer. It’s too big for a duck. The duck would be shredded to pieces if I shot it with that.”
“You have serious problems, you know.”
“So I’ve heard.”
She giggled before settling into silence. They were on the intracoastal side of the island, and between the ever-growing sprawl of houses, the sun was glinting off the water. She closed the glove compartment and lowered the visor. Noticing a photograph of a lovely blonde, she pulled it out and examined it.
“She’s pretty,” Ronnie commented.
“Yeah, she is.”
“Ten bucks says you posted this on your Facebook page.”
“You lose. That’s my sister.”
He watched as her gaze flickered from the photo to his wrist, eyeing the macramé wristband.
“What’s with the matching bracelets?” she asked.
“My sister and I make them.”
“To support a worthy cause, no doubt.”
“No,” he said, and when he said nothing else, he was impressed that she seemed to intuit that he didn’t want to say anything more. Instead, she carefully tucked the photo back in place and lifted the visor again.
“How far away do you live?” Ronnie asked.
“We’re almost there,” Will assured her.
“If I’d known it was this far away, I would have walked home. Since we’re heading farther and farther away from my house, I mean.”
“But you would have missed my scintillating conversation.”
“Is that what you call it?”
“Do you plan on insulting me some more?” He glanced at her. “I just need to know whether or not to turn up the music so I don’t have to hear it.”