Had she met someone online? Or maybe she was going to visit a guy from her college days. I know she’d had a couple boyfriends when she was going to NYU, but as far as I knew, she never kept in touch with them.
A burning sensation started in my chest and the heat spread up the back of my neck. Jealousy wasn’t an emotion that I was used to having so I didn’t immediately recognize that’s what it was.
I did my best to ignore my reaction as I continued to calmly explain the situation to Miss Shaw, “I am going to Indiana to see my mom. Alone.”
“Gotcha.” Miss Shaw double clicked her tongue the way people who worked with horses did as she pointed at me.
Shit.I had a feeling that word of Miss Shaw’s delusions and jumps to false conclusions was going to spread.
From the gleam in her eyes, I knew that I could stand here till I was blue in the face denying that the two trips had anything to do with one another, but all that would serve to do would be to convince her that they actually did.
Even though I wanted to defend myself and ask a million more questions about Cheyenne’s trip I knew that wouldn’t do either of us any favors. I forced myself to smile and wave. “I better get on the road. Have a good evening.”
“You two, t-w-o. Get it, you two.” She held up her hand in a peace sign.
I sighed as I climbed in the truck as she giggled at her own joke and continued sweeping. Apparently, jealousy released adrenaline because I was teeming with it as I backed up. As much as I wanted to peel out, I forced myself to slowly pull away and waved as I started down the street.
The last thing I needed was to make a scene and then have people ask Miss Shaw what we were talking about before I took off like a bat out of hell.
I maintained the speed limit as I made my way out of town. But my mind was going hundreds of miles a minute. I was trying to remember every conversation Cheyenne and I ever had for clues about who in the hell she was meeting.
Then it hit me. Everything she’d said after the wedding.
I’m a virgin.
I want you to be my first.
I don’t want to lose my virginity to anyone else.
Holy shit. I hit the brakes and turned my wheel, flipping a bitch. This time my tires did screech and I didn’t give a damn.
Was she going to meet someone to have sex with?
It was pedal to the metal as I swerved and cut down a service road that would shave a good two minutes off my route to her house.
My heart was pounding as I raced down the deserted road and tried to come up with a plan so I didn’t just show up on her door seeming like a madman. I’d stop by her place and just check in with her, let her know that I was going to visit my mom. And while I was there, I’d see if she mentioned anything about her trip. If she didn’t, I sure as hell would.
There was no way I was going to let Cheyenne go to Nashville to meet up with some guy that she’d met online to take her virginity.
When I pulled up to her place, it hit me that I’d never stopped by unannounced, or at all. She always came to my place. My reasons had been out of respect. This was Billy’s house, but now that I thought there might be a chance that she was meeting someone that reasoning went out the window.
Adrenaline was coursing through me as I stepped out of my truck and made my way up to the door. My palms were sweaty as I lifted my hand and knocked.
What if I was too late?
Not literally, her car was still in the driveway, so I knew that she hadn’t left yet.
But had I missed my chance with her?
I didn’t actually care about that at this moment. All I cared about was her safety.
When she didn’t come to the door, I lifted my hand to knock again just as the lock unclicked and I heard her speaking on the other side of it. “Hold on, someone’s at the door.”
I lowered my arm and my heart thundered. Was she talking to the person she was going to see on her road trip?
The door opened and Cheyenne was holding her phone to her ear. Her eyes widened in surprise and her lips parted.
I was surprised too. Not to see her, obviously. I was at her house. What had taken me back was how it felt to see her. To be this close to her after two weeks of not having any real contact, besides a few short texts and stolen glances through plexiglass—it almost knocked me right on my ass.