Storm Front (The Charistown Series) (Volume 2) (13 page)

The taxi pulled up to the small tour bus and Leo all but ran
to the yellow car and hopped in. As he yanked it inward, a booted foot stopped
the door from closing. “What the hell, Le? You wanna break my leg?”

The warm smile and slight head nod from his best friend
tugged at Ryan’s heart, but the sincere gratitude warmed his soul. “Don’t thank
me, Leo. You guys are my family.” He tapped on the back of the taxi seat. “Take
us to Philadelphia International Airport, please.”

Standing in front of the television in her bedroom, Ashley
watched the meteorologist explain how Tropical Storm Wilma had turned into a
hurricane just before hitting the Turks and Caicos Islands. It’d then headed
toward the Bahamas and was currently on its way to Miami. Turks and Caicos were
a mangled disaster—and that was before the hurricane had even hit Level 3.
Wilma was now bearing down on the Bahamas, and like the Big Bad Wolf once it
was done with the houses made of straw and sticks, it was coming to blow their house
down.

A strong chill coursed through her body causing her to shake
to the point that her knees buckled beneath her. Thank God her bed had been
behind her or she would have fallen to the floor. “Oh, God, this is going to be
bad,” she whispered.

Tears stung her eyes as she grabbed her backpack and headed
to school. She could already feel the knots tying tightly in her stomach. A
Level 4 hurricane would most definitely cut off their power for at least a
couple of days. A few years back, their parents had installed a back-up
generator so she knew she wouldn’t be in the dark but she would need to limit
all electrical use in order to save generator power. She would have to limit
her phone use so as to not wear down her battery. That meant little time on the
phone with Leo and Ryan. Her stomach began to twist into knots.

Just as she pulled into the parking lot of the high school,
her phone rang. The name on the screen automatically loosened the fist in her
gut. She tried for unaffected and carefree when she answered the phone.

“Hi, Leo.”

“So, I take it you know about the storm.” Clearly she needed
to work on her acting skills. “Listen, sis, I know it’s a big one.”

“Leo, I’ll…umm, I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me.”

“Ashley, have you lost your fucking mind?” In true Leo
fashion, the question was sarcastic. “Of course I’m gonna worry about you.
Wouldn’t you be worried about me? Hell, if the situations were reversed, I’d
expect you to drop everything and get your ass home to be with my scared,
shaking ass.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at his description. Her brother
was the strongest person she knew but big storms were still his kryptonite. “So
that’s what we’re doing. Okay?”

We?
She thought.
We’re doing?

“Wait, Le.” She didn’t even want to say it out loud for fear
of getting her hopes up. “Le, is Ryan with you?”

“I’m right here, Princess,” she heard him say from a slight
distance. She was hopeful that the shrill squeal that left her throat that no
one outside her car could hear. The deep exhalation that left her lungs was so
cleansing she realized she must have been holding it since she first heard word
of the coming storm.

“So, here’s the problem. We’re at Philly airport but all the
flights are booked out until late tonight. We should get into Tampa around one
in the morning. We’ll rent a car and get to Miami by six at the latest. Any way
we slice it, we should be ahead of that storm because according to the latest
reports, it’s taking its sweet ass time in the Bahamas. Okay?”

“I don’t even know what to say.” Her throat was thick with
emotion leaving her voice a mere whisper. “Thank you so much. I love you both.
Travel safely.”

She disconnected her call and went about her day with less
fear and more smile.

Has. It. Snapped?

THE HEAVY DIP in her bed jolted her
out of her dreamless sleep. A smile tugged across her lips before she even
opened her eyes.

“Leo, you’re home.”

Excitement filled her sleep-addled body as she wound her
arms around him. “What time is it?” The red numbers on the digital clock sat on
her nightstand glowed four-thirty.

She knifed up and glared at her brother. “Leo Kynde, I said
to travel safely, you must have been driving at mach speed to get from Tampa to
here in three and half hours.” Her feigned annoyance made Leo laugh.

“There was no traffic and we were so close that I just
wanted to get home. Okay, Mom?” Even half asleep, Leo calling her ‘mom’ rankled
her nerves. She knew he must have caught her stink-eye when he immediately
recanted his statement. “Sorry, my bad. You know you’re nothing like her, and
so do I.” Ashley casually looked around her dark room. She was thrilled her
brother was there, but where was Ryan?

“Ash, you’re about as subtle as a heart attack. Ryan’s not
here. He told me to give you a wet juicy kiss—which I’m so
not
gonna do.”

He did, however, cup the back of her skull and placed a
Leo
kiss
on the top of her head. “He told me to tell you that he wanted to see
his dad and help him get his house ready for the storm. He also said he would
meet you here right after school. He wants you to call him when you get up
later this morning.”

Disappointment edged its way through Ashley’s mind but her
sensibility quickly stepped in when she remembered how wonderful Martin Baker
was.

Ryan’s dad was such a warm, caring man and such a present
father. He was
that
dad: the dad that came to every football game and
every
Storm Front
show. He was the dad that supported his son no matter
what.

Two years ago, when Martin had suffered a heart attack, Ryan
had nearly crumbled at the thought of losing his father, his only surviving
parent. But then Martin changed his lifestyle. He started eating healthier and
working out, and now he was in much better shape for it. Martin was Ryan’s dad,
and it’s understandable that Ryan should go to him first and help him
weatherproof their house. The Kynde’s had hired a crew to make sure their house
was in shape to withstand whatever Mother Nature threw in this direction.

Ashley and Leo stayed up talking until he could no longer
keep his eyes open. He practically crawled through their adjoining bathroom and
flopped onto his bed. Ashley could barely contain her happiness as she pulled
his door closed and got ready for school.

“HI, HONEY.” SHE couldn’t help the
sugary sound of her voice as she spoke to Ryan on her drive to school. “I can’t
believe you’re home, even if it’s just for a few days. God, I can’t wait to see
you. The end of the day can’t come soon enough.”

“I know, Princess, trust me, I know. It just about killed me
to not come home with Leo this morning and slide into your bed, but apparently
the storm will be hitting a lot sooner than they expected. In fact, the wind
and rain should be starting as early as this afternoon, so my dad and I have a
ton of work to do. Did Leo give you my kiss?” The quick change of topic had her
smiling and his silly sexy tone had Ashley pressing her thighs together as she
drove.

“Umm, kind of,” she giggled, “I’m thinking it’s not the same
kiss you’re gonna give me, but it did make me happy enough until I see you
later.” Her voice dropped a little lower, got a little sexier, “speaking of
later, Ry?”

She knew he heard the meaning behind the question in her
voice by the way his breath caught. She didn’t care that Ryan was only home for
a short visit. It was meant to be. She needed him, it was time. “Princess”—she
shivered at his lust infused tone—“we’ll have plenty of time to discuss this
later when we’re alone, sitting wrapped around each other watching the rain
beat down on the ground. I can practically smell the coconuts on your skin and
feel the silk of your hair twined around my fingers as I run my tongue up your
neck and suck on your ear lobe. Maybe our time together will inspire a song or
two.” She heard him chuckle at her small moan. “Where are you, Ash?”

“I’m sitting in the parking lot at school, honey.” Her
breathing was shallow and she knew Ryan could tell she was turned on. “Want me
to help you take off the edge before you head into that never ending episode of
One Tree Hill
?” She smiled and laughed at his television show reference.
He claimed he watched the show under duress and it was just so he could spend
time with her, but she knew he actually liked it. “Just sayin’ there is as much
drama at school as there is on an episode of that show. So, if you need a
hand,” he chuckled, “I’d be happy to help.”

“No,” she whispered, “I’ll be okay, I think. Just make sure
you’re at my house when I get home from school today.” She grimaced when he
chuckled at her choked voice.

“Okay, baby. But, Ash, feel free to call me at lunch if you
decide to take me up on my offer.” His cocky comment snapped her out of her
trance and back to reality.

“Whatever, Ryan.” She pinched herself when she realized that
she sounded like a twit. Everyone knows that the person who ends an argument
with “whatever” is the person who lost. However, in that moment she didn’t
care, because he was home and waiting for her, and she couldn’t wait to see
him. “I love you, Ryan Baker.”

“I love you too, Ashley Kynde. Talk to you later.” They
disconnected and she went into the school to start the longest day ever.

EACH PERIOD TICKED by slowly,
minute-by-minute. The hands on the school’s black and white, standard clocks on
the walls of each classroom seemed like they never moved, other than the faint
Tick tock. Tick tock. Lunch had been a frenzy of hurricane talk and “Power
Parties”. She’d shaken her head with irritation as her peers discussed the
excitement of getting stuck in one person’s house for a few days without power.
“It’s amazing these people get into college,” she said quietly to herself as
she was pulling her books from her locker at the end of the day.

“Why is that?” The voice behind her, while familiar, was
certainly not welcomed.

“Oh. Hey, Scott, I didn’t realize anyone was still here. The
school emptied out pretty quickly when the last bell rang.”

Looking around, she saw just how empty the halls really
were. If this were a movie a tumbleweed would have rolled by her Burberry
covered feet. The rain had started moving in during last period and all
after-school activities had been canceled.

“So, you were saying that you were surprised that the
students here got into college. Why’s that, Ashley?”

She shrugged, turning back to her locker and removing the
last of her books and putting them in her bag. Her stance relaxed as she
thought about her peers. “Because every time there’s a storm they plan these
big ‘Power Parties’. They think it’s gonna be so cool to be stuck together when
the power goes out. But you know what happens every single time? They all get
sick of each other after a few hours, but they’re stuck together. Couples
break-up, best friends hate each other—drama, drama, drama. You’d think that
after years of these parties people would learn, but nope.”

She shrugged her shoulders and laughed as she zipped her
bag. She had all of her books just in case there was no school for a few days
and now she was ready to get home to Ryan.
Oh, Ryan
. His name floated in
her head and a small sigh left her upturned mouth.

“God, Ashley, your smile is so beautiful, it lights up your
whole face.”

Scott was staring at her as he spoke and she was all of
sudden aware of how close he was standing. “What were you thinking about just
now that had you beaming like that?”

“Honestly, I was thinking about Ryan. He’s probably at my
house waiting for me and I can’t wait to see him. He’s it for me and that makes
me smile. I’m sorry, Scott.”

She pressed her right palm against his left shoulder to put
distance between them but he instantly clamped his hand over her wrist. His
touch wasn’t rough. He wasn’t hurting her, but she didn’t want his hand on her.

When she tried to move her hand he weaved his fingers
between hers. Confusion struck hard as she tried to make sense of his actions.
Why was he doing this? He’d stopped trying to pursue her after she’d shot him
down all those weeks ago.

“Ashley, beautiful,” he whispered closely to her ear wearing
a small smile on his lips, “he doesn’t want you like I do. I would never leave
you. I would never let someone get so close to you that he could touch your
skin and feel your breath on his face. I would protect you. Drop Baker. Be with
me.”

Ashley let her exhausted head fall back into the locker with
a clink.

“Scott, listen—” but before she could utter another word she
heard a litany of curses and the sound of a hand slamming into metal.

“Goddamn motherfucking son-of-a-bitch!” Ryan’s face was
blazing red. The veins in his neck pulsed with each of his rapid heartbeats and
his eyes were wide and glaring—like the devil himself had taken root in his
body and was begging for an emergency escape route.

“I knew it. I fucking knew this shit would happen. James, I
wanna fucking kill you. I wanna cut your dick off and shove it down your gaping
neck! What kind of punk, bastard poaches another guy’s girl?”

Ashley was stunned silent. She literally couldn’t move or
speak. In fact, she was having difficulty breathing. What the hell was going
on? She looked from an outraged Ryan to a calm and composed Scott. How was
Scott not shaking in fear? She knew Ryan would never lay a hand on her in anger
and yet
her
insides were like Jell-o. Her mind quickly flashed back to
just a moment before, and the way Scott had touched her face and whispered in
her ear. Like a metal spike, realization struck.

“Oh my God.” Her voice was soft and brittle. “Ryan,” she
implored weakly. The eyes that stared back at her appeared fueled with hatred
and her stomach churned. “Ryan, you have to listen to me—”

The seething voice that came from Ryan’s mouth bore the
scalding words that were thrown like darts directly through Ashley’s heart. “I
don’t have to do anything. I knew this would happen. I tried, Ashley, I tried.
I trusted you not to cheat on me. I trusted that you wouldn’t break my heart
and I come here to surprise you and what do I find? The fucking surprise is on
me! I’m the asshole because here you are all cozy with this fuckwit.”

“What did you think, little girl? Did you think you could
play me for a fool? Here I am saying no to women every fucking night for you
and for what? You’ve probably been banging Scotty boy since when? You know
what? Never fucking mind!”

Ryan glared at Scott, “You can have her. I’m through!” The
clanking sound of his fist meeting the lockers startled Ashley out of her
grief-stricken trance.