The Secret (15 page)

Debbie takes in my expression and unapologetically breaks into anothe
r round of laughter.

Sophi
e’s eyes dart to her mother’s scowl and struggles to stifle her own giggles.

A quick glance over at Chase and he’s wearing a look that sits somewhere between relief and victory. Turning his attention to where Sophie sits blushing, he shoots her a wink before smirking over at us.

“You alright, man?” Drake asks him with a wary but amused look in his eyes.

“
Yep,” he smiles back and takes another bite before smiling over at Grace and grinning back at us.

Sophie

Although I know I’ll catch hell for it later, I couldn’t stop laughing at how ridiculous Chase had been at dinner.
By the time we finished eating, I was so full I was miserable and he couldn’t have been happier.

Once I forced myself up from the table, we all pitched in and cleared the table so my aunt could entertain my mother.

At first it was a little awkward with Chase and Jack standing on either side of me helping with the dishes, but both of them surprised me. Not only did neither of them make any uncomfortable remarks, they both kept making jokes so I smiled the whole time.

At one point, Jack’s phone chimed an
d he dried his hands before excusing himself.

“You okay?” Chase
asks softly once we’re alone.

“Yes,” I say with a small smile to myself. Leaning over to place a bite on his bicep, I savor in his chuckle. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” he smiles against my skin as he kisses me chastely on the cheek.

“Hey,” Jack says nervously from my side.

“Hey,” I smile over at him, loving the way his lopsided grin still looks the same as always.

I’m wondering silently to myself if things between us will ever be comfortable again when he begins to speak.

“I’ve got some good news for you,” he smiles over at me.

“What?”

“Operation Bust a Move is in full effect at twenty three hundred hours,” he whispers with a wink.

“What?” I whisper far too loudly and before I can stop myself, launch myself at him, embracing him in a hug. “Oh thank God!”

“You’re welcome, Babe,” he laughs, hugging me back.

“
What the hell is Operation Bust a Move?” Chase says, slight annoyance obvious to me as I let go of Jack and face him.

“It’s our old code for best night ever!” I whisper to
him, causing Jack to laugh.

“
Can you be at my… Sorry, Lucy’s house at ten forty five?” he asks Chase.

“I guess,” Chase says awkwardly. “Why?”

“There’s a party tonight,” Jack chuckles. “And we’re bustin’ Sophie out.”

Chase

As I pull up to Lucy’s at ten forty, I realize I don’t have Jack’s number to let him know I’m here. Luckily, I’m only waiting for a minute when he comes slipping out the front door and jogs over to my truck.

“Hey,” he says quietly as he pulls himself up into the passenger seat and shuts the door.

“Hey man,” I say without much conviction. I’ll admit, Jack seems like a cool guy, but it’s still awkward as fuck being around him.

We stay quiet for the beginning of the drive with the exception of
Seether’s ‘Fake It’ in the background. When we get about halfway there, I break the silence.

“So what’s going on t
onight? What’s the plan?”

“Well,” he starts. “When
Soph and I first met, she was living with her aunt. Deb’s cool as shit, but every once in a while, her mom would come stay there and put her on lockdown.”

“I can only imagine,” I groan.

“Yeah, it was brutal. That house isn’t easy to sneak in and out of either. Believe me,” he smirks, causing me to roll my eyes. “We figured it out though. So when her mom came, we’d wait until about eleven thirty or so and I’d go pick her up every night.”

“Every night?”
I ask, doubt tracing my voice.

“
Every single one,” he says as a cocky grin spreads over his face, knowing how much I hate him right now.

Not tonight, asshole
.

When we get close to Debbie’s, Jack tells me where to park
on the dimly lit street a few houses down. We’re walking quietly around the back of the neighbor’s house a few minutes later when I roll my eyes at him.

“You know we look like idiots right now?” I whisper harshly. “Aren’t you like twenty five?”

“Yeah,” he says with a hushed chuckle. “Be quiet, you’re gonna get us busted.”

“This is stupid,” I tell him.

“Well, at least I’m not pushin’ thirty,” he says, chuckling when I flip him off. “Come on, we gotta hop the fence.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

“Yeah,” he laughs and pulls himself over, waiting for me on the other side.

“If I find out you’re fucking with me, I’m
gonna kick your ass,” I tell him as my feet hit the grass on the other side.

“Man,
I wish I was! That shit would be hilarious!” he laughs back at me. “Come on, it’s this window here. Stand back,” he warns after tapping gently on the glass.

Making our way over to the back window I recognize as the bathroom, I have t
o admit I’m surprised when I hear the window begin to slide open. A small bag flies out, explaining Jack’s warning before Sophie’s golden strands at visible in the moonlight.

Standing in position below the window,
Jack catches her dangling form in choreographed movements, making it clear they
had
done this a million times.

She
jumps excitedly into the air, stifling her giddiness as she hugs him tightly before running over to me.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” she whispers happily, making us laugh. “Let’s get the fuck
outta here!”

Taking off in a full-fledged run, she grabs her bag from the lawn and heads for the fence. When we get there, she’s impatiently waiting for us.

“Gimme ten fingers!” she whispers to Jack and I watch as he launches her up to the edge of the fence. “I’m in!” she giggles from the other side, making him laugh.

“Forgot to
mention,” Jack turns to face me with a grin. “Sweet little Sophia Paige gets fuckin’ crazy when you bust her out.”

Images of Emily’s bachelorette party flash in my mind and I shake my head when he breaks my thoughts.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking about right now,” he admits as he grabs the edge of the fence. “But whatever it is, you’re not even close. That girl goes banana fuckin’ sandwich!”

With that, he launches himself over the fence with me right behind him. Once we land, we quick
ly make our way to the edge of the street. When we get there, Sophie starts jumping up and down before spinning in place with her arms outstretched.

“I’m free!”
she giggles as she faces us. “Did you get my bag?”

“Yeah,” Jack says, tossing it to her open arms.

“Come on! Let’s go!”

I follow closely behind her, smiling when I see her climbing into her spot in the center.
When I climb into the driver’s side, I turn to look at her and she grabs my face, surprising me with a deep kiss. When the passenger door opens signaling that we’re no longer alone, she gives me a final chaste kiss on the lips before pulling away.

“I missed you,
Babysaurus,” she whispers.

“
I missed you too, Gorgeous.”

“Okay, Beautiful Girl,” Jack
laughs as he climbs into the cab beside her. “The coast is clear. Let’s get the hell outta Dodge.”

“Let’s do it!” she
smiles wide before hugging him close. “Thanks for bustin’ me out, Jack.”

“Anytime, Babe,” he says quietly into her hair before she pulls away and reaches for the mp3 player.

“What do you wanna hear?” she asks.

“Whatever you want, Baby,” I tell her as I
rest my hand on her thigh and pull out onto the road.

“Jack?”

“Surprise me,” he tells her before giving me directions to the party we’re going to.

‘
Who Needs You’ by The Orwells starts playing loudly in the cab of my truck. I savor the sound of my girl singing her heart out as she shuffles in the seat beside me.

“Will you hold my pants
, Jack?” I hear her say quietly and I almost dart into traffic.

“What
the fuck?” I shout, spinning my head quickly to find her fully clothed, but changed.

Instead of the
cotton pajama pants and t-shirt we picked her up in, Sophie’s now wearing a pair of tight, ripped up jeans and a black tube top.

“Geez, Babe!” she says, looking up at me in surprise. “You
tryin’ to get us killed?”

“Did you ju
st take your fuckin’ clothes off?”

“Yeah,”
she shrugs, looking at me like I’ve completely lost my mind. “I can’t wear pajamas to a party.”

“
That’s
the biggest problem you think we have right now?”

“
Chase, what are you freaking out about?”

“Seriously?
Sophie…” I start, but I’m so blown away, I don’t even know what to say. Before I can, Jack interrupts me.

“Calm the hell down,” he laughs.
“She was wearing this under her pajamas.”

“Oh,” I say, instantly feeling like an idiot.

“Wait a minute,” Sophie starts, whipping her head around at me. “You thought…?”

“How the hell was I supposed to know? Twelve seconds ago, you had pajamas on!”

“Do you really think I’d strip in the cab of your truck?” she says cutting her eyes at me.

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” I chuckle to myself.

“Chase!” she shouts, her face turning staining red with embarrassment as she clamps her hand over my mouth before assaulting my nipple.

“
Sophie! Fuck, Baby, shit!” I yelp into her palm before swatting her hand away from my chest and laughing. “I’m driving, you crazy woman!”

“
I’m sorry, Jack,” she apologizes before turning to scold me, smacking me lightly. “Act right and don’t be a jerk!”

“It
’s okay. I’m sure he’s ridden in your truck, Babe. We’re even,” he says with a light chuckle. “Well, I wouldn’t say we’re
even
. Y’all haven’t been together very long.”

When I turn to look at her, she’s guiltily staring straight ahead, her ch
eeks redder than the light we’d been sitting at. Glancing over at Jack, he’s grinning like an idiot before winking in my direction.

“Lights green, Maxwell.”

Sophie

After what was likely the most awkward ten minute drive of my life, we arrive at the party. I swipe my clear lip gloss on quickly before tossing the tube back into the glove compartment and pull the hair tie from my hair. I don’t miss the slight intake of breath coming from the men on either side of me.

“Alright boys,” I say with a grin as I look out at the lake in front of us
and let out a sigh. “Let’s do this.”

“You ready?” Jack chuckles over at me as he pushes the door open and hands me my shoes.

“God, yes!” I say with a loud groan of exhaustion at the last few days as I slip on my hot pink stilettos. “You remember the rules?”

“Yep,” he chuckles again as he climbs out.

“What rules?” Chase asks me as he grips me at the waist to help me down from his side of the truck.

“
After her fifth drink, we can’t let her puke, cry, fight, sing or strip,” Jack answers for me with another grin as he makes his way around the front of Chase’s truck. “And she gets to dance as much as she wants.”

I’m about to defend my honor against Chase’s combined look of shock and amusement, but a voice calling me pulls my attention away.

“Jack Walker and Sophie Ryan have arrived!” I hear from beyond the keg before a collective cheer comes from the two dozen people who are already here.

Directly in front of me, I see the owner of the thickly accented Southern baritone raising his hands up in victory.
He hasn’t changed much from the last time I saw him, but he definitely looks more at home in his exposed tattooed covered arms and the Jack Daniels t-shirt he threw on over his jeans.

“Dusty!” I yell back as I throw my arms up to match his. “
Put on some Skynyrd and turn that shit up!”

His response is
a loud, drunken bellow as he pumps the music louder for me. As Jack makes his way over toward our friend, I grab Chase’s arm and pull him with me.

My hips are already moving to ‘
Gimme Three Steps’ by Lynyrd Skynyrd as I take in his wary expression.

“Come on, Baby,” I smile up at him. “I met
all your friends from high school. Now it’s time for you to meet some of mine.”