was in no mood to hear them chatter about their favorite subject: Harrison. I turned up the volume on my iPod and drowned them out, my gaze out the window of the backseat blurred as I leaned my head against the glass. It was cold and hard. I tried not to think about the interested stares of the people who’d been standing around Harrison and me, but it was difficult. As much as I didn’t want to, I realized that the side effects of his obvious attention would be catastrophic. I sighed and closed my eyes as I allowed the deep music to vibrate through me. Alexis and Lauren were going to be bent once they heard about what happened.
My life just got a whole lot worse.
***
My cell phone rang for about eight minutes straight before I got annoyed with it enough to answer. I knew it was Harrison—I didn’t even have to check the ID. The worst part was, I couldn’t turn it off. It was against the Benally rules to turn off a cell phone. They wanted to be able to get a hold of us whenever they needed to. If we did turn it off, we lost the privilege of owning one—a rule Harrison obviously knew about. Grr . I had already lost enough privileges since I met him—I wasn’t about to lose this one too.
“What?” I hissed into the phone. “ Stop calling me!”
“All right, then, I won’t tell you the surprise I’ve been planning,” said a subdued Sean.
I gasped. “Sean? Sean! It’s you?”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “Who’d you think I was?”
“Uh . . . no one. It doesn’t matter. What surprise are you talking about?”
“What are you doing Saturday morning?”
“Uh, Saturday? Just riding Buttercup. Why?”
“Good!” he exclaimed. “Don’t plan anything else, okay?”
“Okay,” I said slowly. “So what’s this about?”
“You’ll see.” I could hear the mischievous grin in his voice.
“Sean?” I growled.
“What?”
“Ugh! You know I hate surprises. And now you’re making me wait all the way till Saturday? Just tell me!”
“Nope.” He chuckled softly in my ear.
I grinned. “Come on. I can be surprised now, just the same as if it were Saturday.”
“No.” He laughed. “You’re the worst. You know that, right?”
“Yes. I know. You tell me all the time.” For no reason at all, I found myself giggling.
“You’re going to giggle more on Saturday, I promise. You’re gonna love it.”
“You’re evil, Sean.”
“Yep. I’m as evil as they come. Besides,” his voice got a bit deeper, “if I tell you now, it’ll ruin it for you on Saturday, and then I’ll never be able to make up for last Saturday.”
“Aww, the truth comes out.”
“Good night, Lilly.”
I rolled over and checked the time. Ten o’clock. “Where are you?”
“I’m driving back from Albuquerque with a friend right now.”
“Are you just now coming back? How’d it go?” Sean had been gone for a couple of days at a large cattle and farm convention down in Albuquerque. He’d taken this year off before he started college so he could help his dad build up the ranch.
“Same as all the other conventions—bought more than I needed to.”
“Yeah, but knowing you, you’ll find some way to use it.”
Sean chuckled. “Or donate it somewhere.”
“Or donate it somewhere.” I smiled and shook my head at Sean’s overgenerous nature. I was pretty sure there wasn’t a family in Bloomfield that hadn’t been secretly blessed by the Benallys at one point or another, especially during the recession that seemed to have hit particularly hard the last few years.
“See ya tomorrow.” His deep voice warmed me all the way to my toes.
“Okay.”
“Don’t miss me too much until then.”
“Ha ha. You wish.” I grinned and then whispered “Bye” before I clicked the phone off and tossed it on the bed.
About two seconds later, it rang again. I chuckled and leaned over to grab it.
“What?”
“Finally, you answered your phone. I wondered how long it would take.”
Ugh .
My life just got a whole lot worse.
***
My cell phone rang for about eight minutes straight before I got annoyed with it enough to answer. I knew it was Harrison—I didn’t even have to check the ID. The worst part was, I couldn’t turn it off. It was against the Benally rules to turn off a cell phone. They wanted to be able to get a hold of us whenever they needed to. If we did turn it off, we lost the privilege of owning one—a rule Harrison obviously knew about. Grr . I had already lost enough privileges since I met him—I wasn’t about to lose this one too.
“What?” I hissed into the phone. “ Stop calling me!”
“All right, then, I won’t tell you the surprise I’ve been planning,” said a subdued Sean.
I gasped. “Sean? Sean! It’s you?”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “Who’d you think I was?”
“Uh . . . no one. It doesn’t matter. What surprise are you talking about?”
“What are you doing Saturday morning?”
“Uh, Saturday? Just riding Buttercup. Why?”
“Good!” he exclaimed. “Don’t plan anything else, okay?”
“Okay,” I said slowly. “So what’s this about?”
“You’ll see.” I could hear the mischievous grin in his voice.
“Sean?” I growled.
“What?”
“Ugh! You know I hate surprises. And now you’re making me wait all the way till Saturday? Just tell me!”
“Nope.” He chuckled softly in my ear.
I grinned. “Come on. I can be surprised now, just the same as if it were Saturday.”
“No.” He laughed. “You’re the worst. You know that, right?”
“Yes. I know. You tell me all the time.” For no reason at all, I found myself giggling.
“You’re going to giggle more on Saturday, I promise. You’re gonna love it.”
“You’re evil, Sean.”
“Yep. I’m as evil as they come. Besides,” his voice got a bit deeper, “if I tell you now, it’ll ruin it for you on Saturday, and then I’ll never be able to make up for last Saturday.”
“Aww, the truth comes out.”
“Good night, Lilly.”
I rolled over and checked the time. Ten o’clock. “Where are you?”
“I’m driving back from Albuquerque with a friend right now.”
“Are you just now coming back? How’d it go?” Sean had been gone for a couple of days at a large cattle and farm convention down in Albuquerque. He’d taken this year off before he started college so he could help his dad build up the ranch.
“Same as all the other conventions—bought more than I needed to.”
“Yeah, but knowing you, you’ll find some way to use it.”
Sean chuckled. “Or donate it somewhere.”
“Or donate it somewhere.” I smiled and shook my head at Sean’s overgenerous nature. I was pretty sure there wasn’t a family in Bloomfield that hadn’t been secretly blessed by the Benallys at one point or another, especially during the recession that seemed to have hit particularly hard the last few years.
“See ya tomorrow.” His deep voice warmed me all the way to my toes.
“Okay.”
“Don’t miss me too much until then.”
“Ha ha. You wish.” I grinned and then whispered “Bye” before I clicked the phone off and tossed it on the bed.
About two seconds later, it rang again. I chuckled and leaned over to grab it.
“What?”
“Finally, you answered your phone. I wondered how long it would take.”
Ugh .
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