The Frequency Of Compulsion/GXG/ Grip The Series: Book One

THIRTY-SIX

TEN THOUSAND WORDS

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K E E Y A

I glanced over at her to find her eyes taking in her surroundings as I continued to drive, and it had nervousness curling into a ball and rolling through my body because...I wanted her to like where I come from. I wanted her to enjoy where I came from as much as I did cause it meant a lot to me-this place meant a lot to me. Especially now after being away from here for a few months.

The time spent away made everything mean a lot more. The trees lining the roads as the sun gazed down at us, the whisper of the wind that had me tempted to send my windows back down just to invite it in, but I knew I couldn't because then it would be harder to hear her, and the longer we drove the deeper we moved into the culture of the town.

You began to see people riding horses, dominos being played in front of shops, kids laughing and running around, you saw community. I mis-

"Can you ride a horse?" P suddenly asked, earning a glance from me over to her to find her now looking at me.

"Mhm,"

"Really?" She asked a bit surprised with intrigue whispering in her question.

"Yeah, it's the first thing you kinda learn roun here, also my grandparents own a ranch, when I was still living here I used to work on it during the weekends," I confessed, missing those mornings riding around the land. "I used to live on it as a kid,"

"So you herd and all that shit?"

"Yeah,"

"You a cowgirl?" She asked me, putting on her best try of copying my accent and it had me laughing with a look over to her as my one hand remained on the steering.

"What the fuck was that dumbass accent?" I asked through my laughter while lifting our intertwined hands to gently tap her stomach before returning them to her lap.

"What else can you do that I don't know about?" She questioned with the sound of a smile in her voice as I continued to drive down memory lane, paying real attention since unlike the westside, you could have animals popping up on these roads at any time.

"I'm real good with my hands all way roun," I answered and as I spoke she began to play with my hand, and the small act had me smiling, her touching on me in different ways. "Started hanging out with my pops and his friends young, learned to do electric, plumbing and construction too,"

"Imma save a lot of money fucking with you," She mumbled, loud enough for me to hear, and how free she was saying that 'fucking with me' was some shit I could get used to.

HER OPENING UP AND TRYING

"You can use that money to get yourself a new car,"

"We was having a good conversation," She said with a playful amount of attitude in her voice, which had me knowing she was probably rolling her eyes next to me as I released a chuckle.

"You right, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I said with a brief lift of my hand from the wheel to click my indicator on, before returning it to the steering as I made a guiding motion with my head for her towards Carl's Chicken. "That's the food spot right there,"

"Where?"

"On the left up there,"

"This better be good cause I'm hungry,"

"It will be," I promised as I shifted my hand on the wheel in preparation to make the turn, feeling grateful that the drive thru didn't start getting packed until later in the day. "Now tell me something about you, like how long you been making clothes?"