UNEDITED
Calla Henrik's family runs the best ATV business in town, and she's ready to take over the family business for the summer while her parents go on a much-needed vacation. She's ready to earn some money before she attends the University of A...
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Maddox
"Holy fuck," I hear as I unpack my truck. "Is that Maddox Kase? I don't remember him being that hot!"
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Calla dig her elbow into the ribs of her friend. The brown-haired girl looks familiar – she probably went to the same high school as me – but I can't put a name to her face. Although I was the centre of attention in the rumour mill, I didn't waste my time getting to know people that whispered about and stared at me.
"Shut up," Calla hisses. "Don't you realize how loud you're talking?"
Vance, who is taking his points in the game of crib they're playing, snorts. "Voices echo, even if you're whispering, ladies. Don't be stupid."
"It's not my fault your cousin is ten times hotter than you," Calla's friend says.
I can't help but chuckle. Vance's ego is really taking a beating right now. The poor guy. What a way to spend your twenty-third birthday – I bet the jerk hasn't even mentioned that his birthday is today. Smiling to myself, I unload the last of my laundry – that I thankfully got to do at Aunt Stella's place today – as well as the rest of my food for the upcoming week. When that's over and done with, I head back to my truck to grab one last thing: Vance's birthday present.
Every year, I put aside enough money to buy Vance something expensive. He hates it when I do that, but it makes me feel good. I like buying him things he needs – especially after everything he's done for me and the constant support he supplies. Vance is more like a brother to me than he is a cousin. I'd take a bullet for him if I had to.
This year, I bought Vance a brand-new Yeti water bottle and a tumbler. Both of them are a darker shade of blue to match his dirt bike. He used to have his own Yeti tumbler, but he lost it the last time we came up here before we got the jobs. We'd gone on a ride up to the top of Blue Grouse Mountain and he'd forgotten that he'd set the tumbler down on the tail-end of his dirt bike. He made me come with him to search for it when he realized it was gone, but we never found it. He's definitely going to love this birthday present.
When I arrive at the picnic table, Calla welcomes me with a big smile. A smile that's genuine and sincere enough to make my heart beat erratically. "Hey," she says. It's her turn to shuffle the cards, so it's kind of funny watching her try to focus between that and talking to me. At one point, she boxes the cards. "Where were you?"
I cast a side-glance at Calla's friend. She's leaning slightly away from me with a fearful look in her eyes. If offends me, but not nearly as much as it should; I'm used to people judging me when they first lay eyes on me. It's the price that comes with having a drug lord and a drug user as a father. I should be polite and introduce myself, but I'm too excited for Vance to open his present; watching people open presents from me excites me more than opening presents that are gifted to me.
I hold up the bag and give it a small shake. "I was birthday shopping for my cousin," I smile. I set the present down in front of Vance, watching the blush spread across his cheeks. He absolutely despises birthdays; he thinks they're overrated and that humans are stupid for celebrating the fact that they're one year closer to dying.
