Bonus Prologue
Lachlan and Jessie are teenagers in Red Dead Creek and are about to meet for the first time!
Jessie
This place is so scary. If Freddy Krueger owned a vacation home, it would probably be here.
Only my father would bring me to a place named Red Dead Creek on holiday. And only my father would leave me stuck inside the shitty motel room for the week.
It’s the second day of our father-daughter trip, and so far I’ve seen about twelve minutes of him. He came in sometime around four o’clock last night, drunk and reeking of cigarettes. After a quick shower this morning, he tossed some money and a flyer for a Chinese restaurant onto the bed and said he’d be back in an hour. That was seven hours ago.
I turn off the television that’s playing a Jerry Springer marathon and creep over to the cheap curtains to look outside. The constant sound of motorcycles ripping up and down the street give the feeling that this town is a roaring monster and I’m stuck in its bowels.
The curtains are old and dusty with what I hope is dried-up ketchup splattered across them, but I’m guessing it’s something else. Not brave enough to touch them, I pick up a pencil and open them a crack to peek outside.
It’s like Spring Break for outlaws. A parade of rowdy bikers drinking in the middle of the day, fighting, swearing, causing havoc. Modern day pirates. I wonder what their moms would think of them, but then realize that their moms are probably all in jail.
It’s too scary to go outside. I’m about to close the curtains and head back to watch my eighth Jerry Springer episode in a row when I see a guy who makes my breath catch in my throat.
He rides into the motel parking lot on a shiny motorcycle, easily steering it like it’s an extension of his body.
Wow.
He’s gorgeous. Dark brown hair to match his smoldering brown eyes, and a muscular body that makes me want to touch it to see if it’s as hard as it looks.
I’m completely mesmerized as I watch him park his bike and step off it. He’s wearing jeans and a tight white shirt under his leather jacket. A bear paw is stitched onto the sleeve but I can’t read what the words over it says.
Out of nowhere, his eyes lock onto mine and I feel a warm shiver ripple from my head all the way down to the ends of my curled toes.
Without thinking, I yank the curtains closed and drop to the floor. My heart is pounding as I squeeze my eyes shut, wondering what the hell is wrong with me. I’ve seen hot guys before.
Not like that.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
I nearly jump out of my skin, whipping my head to the door as he pounds on it.
“Hello?”
Oh God. What the hell am I supposed to do now? He knows I’m in here.
“I know you’re in there.”
“Go away!” It slips out even though I kind of want to open the door and invite him in.
“Now, why would I do that?” he says through the door. “When a guy sees the girl of his dreams, he doesn’t simply walk away.”
My heart is hammering in my chest, but I don’t know if it’s from fear or something else.
“Come out and talk to me.”
“No!” I shout. “I have a gun!”
“What kind?”
“The kind that shoots bullets.”
He laughs. “Not very specific.”
“Specific enough if I point it at your head.”
I can hear the grin on his lips. “Now why would you do that?”
“Because you’re harassing me.”
“Harassing you?” he says. “I’m just trying to take you out for a bite to eat.”
My stomach growls in response. I glance at the Chinese take-out flyer that’s still sitting on the bed. As hungry as I’ve been, I couldn’t bring myself to order from a place called Fu King Chinese Restaurant.
“Not hungry!”
“I can hear your stomach growling.”
How the hell can he hear that?
“That’s the sound of my killer guard dog growling.”
He laughs again. Why do I keep smiling every time I hear that sound? This guy is a creep.
“Tell me your name.”
“No.”
“Then I’ll have to call you, sweet girl.”
I smile despite myself. I kind of like that.
“Great!” I call out. “I’ll just call you, psycho stalker.”
“You can call me whatever you like, sweet girl.”
Damn. Stop smiling.
“Where are you from?”
“Far away.”
“Sounds like you need a tour guide,” he says. “Come on out and I’ll show you around.”
“Sounds like you need a hearing aid. I said go away.”
“I’m not going anywhere until I see those beautiful blue eyes one more time, sweet girl.”
I swallow hard. It’s suddenly very hot in this room.
“If I show you will you leave me alone?”
“If you want me too.”
I really want to see him again. He can’t possibly be as gorgeous as I remember. My mind is probably playing tricks on me. The only guys I’ve seen for the past two days have been the hillbillies on Jerry Springer, and he probably seems so good looking in contrast to them.
“Go to the window,” I say, peeking out.
My mouth drops open as he steps over and looks right at me. Nope. It’s not Jerry Springer or the hillbillies. This guys is pure perfection.
He’s staring at me with a stunned look on his face like he’s thinking the same thing about me.
He smiles and I get a fluttering in my chest. My nerve endings are tingling. My fingers ache.
“Hi, sweet girl,” he says through the dirty window.
I gulp.
“Hi.”
“I know a great restaurant in the next town,” he says with a smile that is making me breathless. “Let me take you there.”
“It’s not the Fu King Chinese Restaurant is it?” I ask.
He laughs. “No. This one actually serves food. You can eat at the Fu King Chinese Restaurant but you won’t be eating food.”
We stare at each other for a long moment before my head nods up and down on its own.
A huge smile breaks out across his face. “Really?”
I keep nodding up and down. Like an overenthusiastic jackhammer.
My father is going to kill me if he finds out that I’m gone, but then again, he probably won’t be back until next Saturday, so fuck him.
I walk to the door and swallow hard as I open it.
“Hi,” he says, grinning as he looks down at me. “I’m Lachlan.”
“Jessie,” I say, grinning back up at him.
“Ready to go?”
I gulp as I nod up and down, even though I don’t know if I’ll be ready for this.
It’s just a harmless date I tell myself. Nothing more than that.
It’s not like it’s going to turn out to be the love of my life.
I chuckle to myself as I walk out the door.
Like that would ever happen.
This place is so scary. If Freddy Krueger owned a vacation home, it would probably be here.
Only my father would bring me to a place named Red Dead Creek on holiday. And only my father would leave me stuck inside the shitty motel room for the week.
It’s the second day of our father-daughter trip, and so far I’ve seen about twelve minutes of him. He came in sometime around four o’clock last night, drunk and reeking of cigarettes. After a quick shower this morning, he tossed some money and a flyer for a Chinese restaurant onto the bed and said he’d be back in an hour. That was seven hours ago.
I turn off the television that’s playing a Jerry Springer marathon and creep over to the cheap curtains to look outside. The constant sound of motorcycles ripping up and down the street give the feeling that this town is a roaring monster and I’m stuck in its bowels.
The curtains are old and dusty with what I hope is dried-up ketchup splattered across them, but I’m guessing it’s something else. Not brave enough to touch them, I pick up a pencil and open them a crack to peek outside.
It’s like Spring Break for outlaws. A parade of rowdy bikers drinking in the middle of the day, fighting, swearing, causing havoc. Modern day pirates. I wonder what their moms would think of them, but then realize that their moms are probably all in jail.
It’s too scary to go outside. I’m about to close the curtains and head back to watch my eighth Jerry Springer episode in a row when I see a guy who makes my breath catch in my throat.
He rides into the motel parking lot on a shiny motorcycle, easily steering it like it’s an extension of his body.
Wow.
He’s gorgeous. Dark brown hair to match his smoldering brown eyes, and a muscular body that makes me want to touch it to see if it’s as hard as it looks.
I’m completely mesmerized as I watch him park his bike and step off it. He’s wearing jeans and a tight white shirt under his leather jacket. A bear paw is stitched onto the sleeve but I can’t read what the words over it says.
Out of nowhere, his eyes lock onto mine and I feel a warm shiver ripple from my head all the way down to the ends of my curled toes.
Without thinking, I yank the curtains closed and drop to the floor. My heart is pounding as I squeeze my eyes shut, wondering what the hell is wrong with me. I’ve seen hot guys before.
Not like that.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
I nearly jump out of my skin, whipping my head to the door as he pounds on it.
“Hello?”
Oh God. What the hell am I supposed to do now? He knows I’m in here.
“I know you’re in there.”
“Go away!” It slips out even though I kind of want to open the door and invite him in.
“Now, why would I do that?” he says through the door. “When a guy sees the girl of his dreams, he doesn’t simply walk away.”
My heart is hammering in my chest, but I don’t know if it’s from fear or something else.
“Come out and talk to me.”
“No!” I shout. “I have a gun!”
“What kind?”
“The kind that shoots bullets.”
He laughs. “Not very specific.”
“Specific enough if I point it at your head.”
I can hear the grin on his lips. “Now why would you do that?”
“Because you’re harassing me.”
“Harassing you?” he says. “I’m just trying to take you out for a bite to eat.”
My stomach growls in response. I glance at the Chinese take-out flyer that’s still sitting on the bed. As hungry as I’ve been, I couldn’t bring myself to order from a place called Fu King Chinese Restaurant.
“Not hungry!”
“I can hear your stomach growling.”
How the hell can he hear that?
“That’s the sound of my killer guard dog growling.”
He laughs again. Why do I keep smiling every time I hear that sound? This guy is a creep.
“Tell me your name.”
“No.”
“Then I’ll have to call you, sweet girl.”
I smile despite myself. I kind of like that.
“Great!” I call out. “I’ll just call you, psycho stalker.”
“You can call me whatever you like, sweet girl.”
Damn. Stop smiling.
“Where are you from?”
“Far away.”
“Sounds like you need a tour guide,” he says. “Come on out and I’ll show you around.”
“Sounds like you need a hearing aid. I said go away.”
“I’m not going anywhere until I see those beautiful blue eyes one more time, sweet girl.”
I swallow hard. It’s suddenly very hot in this room.
“If I show you will you leave me alone?”
“If you want me too.”
I really want to see him again. He can’t possibly be as gorgeous as I remember. My mind is probably playing tricks on me. The only guys I’ve seen for the past two days have been the hillbillies on Jerry Springer, and he probably seems so good looking in contrast to them.
“Go to the window,” I say, peeking out.
My mouth drops open as he steps over and looks right at me. Nope. It’s not Jerry Springer or the hillbillies. This guys is pure perfection.
He’s staring at me with a stunned look on his face like he’s thinking the same thing about me.
He smiles and I get a fluttering in my chest. My nerve endings are tingling. My fingers ache.
“Hi, sweet girl,” he says through the dirty window.
I gulp.
“Hi.”
“I know a great restaurant in the next town,” he says with a smile that is making me breathless. “Let me take you there.”
“It’s not the Fu King Chinese Restaurant is it?” I ask.
He laughs. “No. This one actually serves food. You can eat at the Fu King Chinese Restaurant but you won’t be eating food.”
We stare at each other for a long moment before my head nods up and down on its own.
A huge smile breaks out across his face. “Really?”
I keep nodding up and down. Like an overenthusiastic jackhammer.
My father is going to kill me if he finds out that I’m gone, but then again, he probably won’t be back until next Saturday, so fuck him.
I walk to the door and swallow hard as I open it.
“Hi,” he says, grinning as he looks down at me. “I’m Lachlan.”
“Jessie,” I say, grinning back up at him.
“Ready to go?”
I gulp as I nod up and down, even though I don’t know if I’ll be ready for this.
It’s just a harmless date I tell myself. Nothing more than that.
It’s not like it’s going to turn out to be the love of my life.
I chuckle to myself as I walk out the door.
Like that would ever happen.
Continue reading the series with Caleb's story!
Out Now!
Out Now!