Page 79 of Always Love You More

There’s another knock at the door, and he drops my arm. “There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

I storm past him, flitting my eyes over my father’s curled-up body. I swear a bomb could drop on this house and he still wouldn’t wake up.

I get to the door, but before throwing it open, Carson sarcastically calls across the room, “Have a good first day of school.”

Shutting out his comment, I push open the door and find Jameson leaning against the side of the house. The second I’m outside, he drags his gaze over me, slowing on my face. “What’s wrong?” he asks, looking past me and into the house. “Did something happen? I was giving you another minute before I came in there.”

“I’m fine. Just my asshole brother.”

His eyes darken. “Johnny?”

“Carson.”

“What’d he do to you?” Jameson questions, already starting to step around me.

I grab his hand. “Nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I just want to go to school,” I tell him, pulling on his hand. “He’s just a dick. It’s not gonna change.”

Jameson scoffs. “Oh, I’ll make him change.”

“Jamie, please.” My voice drops. “I don’t want you to make things worse.”

“I won’t—”

“Can we please just go?”

He turns, looking over at me. “Fine, but you’ll tell me if he needs to be put in his place. Yeah?”

“Yeah,” I murmur.

He pulls me into him, kissing the top of my head, and throws his arm around my shoulders. We walk like that together over to the car that’s idling at the top of my driveway.

Jameson opens the door to the back of Luke’s truck, and I slide into the far seat, allowing him to come in after me.

Luke turns, glancing from me to Jameson. “Everything good?”

Jameson gives him a quick nod.

Luke brings his attention back to me, a smile pulling at his lips. “Then let’s go. Don’t want you three to be late on the first day.”

The truck jerks forward as Billy says, “Did you guys look at your schedules yet? I hope we have the same lunch.”

I pull the paper from my purse and turn to Jameson. “Do you have yours?” I ask. “They sent them in the mail.”

He shakes his head. “Never got it.”

I shift my eyes from him to the floor of the truck and realize he has nothing with him. No bag, no papers, not even a pencil.

I smooth the paper out on my lap. “I’m sure they can print you one at guidance.”

He grunts before I tell Billy, “I have A lunch on day one and C lunch on day two.”

“Sweet!” Billy answers. “I’ve got the same.” He pauses for a minute. “What teachers and classes do you have? I’ll give you the dirt on them if I had them last year.”

I rattle off my schedule before Billy says, “Thoseare the classes you’re taking?”