Page 21 of Quarter Miles (Runaway 3)

Was it love? Could it be love when it was so exceptionally unrequited? I’d never been in love before. Maybe this was infatuation. Or a deep, respectful friendship.

Because true love was shared.

My feelings were most definitely not.

“Are you okay?” Cash asked, dropping his forearms to the table as he leaned closer.

No. I wasn’t okay. “Just tired,” I lied. “It was a long day of driving.”

“Tomorrow, it’s my turn.”

“Okay.” I wouldn’t argue. Though the Cadillac was a powerful, sleek machine, after nine hours behind the wheel, it had lost some of its shine.

“So tell me more about the junkyard,” Cash pressed again.

“You know most of it.” Wasn’t talking about it in the car enough for one day? Normally, I would have skimped on some of the details that I’d told him earlier, but it seemed important he understand a little more than the basics before we met Aria, if only so he didn’t feel left out.

“What about school?” he asked.

“Why do you care?”

“Because this is the one part of your life that I don’t know everything about. Indulge me.”

No.

It was right there. One easy little word. I didn’t have trouble telling Easton no. Or their mom, Liddy. Or JR. Or Jake. The only person I struggled to deny was Carol.

And Cash.

He’d inherited her tenacity and persistence. Coupled with that sexy smile, he was my ultimate weakness.

I caved.

“You already know about school,” I said. “I dropped out and earned my GED the year after I moved to the ranch.”

“That’s right. Mom helped you study.”

“Every day at lunch.” Liddy would come to the lodge and I’d take a break from cleaning or laundry. We’d sit in the kitchen, eating sandwiches, and she’d help explain any concepts I was struggling with. Not that there were many. Getting my GED had been a piece of cake.

“She told me once that you didn’t need her help,” Cash said.

“I didn’t. But I really liked eating lunch with her every day.”

Liddy had been the mother who’d shown me how horrendous my own had been. Maybe when I moved out of Cash’s place, she’d help me decorate. She could teach me how to cultivate a garden. Liddy would understand my need for some space, right?

“She liked eating lunch with you too. Mom always said she fell in love with you over that GED book.”

“Same here,” I whispered. “I owe her a lot. Carol too. All of you.”

“You don’t owe us anything, Kat. You’re family.”

Family. The sister. It had been harder and harder not to feel bitter lately. Being part of the Greer family, even unofficially, was a dream. For a woman who had no family, belonging to one was all I’d ever wanted. So why couldn’t I get over my own selfish crush, put this attraction aside and just be family?

I looked up and my heart—my sadistic heart—skipped. That’s why.

Cash’s face was shadowed by the dim light. His hair was a mess from being in a hat all day. He’d taken it off when we’d sat down because he wouldn’t wear it at the dinner table. It intensified his sparkling gaze. It defined that bearded jaw and accentuated the soft pout of his lower lip. He was mysterious and sexy and utterly mouthwatering.

Screw you, heart.