Chapter 68: Chapter 68

"Well?" He sounded nervous and I prayed that it was not a bad sign.

What was I thinking? I almost saw the headline in the newspaper. Violent Death by the Roadside.

"What?" My mouth was as dry as dust, but he just laughed about my strange noise.

"Where should I take you?" he asked. "You haven't told me yet."

I'd never felt so stupid in my life.

After I gave him the address, I peered around. The car also looked well maintained from the inside. The equipment was cheap and there wasn't any leather, but the seat covers were kept dark and smooth. A green scented tree dangled from the mirror, matching the color of the car surprisingly well. The tree exuded a gentle, artificial apple scent, which rather harmed the ambience. This was definitely not a smoker's car.

"Thanks." I had to start a conversation or I would go crazy with awkwardness. "For the ride, I mean."

My words elicited a smile from him, which immediately took me back to the day we'd met. I saw the small alley and the threatening men disappearing around the corner. With this memory, my shoulders relaxed a little. Compared to them, my counterpart seemed very trustworthy.

"No problem," he replied. "I was just passing and I saw you at the bus stop, so I thought I'd repay you for your help the other day."

He hadn't forgotten me yet. In a way, I was flattered.

"Is this your car?" I asked.

"Yes." His gaze remained on the street ahead. "I bought it today."

"Really?"

"You're my first passenger." He laughed.

"Oh!" I moaned in horror. "And I'm dripping all over your seat covers with my wet clothes!"

I started to peel out of my jacket when he finally gave me a look. It still held some nervousness, but it was also warm and inviting.

"No, no, don't worry," he said and turned the heat up as if to accelerate the process. "You'll be dry in no time."

"So you just came from the car dealer," I concluded.

"From a private person," he corrected. "I saw a newspaper ad yesterday about someone wanting to sell his car." Now he was smiling again. "And I needed a car. One thing led to another."

It made me laugh. "Well, congratulations. I'd like to have one of these as my first car. It's really cozy."

It maybe wasn't the limousine one dreamed of, but at our age it was perfectly sufficient.

"Have you gotten your driver's license?" he asked.

"No," I confessed. "No cash."

He chuckled. "Never mind. I've been saving for years to buy this one. With some bargaining, of course."

I wanted to know how old he was, but that seemed too personal. I had no experience with these sorts of things. There were boys in my class, but I'd never had these kinds of conversations with them. With this man, however, it was different. I hardly knew what to ask. His presence made me insecure somehow. Audrey would have used this opportunity to sing mean songs and mock me.

"What's your name?" That was also personal, but it didn't sound flirtatious at all.

"Josh," he said. "Josh Grayson."

The strange blue eyes finally had a name—Josh.

"Ruby Bennington."

"Beautiful name," he said. "Like the jewel."

I blushed. "Thanks."

An embarrassing silence followed. I couldn't say that a lack of empathy was the reason I didn't know how to continue the conversation. Josh was really nice. I liked the relaxed way he sat, almost as if he had always been there. I was eighteen, I was watching romantic movies with my mother, and I was dreaming of first love and all its details like many girls my age. Unfortunately, I didn't know how to tell if two people liked each other—especially if one of those two was me. I was just not good at it.

Maybe Josh was feeling the same way. He nervously scratched his neck twice in the short silence. I was afraid that I would soon have to get out of the Jetta without a word, when the radio dropped the first notes of a song I knew.

"That's a good one," I mentioned quickly.

Josh visibly relaxed beside me. "You know them?"

"It was on the charts."

I had already noticed that we were listening to the same album the whole time. The instruments were hard and loud, but the lyrics were much more profound than I would have expected. I had guessed which band it was, and with the current song I knew for certain.

"They're not bad," I added.

Josh seemed happy. "I like them, too. My favorite band," he admitted. "Most people find them controversial, but I think you just have to listen to them."

He shrugged his shoulders.

"There's a lot of people who get upset about stuff like that?" I mumbled. "It's just music."

Josh thoughtfully let the wheel slip through his hand before he smiled.

"Yeah," he said. "I like that. It's just music."

When we passed the smallest of all side streets, I finally lifted my finger. "That's where you have to drive in." I pointed it out. "The farm is a long way from nowhere."

As Josh pulled in, he frowned. Then he looked me straight in the face. "You're the girl from the farm?"

He sounded as if that were something very strange. I couldn't quite interpret the tone in his voice, but it made me a little indignant. "The girl from the farm"? What was that supposed to mean? Had there been gossip about us?

"Yes," I replied uncertainly. "Why?"

He looked like he wanted to bite his tongue. "Nothing. I was just wondering because I thought you lived downtown."

His smile was disarming.

"I think I've seen you somewhere before," he said.

"Yes, last week," was my answer. I didn't want to let him off the hook for that "farm girl" comment quite yet, but I didn't want to be petty about it either. He was as embarrassed about this situation as I was, I could tell. People say stupid things, don't they?

Josh chuckled again. "You work at Harrison's, you said? Does he have shoes?"

I nodded. "There's a sale right now. Do you need some?"

Josh thought for a second. "Actually, I do. I just need to see if the car will let me have some budget I can scrape together."

For that he earned my sincere sympathy. That was how I felt every Saturday in front of the baker who sold those delicious cakes.

"Maybe I'll stop by sometime," Josh added. His voice was light, so I didn't assume he was serious.

"I'd like that," I said anyway. "I'm always there on Saturdays."

He seemed a little more serious now. "All right."

I had Josh drop me off on the driveway and not right in front of the house. There were two good reasons for that. Firstly, I didn't want Josh to possibly get stuck in our unpaved yard, and secondly, I had to prevent Mom from seeing him. If she did, I couldn't guarantee what would happen. She'd probably never stop bombarding me with questions, so I got out of the car quickly when Josh stopped.

"Thanks again," I said politely.

Josh had rolled down the window to say goodbye. "You're welcome. I hope you don't catch a cold."

That was very nice.

"Oh, I'm tough." While I was talking, I noticed a movement in the corner of my eye. It was the curtain in the kitchen. Mom had found her way to the window.

Oh, no. I almost moaned it out loud.

"Get home safe," I said to Josh as he started to pull out. I waved at him, then straightened and went inside.

It still hadn'tstopped raining, but the cold seemed more inviting and cheerful than before. Atleast I knew for sure what I would be spending the rest of the evening with: Mymom, interrogating me about Josh, and my thoughts, wondering who on earth wasgossiping about "the family on the farm."