Page 44 of Wheelie's Challenge
“He is, but the Insurgents are his lifeblood.” Sofia stopped by their row of seats. “I don’t know how he’ll function without the brotherhood.”
“He’ll have you. You’ll help him through if it comes to that.”
Hope welled inside Sofia. “You think there’s a chance Banger won’t throw Wheelie out?”
“Life usually holds chances for us. Don’t dwell on it, and don’t let this ruin your evening out.” Cara turned her body halfway and pointed to the left of her. “We’re sitting on the second tier. Your seats are way better than ours. There’s no way in hell that Hawk can see you two.”
“Thanks. I planned on calling you in the morning to ask for the name of a divorce attorney. I’m leaving Tigger.”
Cara squealed and hugged Sofia tight against her. “I’m so happy to hear that. I’ll help you out in any way. Belle and Addie too. Just let us know what you need, and we’ll be right there for you. The other old ladies feel the same, but I wouldn’t say anything to Doris or Marlena. You know howtheycan be.”
Sofia nodded. “Thanks.”
Then the crowd exploded. Lights flashed. The sound of guitars and fiddles filled the amphitheater. Sofia whirled around just as the blue-jeaned, denim-shirted, and cowboy hat-wearing Aldean appeared on stage, a guitar strapped across him as florescent lights shone down.
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” Cara yelled in Sofia’s ear and then she dashed away.
The performance was electric, and under ordinary circumstances, Sofia would’ve been mesmerized by it, but all she could think about was Wheelie, and Hawk chewing his ass out. By the time the fourth song was in full swing, Wheelie slipped in beside Sofia and tugged her to him then gave her a kiss.
“Is everything okay?” she yelled in his ear.
He gave a slight shrug then pointed to the stage which told her he didn’t want to talk about it. As the concert unfolded, Sofia let herself get lost in the songs, the lights, and the sheer entertainment from her country idol.
A few hours later, Wheelie merged onto the freeway as they headed back to Pinewood Springs. The lanes stretched into the horizon, appearing as if they’d be swallowed up by the star-speckled and cloudless sky. Sofia rolled the window down and deeply breathed in the scent of pine, sagebrush, and sweet wildflowers. The wind blew Sofia’s hair into a tousled mane, and after searching through her purse, she pulled her hair back and secured it with the scrunchie she’d finally found. Sofia glanced over at Wheelie and noticed that his back was ramrod straight. Both of his hands clenched the steering wheel, and his lips were pressed in a tight line as he stared directly ahead. Wheelie liked hard rock music when he drove, and Sofia nearly reached over to turn the radio on but figured it wouldn’t calm the storm brewing inside him at that moment, so she stared at the darkened landscape racing by.
Should I say something?Shivers of panic intertwined with threads of fear as they drove in silence. Sofia couldn’t even count the number of times Tigger had given her the silent treatment because he was pissed off at her about some thing or another, and by the time they would arrive home he’d be livid, and then he’d take out his wrath on her small, soft body. Tension curled around her as her mother’s voice echoed in her head,“All men are brutal. They all wanna hurt us. You just gotta take it if you want a man.”
Is Wheeliereallylike Tigger? He never seemed that way, but then he’s never been angry at me. Men change into beasts when they get angry. I never thought you’d be that way, Wheelie. We’ve had so—
“Did you like the concert?”
The sound of his deep voice made her jump, and she clamped a hand over her mouth to stop the cry that almost came out. Trembling, she turned to look at him. The beginning of a smile tugged on his lips,and damn his were soft,reaching inside her to a raw, tender place. Sofia uncrossed her ankles and swiveled in the seat.
“I loved it. It totally rocked. What about you?”
“Fuckin’ awesome.” Wheelie put his hand on top of hers; it was warm as the sun’s rays.
“I’m so glad you loved it.” Sofia pushed the stray hairs flying around her face into the scrunchie and rolled the window up. “Are you okay? I don’t want to bring it up if it’ll make you mad or something.”
“Sofia, you can bring anything up to me. Even if I’m pissed as hell, we can talk about it. I don’t ever want you to be afraid of me. I’m not Tigger. I never could be. And… yeah… I’m okay.”
She licked her parched lips, then fished around the cooler Wheelie had brought with them and took out a Diet Dr. Pepper. “Is Hawk going to tell Banger?”
“It’s what he has to do. I knew the risk, and it’s okay. I don’t want you to blame yourself for this. I mean it. It’s on me… all the way.” Wheelie lifted her hand and kissed it gently.
A comfortable silence fell between them. There was nothing more Sofia, or Wheelie, could say, for that matter. They’d been found out. They’d rolled the dice and lost, and even though they knew how dire the consequences would be, they threw caution to the wind. Sofia couldn’t imagine not having Wheelie in her life, and she hoped he felt the same as her. Sadness pervaded every nook and cranny in her heart and soul, and even though Wheelie kept telling her it wasn’t her fault, she felt responsible for ending his life as an Insurgent.
When they arrived back in Pinewood Springs, the town was quiet and dark except for the amber lights glowing from the street lamps lining each side of the road. Since it was a weeknight, all the bars and clubs had turned off their lights and locked their doors at midnight, leaving the downtown area eerily vacant except for the random car driving on Main Street every once in a while.
Expecting Wheelie to turn left on Fifth Street, Sofia was surprised when he drove past it and took the streets leading to his house. She reached over and clasped his hand in hers: joy spread through her. That night, Sofia didn’t want to be alone; she longed to be cherished in his strong arms.
While Wheelie took out a blueberry vodka cooler for her and a bottle of beer for himself, Sofia tucked her feet under her butt and watched him from the couch.
“Here you go.” Wheelie bent low and kissed her deeply, then he walked around and sat next to her on the couch and kicked off his boots to rest his feet on the coffee table. He clinked the beer against her drink then took a long pull.
Sofia welcomed the slight kick from the vodka and the taste of blueberry as she swirled the drink in her mouth before swallowing it. “Can I ask you something?”
Wheelie’s gaze landed on hers. “Sure. Anything that isn’t club business.”
