Page 31 of Holding Hope

But how? She didn’t want to talk about it. She barely even wanted to be in the same room as me.

I was shocked we’d lasted almost three hours without one of us strangling the other.

I nodded, hoping my expression wasn’t betraying me. Fixing things with Clarke was supposed to come with the songwriting—not before. Now I was going to have to get creative. Desperate, even.

I opened my mouth to agree—and was immediately cut off by a loud, animalistic cry from under Daisy’s hood.

Oh, fuck me.

“Great.”

I slammed Daisy’s hood down with a grunt. “The radiator’s blown.”

Avalon still hadn’t removed her feet from the dashboard. She shifted them aside and stared at me through the windshield.

“What does that mean, Clarke?”

She threw her hands up before lowering her new cowboy hat—the one she insisted she needed to “fully immerse herself” into Opal Springs. I still thought it was stupid.

“I don’t know shit about cars and mechanics.” A shiver ran down her spine. “That’s a blue job.”

I shook my head. “There’s no such thing as blue and pink jobs—at least not in the South.” I walked around the truck and climbed into the driver’s seat. “Here, everyone pulls their weight. And those who don’t⁠—”

I slammed the door shut, jolting the whole vehicle. Avalon looked over at me from under her hat.

“—leave.”

She sat upright, finally removing her feet from the dashboard. A flash of fury lit her eyes as she yanked off her hat.

“I wouldn’t be here by choice. If there was another way, I’d gladly take it. You don’t seem to understand just how desperate I am for this to work out. I’m really sacrificing a lot.”

Avalon slumped back into her seat and fanned herself with a magazine. “I mean, you guys don’t even have working Wi-Fi or cable. The only thing that seems to work around here is your family.”

I snorted and pushed the lever beneath my seat, scooting it farther into the cabin.

Oh, she was sacrificing a lot, huh?

“It’s called having a good work ethic. Is that so bad?”

Opening the glove compartment, I pulled out the mini emergency satellite phone Colt had insisted I keep in Daisy after the last time I’d been stranded. It would take a few minutes to heat up, but then I could call my father to tow us back to the ranch.

Avalon sighed and rolled her eyes. “It’s boring. Don’t you guys have any fun around here?”

“Fun? Oh, Opal Springs does fun, alright.”

I lowered my hat over my face—the midday sun was becoming unbearable despite it being early in the year.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Avalon mimic me, propping her legs back up on the dashboard. I couldn’t help but snort at the difference in length; standing beside her, the height difference wasn’t too noticeable, but lying down it was almost laughable.

“Tell me then, Clarke.”

She sounded bored—and honestly, I couldn’t blame her. I’d rather be doing half a million things than be stuck on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere with Avalon Kennedy.

“What does Opal Springs like to do for fun?”

I sighed and shifted into a more comfortable position. “There’s Founder’s Day in August. Fourth of July, obviously—it’s a big thing. Tons of fireworks, parades, carnival food. My favorite unofficial Opal Springs holiday is Pelican Fly Day.”

“Pelican Fly Day?” Avalon snorted, crossing her arms. “What the hell is that?”