Chapter One
Harlow
BEGINNING OF FRESHMAN YEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL
Once upon a time, I was pretty sure I loved this ranch. My father had pictures up around the house of me riding horses, grinning in the middle of the fields, swimming in the rivers. Laughing as the sun beat down on my face.
But now…
I hated it. I hated this small town. I hated this ranch. I hated stepping outside of my house for school every morning to the smell of cow manure and farm animals. I hated the sound of grazing cows. And I hated the sight of the ranch hands heading out to the fields to work every morning.
And to top it all off, Dad and I rarely saw eye-to-eye anymore. I was growing up and changing, and he couldn’t cope. He still wanted to treat me like I was five instead of a teenager starting her freshman year of high school. It was like I wasn’t allowed to have my own mind anymore. Like I wasn’t allowed to be my own person.
Sometimes, I thought about running away, but then I thought about my best friend, Maddox. What would he do without me, without this ranch to fall back on? He already spent most of his time here, earning cash from my father here and there when he helped out on the ranch. His parents didn’t take care of him. His stepdad was a jerk that liked to push him around. His mother never cared enough to make it stop. She was only worried about having a man take care of her.
My father, me, and this ranch were all Maddox had. So, I couldn’t leave, even if I desperately wanted to just pack a bag and run. Go wherever the wind happened to take me.
Maddox was relying on me, and I would never let him down.
“You ready for our first day?” Maddox asked, stepping out onto the porch where I was waiting for him. He’d slept over last night, which wasn’t all that unusual for him. On one shoulder, he had his bookbag, and on his other shoulder, he had his small duffel bag that contained his football equipment. My father began paying for him to play back in middle school, and as long as Maddox kept his grades up, my dad had promised to keep paying for him to play throughout high school.
I sort of envied the easy relationship Maddox had with my father. It was like he was the son my dad never got.
Instead, he got stuck with me—stubborn, hard-headed, and strong-willed. And a girl.
Sometimes, I felt like my dad was more of a father to Maddox than he was to me. They got along great. Most days, it felt like Maddox was becoming the son my father wished I would always act like. But instead, I grew up, my body changed, and I became interested in boys, in having my hair done, in make-up.
In places bigger than what he could ever dream of.
I was no longer the tomboy he could pretend was his son.
And it ripped a hole between us that was irreparable.
“Eh,” I muttered, shrugging my shoulder. “I’m just ready to be done with school. I hate it.”
He laughed a little and headed down the porch, expecting me to follow him, which I did. “Har, you hate everything,” he teased. A tingle rippled through my chest at the sound of my nickname. He was the only person ever allowed to use it. It always left me with warm, fuzzy feelings inside.
I shrugged my shoulder as we began the walk down the long drive to where we would wait for the bus at the end. “Life is full of disappointments.”
“Always such a negative Nancy,” he muttered, shaking his head at me. “Come on, Har. Your dad is paying for you to do cheer,” he reminded me. “We’ll get to go away on games. We’ll be popular. Everyone is going to love us.”
I sighed. I loved being on the cheer squad, but it kept feeling like something was missing. I just didn’t know what. And I definitely hadn’t had any luck in finding it yet.
“Promise we’ll always have each other?” I asked, looking up at him. He’d really shot up over the summer, now standing at almost six feet. And he’d really filled out. Honestly, he was extremely hot, and his voice was deep for a teen. But that was a boundary I would never cross with him. I could never let him know how I felt about him.
Maddox was my best friend and the only person I one hundred percent trusted. I couldn’t ruin that. Besides, even if we started something, if it didn’t work out, where would that leave Maddox? He’d never have that safety net to come to when home got unbearable for him.
I would never be selfish with him. Could never.
He grabbed my hand in his, and tingles raced up my arm, straight to my heart. My breath hitched in my throat, my heart racing when he gave my fingers a gentle squeeze. “I promise, Har. You’re my best friend. Nothing will ever change that.”
“Swear?” I asked, looking up at him.
He nodded, looking back down at me with his hypnotizing, stunning, bright blue eyes. “I promise, Harlow,” he said softly. Then, he grinned. “Now stop worrying so much. Everything is going to be great. You’ll see.”
I sighed, watching as the bus came down the road, slowing to a stop in front of us.
I only hoped he was right.
