SIX MONTHS_(A Seven Series Novel Book 2)

Chapter 9


After we loaded up the truck with groceries for the cookout, Lexi drove back to her house and showed me how to get there.
“Wow,” I gasped, leaning my head out the open window. “This is huge!”
“That’s what I said last night.”
Her phone rang and I unbuckled my seat belt.
“Hold on,” she said. “Hello? Hi, Maze! Are you having a good time, sweetie? You are? … Wow. Your big sis misses you. Tell me all about the pool.”
While Lexi carried on with her little sister, I grabbed a few paper bags from the trunk and glanced at the house again. It was gorgeous. Two, maybe three stories, and a balcony filled with yellow and orange chrysanthemums. White shutters bordered each window, and a long porch wrapped around the front and sides of the house. Lexi mentioned it had once been a hotel many years ago. I couldn’t imagine who would have come out this far to stay at a hotel, but I guess some people have money and just like to get away from it all. Wooden wind chimes clacked together from a pear tree on the right, and a child’s swing hung from an oak tree a few feet away. I wasn’t sure what to make of it all. Horseshoes, rocking chairs on the long porch, a purple bottle of bubbles on one of the steps, a bunch of cars and a motorcycle to the left, and a giant wooden sign nailed on the house that said Weston.
“Austin! I need some help,” Lexi shouted out.
The door swung open and Reno stepped outside.
My breath caught.
He didn’t notice me as he jogged down the steps to help Lexi. I just stood there mutely, peering at him from between two paper bags. The closer he got, the more nervous I became and I wanted to flee. He wasn’t the kind of guy I imagined myself turning stupid over, but there I was, feeling a mantastic episode coming on.
My heart pounded against my chest with each step he took across the grass in his black boots. And then he noticed me.
And stopped.
My heart stopped too.
“Reno, you remember April. I heard you beat up her friend,” Lexi chided.
“I’m sorry,” I said, peering up at him between the bags. He squinted as if he didn’t want me to see his eyes—his beautiful brown eyes that I had only glimpsed briefly in the store. He’d shaved since I’d last seen him. Not a single rogue whisker poked out from his jaw. It was so smooth that I had a silly urge to touch his cheeks. Reno had a brush cut—trimmed on the sides and longer on the top with short sideburns. Perfectly styled and brushed. Reno’s gaze intimidated me, yet there was something familiar about him that I couldn’t put my finger on.
“What are you apologizing for?” he asked in a rough voice. Reno had a gravelly pitch that was masculine. Most guys just didn’t talk like that. Then again, Reno wasn’t most guys. He was unlike any man I’d ever known.
“For Trevor calling you a freak. It was rude and uncalled for, but you still shouldn’t have hit him.”
Maybe it didn’t excuse Reno for knocking Trevor out, but whoever made up the sticks and stones song was an idiot who had never been picked on. Name-calling hurt, and maybe it hurt tough guys too.
He lifted the sacks from my arms and walked away without an apology.
Lexi put her arm across my shoulder. “Are you staring at his ass?”
“No!” I shrugged off her arm and she chuckled, reaching in the trunk for a few bags.
“Sorry, April. It just kind of looked like you were checking him out,” she said with a private smile.
Austin flew out the main door and cut across the lawn, dressed in a white tank top and jeans. I got an eyeful of the tattoos that marked his shoulders and upper arms with a tribal design. “How’s it going, April?” he said more than asked.
“Hey,” I said, greeting him. “It’s going pretty good.”
“Lexi, I need your help.”
“What’s up?” She pinched the cleft on his chin.
He kissed her softly on the mouth and growled. I saw his bottom lip pull out a little as she nipped it with her teeth. “Cut that out,” he said in a low voice, sliding his hand over her rear as if I weren’t even there. “I forgot to pick up gas and charcoal.”
“So why do you need my help?”
“We also need a shitload of ice for the beer. Ivy just brought it to my attention, and I’ll need you to park in front while I load up the back. She also thinks we need to buy or rent some large trashcans.”
“Oh, shit. I didn’t think of that,” Lexi said. “There’ll be bottles and plates all over the place.” Then she gasped. “I forgot the plastic cups. Dammit!”
“Everyone else is busy and we need to get it together before they start showing up. There are a lot of important people who’ll be here.”
I wondered what he meant by that. It wasn’t as if the mayor was going to show up at a keg party. “Lexi, I need to get home.”
She knitted her brows. “The hardware store is in the opposite direction.”
“Reno!” Austin shouted. Then he stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled. I always admired a man who could do that.
Heavy boots clomped on the porch as Reno came out. The sun drifted behind a cloud and Austin stalked in his direction.
Lexi tapped her fingers on the hood of the car, lost in her thoughts.
Austin’s voice boomed across the yard. “Lexi, change of plans. Reno’s gonna take April home. We need two cars because it’s not all going to fit in one.”
“Well, we better get back in time, Austin Cole. I have to get ready.”
He snorted. “To throw on a pair of shorts and a tank top? Come on, Ladybug. Let’s get going.”
She smirked at him with a “You just wait and see” look in her eyes. He caught it, analyzed it, and folded his arms as she strolled around the car and looked at him provocatively over her shoulder.
I hated to admit it, but I loved watching those two. They had an explosive chemistry that most couples didn’t, and I adored it. Yet, somewhere in the back of my head, I’d convinced myself that it wouldn’t last. Austin was all kinds of hot and I’m sure he had women coming on to him all the time. Lexi had a temper, and all it would take was one meaningless argument that would send him out the door and into the arms of another.
That was why I loved romance novels. The book ends and there’s nothing to spoil it. In real life, love isn’t about the fairy tale. Love is about not being alone. Sometimes we settle for less because that’s all there is.
I almost jumped out of my skin when a heavy hand lightly touched my shoulder. I spun around and caught my surprised reaction reflected back at me in Reno’s aviator sunglasses. He smelled amazing, and I leaned in without realizing it.
He sucked on his teeth for a nanosecond. “You ever been on a bike?”

Reno took me on a short spin around the property on his Triumph Bonneville so I could get used to the feel of a motorcycle between my legs. When he first throttled her up, the vibration sent a thrill through my body, tickling every nerve. It was the sexiest feeling. He showed me where to put my feet and what not to do. When I started to wrap my arms around him, he laughed, guiding my hands down to his belt loops.
The loud motor made me uneasy and I had to trust that he wasn’t going to kill me on the turns. Reno secured a helmet on my head that was sized to fit a woman, and he didn’t baby-step it one bit when we hit the main road. I let out a few shrieks when he weaved around a car, but Reno seemed like the kind of man who owned the road on that bike. He wasn’t afraid of the raw power and knew how to handle it with cool confidence.
The wind cooled my legs, but my fair complexion wasn’t compatible with the afternoon sun and my thighs began to redden. When we reached a red light, Reno put his feet out for balance and revved the engine. It sounded predatory, and the seat vibrated beneath me. I rested my hands on my hot thighs and wet my dry lips.
God, I had to admit I felt totally badass.
A car rolled up on our right and I heard one of those “Yeows” that a guy makes when he’s catcalling. It didn’t come from the driver, but someone in the back seat of the car who leaned over to get a better look at my legs.
“Too bad she’s with that f*cker,” the guy in the back said.
I got mad and gave them the finger. The driver laughed and I grinned, putting my hands back around Reno’s waist.
Then I heard a thick voice in the back seat of the car call me a cunt. It should have fueled my fire like it would Lexi, but things like that embarrassed me, so I looked away and leaned against Reno’s back, holding him as if he were my boyfriend.
Then I heard a click and looked to my right.
“Say you’re sorry,” Reno said in a deep voice. A calm voice, but I felt it vibrating through his back.
I sat up straight when I saw his right arm was extended with a gun in his hand.
“You can apologize, or I can track you across the city. How ’bout that?”
“Sorry, goddammit,” a young man griped before the windows rolled up.
The light blinked green and the car sped away. My heart raced as Reno made the gun disappear. I glanced around, but we were the only ones at the small intersection.
My mouth was opening to say something when he glanced over his shoulder at me. “I’m proud of you.” He throttled the engine.
“For what?” I yelled through the helmet.
He lifted my facemask. “For sticking up for yourself. I don’t step in when a man is appreciating a beautiful woman, no matter how juvenile he goes about it. Let’s just say he caught me on a good day, calling you a name like that.” Reno lowered my visor. “Hang on tight.”
The engine growled and we took off.
Through hand gestures and shouting, I directed him toward my trailer. Suddenly, the bike veered off the main road and pulled into a Sonic drive-in. As soon as we eased into a parking spot, he cut off the engine.
“What are we doing here?” I asked.
“Having lunch. Lexi is going to starve me to death waiting for the party tonight. A man’s got to eat.”
I got off and was fumbling with the helmet when he turned around and undid my chin strap. As he slowly pulled it off, my hair fell across my face.
He looked down at me, still wearing his shades. “You did real good, April. How was your first ride?”
“Unforgettable.” I smiled, scraping my fingers through my bright hair, which was now a tangled mess.
He held out his arm, coaxing me to walk toward the outside seating area. It felt good to sit in the shade and feel a gentle breeze on my neck.
“I love all this sunshine,” I said, wiping dirt off the mesh table with my forearm. “I hope we get to keep it for a little while.” I turned around and stared at the menu that was sitting between the tables on a sturdy pole. “What do you feel like eating?”
“Double bacon cheeseburger, large fries, and a banana shake,” he said without missing a beat.
I slowly turned my head to give him a surprised look. “Are you sure you don’t want to just eat light? There’s going to be a lot of food at the party.”
“This is eating light. I burn off a lot of energy,” he said, sliding his shades on top of his head.
I admired his rich brown eyes, which were deep-set and pensive. Reno had a serious expression with frown lines in his forehead and a clean-shaven jaw. His hair was shorter on the sides and long enough on the top that I could pinch it. So clean-cut, and yet so tough-looking—like a cop or a soldier in civilian clothes.
“Order whatever you want. I’m paying,” he said, placing his leather wallet on the table. Reno wore a white undershirt with a blue button-up over it, but it wasn’t buttoned. I could see part of a gun strap that went over his shoulder. He caught the direction of my gaze and closed it up to conceal his gun. Then he placed his forearms on the table and narrowed his eyes. “You don’t say much. Most women talk a lot to fill in the silence.”
I shrugged, grateful I hadn’t tumbled into a trashcan by now. “Do you always carry a gun?”
His mouth turned down in a contemplative way. “Most of the time. It’s part of my job.”
That explained it. “You’re a cop,” I said.
Reno shook his head. “Private investigator. I’m not going to sugarcoat it for you—it’s dangerous work.”
“Do you normally pull out your gun and aim it at innocent people?”
His lips thinned. “Innocent is debatable.” His finger tapped on the table. “There’re things you don’t understand, and I can’t sit here at Sonic and tell you whatever you need to hear to feel better about what happened back there. Every man draws a line in the sand that determines what he’s willing to stand for. I know exactly where that line is in my life, and nobody crosses it. So if you think a man calling you a filthy name like that means he’s innocent, then we’re not on the same page.”
I’m not sure if what he said made me feel better, but I couldn’t deny I’d liked that renegade moment when a man had actually stuck up for me. Trevor did it all the time, but his intentions were misplaced; all a guy had to do was flirt with me. Reno had minded his own business until they called me a vulgar name. He could have blown it off and ignored them.
But he hadn’t. Reno had protected my honor.
Maybe after a warning like that, those men would think twice about doing that to another woman. Probably not, but I admired Reno for not having turned a blind eye like I’d seen people do so many times.
I pressed the button on the menu and the lady asked if we were ready. After repeating Reno’s order, I examined the menu again. “Could I just get some tater tots?”
“And?” she said in a tone that irritated me.
“Um, a small lemonade.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes. That will complete my order.” I spun around in annoyance. What did she expect me to do—order a foot-long chili dog and try to eat that with class in front of a guy like Reno?
“Is that going to be enough?” He pushed up his brow with his index finger and I smiled warmly.
“At least it’s not a salad. I’m saving my appetite for later. Plus, I’m not big on eating out anyhow. Especially fast food.”
“We’re going to have drinks and you shouldn’t be running on an empty stomach with alcohol.”
“I don’t drink much.”
“How about your friend? Does he drink much?”
“Trevor loves to drink and have a good time. I hope there won’t be any trouble because he’s coming with me, but I’m not going to the party without him. He’s my best friend and that’s the deal.”
Reno scratched his jaw and glanced at a truck pulling out. “Well, he won’t be my friend if he thinks he’s going to drive you home after drinking.”
“No, I’ll be the designated driver.”
“Then you’re not drinking.”
I frowned. “One beer won’t—”
“Kill you? Make you a little relaxed and not pay attention when a car makes a sudden turn and you can’t get out of the way? No, you’re not drinking. But you’ll still have a good time because Denver makes phenomenal steaks.”
“Lexi said the steaks were for certain people.”
He tapped his knuckle on the table. “If you want a steak, then you’re getting a steak. F*ck certain people.” Then his lips briefly pressed together. “You probably don’t like swearing, but I ain’t gonna church it up for you.”
Now that was a funny thought. I wasn’t big on cussing, but I wasn’t Mother Teresa either. Reno lived in a house full of men; it was to be expected.
“Be yourself, Reno. There’s no need to censor yourself around me.”
His shoulders relaxed a little, and a gust of wind blew a strand of hair in my eye. With a swift brush of his hand, Reno moved it away and we had a little moment. Maybe it was just me, but he smiled with his eyes.
“How long have you known him?” he asked.
“Trevor? Seems like forever.”
“Does he have family here?”
“They cut off relations years ago.” It wasn’t my place to tell Trevor’s business. “He’s a really good guy and a loyal friend.”
“That I don’t doubt,” Reno muttered.
“Were you born here?” I asked out of curiosity.
“No. Nevada.”
“Ah. That explains why you don’t have a heavy accent. Hey, wait a minute. Austin, Denver, Reno… Your parents must have moved around a lot.”
He suppressed a grin and leaned forward on his elbows. “Yeah, our parents had a sense of humor. What about your name?”
“Nothing special about my name.”
“I happen to think it’s a pretty name. How ’bout that?”
I felt my cheeks flush. “I think they were trying to pick baby names that sounded good with Frost. My sister’s name is Rosebud, but I call her Rose.”
“Do your parents live here?”
I hated talking about my parents. Instead, I listened to the classic rock ’n’ roll music playing on the speakers. It was Elvis singing about a little less conversation. “My mom… she um, she’s…”
“Sorry,” he quickly said, clearly assuming she was dead.
“Don’t be sorry for her,” I snapped. “She’s a prostitute living on the streets and addicted to heroin. She abandoned us after my dad died.”
“Damn,” he said through clenched teeth. “April, you don’t have to talk about it.”
“You brought it up,” I said in a melodic tone that dropped an octave. I never talked about it with anyone, including Trevor. Why I was rambling about my life story to a man I barely knew was beyond me. “She started using when I was around twelve or thirteen. I just remember seeing pills and bags of weed. I guess dad didn’t make enough to support her habit because she started staying out all night. I didn’t understand what was going on at first, but then the fights began. I can’t believe she did that to my father,” I almost mouthed more than said.
“Users have no control. No one can help them if they don’t choose to help themselves.”
“She could have tried. She had a family, but she wanted to escape. None of it was ever good enough. We weren’t good enough. I’ve never tried drugs and I never will. That’s not the kind of person I want to be. I deal with my problems.”
Not just mine, but I was cleaning up everyone else’s.
Reno worked on rolling one of his long sleeves a little higher, keeping his eyes low. “Have you seen her?”
“It’s been years. The last time I saw her, she borrowed a bunch of money from my grandma. She stayed in the trailer for two days shooting up, and when I hid her drugs, she called someone. He showed up and went ballistic.”
Reno’s face hardened. “Who’s he?”
“Her pimp, boyfriend, dealer—who knows. He tried to hit on Rose and she was just fourteen at the time. There was a big scuffle and Grandma called the cops when he broke the folding door in her bedroom. They left and she’s kept in touch with me, but only when she needs to borrow money. My dad was the only solid thing I had in my life, and he was killed in a car accident.”
My bottom lip twitched along with my cheek and I covered my face. I was about to have a meltdown at Sonic.
A slim girl in a pair of roller skates wheeled in our direction and slid a red tray onto the table. “Here you are. Ketchup? Napkins?” Her blond ponytail swung from side to side.
“All of it,” he said, handing her a bunch of bills. “Here. Keep the change, darlin’.”
“Wow. Thanks, mister!”
She skated off and Reno’s hand curled around my wrist. Not to pull it away from my face and make me snap out of my funk, instead he just stroked his fingers on the back of my hand and let me have a moment.
“I don’t want kids,” I blurted out, deciding to go all the way with my confessional to a total stranger. What did I have to lose? If anything, maybe someone would be honest with me for a change. “Do you think that makes me a bad person?”
When he didn’t answer, I lowered my eyes. “Kids are great, but I’m just not wired that way. Just because I can have them doesn’t mean I should. I don’t want to take the chance of messing up someone else’s life the way mine was.” I wiped my finger under my lashes and stared at a smudge of liner on my finger. “Great.”
Reno handed me a napkin and I wiped off my face.
“Don’t let your parents’ f*ckups make that kind of decision for you.”
After a deep sigh, I wadded up the napkin and put it on the table. “Sometimes it’s okay to be honest with yourself, but not everyone understands it. They think you’re selfish and missing out. But I’ve seen how it can go wrong, even with good intentions. Sometimes kids grow up to despise their parents. I just decided a long time ago that I was completely okay with not having a family. Rose will have kids for the both of us, and I’ll love being an aunt to them. But me?” I shook my head, unable to explain where I was coming from.
I laughed when I noticed the mountain of tater tots in front of me. His eyes flashed up briefly and I wondered if he thought my laugh strange. Lexi used to say I sounded like a mischievous fairy.
Then I noticed what was going on over on Reno’s side of the table. “Do you have OCD?”
Reno dramatically tilted his head to the side and I snapped my mouth shut. He continued to neatly squeeze ketchup onto the edge of a plastic wrapper and placed the empty packages in a straight line. It was as if everything in front of him had its place.
“Do what’s best for you, April. I don’t judge. I’ve seen a lot of bad shit if you want to know the truth. There are people out there unfit to parent, or maybe they’re just stressed because they can’t swing the rent and they have another kid on the way. Maybe they never got to have a life of their own before it all started. But yeah, some people just aren’t wired that way. I get it.”
“Thanks.” I took a slow bite of my tot and then another. I never imagined I could be so open with a stranger and not be judged. “Now that I’ve slammed you with all the heavy stuff on our first date, maybe we should talk about the last movie you saw,” I said with a laugh.
Reno held the burger up to his mouth and froze before taking a bite. His dark eyes were on me and a few pieces of diced onion spilled out of his bun. When he set the burger down, I put my hands in my lap.
Reno smiled wide, and it revealed lines in his face that were deep and wonderful. He had straight teeth. I couldn’t help it—I was one of those people who looked at teeth. Trevor had a crooked bottom tooth, but it gave him that edgy look. I just liked to know that a man thought enough about himself to take oral hygiene seriously.
It took me a minute to figure out what he was smiling about. Great job, my inner voice said. You just officially declared this a date. Desperation train, all aboard!
“It’ll be our secret,” he said in a humorous tone. “I know you didn’t mean it that way. Do you plan on moving out of the trailer?”
I frowned suspiciously. “What makes you think I live in a trailer?”
He shoved about six fries in his mouth and chewed slowly before answering. As his jaw moved, I got a chance to admire his sculpted face up close, right before he sucked the salt off his thumb and made me squirm in my seat. “You mentioned it a minute ago. I just assumed you’re still living there since we’re heading toward the parks.”
“Oh.” I tilted my head and shrugged a little. “I’m saving my money; it’s just temporary.”
Then his eyes squinted, and not because it was sunny outside. It was that look someone gives you when they know you’re lying about something.
“Aren’t you hot in that getup? It seems like every time I see you, you’re wearing long sleeves.”
“Not every time,” he said in a throaty voice that rumbled from deep within his chest.
A shiver rolled through me and I ate a few more tater tots.
I had once driven Lexi to Austin’s house. Reno had been standing in the hot sun without a shirt, his golden chest glistening with a sheen of sweat, and the muscles in his arms and pecs twitching as he turned a horseshoe around in his hand. I could hardly comprehend anyone looking as sumptuous as he did while looking as equally intimidating. I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off him when I saw his thick arms and how his skin bronzed in the sunshine, whereas my pale skin just turned blotchy red. What I felt about him wasn’t curiosity or admiration—it was a fever. One that caught me off guard—I’d never been attracted to a man like him before. At least, not in real life. The guys I dated were of average build and much younger. Now here I was, sitting at Sonic with a man who made my toes curl just by looking at me.
I felt a blush rising, so I grabbed the empty ketchup packets and stood up to toss them into the trash. My feet tangled around the long strap of my purse and I stumbled awkwardly, grabbing the menu stand just seconds before I did a face-plant. I steadied myself and threw the ketchup in the wastebasket. When I turned around, it was with the full expectation of seeing Reno silently cracking up at my blunder. I wasn’t a graceful woman by any means, and most guys had no qualms about laughing at my antics. It was something I had grown accustomed to, but it still needled me.
Instead, he had shot around that table in a flash and was cupping my elbow, ready to catch me if I fell.
When he bent down to pick up the packet, I knew immediately that I wanted to see him again. He hadn’t made a big deal about my clumsy ballerina act, and that meant a lot.
“You still drive that toy car?” he asked, taking his seat again.
I cleared my dry throat and sipped my drink. “No, that was Rose’s VW and she took it with her to Arizona. I don’t have a car.”
Reno sucked on his banana shake and drew his brows together pensively. He set the cup down and folded his arms on the table. “You mean to tell me that you’re walking everywhere?”
“Work is close by and I can’t complain about the exercise. It’s the rain I’m not crazy about.”
Then he began rubbing his hands all over his jaw, as if he wanted to make that bristly sound your hands make when they rub against whiskers. But his face was baby-smooth and all it did was push his skin around.
“I’ll lend you one of our cars.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“I get the last word, Reno. Borrowing means you owe, and I’m tired of owing people.”
“Are you in some kind of trouble?”
“I barely know you. I can’t borrow your car. Look, I’m sorry to rush, but I need to get home. There’s something important I have to take care of before the party tonight. Would you mind eating a little faster?”
Reno stood up and dumped his food in the trash.
“Wait, I didn’t mean that you had to—”
He walked around the table and tossed mine in the trash next. I sprang to my feet to confront him, but before I could say a word, he tucked a swath of hair behind my ear that had slipped in front of my eye.
Then I forgot my name and how to speak.
There’s a buzzing sensation when you have chemistry with someone. It’s like there are invisible threads connecting your bodies and igniting into sparks, and the residual pulse bounces back in shockwaves, growing stronger with each second.
I felt that with Reno. He stepped so close to me that I remembered how good it felt when he’d held me in his arms. The animalistic look in his eyes captured me like he was a predator and I was prey. He felt it too. I could tell by the soft breath he took before he spoke.
“I’ve always liked hazel eyes,” he said. “Yours look like a sunset over sea-green waters.”
I hit pause. This was a scene I’d be replaying in my head for weeks to come, and I didn’t want to ruin the moment by saying something inane. I let him graze his thumb across my mouth. He pulled my lower lip down just enough that his thumb glided across the fleshy inside. Then he rolled his wet thumb across my lip, making what seemed like a casual gesture become the most intimate moment I’d experienced with a man outside of sex.
His eyes hooded.
I wanted to do something bold to get a reaction, like suck on his thumb. But that’s something my prostitute mother would do. So I became immobile and just let him touch me.
And that was enough. Staring into Reno’s chocolate eyes up close was like riding on that motorcycle. Intense, sexy, and addictive. When I felt his hand leisurely traveling down the curve of my back, my icy walls began to melt and I warmed to his touch.
I waited for him to make another move, but it never came. He looked at me like something unattainable—the same way I coveted the expensive perfume bottles behind the display counter, or the chocolate macadamia nut cookies at the gourmet shop.
I whirled around and he captured my wrist, gently tugging me back. “Something wrong with the way I touched you?”
“It’s nothing,” I breathed.
But Reno didn’t let go. He stepped closer and lifted my chin. “Did you want me to kiss you?”
“No.”
Reno grinned. “Liar.”
“Do I seem like the kind of girl who would kiss a guy by a trash can with about fifteen cars watching us?”
His face reddened. “I wasn’t trying to insult you.”
“I know you weren’t. I had a nice time, but I need to go home so I can take care of some errands and get ready for the party.”
“Only if you save a dance for me.”
I sniffed softly as we walked to the bike. “I can’t dance.”
“Good,” he said. “Then I won’t have to worry about someone else stealing that dance.” He handed me the helmet and threw his leg over the bike.
“I’m not dancing with you, Reno.”
“Climb on, April. And get used to holding on to me as tight as you can, because you’ll be in my arms before the night is over.”