Chapter 2 That might be it

sure that would change as he got older. Like his mother, he had red hair and eyes like moss. Maximilian wore super soft clothes, all jeans and nice sweaters. He looked expensive, but the fantastic thing about him was that he was humble, or at least I thought he was. He wasn't shy, but he was quiet. The words gentleman, total class and beloved were used around the town whenever Maximilian Dunnett was mentioned. He was the town's golden boy, while I was the wild orphan child. Someone like him would never notice someone like me. Trust me, I wasn't feeling sorry for myself. It was a fact. I was used to it. My motto in life: sticks and stones. He smiled at us, all perfect white teeth, and I found myself smiling back at him. There was something mesmerizing about his smile. There was a sincerity and innocence to him that was hard to ignore. “I think I'll pass on this kiss, Russell. Although, if the pretty girl wants to give it to me, then I can go along with it.” Oh my God. First, he called Rusty by his name, all right, and it was cute as hell, and second, he just called me pretty. I knew I wasn't ugly. All brown hair and big brown eyes, I I looked pretty similar, but most of the time, guys made me feel cheap. Now, the way Max called me pretty made me feel like I was more, not just the daughter of the town's drunk whore. "That might be it. be arranged, if you can get me home before I get cold." I noticed Rusty's shoulders tense, not liking my flirtatious tone. It was his fault we got stuck. I may or may not have frostbite, and I don't care. I don't mind kissing Max Dunnett. Rusty can fuck off. Max looked me straight in the eyes. It was the first time we'd had a real conversation. “It's a mere seven degrees and there's barely any wind, you won't be freezing anytime soon. If it were January at zero degrees with winds at ten miles per hour, so I'd say it would take about thirty minutes for your fingers to turn black.” I grimaced at the images he presented. He was a little dorky, but very charming and sweet. I gave him a big opening for a kiss that I really wanted to have with him, but he didn't mention it again. I was a little upset? Totally. Still, I couldn't deny the warmth it brought to my heart. Most guys made lewd comments to me on a daily basis. It was refreshing not to be seen as a whore just because my mother was one." I told you, but no, you have to be a drama queen." Rusty, being the typical oblivious jerk that he was, hit me on the head like I was a puppy. He had done this many times before, but he never did this in front of Max. Now the whole image I tried to project has been destroyed. Can you say freshman asshole? Here, here. "Max, can you give Gabby a ride home and then come back and help me put this baby back on?" back on the road?" Rusty ran his hand affectionately over Bow. Meanwhile, I tried not to beam. Okay, so maybe Rusty doesn't mean to leave me alone with Max, but I'm back to calling him an idiot. Snapping out of my moment of shyness, I grabbed Max's arm and led him to his vintage black 1957 Mercedes Benz. The only reason I knew the model of the car was because of Rusty, who, unlike me , it was all about cars. "You give me this ride, and I'll give you a kiss." I smiled at him, trying not to laugh at his slightly horrified face. I had said I was a little intimidating. Just a little. Also strong-willed, stubborn and tall would be applicable. Oh, and we can't forget talkative, that's the main thing. My grandfather always said I could get out of any situation. I could make a killing selling books to blind people. "Gabby, right?" Max asked after he opened the passenger door, leading me into his car. No one has ever opened a door for me. It was a little old fashioned. “No, my name is Freya. Rust says I talk a lot, so he calls me Gabby, you know, chatting too much.” I ran my hand along the soft leather of the seat as I watched him walk to the driver's side. Max was nothing like what I thought he would be. The car may have been as old as the truck, but it was in good shape. I looked in the side mirror, and Rusty was already a small speck in the darkness. "Like the Norse goddess of love?" Max broke the silence. "You're really smart, aren't you?" Few people knew that if they weren't into all the nerdy mythology, my bad Greek mythology. I felt a little bad when her cheeks turned pink, but mostly I thought it was adorable. "Yes, just like the goddess of love, 2 Gabbing too much – which would be because she talks too much but between the two of us, I guess I was lucky since dear mother could have called me Dionysus." I wasn't kidding since my mom loved her bottle, but it was nice to hear Maximilian laugh. “You are mixing your mythologies. Norse is Scandinavian. Then there’s your Greek and Roman mythology, where Aphrodite and Venus are essentially the same as Freya.” "When you put it like that, I guess my name isn't so bad," I said in all honesty. Can you imagine having Aphrodite for a name? Like what would your nickname be? Ap? Afro. I think Mom could have done a lot worse. "A pretty name for a pretty girl," he said with a smile. I was about to respond with some of my A-list sarcasm because he made everything easier, but when I looked out the window, we were already in my trailer. "Oh shit," I grumbled, because outside in his rocking chair was my grandfather. “Just leave me right here. I'll walk the rest of the way,” I insisted in a meek voice. "I wouldn't do that. It's dark and late. Besides, your grandfather would think less of me if I left you on the side of the road instead of your front door." I laughed. He made it all sound so good. First of all, our trailer was small. It wasn't a long walk from the dirt path to the front door. Second, my grandfather was in his rocking chair with a gun nearby. “I hope you lived a good life. Just know that under your chair is your shotgun.” I hit his shoulders without thinking. Damn, did I just touch Max Dunnett's 'golden boy'? He didn't seem to mind though. “Stay here,” Max broke the silence, his tone calm. I couldn't decide if he was just as affected as I was. I saw him get out of the car, taking long strides until he was at my side. Full movement of Maxmilian, the good old boy next door. Was it old-fashioned? Totally, but also so hot. When he He gave me his hand, I smiled at him, my belly sinking into the warmth he was giving off. Knowing Grandpa was watching, I let go of his hand and walked beside him. “Good evening, sir,” greeted Max. Meanwhile, I prayed he wouldn't take his shotgun to Max. “It's past midnight,” Grandpa grumbled. “Max was just giving me a ride back. Rusty and I never went anywhere. Bow collapsed on top of us,” I said defensively as a way of trying to explain. Grandpa laughed, then took a sip of his beer. “Guess it's karma for you, girl.” Well, that was embarrassing. Nothing like being scolded by your tutor in front of a cute guy. I turned to Max and made a smile. “Thank you, but I think you'd better leave. I'm home safe and everything." Panicking, I pushed him back, but he didn't move. Instead, he reached out to shake my grandfather's hand. "Maximilian Dunnett." It wasn't like the Grandpa didn’t know who he was. Everyone knew the Dunnetts. “Careful, lots of potholes on the country roads. Don’t want this beautiful car to get stuck.” I looked at my grandfather. Would it kill him to be nice? He didn't even shake Max's hand. This was surreal. No boy wanted to be seen with me except Rusty, but he didn't count. And now the only boy who didn't look at me like I was trash was here