The Wright Brother by Marie Hall Read Free Book Online Page B

her hand.
    His breathing was heavy and labored. And even though it was practically pitch black in the cab of his truck, she could see the fury in his dark eyes.
    “Dammit, Elisa,” he growled, “I should have known you’d be as cold as a fucking fish. Everyone told me to stay away from you. But I thought tonight—”
    “What?” she snapped. “You thought you’d get laid? Get a fucking clue. That is not the way to do it. And if you’d wanted to get laid, then you should have probably paid more attention to me then your nose tackle all freaking night long.”
    She glowered at him.
    Turning around he gripped the steering wheel and stared straight out the window as his jaw muscles clenched over and over.
    “Take me home.” She looked to her right, staring at the rows of cars. No way could she handle another hour with him. She was so over Joey Crawford.
    “Get out,” he snarled.
    “What?” She twisted in her seat.
    “Out of my goddamn truck, now!”
    “Oh God, you’re a piece of work, you know that? I don’t know what I ever saw in you.” Practically kicking the door open, she hopped out. She’d barely even gotten it closed before his rubber tires squealed off.
    She slipped her jacket back up her shoulder. His manhandling had caused it to almost come off. It was ridiculous that she suddenly felt the overwhelming need to cry. He’d stopped when she’d told him to, but she couldn’t help but wonder what he’d tell everyone at school after this.
    What lies would he spread about her?
    As much as she hated him, Joey was the most popular guy in school, so everyone would believe whatever he told them. She squeezed her eyes shut. All she’d wanted was to have her senior year end with a bang. Who knew what the hell would happen now.
    She was just reaching into her purse for her phone so that she could call her mom and ask for a ride home when a gentle hand latched on to her elbow and turned her around.
    It was Julian. He was breathing heavy, glancing between her and the spot where Joey’s truck had been. His hands gripped her shoulders and he gave a gentle squeeze.
    She knew immediately what he was asking.
    “I’m okay,” she nodded. “I’m fine. It’s okay, Jules.”
    His jaw was clenched and there was a fire in his eyes she’d never seen before. Hooking his finger at her, he turned and walked under a street lamp. She knew he wanted her to follow, probably because he wanted to talk. The minute she joined him he grabbed her hand and turned it over and placed his fingers along her palm. Her sign was still not very strong, so he spoke to her in alphabet, in the only way she knew how to understand him.
    “Dick.”
    Her lips twitched and she laughed. “Did you just call him a dick?”
    His nostrils flared and the tears she’d felt like crying before were suddenly gone, replaced by gratitude and an overwhelming feeling of calm. Julian might not be able to tell the school what’d really happened tonight, but at least he knew the truth.
    Wrapping her arms around his neck, she yanked him in for a hug. And when his arms banded around her waist and she felt the shudders roll through him, she heaved a heavy sigh of relief.
    “I missed you, Jules,” she whispered, knowing he’d never hear.
    ~*~
    The boys celebrated their sixteenth birthday just a few weeks later. Mrs. Wright had bought them an old, beat-up cream-colored Toyota Corolla. One to share between the three of them. Again, she’d been surprised to learn that even hearing impaired, Julian was legally allowed to drive.
    At this point, she shouldn’t be shocked how much he could do; just because he was technically handicapped, there wasn’t much about him that was that different from the rest of the world. He couldn’t hear and he couldn’t see in color. Julian was proving to her that neither of those issues was as big of a deal as she’d always thought they were.
    Now, he rarely drove. But that mostly because neither Roman nor Christian were