Contents ( 66)
- Cover
- Books by Valerie Fraser Luesse
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Map of Florida
- one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- eleven
- twelve
- thirteen
- fourteen
- fifteen
- sixteen
- seventeen
- eighteen
- nineteen
- twenty
- twenty-one
- twenty-two
- twenty-three
- twenty-four
- twenty-five
- twenty-six
- twenty-seven
- twenty-eight
- twenty-nine
- thirty
- thirty-one
- thirty-two
- thirty-three
- thirty-four
- thirty-five
- thirty-six
- thirty-seven
- thirty-eight
- thirty-nine
- forty
- forty-one
- forty-two
- forty-three
- forty-four
- forty-five
- forty-six
- forty-seven
- forty-eight
- forty-nine
- fifty
- fifty-one
- Epilogue
- Keep Reading for a Preview of Valerie Luesse’s Next Book!
- Prologue
- one
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Ads
- Back Cover
“Aunt Jack, wait!” he cried as he grabbed the sheet and jerked it up to cover himself.
She laughed as she set the tray on his nightstand. “Honey, I raised six boys. I’ve powdered more misters than you ever will. How you feelin’ this mornin’?”
“Like a train ran over me.”
“I guess you’ve figured out you won’t be ridin’ that bike today.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“You want to stay here?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ve got the money in my bag—”
“Don’t worry about that right now. I’ve been at this long enough to know you’re not a bill skipper. When you feel better, come by the office and we’ll settle up. I brought you a little breakfast. Figured you wouldn’t be able to get out.”
“Thank you, Aunt Jack.”
She pointed to the tray. “You see that orange juice, honey? I want you to drink every drop. All that vitamin C’s good for your skin. It’ll help you heal.”
“Yes, ma’am. I sure do appreciate it.”
“You remind me so much o’ my youngest,” she said, laying her hand on Peyton’s forehead the way his mother always did when she was checking for a fever.
“Does he live here?”
Aunt Jack gently raised him up and fluffed his pillows. “No, he didn’t make it home.”
“I’m—I’m real sorry,” Peyton said as he lay back down.
“It’s okay, honey. You didn’t have a thing in the world to do with it. Just get some rest. Come and see me when you feel better.”
twenty-three
Here, honey, I bought you some underwear for the road.”
“Aunt Jack!” Peyton felt his face flush with heat as she handed it to him in the motel office.
“Ha! You’re a sight, Peyton. How come you get embarrassed so easy?”
“Lady, you just handed me a bundle of underwear right in the middle of a busy motel office!”
She pinched him on the cheek. “You’re just as cute as a button, Peyton. I know your mama must be real proud o’ you. But now, Aunt Jack’s serious about the underwear. You’ve got to keep yourself dry or you’ll be hurtin’ again. Understand?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And Key West ain’t goin’ anywhere. You need to break up your trip a little better and get some rest.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“You really gonna listen to me, or are you just sayin’ ‘yes, ma’am’ to shut me up?”
“I’m really listenin’. I promise. Now hug me goodbye so I can take my new skivvies and hit the road.”
Peyton hugged Aunt Jack and thanked her again for getting him well. His extended visit with her had made him ready to ride again.
As he loaded his bike and made his way back to A1A, Peyton had to wonder: Had anybody helped his father? Was there an Aunt Jack in his path, someone to salve his wounds and help him heal? Something about this trip made Peyton feel at war with himself, one minute struggling to piece together his dad’s every move, the next wishing he could put the long-cherished map away for good and find his own way, taking the road as it came, on his own terms.