Praying for Rain (The Rain Trilogy, #1)

by B.B. Easton

Supplies? Check. Shelter? Check. Self-defense? Check. Slightly psychotic teenager with a pill habit, daddy issues, and impulse control problems? I smirk at the hiccupping heap of girl in the fetal position across from me. Jackpot.

She’s a mess and a mindfuck, but when she smiles, it steals the air from my lungs.

“So, what do we do now?” Rain sniffles, looking around. “What’s the new plan?” “My only plan is to sit in that tree house”—I point in the direction of the wooden box a few yards away—“watch the sun set with this super-hot girl I kidnapped a few days ago, and then maybe make her dinner. I saw that this place has spaghetti and pancake syrup.” Rain pulls her thin, dark eyebrows together. “You mean, you’re just … giving up?” “No,” I say, taking her by the hand and leading her toward our home away from fucked up home. “I’ve just had a change of priorities; that’s all.” “What could you possibly prioritize over surviving?” Rain asks, becoming eye-level with me as she steps onto the first rung of the tree-house ladder. “Living.” I smile. Then, I lean forward and kiss my girl while I still can.

“The moment I saw you, I knew I was fucked.” His voice is raspy and low. “I knew it when I used my last bullet to pull you out of Burger Palace instead of saving it. I knew it when I pulled that stupid fucking stunt with the dogs instead of leaving you at Huckabee Foods. I knew it when I got shot for you, when I got a flat tire because of you, and when I went back into a burning building to find your ass. The whole time, I thought you were distracting me from my mission, but it wasn’t until you left that I realized you were my mission.” Wes opens his eyes, and his pupils drink me in. “I think I came here to find you, Rain. I’m just sorry it took me so long to figure that out.”