Alyssa shook her head. "Partially? I told you, I'm soaking wet and I'll ruin your truck with all this red mud stuff."

"I like my girls wet." John winked.

Alyssa teasingly smacked him. "See. This is why I don't want a ride. You've been making pervy comments since I met you."

John tried not to laugh, he was only playing around. "You have my word. I promise not to make pervy comments. Now can you just get in the truck?"

Alyssa eyed him suspiciously. "You swear?"

"Yes. But let's continue this conversation inside," he gestured to the navy blue monstrosity, idling on the side of the road.

John guided Alyssa to the passenger side and helped her up into the cab then jogged to the other side and climbed in. He took a deep breath and looked at her.

"Alyssa, I really don't care about some dirt. I live in the South. We get dirty. It just happens. I know you laugh at that and think it sounds ridiculous-"

She laughed. "It does!"

"But we learn to live with it. And one day you will too." Placing a hand on her knees, John gently eased her legs down until her feet touched the floor.

"It's okay," he said, comforting her with a soft look. "And it's just called mud, not red mud stuff."

Once they were settled, John turned up the radio and drove for a few minutes. She felt terrible about getting his truck all dirty, even though he swore it didn't bother him. She was soaked and looked over at John to see if he was as wet.

"Why are you smiling?"

"That's my brother," he said, pointing at the radio. Alyssa looked ahead of them to the street. "Where?"

John cranked up the stereo. "He's on the radio."

"Your brother is a singer?"

"Yup. He's a country singer."

"Oh dear God, I should have known," she teased. "Country music is the only thing that plays on the radio, isn't it? How do you listen to that stuff?"

A creased formed between his brows. "What do you mean?"

"Well, they all have that twang and sound the same to me. They sing about their dogs riding shot gun as they get ready to play in the mud," she put emphasis on mud. "The girls walk around in ugly ass cowboy boots and everyone loves fishing. I can just picture a piece of straw hanging between their lips."

John chuckled. "You forgot drinking beer."

"That goes without saying."

"Have you ever been fishing?"

"No, it's not really my thing."

"How do you know it's not your thing if you haven't tried it?"

"I guess I don't, but sitting still and waiting around for a fish to bite would make my patience run thin."

John laughed. "What is your thing?"

She shrugged. "Not getting dirty? Anything but country?"

John may have only had a couple of conversations with Alyssa, but her no bullshit attitude and forwardness called out to him. She was a breath of fresh air he wanted to inhale. She wasn't like other girls he'd grown up with, and he liked that she wasn't afraid to open her mouth and speak up.

"What kind of music would you like me to listen to? Rap? Because to be honest, I don't really care to hear about hoes getting fucked and bitches getting slapped," he said bluntly. "Not that there's anything wrong with rap, it's just not my thing."

Alyssa barked out a laugh that caused a smile to spread across his face. Her laugh was contagious. "I listen to a little of everything, just not country."

Leaning back, Alyssa relaxed into the seat. She listened to the song on the radio in an effort to expand her music tastes for John, mainly because it was John's brother crooning. The lyrics caught her attention. They were full of love, sadness, a yearning to be close to someone. The emotion in his voice tugged at her heart, and she found herself actually wanting to hear the song. Turning up the radio, she brought her feet up and placed them on the dashboard and listened. Definitely not what she was expecting at all and she kind of liked it.

"Oh my God! I'm so sorry!" she said, wiping the dirt off his dashboard.

John laughed and pushed her arms away. She looked adorable. "It's okay, really."

"But I got dirt, mud, on your truck."

"And?"

"And?" she repeated, looking at him with disbelief. "And, it was rude of me to do that. I'm really sorry." Alyssa lifted the hem of her shirt and began rubbing away the dirt.

"That's going to stain your shirt," he warned.

Alyssa hesitated. Biting her lip, she was unsure of what to do.

"Just sit back and listen to the music. I'll take care of that later. It's really not that a big deal, honey."

Honey? Alyssa swallowed and did as he asked. She kind of liked the sweet endearment. As the song came to an end, she sat quietly thinking about the lyrics. "Your brother's song wasn't anything I expected."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for one, it was full of heartache. Like he's missing someone."

"Yeah, he wrote that song many years ago after he broke up with his girlfriend."

"Oh my goodness! How sweet is that? Do they still talk?"

"If I write you a love song, would you warm up to me a little bit?"

"Slow your roll, country boy."

John smirked. "I'm not sure what's going on with them . . . though I've heard her name recently. They were separated for a long ass time. Something like ten years."

"Awe. That's so sweet." She clasped her hands together. "It sounds like he never stopped loving her.

"I guess you could say that. They were childhood friends too."

John glanced at Alyssa. She wore a dreamy smile even though she was soaked from head to toe. He turned down her street, and from the corner of his eye he could see the smile on her face fading. He wanted to ask her what was on her mind but decided against it being that their friendship was still new.

"So, what happened with your car?"

She shrugged with a loud huff. "Beats me. I don't know a thing about cars. It's actually my mom's car."

"Well if you like, once it stops raining, we can go back out there and give it a jump to see if that will help."

She looked at John. "Only if you don't mind."

"Not at all."

An appreciative smile graced her face. "Alright, thank you."

"Wait," he stopped her with his hand on her arm before she got out. "Do you use your mom's car for school every day?"

"Only until I can get a job and save some money to buy a car."

"How about I pick you up and we can ride together on the days we have class?"

"I don't know . . ." taking a ride from John those days meant she had to make friends.

"What's there to know? I'll just ride on over and get you, and at the end of the day I take you home."

"It's only been a few weeks of school and I'm already taking rides from guys I hardly know. That doesn't look good," she finished with a flirty smile. "Thanks again, Johnny."

A weird sensation rolled through John, one he had never felt before. He liked the sound of Johnny rolling off her lips. He wanted to hear it again and again and again. And on top of that, he wanted to know everything he could about Alyssa Winters and why she was so reluctant to make friends.

"Anytime," he winked.

Alyssa climbed out of John's truck and sprinted to her front door. Dropping her sandals on the porch, she stomped her feet trying to rid the dirt caked on her skin.

Stepping into her new home, she tiptoed to the bathroom trying to leave as little as a trail as possible.

While John had been blatantly flirting with her since the moment they met, she thought it was adorable and sweet and completely friendly. He was easy going and smooth, and full of that southern charm she could quickly get used to. She couldn't explain it, but deep inside she felt like he was one of the good guys. She didn't want to get ahead of herself, but she could see him being a friend and that scared her. Friends weren't hard to come by for her, she just chose to keep them at a distance since she moved frequently. She kept things casual and emotionless and learned not to get attached easily. It was better that way.

Slamming her textbook shut, Alyssa's head popped up at the sound of the door closing. Her mother walked in wearing dull blue scrubs looking tired and worn out. The bags under her eyes had gotten more prominent, and her dirty blonde hair was a mess. She'd been picking up as many shifts as she could at the local hospital in an effort to get ahead. Quite the change from the California look she normally sported.

"Hey Mom." She perked up. "What are you doing here?"

Lauren smiled. "Hey, sweetie."

Alyssa had been raised single handedly by her mother for as long as she could remember. Her father had been a sporadic figure in her life, and Alyssa considered him to be an acquaintance more than anything. He had never stayed around long enough to get to know her. She knew her mother had a soft spot for him and always did as he asked, even when she claimed she'd moved on.

Deep down, she didn't think her mother ever truly moved on from her father. First loves and all that.

"I feel like I hardly get to see you anymore," Lauren said apologetically.

"Our schedules conflict with each other's."

"Unfortunately they do. So tell me, how's school going? Make any new friends yet?"

Alyssa puckered her lips. Why make friends if they were going to leave again? "Kind of . . . There were a couple of guys I met when we first moved here and I have a few classes with one of them. They're real friendly and nice, the total opposite from home. For some reason, the car stalled today and he insisted on giving me a ride home. He even offered to drive me to school on the days we have classes together."

"But the car's out front?" she questioned.

"What? It is?" Alyssa jumped up and raced to the window. She brushed the curtains aside. How was it sitting in her driveway when she hadn't even gone back with John to get it yet? Better yet, how had he gotten the keys? Alyssa quickly grabbed her phone to shoot John a text only to realize she didn't have his number. She looked up again, this time noticing a white piece of paper on the windshield. Slipping on her sandals, she ran to the car to retrieve the note.

You left your keys on the seat. Went back and jumped your mom's car with Ford. I knocked to let you know, but you didn't answer. Pretty sure you just need a new battery.

Johnny Alyssa smiled. Well, that was incredibly sweet and thoughtful of him and Ford. She'd have to thank him when she saw him next. She also needed to remember to attach the car keys to her regular set of keys. Her and her mother had one set to share, and she couldn't afford to lose them.

"Sounds like my friends went back and jumped it for us. He says we may just need a new battery. Maybe I left a light on or the door cracked a little . . ." she trailed off. "Speaking of rides, how did you get home?" Alyssa asked with a tilt of her head.

"My boss was kind enough to let me go early, so my coworker dropped me off on her way home." Lauren poured a glass of water and dropped a few ice cubes into her glass.

"So, does he have a name?"

"His name is Johnny . . . John . . . His name is John."

Lauren nodded. "Well, tell John thank you for me." She placed her glass on the table. "Hungry for dinner? I'm starving."

"I can cook up some pasta if you want."

Her mother thought for a moment. "How about we go out for dinner instead? I'm too tired to cook, and I don't want you to cook either."

"Mom, this town is super small. Where are we going to go?"

She chuckled. "It is small, isn't it? Probably the smallest we've been in yet." The sadness in her mom's eyes when she looked away caused an ache in Alyssa's heart. She didn't want her mom to feel bad. "How about we take a ride to the next town over and grab something there?"

"Sounds good to me."

Sitting in the booth sipping on her Coke, Lauren seemed awfully quiet and deep in thought.

"Mom, I know you want to say something. Go ahead."

Lauren sighed, and Alyssa again noticed the bags under her mother's eyes. They were growing darker. "Sweetie, I know South Fork is a far cry from what we're used to-"

"You could say that again . . ."

"But I think I'm done shuffling you around. It wasn't fair of me to do that, so I want to make a home here in South Fork."

Alyssa giggled. "Of all places, Mom? Seriously?"

"Yeah, why not? Who knows, you may like the small town. The people seem really nice, and I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I like that it's off the beaten path."

"I guess . . . But how do I know you're not going to get the itch to move again?"

She placed a gentle hand over Alyssa's and looked her straight in the eyes. "You have my word."