Chapter Thirty-Seven
Dylan
Mr. Dean picked me up from school that day to take me to the trailer so I could pack and move back with them. I had no idea what deal Taylor made, but I figured I was going to find out. She was pretty amazing.
Happy to be back in the Dean household, I listened carefully to what Mr. Dean said. “You and Taylor cannot date. You cannot go out on a date with each other or among friends.”
“Okay.”
Right now, I’d do almost anything to stay in the Dean house. The trailer was getting to me, leaving me hopeless. I wasn’t going to do anything to screw myself here. Taylor would have to behave and if she didn’t, I would have to deal with it.
Or tell on her, which I would hate to do.
Yes, I was giving up sex so I could have a home. What teenager could do that? Well, I’d grown up some since I’d been living on my own. It was time to be a man. Taylor could still be a teenage girl. I would have to take control of the situation and be strong.
“You can’t be in each other’s room. And we’d prefer if you weren’t home alone with each other. I know sometimes that is tough, but with preplanning, you can do it,” he said.
“I’m still keeping my job, so that will keep me pretty busy. I can change my schedule so I’m out of the house when Mrs. Dean is in class.”
“That would be helpful. Welcome back, Dylan. Taylor really pushed for you.”
“I know and I’ve thanked her. That was very sweet.”
“Yes, I know. Don’t think about it that way. As much as I love my daughter, she does sometimes bend the rules to fit what she wants to do.”
I laughed. “I’ll stay strong. I hated my time at the trailer. Cole kept saying it was cool, but he didn’t have to stay there. He wanted to have a party.”
“Did you?”
“No, sir. I don’t drink. I saw what that did to my mother. I want to be more than a minimum wage job.”
We pulled into the garage, and Mr. Dean clapped me on the shoulder. “You are a good kid, Dylan. Just keep your nose clean. We don’t mind if you and Taylor do homework together, but you have to be either in the dining room or the basement where we can see you.”
“Understood, Mr. Dean.”
I unpacked, then went into the basement to do some homework. Taylor was there, and she smiled when she saw me.
“Thanks for working so hard to get me back here.”
“Next job, prom.”
I shook my head. “Taylor, you don’t understand. I don’t want to go back to the trailer. I think we should just quit.”
She pouted and my heart threatened to melt. My stay here was contingent upon me behaving. The Deans had no idea that we’d had sex, and I didn’t want them to know. I wanted to stay here. I wanted to be part of the Dean family.
That meant that I had to stay away from Taylor. Now might be a good time.
“I’m going to work in my room.”
She pouted more. “Why?”
“Because at this point, you are too much temptation,” I said.
I brought my stuff up to my room. I’d assumed that Taylor had been told the rules. I know she would flout some of them, but I wasn’t going to push any boundaries. To stay here, I had to be good.
Even if I thought I could get away with something, I wouldn’t. My focus was on catching up at school. I’d missed a few days because of work and I was behind.
Taylor appeared in my doorway.
“Taylor, please go away,” I said.
“Why?”
“Because we are not allowed into each other’s room. Didn’t your father tell you the rules? If we don’t follow them, I might as well move out. It’s going to come to that.”
She stood in the doorway as if she was pondering what I said. I walked over to close the door when Mrs. Dean walked past. I must have looked guilty.
“What’s going on?” she said.
“I was just closing my door,” I said.
She looked from Taylor to me then back again. I shrugged. “You know the rules.”
And of course, Mrs. Dean would be looking for a reason to send me back. She was the only one who hadn’t seen the trailer. “We weren’t doing anything.”
Tailor nodded. “It was my fault, Mom. Dylan was telling me to leave.”
“I’m not comfortable with this arrangement, so the moment you step out of line, either of you, he’s back home.”
I nodded.
Taylor frowned then walked away. Mrs. Dean kept looking at me. I wanted to scream that it was her daughter who came into my room.
“I’ll keep my door closed and locked from now on,” I said.
“That might be in your best interest,” she said.
I’d dodged a bullet, and I wanted to tell Taylor where to go. She’d almost ruined it for me. She didn’t get that our actions had consequences – that I would be out on my ass if we didn’t do what her parents said.
It continually amazed me how much Taylor had grown up and how much she hadn’t. She sent me a text. “Sorry. You’re right. We need to stay apart, but I’m still going to see if we can go to prom.”
I sighed. Hopefully, she would still feel that way and remember it the next time she wanted to flout the rules. I didn’t want to be homeless.
I didn’t care about the prom. I know she did, but I thought she should go with someone else who would appreciate it. Someone her parents approved of. It was only prom, not the end of the world. At least, not for me.