Page 32 of Split You Open

Ihaven’t been sleeping for long, maybe a few hours at most, but as I open my eyes, I feel well rested.

Sore as hell, though.

“Holy shit,” I groan.

My breath hits a warm wall of flesh. I blink slowly then stare at Rhett’s bare chest. Memories of last night resurface and I smile.

“What is it?” He mumbles as he shifts, twisting so that he can bury his face into his pillow.

I force myself to sit up and I wince.

“I’m going to walk like a damn cowboy for a week,” I complain.

His tired snicker is muffled by the pillow.

“Stop that,” I glare at his back. “This is serious.”

Rhett’s body shakes, letting me know he’s not taking this seriously at all.

Asshole.

I climb over top of him and get out of the bed. It takes a few minutes to find my clothes and get dressed. When I’m done, I slip out of the van and do a quick sweep of the area. It’s early—the park is certainly not open yet, but it will be soon. No doubt a ranger will drive by soon enough as they do their rounds. We need to be out of here before then. Quickly, I relieve myself in the woods and come back to find Rhett sitting with the van’s side door open lounging in the opening with his legs outstretched in front of him on the ground.

“Huh,” he mutters. “You really are walking funny.”

I flip him the bird, and Rhett chuckles softly.

“Are you ready to head out soon?” I ask, coming to a stop before him. “I don’t like lingering in any place for too long.”

“Yeah, but before we go… The burner phone’s charged,” he says. He tilts his head to look up at me through dark strands of his hair. “You ready to call home?”

Home.

The word stirs up so many feelings that I can’t seem to settle on one. They tangle up inside of me and work their way up into my throat, where they get lodged and leave me speechless.

I’ve never had a real home before.

The thought of hearing Wes and Santi’s voice brings on a wave of longing and homesickness which only confirms that they’re what I consider home.

I nod, unable to do more than that.

Rhett picks up the burner phone, flips it open, dials a number, then puts it on speaker phone. The phone rings. And rings. And… rings. My shoulders are about to fall, sure that it’s about to go to voicemail, when a gruff voice on the other end answers.

“Hello?”

“Santi, it’s us,” Rhett greets, his own voice more gravelly than normal.

There’s a pause. The silence is short-lived though as a loud erratic gasp follows it.

“Rhett? Ohmygod, Rhett!” Santi shouts, all audible evidence of sleep now gone. His voice seems far away as Santi shouts, “Wes! Wesley! They called! Get up!”

Santi’s excitement does nothing to help me work the knot out of my throat. He’s been waiting to hear from us. For someone who’s struggled to find her place in the world for so long, somehow I’ve found it with some incredible men.

Santi’s voice moves closer to the phone as he bombards us with questions, “Where are you? Is Blair with you? Are you guys okay? Have you⁠—”

“Santi,” Rhett interrupts, his voice calm. “Breathe. Yes, Blair’s here and she can hear you—you’re on speaker phone. We’re both alright.”

“Blair?” Santi sounds so hopeful that I can’t help but smile.