Destined to Succeed Read Online Free PDF Page A

would come alone and other times my dad would make me bring my cousins with us. I didn’t mind bringing Cord and the twins, Colt and Cole, but Clay was too little and he was just a pain in the butt. Dad always said Clay only drove me crazy because he was just like me - he used to call him Cade Junior. That was crazy. Clay was nothin’ like me. I was cool and he was just a pain in the butt.
    Today, it was just me and Suzanna and we were havin’ so much fun. Well, until she got scared that I was going to toss her into the pond again. I mean, sure, I had been known to toss her into the pond now and then. But I loved the look on her face when she would fly up outta the water. That look cracked me up. Her red hair was always shinin’ and her eyebrows would be all scrunched up. Today, she had climbed that tree so fast, that there was no way I could’ve caught her.
    She was still hittin’ me as hard as she could when I ran both of us into the pond. I dunked her under the water and she came up spittin’ and yellin’. Her red hair was shining in the sunlight and her brown eyes were glistenin’. She had on a black and white polka dot bathing suit and when she flew up outta the water I noticed something. Something I hadn’t noticed before. My best friend had boobs. That was new. Or at least new to me. I never really looked at her like that. I knew she was a girl, but she was Suzanna. We had been pretty much inseparable since the third grade and I didn’t think about her that way. I thought that would never change.
    But boobs are boobs. I don’t care if they’re your best friend’s or not. Well, I guess I stared a little too long at them, because she asked, “What are you looking at, cowboy?”
    “Um, nothin’?” I didn’t mean for it to, but it sounded like a question when I said it. I was embarrassed.
    Cade Walker was embarrassed - uh, that didn’t happen.
    I started to swim over to the other side of the pond when she shocked the crap outta me. I felt her hand touch my waist, so I stopped movin’ and turned around. As soon as I looked into those pretty brown eyes, she grabbed the waistband of my swimmin’ trunks and pulled them off lickity split! How in the heck did she do that? All of a sudden, she was gettin’ farther away from me and I was left standin’ in the pond naked!
    “What the hell?” I cursed at her as I tried to cover myself. I knew she couldn’t see anything, but still the girl had my shorts in her hands. She was swingin’ ‘em around and laughin’ at me.
    “Give me my shorts back!” I shouted, trying in vain to get my shorts out of her hand before she got too far away.
    “Nope. Think I’ll take ‘em with me.” She giggled and ran out of the pond. She took off toward her bike.
    I tried to run after her, but remembered I didn’t have on any pants. “Suz, please bring me back my shorts. I can’t go home without ‘em.” At this point I was beggin’, but she didn’t seem to care.
    “You promised not to throw me in the pond, Cade Walker...you did it anyway. Now, I never promised not to steal your pants...so I guess this makes us even,” she hollered at me as she started to ride down the lane on her bike.
    “ Please! Come back, Suz,” I screamed after her, but she was already gone. I had no idea how I was gonna get home. I couldn’t ride my bike home naked. What was I gonna do?
    I finally decided there was nothin’ else to do but get outta the pond and head for home. I waded outta the pond, grabbed my shoes - I laughed thinkin’ at least I could protect my feet on the way home - and walked over to my bike. That camouflaged ten-speed always made me smile, well, until right now. Right now, I wanted to be camouflaged, but no such luck. There was nothin’ left for me to do but man up and walk my butt home. It would be dangerous for my manly parts to ride home on my bike. I couldn’t risk it.
    I was barely up the lane when I saw the most beautiful sight...my swimmin’ trunks