Damaged and the Beast (Damaged #1)

When Tawny sighed sadly, my heart hurt imagining her waiting in some dump for Dad to return. Then, I forced myself to picture her getting off the bus at the same station I arrived at weeks earlier. We would be together and no one could tear us apart again.

“Enjoy that friend,” Tawny said. “Life isn’t easy and you have to take what you can get sometimes. If she’s just pretending, let her pretend. There’s nothing to lose. Even if it hurts your feelings, it’s still better than being alone.”

“Soon, I’ll never be alone.”

“We’ll die old maids together,” Tawny teased.

“You and me living together with our cats.”

“I’ll learn to quilt.”

“I’ll pickle things we’ll never eat.”

Laughing, we pretended hundreds of miles didn’t separate us.

“You better save the minutes on your phone,” Tawny said.

“I’ll call you soon. You call me if you need anything. Call me and I’ll call you right back.”

“Okay. Go enjoy your rich lying friend.”

Smiling, I said goodbye then returned to where Bailey rested on Skye’s bed.

“Where did Skye go?” I asked.

“Tyler works out at the gym right now so she ran over there to drool.”

“She really likes him.”

“I don’t see why. He doesn’t really like her.”

Remembering what Cooper said about Bailey needing to be the center of attention, I shrugged. “Settling for one guy so early in the year might be a mistake.”

“Exactly!” Bailey cried, sitting up. “I’m dating lots of guys because I don’t need a husband. I need some manmeat. I need fun. I’m eighteen, not eighty. Skye’s a loser to settle for the first guy who looks her way.”

“She’s not used to living here. This was always your home so you’re more confident.”

Bailey smiled at this. “I am confident. Sometimes, guys want me to be all meek and shy and shit. That’s not me. I don’t need their approval. I’m Bailey Fucking Johansson. I run the show, not some dick.”

Nodding, I wasn’t sure if I should leave now that Skye was gone.

“Are you passing Algebra?” Bailey asked, standing up.

“I guess. We haven’t had any tests yet, so I don’t know.”

“I’ve been skipping classes because it’s lame. I need to do this assignment though. Can you help me with it?”

Excited to show my worth as a friend, I assumed the work was in her bag, but Bailey headed for the door.

“I ditched school so my stuff is at home.”

Part of me wanted to walk back my offer, but Bailey’s expression left me little choice. I followed her out of the room and to the parking lot where her SUV waited.

Driving out to the Johansson house, I reminded myself that I’d seen Cooper in Spanish on Thursday. He played with my ponytail and told me my handwriting made him hard. I’d laughed before ignoring him for the rest of the class. He ignored me ignoring him and messed with my hair in a show of possession to Nick who likely didn’t notice. That evening, he visited Denny’s and flexed his muscles for me. Again, I giggled, but refused to go to dinner.

Convincing myself Cooper wouldn’t be at the house, I enjoyed Bailey’s company. Like Skye, she talked a lot. Unlike with Skye, Bailey needed constant head nodding and grunts of affirmation.

“My parents aren’t home,” Bailey said as we turned down a road off of the main highway. “They took my little sister to a spa so my mom could detox. Mom is very health conscious one day out of the week. The rest of the time, she drinks, smokes, and eats meat smothered with barbeque. Today is her health day.”

“She sounds nice.”

Bailey frowned at me. “My mom is the best person on the face of the planet. Nice doesn’t cut it.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine. You don’t know her so you wouldn’t know how she’s the best.”

Shadowing the road, tall trees lined both sides until we reached a clearing. A huge log-style house loomed to the left while a beautiful view of Kentucky spread out on the right. I couldn’t imagine growing up with such beauty. Yet, like how Skye viewed money, maybe beauty would become mundane after awhile. Merely an expected element of life for people like the Johanssons.

“My brother Tuck lives in a condo in town with Maddy,” Bailey explained as we exited her SUV. “Coop lives in the apartment over the garage. My room is in the house, but I’m not allowed to let strangers inside. Can you wait out here?”

Glancing around nervously, I nodded.

“We have a lot of big dogs. Don’t freak if they run up to you,” Bailey said, walking away. “Coop trains the monsters and they won’t bite. They just like scaring people.”

For the next few minutes, I stood in the large gravel driveway and waited. Hearing noises, I moved towards the house and saw those monster dogs running around. Rottweilers and a few Pit Bulls, they chased each other around except for one who only had eyes for Cooper.