“Why?”
“Because we need your pretty face for the fans.”
I looked up to see if he was serious. He was, but he relinquished, “Kidding. If you have a busted face, I think Priss would piss her pants from excitement.”
Braden had overheard him and laughed. “No, shit. That’d be leaked to the gossip shows in two seconds flat. I swear, she has all the numbers for the gossip channels on speed dial.”
The football players had gone ahead, but stopped and waited for us. The third one asked, “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” I shoved past him. I spotted the road through the trees and saw the headlights for Braden’s car at the same time. When we cleared the trees and headed up the ditch, all of us spread out and walked in one line for the car.
When we got there, Bri opened her door and leaned against the car. Her hair was whipping behind her face and one hand was resting on her hip. She tugged her shirt and then adjusted it back, but it didn’t stick. It fell down, showing her black bra. Bri was clueless, scowling at us. She was the picture of fierce and alluring at the same time.
We were greeted with, “What were you guys doing there?”
She took in the whole line of guys before letting her eyes find mine, making me feel seared from the inside out. My insides felt yanked out, but I still wanted to touch her.
I looked away instead.
“We came to see you.” Braden motioned to the guys.
“Are you insane? How was tonight supposed to go down any other way? You guys are celebrities. You can’t be coming to house parties anymore.” There was a clipped bark to her voice, but it faded on the last word, and I glanced over at her. She sneaked a look at me.
“Yeah, we didn’t think ahead.” Braden threw a hand to the football guys. “Got some extra room?”
She shook her head. “There is no way this little car can fit all of you hulks.”
The guys laughed and one mentioned, “We can wait here. A bunch of our buddies are coming. They can pick us up.”
I should’ve thanked them for saving us from the chaos, and I heard Gunn and Braden doing exactly that, but I looked back at her. Her hand was still on her hip, but her shoulders were slumped forward. She was kicking at some gravel on the road.
The football guys headed farther down the road as Gunn and Braden got into the car. We were alone now, but we still had an audience.
She wouldn’t look at me anymore. I wanted to turn those dark eyes to me. I wanted to say something, but I had no idea what. I ended up with, “You’re still really good.”
Her head lifted, and I saw it. There was so much there. Fear, caution, excitement, warmth, and another expression I couldn’t place. No, I did. She was still haunted.
“Thanks.”
She was mine.
No. She wasn’t.
She had gone to him that night.
Ah, fucking hell.
“We should probably talk.”
Her eyes opened at my tone, which was rough, and panic flared across her face for a moment. “Oh. Okay.”
‘The Talk’ never happened.
Over the last week, my new place had become the hangout for everyone. Bri came a few times, but neither of us made the first move. Tonight was The Feast, and I figured it was time. There’d be a party afterward. Lots of booze. Lots of music. Lots of loose tongues going around. I had a feeling this conversation with Brielle was going to be like taking a shot of acid while doing acid.
Gunn picked up everyone. The Feast was located farther back in the park than other years. As we wound our way through the woods and down the hill to the small clearing where a stage was set up, I could hear Bri’s band already playing. It was the same thing as the house party. The singer was off a beat.
When we stepped out into the clearing, someone called out my name, “Skeeter! Over here.”
Dustin Glass waved a flashlight in the air, making air traffic signals with it, as if we were a plane coming in for a landing. “Right here, guys.” He lit up four empty lawn chairs set up with the rest of his group. As we got closer, I recognized Paul and some of the guys from Shifter, who held up a hand in greeting, and some chick…Ava?...came over to sit in Braden’s lap.
I asked as I sat down, “You still get invited to this stuff, Glass?”
“Yeah,” Braden added. “You quit being our roadie after six months.”
“You know me, guys. I’ve got my fingers in a little bit of everything.” He spread his arms out. “Behold the gloriousness of yours truly. And, Braden, I had to. My folks gave me my trust fund back, and my dad worked his magic. He got me back into Harvard. Living the life and touring with you superstar a-holes was fun, but real life came knocking.” He winked at me as he skimmed his hand over a girl’s ass in front of him. “But if you ever need another worker for a summer tour, Mr. Glass is signed up and ready for duty. Getting these benefits,” he squeezed her butt cheeks, “on a daily basis is like the first circle of heaven. Or, at least, I hope it will be, if you know what I mean.” As he finished, he swatted the girl with a resounding slap.
She laughed and swung her gaze to me. She licked her lips and tugged the front of her shirt down, just far enough so I could tell she wasn’t wearing a bra. My gaze lingered. Being around Brielle and not being able to touch her had sent me to the first circle of hell. This girl was willing, and she had curves to hold onto, but even as I considered it, she wasn’t the one I wanted.
I mouthed back to her, “No thanks.”
She opened her legs even wider.
I knew this type. She didn’t care. She’d be there whenever, wherever, and however I wanted. It was the same feeling afterward. Those girls left me with nothing, just emptiness. After too many times of feeling that cheap emptiness, the draw for a quick fuck didn’t hold any appeal. It never had, but there’d been a few months in the beginning when that was all I wanted as I tried to chase Brielle out of my system.