“Addison?” I tilted my head.
“Please?” She scuttled over to me, her hands pressing together in a plea. “I promise I’ll be home by one. And I won’t drink.”
Right. How many times had I said that?
“I’ll watch her.” Mason’s almost black eyes latched to mine, the air in my lungs sticking in my throat.
It was a promise. An assurance. Then why did it feel more than that?
“Pleasssse,” Addy begged.
“Okay, but be home by one.” I responded to her but found my attention going back to him, like we were silently communicating with each other.
Watching me, his head dipped in acknowledgment. Then he turned, following his friends out of the house.
Addy bit down on her lip, trying to hold in her excited squeal, looking at me like, couldn’t you just die?
“Thank you!” She kissed my cheek. “I swear I’ll be home by one.” She moved for the door, then twirled back, pointing at him, mouthing, “Isn’t he so hot?”
He didn’t look back as they all headed out, the door slamming behind them, leaving the house empty and quiet.
My shoulders dropped, the sickness I felt earlier punching back into my chest as my heart continued to pound. My skin itched, and I wanted to crawl out of my body, feeling restless and wrong.
Like I woke up after years of being in a coma.
Chapter 8
Mason
Bass thumped through the speakers, vibrating the windows. The constant pulse grated on my nerves, making me feel older than I was. I never went to parties anymore, feeling more comfortable in the garage, fixing up my 1964 GTO, listening to my grandpa’s ’70s rock station.
Sighing, I leaned against the wall, sipping the warm beer I had been holding for the last hour. Pretending to drink it more than I actually was and pretending to have an okay time when I wasn’t. I kept my face neutral, which I had gotten good at.
Blonde hair flipped over a shoulder, light brown eyes slipping to me as Addison wiggled her body to the music with her friends, giving me every sign she wanted me.
Addison Lewis wasn’t subtle. She had been nipping at my heels from day one, not hiding she wanted to be next on my list. It wasn’t much of a secret at school; girls talked too much for them not to know I had been through most of her group of friends.
For a while, it distracted me from all my past shit, letting me believe I was a normal teenage guy. Then it became more of a habit until I realized I was bored out of my mind, and hanging with my grandpa in the garage was where I’d rather be. Girls this age were so eager to please, so willing to be or do anything to gain the attention of the popular, unattainable guy they all became alike. They thought playing coy made them different from the last girl, trying to be so sexual and willing when they had no clue who they were or what they wanted. They really didn’t know what they were doing. They blended together in a faceless, forgettable haze.
I never lied to them. They knew where they stood but still would get clingy after. That’s why I never hooked up with the same girl twice. I already sensed Addison’s desperation to be wanted. To be loved.
Taking another small sip, my gaze went over the room. Everyone was dancing, playing beer pong, sitting out by the pool, making out on the sofa, or sneaking upstairs. They all seemed happy to be here.
I felt I was the one who didn’t belong.
I didn’t just feel over a year older than everyone here; I felt fifty years older, my past aging me beyond any of them. Beyond even what a nineteen-year-old guy in college would be.
“Mason?” Addison walked up, taking my hand and pulling on it. She tried to sound sexy, but it came out whiney. “Come dance.”
“Fuck no.” I snorted.
She pouted her lip. “Please? For me?”
My lids narrowed, wondering when I gave her the impression I was into her. I mean, she was cute and would absolutely be no challenge, which was exactly why I wasn’t. I was here because I promised I would watch over her.
The picture of Emery flashed through my mind before I could stop it, instantly hardening my dick. Her long, dark, silky hair, the pain and knowledge in her hazel eyes, the way her chest puffed and cheeks flushed when I was next to her. I had seen her at the game talking to Addison, and the moment I looked at her, I felt this strange draw to her, my eyes going to her over and over.
She was stunning.
I couldn’t concentrate the entire game, and when Addison invited me over, I didn’t say no. I found any excuse to go into the kitchen where Emery was hiding out… and the next moment, I was promising to watch over Addison. For her. I didn’t even want to be at this fucking party.
“Mason?” Addison tried again, her lip curling lower in a sulk.
“I don’t dance.” I pushed off the wall. “Think Mateo would be happy to, though.” I nodded at my friend, who couldn’t stop gawking at her. The coach had yelled at him at practice for staring over at the cheerleaders. We all knew he was looking at one in particular.
I brushed by her, heading outside, needing to get away from all of them. The cool night eased my shoulders down. Everything in me wanted to leave, but I couldn’t. Not until Addison got home. For some reason, I needed to keep my word. To have a woman I didn’t know, nor should care about, trust me.
Why the hell did I care whether some girl’s aunt thought I was a dick or not? I was a dick. Though all I felt was relief when Addy introduced her as her aunt and not her mother. There was no way she could have been, anyway. She was older, but not old enough to have had Addison.
Not the point, jackass. She’s still way too old for you.
Exhaling, I sagged into a lounge chair, staring at the sky. Life was too damn short, and I resented I was wasting it here. Yet, it was all of my own making. What I wanted was to get my GED and be done with it, but I knew my grandparents wanted to see me graduate. A few times, my grandmother had told me she wanted me to experience all the things I might have missed out on. That it was such a crucial, exciting year for a person.
My dad never graduated from high school, dropping out after junior year, and I know deep down it always bothered them. School was very important to my grandfather. This was my way of repaying them. To give them something they missed with him.
I owed my grandparents everything. They stood by me at my worst, had been there for me, and even moved from the home they loved to this town two years ago for me.
A fresh start. A place where no one knew me. Knew my past.
Where I could be normal.
Except tonight, once again, showed me I wasn’t.
Chapter 9
Emery
“Dammit!” I kicked at the washer, my shoes soaking from the water still leaking out of it, flooding the garage. This was the result of buying a cottage from an elderly couple who probably hadn’t updated their appliances since they got married in the ’70s.
A lot of my money had gone into moving here so I didn’t have a whole lot to spend on updates. The thing about death no one tells you is how expensive it is. I was grateful to the Roberts for paying for a lot, but there were still many little things that ate away at my balance I wasn’t expecting, and I would never have asked Alisa and John for money.
Another thing people don’t understand was that until you win cases and become a big-time lawyer in a firm, which was rarer than TV wanted you to believe, you were broke. Ben had been clerking for free for a while, living off my wages, wanting to do it without his parents. Just because Ben came from money didn’t mean we had any of it.