Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 124923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
I snort out a laugh, leaning my head back against the headrest. “You’re such an asshole.”
“I was attempting to be nice.”
“Did it hurt? Pretending to care about someone other than yourself?”
He shrugs his right shoulder, the same hand gripping the steering wheel. “I’d give it a solid four out of ten on the pain scale.”
I lean forward and poke at the touch screen until I find music. I crank the volume all the way up, making conversation impossible, and Holden doesn’t seem to mind. I expect him to crack jokes at Liam’s expense—or mine—but surprisingly, he keeps his mouth shut. Good to know he has some self-preservation instincts.
I don’t know how long we drive, unspeaking. It’s maybe thirty minutes before Holden pulls into a Dairy Queen drive-through and turns the music down.
“Really?”
“What?” he asks, defensive. “I’m hungry as fuck.” He pulls up to the speaker, and a muffled voice greets him and asks for his order. “Let me get a chicken strip dinner, three cheeseburgers, a large fry, and two chocolate dipped cones. Oh, and a bottle of water, please.”
“Will that complete your order?”
Holden faces me. “Want anything?”
“I don’t know, is there anything left?” He ordered enough to feed a family of four, and yet, he still manages to look like a fucking Olympic athlete. “I’m good,” I say when I realize he’s waiting for a real answer. Even if I did want something, I doubt I could eat right now. Something about being publicly cheated on really kills a girl’s appetite.
Holden finishes his order, and as we’re pulling up to the window, my phone vibrates in my lap. I look down, knowing who it is before I see the screen. My suspicions are confirmed when I flip it over to silence it. I hear Holden pay and thank the woman at the window as a text immediately comes through.
Liam: Please call me. I’m sry.
Pro tip: if you want to appear genuinely remorseful, at least have the decency to spell the word out entirely.
I ignore the text, too, sliding my phone in between my thighs.
“Sir…your water?” a female voice says, prompting me to look up. When I do, I see that Holden’s gaze is fixed on my thighs. I arch a brow, giving him a reproachful look as I tug my skirt down a little, but it’s in vain because Holden has exactly zero shame.
Still looking at me, he holds his hand out his window until the bottle of water is placed in his grip, and then he’s pulling out of the parking lot. The SUV smells like hot grease and salty fries, but surprisingly, it doesn’t turn my stomach like I thought it would.
“Here,” Holden says, passing me a cheeseburger. “Eat this.”
“You sure? I wouldn’t want you to wither away to nothing.”
The corner of his lip tugs up into a smirk. “I’ll survive. Eat the damn cheeseburger.”
I make a show of peeling off the wrapper and biting into it. “Happy?”
“Hot.”
I laugh under my breath. “Drive.”
We both eat in silence while I ignore the barrage of text messages that vibrate between my thighs. Instead of looking at them, I keep my gaze focused on my window. It’s too dark to see much of anything besides the streetlights whizzing by. I’m lost in my thoughts, so I don’t realize that we’re sitting in front of my house until Holden clears his throat.
“Thanks for the ride.”
Fingers on the door handle, I glance back at my house, noticing the lights are on through the bay windows. Great. That means my mom and stepdad are still awake. I’m supposed to be spending the night at Shayne’s after the away game. Coming home unexpectedly I could easily explain. Coming home without my car is something that requires a little more finessing, and tonight, I’m not in the mood for an interrogation. Before I can talk myself out of what is sure to be a terrible decision, I turn back to face Holden. “Can I come over?”
His eyebrows shoot up, a cocky expression taking over his face, and I’m quick to continue before he spits out some pervy remark.
“Don’t get too excited. They’re awake,” I say, hitching my thumb toward my house. “And I don’t feel like being home right now.” Or ever, really. I try to stay as busy as possible, and between school, cheer, and their work schedules, it’s not hard to accomplish. Except for Wednesday nights—the dreaded weekly family dinner that literally no one enjoys. But anything to keep up appearances, I guess.
Valen
“Wait,” I say, stopping short a few feet before the front door. “Is Thayer or Christian lurking around somewhere?” It’s just now dawning on me that Holden was alone at the party earlier. There was a time when the Ames boys were never seen without each other, but when Daniel, the oldest, died, the fearsome foursome was down to three. Thayer, the middle brother, is sort of a lone wolf these days except when it comes to Shayne, but I’ve learned where there’s one, the other is never far behind.