Page 147 of The Trouble With Bad Boys

“If you’re asking if I want to be with anyone else, the answer is no. If you’re wondering if I’m dating, the answer would also be no. I haven’t been with anyone else but you from the moment we first met. You’re all I think about. You’re everything I want.”

Just when I’m about to tell him how I feel, Reed interjects and holds his phone up to us. He mutters a low sorry for interrupting, and I spot Mandy and one of her friends, Leslie, standing beside him.

“Beckham is on the phone. He’s trying to find where Hallyn went. Have you seen her?” Reed asks us.

I shake my head, glancing around the bar, searching for her blond hair or the top I saw her in when we left our place.

“I thought I saw her talking to her ex. What’s his name again?” Leslie’s brows deepen when she turns to me. “It sounds like she might’ve taken off with him. Maybe try calling one of them?” she suggests, glancing from Reed over to me.

“Wait, who’s asking?” I nod toward his phone, and Reed mouths Beckham’s name.

Colter flicks his gaze over to me. While I kept my word to Hallyn about not telling a soul about their tutoring sessions, Colter figured it out for himself.

There were a couple of nights when he dropped me off at our place and saw Beckham’s truck parked outside. It didn’t take him long to put two and two together.

While I wasn’t going to out her secret, I wouldn’t lie to him about why his friend was at our apartment either. Besides, I trust Colter, and I know he’d never tell anyone anyway.

Reed slips his phone back into his pocket.

“Come with me?” he asks Colter. “Beckham wants us to see if we can find Hallyn. He seems concerned, so I told him we’d help him search for her. He’s on his way here.”

“Concerned?” I ask. Alarm bells start going off in my head.

We drove together, so it’s not like she would’ve left. If she did, she wouldn’t take off without telling me goodbye or filling me in on who she’s with.

Colter stays with me while we loop around to the other side of the bar, and I check the women’s bathroom before we meet up with Reed near the front door. We’re heading out to the parking lot when I hear a man shouting Hallyn’s name.

It isn’t until I hear Reed say, “I think that’s Beckham,” before it clicks that he’s yelling her name because he’s searching for her too.

How the hell did he make it here so damn fast?

Something about knowing he raced here while hearing the panic in his voice has my chest tightening as worry settles in. We take off in his direction, and Colter reaches for me when we both hear a sob followed by a loud grunt.

“Run, Hallyn!” Beckham hollers as Reed takes off running toward them.

Colter grabs my hand and pulls me close to him when I finally spot Hallyn running between two cars. I jerk my hand free from Colter’s and take off toward her.

“Are you okay? What’s going on?” I cry out. Tears stream down her face when she realizes it’s me, frantically wrapping her arms around me.

“I-I-I don’t know. I was on the phone with Beckham when this man approached me, and he tried forcing me to—” Hallyn’s words fumble out of her mouth as a silver Honda speeds off through the parking lot.

Colter steps in front of us and blocks us from the car, pushing me and Hallyn out of the way as the person peels out onto the street without stopping to check for oncoming traffic.

“What the fuck?” Reed bellows as he approaches us, Beckham beside him.

He grits his teeth, wincing as he rubs his hand and forearm. When Hallyn notices him coming, she releases me and crosses the space to wrap her arms around Beckham’s waist without hesitation.

Colter and Reed exchange curious glances before Colter turns toward me, tugging me against his side. I exhale a shuddered breath, and Colter leans in, pressing his mouth against my ear.

“I know you’ll want to be with Hallyn tonight. I understand,” Colter whispers. “Let me stay with you, though. Please.”

I nod, pressing my hands against his cheeks and pulling him in to kiss me.

When we break the kiss, Hallyn is standing next to me. She flashes me a sad smile, glancing between me over to Colter.

“Can I just say how happy it makes me seeing you two together?” she says, turning toward Colter. “Treat her right. She deserves only the best.”

We exchange a hug. When she pulls away, she nods over her shoulder to Beckham.

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