Page 19 of The Fall

She avoided my question entirely and handed me my stopwatch.

“I’ve gotta go. My mom’s waiting.”

“Dallas, why—”

She turned on me with an eye roll. “Because they have motives, Dean, and it’s not to get to know me better, okay? I mean, it’s no big secret who my best friend is. I have you and the guys. I’m good.”

She was referring to my crew, who’d taken her in under strict guidelines to keep their fucking hands off. They all had a soft spot for her and looked out for her like I did.

“You want to do something for me, Martin?” she asked, turning to face me in front of her mom’s SUV, her hands on her hips. “Teach me to drive.”

“Done.” I beamed at her as she lifted a brow, incredulous. “Seriously, I want to.”

“Sure you have time with your social calendar and all?”

“Think you can set down your beaker and escape your mad lab long enough?”

She gave me the smile only Dallas could give that said everything in just a few precious seconds.

And in those seconds, I knew I was in love with her.

And for her, I smoked Derek Watson.

It had all come to a head at my track meet finals. For the first time in a long time, I was looking forward to a date. There was a girl my age, newly eighteen, who seemed like the perfect candidate to get Dallas out of my head. My prospective date, Lindsey, was sitting in the stands. I waved to her, seeing Dallas a few rows over wave back at me. Lindsey was oblivious, but Dallas noticed her right away. And as usual, watching Dallas’s face fall in recognition of my attention on another girl, I felt awful—as I should’ve for letting her get so close to me. Dallas had been to every single track meet, every single pep rally. She was by far the best friend I’d ever had. I hadn’t made a mistake in making her my best friend. I had made a huge mistake in that I’d fallen for her.

She was only fifteen!

It all came down to that. I couldn’t get past it, and I wouldn’t. Most guys wouldn’t blink at the age difference, but I wasn’t most guys. She was untouched, that much I knew. It was settled. I caught Lindsey’s eyes, and she smiled. I looked at Dallas—who was clearly hurt—and wiped my face with a towel.

What the fuck are you doing, Dean?

I’d noticed the subtle changes in Dallas’s dress, the skirts getting slightly shorter, and she wore more makeup, more perfume. She was desperately trying to get my attention, and God help me, she had all of it. We’d come a long way as friends in such little time and much more. I’d dragged her on a few double dates to try to change the dynamic slowly building between us—to keep things friendly and less intimate, but it wasn’t working. I missed her when she was not around, and I rarely paid much attention to my date, watching her date like a hawk, though I had handpicked and threatened every single one.

I had been to her home often and somehow became an integrated part of her family. I entertained Rose and had even become chummy with her older brother, Paul. She had met my parents on numerous occasions and had even lived through the scrutiny of my mom—who now adored her and threatened my life if I so much as touched a hair on her head.

As hard as I’d tried to keep our relationship a friendship, I’d failed. She was now a part of me.

There was no going back, and that was becoming clear with each day. I had to do the right thing, even if it meant hurting her—even if it hurt me.

I finished my meet and saw Dallas waiting at the bottom of the stands. I groaned when I took in her tiny shorts and snug shirt. I glanced at Lindsey, who had her hand up to her ear in a ‘call me’ gesture. I nodded and approached Dallas with caution.

“Hi.” She greeted me with a breathtaking smile.

God, you’re beautiful.

“Hi,” I said back, hoping she couldn’t hear my inner musing.

“Good meet. I would congratulate you, but half the women here fainted when you took your shirt off. I think that’s enough of an ego boost for one day,” she joked. She lifted her hand as if to run fingers through my hair, but I stopped her quickly.

“Dallas, where are your clothes?” I snapped as I took a step back. She gaped at me, clearly shocked by her reception. I saw her embarrassment turn to anger as a few onlookers snickered at her discomfort.

“What the hell is your problem, Martin?” I knew the question didn’t just have to do with today. I had been returning fewer of her calls and spending a little less time with her. She was an extremely smart girl, and if for one second, I thought I could tell her I returned her feelings without the result being that she tried harder, I would.

I didn’t want to take that chance. I knew I would give in to the physical, even if the gentleman I wanted to be couldn’t live with that. She already held a coveted place in my heart. She wouldn’t be just another girl.

Not to mention, it was totally fucking illegal. And those were the kind of charges that stuck, that stifled a medical career.

She was still looking at me when I realized I hadn’t answered her.

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