Page 46 of The Bridges I've Burned

Cocking my head toward it, I froze. Why would someone knock? Did they not know it was a multi-stall situation up in here?

I took a few tentative steps, and before I made it to the door, Zander stepped in, his eyes sweeping over me like he was checking for bodily harm.

“Are you okay?”

Say yes, Elena.

Say yes.

“Can you take me home?” The words were out before I could stop them.

“Yeah,” he answered right away, not even bothering to ask why.

He closed the distance between us, wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and ushered us out. The hallway was quiet and empty, but I heard the sound of laughter as the party went on without us.

“Why did you come after me?” I asked as he pushed the door open and we headed for the exit.

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly. He sounded just as surprised by his actions as I was.

We made it to his car without being noticed. Everyone was still too wrapped in the food, the booze, and the happy news…

I bit down on my bottom lip as Zander opened the passenger door and guided me in.

“I’m good,” I assured him.

He seemed reluctant to let me go but did once I had my seat belt in hand. The car door shut soon after, and a few seconds later, he was in the driver’s seat, and we were on the road.

A deafening silence settled between us as I watched trees and street signs pass by us. A chill went down my spine as a blast of cold air from one of the vents hit me, and then I remembered.

“Your jacket!” I said, sucking in a breath.

“It’s fine,” he assured me. He didn’t seem fazed, which surprised me. The jacket seemed pretty important to him. “I’ll text Macon.”

“Do you even have Macon’s number?” I asked.

“No,” he confessed, the tiniest smirk spreading across his face. “But I’m sure you can remedy that for me.”

I decided not to point out that once his brother had his phone number, the ability to cut and run would become a little more difficult. But maybe he’d thought about that already.

Maybe he hadn’t.

Either way, it didn’t matter. He was leaving regardless.

“I take it, you didn’t know?” Zander’s voice was quiet. Tentative.

“No,” I answered as I fiddled with the clasp of my clutch, running my fingers over the cool metal as I tried to come up with something else to say. But what else was there?

Why hadn’t she told me?

Why had she held on to such a big announcement and decided not to share it with me privately? From the reactions in the room, it appeared that they hadn’t told anyone, not even Marin’s parents.

So, why would I assume I would be an exception?

Because she was always mine…

Zander pulled into the driveway of Ochre Bay and shut off the engine. I didn’t say anything as I tugged off my seat belt and exited the car. Soon, he joined me, and we walked side by side up the walkway until we reached the doorway, and he punched in the code.

I flipped on a light and immediately kicked off my heels.

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