Page 185 of Dare To Live

A thin layer of sweat chills my skin as it cools, and I turn, laughing, as Garrett skids to a stop.

“Looks like you’re bringing us breakfast.”

He rakes a hand through his hair, breath coming out in sharp pants. “Maybe I just let you guys win.”

Bret’s eyebrows fly up into his hairline. “Are you saying you threw the race?”

“Arabella shouldn’t be made to wait on anyone. She should be treated like a princess.”

“Are you sweet talking me?”

I laugh harder. Laughter which fades when he doesn’t join in.

“If things don’t work out with Eli…well, let’s just say I’m always here for you, Arabella Gray. Now I suggest we get showered and changed before meeting up for breakfast.”

Chapter 106

Eli

The silence in the car is awkward, uncomfortable … at least I assume it is for Jace. It doesn’t bother me. I like quiet and small talk has never been something I bothered with. I concentrate on the drive, while Jace fiddles with his seatbelt, his jacket, and his cell.

“You didn’t have to come along.”

His head jerks up at my words. “To be honest, it’s a relief to get away from the school. I didn’t think it would make me feel so uncomfortable.”

“It’s all the memories. When you’re away from the place, you can convince yourself it wasn’t as fucked up as we thought it was. But here … there’s no hiding from the truth.”

He nods. “I go over it in my head constantly. How did we get to that point?” His brows dip into a frown. “Looking back, it’s obvious what he was doing.”

“That’s because you’re outside of the moment. At the time, though, you had peer pressure mixed with the typical teenage need to assert your dominance. Evan fed into that. No one realized how fucked up he was, not even the teachers. Don’t beat yourself up over it.”

I park the car outside the clothing store and climb out. Jace joins me and we walk inside.

“Didn’t you bring a suit with you?”

I shake my head. “Didn’t really think about it.”

“But you knew there was going to be a prom.”

“Truthfully? No. Not until we got here.”

“So why did you come?”

“Same reason as everyone else, I guess. Closure.”

“Is that what’s happening between you and Arabella?” He pushes open the door to the store and steps inside.

“Maybe. I’m not sure. I told her we could have the end of year we should have had if everything hadn’t gone …” I shrug.

“Crazy?”

“Works as good as any other description.”

“What happened to you guys? When the trial was going on, you were together, weren’t you?”

“Yeah.” I pull a jacket off a rack and hold it against myself.

“Not that one.” Jace takes it away from me, puts it back and flicks through the others. “This one is a better cut.”

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