Page 47 of My Vows Are Sealed

“Before you go trying to make Darla’s life a living hell, Smith, I’d think about what your parents would say if they found out about your fondness for vodka and menthols,” I growled as I turned to face Ethan.

“You don’t know shit,” he scoffed.

“So thatwasn’tyou I saw hanging out with Ryan Correy in his truck this morning, smoking Kools and chugging Smirnoff straight from the bottle?” I challenged.

He blanched, but didn’t say anything.

“That’s more like it,” I chuckled dryly. “Now that I have your attention, listen up. First of all, Correy’s bad news. He’s been bad news since I was a freshman.”

“He’s myfriend,” he protested.

“Look, if you want to spend your time with drug dealers and delinquents, that’s up to you, man,” I told him. “And if you want to give yourself lung cancer and destroy your liver, that’s none of my business. But if you keep messing with Darla, tattling to her father about every little thing you see her do like a five-year-old just because you want to see her squirm, I’ll make it my business, and your parents will find outallabout yourfriendsand what you’re doing with them. And you and I both know they’ll believe what I tell them. So, do we understand each other?”

“What are you, the fun police?” he snarked.

“No. I’m someone who doesn’t like seeing the people he cares about get hurt,” I spat right back. “You’re on the list of people I care about too, but if you want to destroy your life, I’m not going to stop you. As long as you back the hell off of Darla. Now, do. We. Understand. Each. Other?”

“Yep,” he clipped out, staring daggers at me.

“Good. And I mean it. Watch yourself with Ryan. He might act all nice to you and give you smokes and booze, but you’ll end up in way deeper than you ever wanted to be if you’re not careful.”

“Whatever,” he muttered.

“I’m serious, Ethan,” I warned him. “I’ll know if you say a single word to Pastor Jones, and the second you do, your parents are going to find out about your new hobby. And believe me when I say I’m looking for a reason to tell them because I don’t want to see you ruining your life like this.”

“Yeah, got it,” he snapped. “Your precious little girlfriend is safe.”

With a parting glare, he walked off, and I turned back to Darla, who was sitting there like a deer in headlights. I hated that she’d had to see that, but I wasn’t about to wait until this afternoon to deal with him. I wasn’t entirely convinced that he wouldn’t have gone to one of the payphones on campus and called the church office if I hadn’t done that. But now? He might have been trying to act all tough, but I could tell he was actually scared about the prospect of his parents finding out about any of this. He’d keep his mouth shut.

“You okay, baby?” I asked.

She nodded. “He was really smoking and drinking in the parking lot this morning?”

“Yep,” I chuckled dryly. “Right there in the open where anyone could see. Honestly, if I hadn’t had to use that as leverage to get him to shut his mouth with your dad, I’d be telling his parents anyway. But you’re more important, and my knowing that about him guarantees he’ll never tell your fatheranythingelse about you. Now, seriously, are you okay? You looked like you were about to cry when he shoved us.”

“It’s just my rib,” she sighed. “I’ll live.”

Wait. Her rib. I was an idiot. There was a reason I’d wanted to sit somewhere so I could dig through my backpack.

“Hang on,” I told her. “I really do have something else for you.”

I handed her now-melting coffee back to her and then rifled through my backpack for a minute before pulling out a Walgreens bag and handing it to her. She eyed it suspiciously as she took it from me.

“What the school doesn’t know won’t hurt them,” I explained. “I brought you a few instant ice packs and some ibuprofen to keep in your backpack.”

Darla gasped, then wrapped her good arm around me, and I felt a few tears wet my shirt as she leaned against me. A little bit of a lump rose in my throat as I thought about how heartbreaking it was that all it took to make her cry was someone giving her some over-the-counter pain relief to make her life at school bearable while she was recovering from injuries that had been inflicted on her by her own father. I kissed the top of her head, then pulled away just enough to give her a soft kiss.

“You’re not doing this alone anymore, Dar,” I whispered. “You’ve got me now, and I’m not going anywhere, no matter what. I promise.”

* * *

“I think I’ve found my million-dollar idea,” I told Darla as we walked through the cafeteria toward our usual table. “A rolling backpack.”

I wasn’t complaining about helping Darla out for a week or so while her shoulder healed – I mean, itdidgive me an excuse to see her between all of my classes – butdamn, these bags were heavy. This couldn’t have been healthy foranykid to carry on their back all the time.

“I think they already have those,” she chuckled. “They’re called carry-on bags, and I’m pretty sure the school would frown on me bringing one of those on campus.”

“That’s what I’m saying, though,” I countered. “An actualbackpackthat has wheels. Then we’d be allowed to bring them on campus because they’re backpacks.”

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