Page 66 of Always You

I glance at Charlotte, following his move until her fury-filled eyes snap toward me, shooting me deep in the chest.

“I’m calling shotgun. You can climb in the back, or the tailgate, for all I care, but don’t youdarecome near me.” She pokes her finger into my chest, then rounds the truck to get into the passenger seat, and I bring my hand up, pinching the bridge of my nose while closing my eyes.

What the fuck are you doing, Hunter?

“Err, Hunter?” Kim’s voice rings somewhere around me like a loud and screeching alarm when you want to sleep in. She’s still here?Fuck’s sake.

“What?” I twist my torso to look at the blonde I was planning to take home.

“We can go to my place? My parents aren’t home until midnight.”

Charlotte’s door slams shut, and I wince. “Yeah, not gonna happen, sweetheart.”

I went to Charlotte today, hoping spending my time with her would make this day at least somewhat better. Instead, I fucked it up even worse, hurting the one girl who is always on my side.

“Hansen, get your ass in,” Jason barks at my back after he opens the window.

Rubbing a hand over my face, I look in front of me, locking eyes with Julie. I expect her to shoot me a glare, to be angry with me for fighting with Charlotte. God knows I deserve it all.But she sends me a sympathetic look as she purses her lips and shrugs her shoulders. I shake my head at her. The last thing I need is people feeling sorry for me. This is my own doing.

Spinning on the spot, strutting back to my car, I climb into the backseat.

Jason hits the throttle without waiting for me to have my seatbelt on, and I get pressed back against the seat. The suspenseful energy is filling the truck with tension, their anger feeling heavy on my chest, and I do my best to keep my focus on the road. My head feels fuzzy, and I take deep breaths, trying to get it together while my eyes stay focused on the girl in front of me. Her stance is rigid, ready to lash out at me if I dare to talk to her again.

I shouldn’t talk to her.

But there is a lot of shit I shouldn’t do, and the amount of alcohol still running through my veins doesn’t seem to shut me up.

“Babe, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t fucking‘babe’me,” she growls, her tone dripping with adversity, keeping her gaze focused on the road in front of her.

“Okay.” I bring my hands up in surrender, staring at the back of her neck through my lashes. “Charlotte.I’m sorry.”

She snaps her body toward me, sending me a look that comes straight from the devil. Her eyes are greener than normal, glowing in the dark, and the stern look on her face makes me either want to hold her until she relaxes again, or hide in a corner, hoping she’ll forgive me as time passes.

I swallow hard at the sight of it while she points her finger at me, her feral voice bringing goosebumps over my body.

“Next time you want to drink, you better leave me at home, because let me tell you something,Hansen.I’m not taking your shit. I’m your friend, and the minute you’re going to start treating me like one of those bimbos—I’m outta here.”

“Bestfriend,” I whisper boldly, keeping my eyes locked with hers.

“That wasn’t best friend behavior, asshole.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Save it. You can tell methatwhen you’re sober.” She straightens her body again, as if she can’t fathom to look at me anymore, and a sharp pain goes through my heart.

This is the exact reason why I can never cross that line with her. I’m doomed to hurt her. Maybe not all the time, maybe not at first. But in the long run, I’m not the guy you marry, living in a house with a picket white fence. I’m the bad boy from your youth, the one you tell your friends about when you’re pissed at your husband.

“Will you forgive me?” I whisper, barely audibly, even though I notice Jason locking his gaze with me in the rearview mirror.

She lets out a frustrated sigh, running her hand through her silky hair.

“Ask me that tomorrow, Hunter,” she breathes out, the fatigue noticeable in her voice.

Tomorrow.

Right.

---