Page 7 of Broken Bonds

“Didn’t take you as a truck driver.”

“‘Cause I’m not.” I tried to smile, but it was hot, and I was unamused. This conversation—could it even be considered that?—was already grating on my nerves.

“That sucks, ‘cause it’s hot. Means you don’t mind getting down and dirty.” He winked, running his hand through his shaggy hair.

Did he think that was attractive? Hot even? Oh, God, have mercy on his soul.

“I do like to get down and dirty. I’m just more of a Jeep girl.” I smiled, and his cheeks turned bright red, almost as dark as my shirt. I wanted to laugh, but I covered it with a cough.

“Wanna come over to my place? It’s just down the road. You can show me just how down and dirty you can get.” His smile was big—way too big. It was kind of grossing me out.

“You live off-campus, baby?” I asked, figuring I might as well have some fun while I waited on my brother.

“Yeah. I have a whole apartment to myself. A nice big, king-sized bed—big enough for us to get to know each other, if you know what I mean.” He was looking at me like I was his next meal. It was disgusting. Why were men such pigs?

“Sounds perfect. Let me just ask my boyfriend what he thinks,” I said when I noticed my brother walking up with Ace, and I took the opportunity to use him as a scapegoat. “Ry, do you mind if I go over to his place?” Ryan and Ace both looked at me, and then my brother smirked. Ryan knew exactly what I was up to since I had done it so many times. Hell, both of us had. We used each other as scapegoats all the time.

Mr. Asshole, on the other hand, didn’t look pleased. Too bad. I didn’t care what he thought.

“B-boyfriend?” golden retriever boy stuttered, his eyes wide as saucers.

“Hey, man, you wanna fuck my girlfriend?” Ryan asked, coming to stand in front of the idiot, slinging his arm over my shoulders. Ace looked downright confused, looking between the two of us as if we had a few bolts loose. I almost laughed at the comical expression on his face.

“Nah, man. Sorry, bro. Thought she was single.” The idiot was a mess. He was backing up as he talked, and he stumbled into a car. I was trying so hard not to laugh.

“Come on. Don’t ruin all the fun. Can’t keep me to yourself.” I winked at the boy, whose eyes were even bigger than before, and his jaw was on the ground.

“Get outta here, asshole,” Ryan said, and he looked at me, rolling his eyes.

“You ruin all my fun,” I whined as Ry threw his bag in the back of the truck. I chucked mine inside, too.

“You’re a piece of work, Celine,” Ace said, stifling his laughter now that he’d finally caught on to what was happening.

“Correction, Asshole, I’m funny,” I replied. Ryan rolled his eyes again. I hoped they fell out of his head.

“Are you coming over later?” Ryan asked, turning to Ace. Ace nodded as he walked to his bike a few spots away from us. Ryan turned to me. “No trouble here, Celine. Don’t get us suspended again like high school. Have fun, mess around, but don’t bring me into it. I won’t be playing a game of you crying wolf.”

One time, when I was a sophomore, I got us both suspended from school for teasing a boy—a junior in the same graduating class as Ryan, who then tried to stick his tongue down my throat and put his hands up my shirt. Ryan came over and promptly punched him unconscious with one hit.

“I won’t cry wolf, Ryan.” I rolled my eyes. “I know what I’m getting myself into. I was waiting for you, so I decided to find some entertainment. Not my fault you wanted to suck face with the bimbo.”

He grunted. “At least I wasn’t giving ‘fuck me’ eyes to perverts.”

“As if any perverts would want you,” I snorted.

chapter three

CELINE

“Class has been canceled for the rest of the week,” Ryan said ten minutes later, lowering the music he’d been blasting since we got in the truck.

I startled, looking over at him as he switched lanes, muttering something under his breath about slow drivers. “What? Why?”

“The hurricane, idiot.”Oh, right.

I heaved a tired sigh. “Forgot. It’s been a long day.”

Ryan grunted. “It’s still small—hasn’t changed since Dad mentioned it at dinner, but I guess the school wants to take precautions just to be on the safe side.”

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