Page 2 of Big Nick Energy

“Do what?” Noah asked. Both of us stared at her.

“This isn’t working out, Noah.”

“What? What do you mean? We’re good,” he argued lamely.

“No. We are not. Not even close.” She sighed, standing straight. Her eyes didn’t waver from his. “I heard about you and Jen.”

“I told you she’s just a?—"

“And about Hailey and Tara,” she added. I winced. I’d known the kid would mess it up and fumble his chances at a real one like Blanca, but I didn’t know he’d mess it up like that.What was the dumbass thinking?

“Tara and Hailey?” he repeated like he was trying to come up with an excuse. I didn’t have to ask him to know the allegationswere true. I knew him. “Babe.” He stood, and she shook his hand away when he tried to hold it.

“Don’t!” she clipped. Not a tear shined in her pretty eyes. Jesus, she was incredible and so strong. I knew she cared about my son and this kind of betrayal had to hurt. Not that she was showing it. Not at all.

“Maybe if you fucking put out—" I started to step in to put myself between the gorgeous girl who had been invading my every waking and sleeping moment, but it seemed I didn’t need to interfere. Her hand shot up and slapped him.

So hard the sound echoed in the living room.

“What the fuck?!” When he stepped forward, I was done observing from the sidelines.

“Okay, enough of that.” I stepped in, putting myself between them while I faced my son. Making sure to tower over him.

“Go to your room,” I demanded.

“What the fuck, Dad?” Noah’s face was a bright red, obviously pissed, his hands in fists at his sides. “This is none of your business!”

“Go. To. Your. Room.” I enunciated every word sternly. Making sure he knew I wasn’t kidding around. The kid was big, he was mine after all, but he was also lazy and nowhere as fit as I was. “Go and cool down.”

“That’s fine. I was done with this frigid bitch anyhow,” he clipped before stomping away.

Jesus, the kid was like his mother in that way, needing to have the last words when he threw a temper tantrum. But he didn’t walk up the stairs to his room. Instead, Noah grabbed his keys and left through the front door. But not before slamming it shut. Leaving Blanca and me alone in the living room. I gave her a moment before I looked over my shoulder.

“You okay?” I asked, taking her in. I’d been around, making sure my dumbass kid didn’t do anything stupid when they wereover at my house, but I had never been this close to her. Standing in front of her, so damn close,

“I’m really sorry about that, Mr. Marsh.” Her eyes dropped to the ground. “I should call an Uber––“

“No need,” I cut her off. “Come on, I’ll take you home.” I extended my hand, and the moment hers touched mine, I knew just how much I’d fucked up. It was one thing crushing on your kid’s girlfriend, now ex, but another to touch her.

Even if it was just innocent hand holding.

I glanced down at our hands, my bigger freckled one wrapped around her tiny one.Mine,a voice whispered. Our eyes connected, and I could be wrong, but fuck me, was she blushing?

Somehow, I managed to lead her to my car in the garage and get her home. All the while knowing this was just the beginning. She was eighteen. She was legal. But as I glanced at the girl that was not yet quite a woman in my passenger seat, I knew that no matter how much I wanted her, I couldn’t have her.

Not yet.

1

Blanca Dominguez

Two months later

I walkedaround the mall and stopped in front of the store my best friend, Libby, loved, and I sighed. The yellow dress with the pale blue flowers was still on the mannequin. Which meant it hadn’t dropped in price. Yet, I walked in. I didn’t have the money for the pretty sundress, but I had really hoped it would have gone on sale to give it to her as a surprise when my mom and I helped her move into her dorm.

Libby was the best.

Life was hard on everyone, but Libby had been hit with one too many punches. Yet no matter what happened, she kept getting up and moving forward. I stood in front of the pretty dress and sighed. It had killed me that I couldn’t buy the dress for her for graduation. She had stared at it like it was the prettiest thing when we had walked around the mall before our graduation. It would have been the perfect dress for her to wear to our ceremony, especially because she had been our valedictorian. I glanced at the tag and chewed on my lip. Theprice was a little too high even now as the summer was coming to an end. Instead of wearing the dress of her dreams, we had gone thrifting, and with my mom’s sewing skills, we had up-cycled a dress that had looked great on her.

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