Page 7 of The Comeback

I want to punch the smirk off Beau’s face. “Tiny one with the kicking curves and tear stains? Yeah, she went tearing out of here like the house was on fire. What did you do to her?”

Crap. She was crying again. And I was responsible for her tears. Wouldn’t be the first time, but I vowed I’d never make her cry again when we left high school. I was such an idiot. “I didn’t do anything to her.” Well, not tonight. Not really. She was the one who kissed me first. That’s how it went down, right? I’m tearing at my hair and it’s hard to breathe with all these bodies in the place. I burst out the front door and ask some of the strangers hanging out as if they own the place if they’ve seen her.

“I can be anyone you want me to be.” Some chick grabs my arm, and I shake it off.

Then I spot her. A tall, thin girl with long black hair is hugging her, and I take off in their direction.

I slow down as I get close to them. “Abby,” I say, dropping my voice down low so as not to startle her.

My stomach plummets to my toes when her heart-shaped face peers over her friend’s shoulder. Her eyes are red, and I wish I could wipe away the black streaks running down her cheeks.

“Go away, Bastian.”

“Abby, I’m sorry.”

“For what? For kissing me, or for ditching me and treating me like a pariah back in high school?”

I close my eyes. She’s right. I shouldn’t be here. I don’t even know why I am. The shock of seeing her. Her heated gaze on my body. The press of her soft lips on mine. It was so unexpected I let it get out of hand.

“For all of it. Come back inside. It’s cold out here.”

“No, we’re leaving. Don’t worry, you won’t have to see me again.”

A dark car with a blue light on top pulls up beside them. It makes me feel a little better that they at least have a safe ride home. She disappears into the backseat of the car, and I stare after it, running my hands through my hair again as it drives off.

Once she’s vanished, the cold sets in and I realize I’m wearing nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of loose athletic shorts. I didn’t even put on shoes in my haste to find her.

Jackson throws the girl off his lap when I get back inside. “Who was that hot piece of…”

I fling an arm up in the air to ward off whatever my best friend is about to say. “Don’t say it. Not if you want to keep that pretty face intact.”

“Wow. Does Seb have a crush? Who is she?” He looks at me with curiosity.

“She’s no one you need to worry about. And, really, a crush? What are we, twelve? I was just surprised to see her.”

“Old girlfriend?”

“No.” She was never my girlfriend, even if I wanted her to be at one time. But that was a long time ago. “Just an old friend.”

He smirks at me. “Do you kiss all your old friends?”

“What are you talking about?” There’s no way he could know what just happened.

“Um, dude, unless you’re suddenly into wearing lipstick and are really bad at putting it on, you were definitely kissing someone.” I slap away the hand he reaches toward my face and then swipe at my mouth.

“It was just a kiss. I wasn’t expecting to see her here.” I’m not sure exactly why it was such a surprise. She’s been at Lakeview as long as I have. It’s just that I’ve avoided running into her for the last three years. We don’t exactly travel in the same circles, and I hardly expected her to show up at my house. In my room, no less.

I don’t like the look in his eyes as he arches a brow and nods at me. “Uh-huh.”

“Whatever, dude. Let’s get back to the party. I’m gonna grab a beer.”

“You might want to fix your shirt first.” He gestures at me with his beer bottle before taking a long swig.

My shirt is on inside out. Awesome. I whip it off and pull it back on in five seconds flat, ignoring the scattered whistles from the crowd. Some bunny gets bold, reaching over to slide a hand up my abs and I flinch away.

“I can help you with that if you’d like.” The dark-haired girl bites her lip and looks up at me under her lashes in a studied gesture.

I push her hand away. “No thanks. I got it.” I head toward the kitchen to get away from the probing eyes of my friend and the unwelcome touch of the girl.

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