Page 42 of Reckless

“I am not even going to answer that. Lucas is coming back tomorrow. They have to move their things to the house. We are helping them.”

“Not interested in that either.”

“What are you going to do then? Lay on the couch until Wednesday?”

“That. Or board a plane and go back to Boston.”

“You keep on saying that but you’re still here.”

I shoved my hands in my pockets and shrugged.

“An old friend found out I was in town. He is throwing a party tonight.”

“You are just making things up now.”

I opened the messages on my phone and flipped it in her direction.

I watched her eyes moving over the screen impatiently. I could swear I saw a flash of anger in them when she realized I wasn’t lying.

“Fine,” she crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Go to your party. Have fun.”

“I’m sure I will.”

Hannah spun around and marched back to the yard. It wasn’t enough for me though. Now that I gained some of my power back, I wanted to twist the knife a little bit.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you. Madison is coming on Tuesday.”

“I know,” Hannah shot back at me without glancing in my direction. “The engagement party is on Wednesday, remember?”

She said the last word like she was explaining something to a moron. So I changed my mind and decided to keep my conversation with Madison a secret.

“Oh, yes, little Spencer. I totally forgot about that.”

Chapter Fourteen

Hannah

Istoodatthefront door of the Hartleys’ at seven in the morning on Sunday, suppressing my smile and ringing the doorbell. For nine minutes straight. Objectively speaking, he could call the cops and tell them I was harassing him. I hated using my father’s name, but I would definitely use it if he did that. So I continued pressing doorbell button.

Three more minutes passed. I knew he was awake. No way in hell he could be still asleep after more than ten minutes of that noise I was making.

But what if he was spending the night somewhere else? I didn’t think about that possibility.

He was at a party last night. That was the reason I was here in the first place at that hour on a Sunday. I wanted to wake up and make him drag around his sleepy ass the entire day.

But he could have spent the night elsewhere.

Or he simply wanted me to think he wasn’t home. If I left, he could sleep all day.

I heard a car in the distance and glanced over my shoulder.

A taxi. Chill ran down my spine.

That would be embarrassing. Me standing in front of his door early in the morning, while he got out of a taxi after a wild night out. It would be a perfect example of how different our lives were. How different we were.

Heat started warming my armpits; I almost felt like sweating. The taxi didn’t stop. I slowly released the breath I was holding. Anger washed over me with the realization I was sweating even without his presence.

I balled one hand into a fist and raised it to pound on the door. It flung open just a second before I hit it.

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