Page 34 of Further To Fall

I held up a gift bag and let it dangle from my pointer finger. “For you. Is there somewhere I can stash it so it doesn’t get lost?”

“Yeah, there’s an office down the hall on the right. Austin’s back there stowing some other gifts. Tell him to get his ass back out here.”

Perfect. I could corner Austin’s grumpy butt and get him to tell me what the heck was going on. I had grown paranoid that the pain meds I had been on the night Austin slept over had seriously screwed with my memory or perception of events. Maybe I had thrown myself at Austin and begged him to take my virginity—that would be humiliating. No matter what had actually happened, I was getting to the bottom of things tonight.

I slipped through the back hallway and found the office door. Knocking briefly, I chuckled to myself—like anyone could hear knocking over the pounding of the bass in the speakers. Hesitantly, I pushed open the door, but when it reached the midpoint of the threshold, I froze. My heart thudded against my ribs and then dropped to my toes.

Austin was there, all right. He leaned back against the desk, while a girl was on her knees in front of him, unbuttoning his pants. I did a double-take when I realized the girl was Lexi. Vomit crept up my throat. I felt Liam’s present slip from my fingers as I turned and ran. I thought I heard someone call my name, but I couldn’t be sure with the music blaring all around.

I pushed people aside as quickly as could to make it back to Liam’s table. Taylor was sitting just across from him, and I grabbed her shoulder roughly. She spun around and took in my face. I must have looked awful because both she and Liam spoke at the same time. “What’s wrong?”

I swallowed back the bile that was still making its way up my esophagus. “Lexi and Austin are hooking up in the office.”

Taylor stood, wrapping an arm around my waist. “Jesus, you need better friends.”

Liam leaned across the table and grabbed my hand. “He’s been drinking, he doesn’t know what he’s doing.”

I couldn’t deal with Liam’s reasoning right then, so I turned to Taylor. “I’m sorry to make you leave when we just got here, but I really need to get out of here.”

“Of course, let’s go before He-Man pulls his dick out of that skank and comes after you.” I cringed at the visual, and Taylor sent me a sympathetic smile. “Sorry.” Once we were out on the street, I sucked in a deep breath, trying to still my riotous stomach. Taylor still had a hold of my hand, and she squeezed it. “You going to be okay?”

“Yeah, it’s just the wakeup call I needed.”

17

Carter

Imoaned as sunlight hit my tender eyes; apparently, crying myself to sleep had taken a toll. I rolled over and stretched, propelling myself into a sitting position. Gazing around Taylor’s guest room, I thanked my lucky stars that I hadn’t had to return to my own apartment last night. Slowly, I got to my feet and meandered out to the living room to find Taylor sipping tea on her couch. “Hey, girlie, how are you feeling?”

I shuffled toward her and plopped down on the opposite end of the couch, pulling my knees up to my chest. “I feel like I’m hungover, and I didn’t even drink.”

“It’s all the tears. A crying hangover. Just drink a bunch of water, and you’ll start to feel better.” She paused, bringing the cup to her lips. “What are you going to do?”

I let my head fall to my knees. “I have no idea. You know, Lexi texted me as we were walking in last night. I think she purposely timed it so I would see them together, or at least have a real good idea of what they were up to.”

Taylor shook her head. “What a bitch. I know you probably don’t want to hear this right now, but she’s always been jealous of you and the attention those guys give you. She’s used to being the center of attention and gets bitter when she’s not.”

“What am I going to do? I have to live with her.”

Taylor set her mug on the coffee table. “Move in here. I have more than enough room.”

“Really?” Taylor lived in a gorgeous four-bedroom house in the Los Feliz hills that I would kill to call home. It felt like a Mediterranean oasis, complete with a pool and spa.

“Why not? My dad got me this place as a ridiculously over-the-top graduation gift. Trying to assuage his absentee-father guilt. So, you wouldn’t have to pay rent. We have the same schedule, so no worrying about roommates throwing ragers when you have to be up at 5 a.m. Plus, we have the same taste in cheesy made-for-TV movies. We are basically a match made in roommate heaven.”

“Well, when you put it like that…”

Taylor clasped her hands together like a little kid. “Yes?”

“Yes. Thank you.”

She shrieked and threw her arms around me in a tight hug. “Now, tell me what you’re going to do about Austin because, that, I don’t have a quick fix for.”

My excitement about moving in with Taylor immediately dulled. I sighed. “I lay awake most of the night thinking about it. In some ways, I really do think Lexi did me a favor. I mean, our relationship is kinda messed up. It’s like we’re dating, except we don’t have sex. I’ve said no to any guy who’s asked me out this year because I’m so caught up with Austin. But I haven’t been honest with him about how I feel or tried to set any boundaries with him putting us firmly in friendship territory either, and that’s not fair to him. I mean, we’re not actually dating, so he should be free to hook up with whoever he wants.”

“Technically, yes. But come on, your roommate? That’s not cool.”

Leaning back into the arm of the couch, I tried to sort through my feelings on the matter now that I had slept on it. “He has to know I have feelings for him, right?”

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