Page 33 of Harmony

He saunters out, shoulder checking Nate along the way. As soon as he’s gone, Nate slams the door behind him. Then he moves in front of me, caging me into the wall with his hands on either side of my head.

“What the fuck are you doing? Do you have a death wish?”

“What are you doing here, Nate?” I ask, ignoring his questions.

“Me? What the fuck are you doing here? Dealing drugs? Really, Hailee?”

I chuckle. “You think I’m dealing drugs?”

His eyes harden. “I saw you with that little girl talking to almost everyone here.”

“Oh? You thought we were doing that to sell them drugs? You have it all wrong.”

“Really? Tell me what your game is then.”

Taking a moment, I pull my inner Willow. I need to put on a performance. I could tell him I was indeed dealing drugs. Giving him a small piece of the puzzle. But then we may never see the full picture. No. I need to play my part. I owe it to Willow and Katie.

“I was sucking his dick for twenty bucks.” The lie falls effortlessly from my lips.

His fist comes up, then back into the wall beside my head, leaving a hole in its place.

I flinch at the sound, my heart pounding in my chest, making my hearing seem cloudy.

“You’re sucking dick for money? What the fuck?” he explodes.

“I know you don’t understand this because you’ve always had brother dearest taking care of your every need, but not all of us have that luxury. Some of us have to actually earn the money to keep food in our bellies and the clothes on our backs. So instead of judging, why don’t you move aside so I can get back to work.”

“You want to be a fucking whore? Fine. I’m honestly not surprised. How about this, slide to those knees of yours and suck me off good and I may give you a ten.”

I push at his chest, but he doesn’t move.

“Fuck you, Nate. I don’t want your money. Not enough money would get me anywhere near your disease-ridden cock.”

Except I’ve already been on his cock, and I loved every single minute of it. I want to do it again.

His words draw me from my head. “Keep up with the lip and I’ll show you how to make better use of them.”

“In your fucking dreams. Get the fuck away from me, Nate. We both know you hate me and I hate you. Let’s try to stay out of each other’s way.”

That lie is harder to swallow. I don’t hate Nate. As much as I want to, I can’t help but remember his sweet side. The guy that took care of me when I was hurt. Who looked ready to take on the world to take care of me.

He grits his teeth before pulling away from me.

“Whatever game you’re playing is dangerous. You’re going to get yourself killed. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Thank you for acting like you care, but I’ll be fine. I can handle myself.”

He shakes his head. “Get out of here before I do something I’ll regret.”

I stare at him for a moment, seeing the way his body is shaking in anger.

I don’t hesitate, turning to leave, but his words stop me as my hand grabs the door handle.

“Willow comes back to school Monday. Don’t even think about breathing the same air as her. I’ll make you regret it.”

I don’t respond, pulling the door open, then slamming it behind me as I hastily make my way to the kitchen.

Katie hasn’t made it back yet, but I don’t care. I grab a beer, popping the top before taking a long swig of the nasty liquid.

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