Page 101 of Of Heartbreak and Harmony
I shake my head and force a swallow.
“Um...he’s just another attendee. I...um, I met him in the beer line.”
He laughs again, but this time it’s sinister. Cruel.
“Fuck it, Callie. I didn’t think you’d be such a slut.”
“That’s not fair, Becket. That’s so fucking not fair.”
“What do you call hooking up with a dude within four days of meeting him? In a fucking beer line?”
My jaw drops, and I feel like I’ve been slapped. And what stings the most is that he’s not wrong. Not at all. Teenage obsession or not, I still don’tknowTorren King, not really, and that fact makes everything that’s transpired feel dirty. All I know is what I’ve read in the tabloids, and none of it is good. I feel fucking naive, and I hate Beck in this moment for ruining it.
“You’re an asshole and a hypocrite,” I seethe. “You’ve hooked up with girls after a single show. After meeting them for a matter of fucking hours.”
“That’s different. That’s not you.”
“Maybe you don’t know what’s me!”
“I’ve known you for over a year, Calla Lily. I know how you are. Why the fuck do you think I’ve been taking this slow? Why the fuck do you think I’ve been easing us into it? Because I know you don’t do shit irrationally or without thinking it out, and I wanted to fucking respect that.”
I bark out a laugh and let my biggest concern fly out of my mouth.
“Then tell me why you only pursued me after you found out I was a virgin, huh? Tell me why it wasn’t until that fucking game in San Fran that you decided to try and start something with me?”
He clenches his jaw and I step forward, shoving his chest.
“Tell me that my being a virgin had nothing to do with it.”
His nostrils flare, and angry tears sting my eyes. “I’ve liked you for a while, Cal.”
I scoff. “Yeah, but not enough to stop playing up the rock star role and fucking pretend groupies, right? Not until there was anincentive.”
He just glares at me, jaw twitching and brows slanted. God, I was right. I shake my head and roll my eyes. “That’s what I fucking thought.”
I brush past him and stomp my way to the main stage. I don’t look to see if he’s following me. I don’t stop walking until I find the guys, and then I steal Ezra’s drink and chug it. I don’t let myself taste it.
“Cal, that was almost straight vodka,” Ezra says with a laugh when I hand the empty cup back.
“Not anymore.”
“Where’s Beck?” Pike asks, and I shrug.
“Probably jerking off with his tears as lube after I told him he could give up trying to take my virginity.”
Three pairs of eyes widen at me, and then Rocky reaches into his pocket and pulls out his little baggie of edibles. He bites one in half, then wordlessly hands the other half to me. I pop it into my mouth, chew quickly, and swallow.
“Thanks.” I force a smile. “Now let’s dance our fucking heads off, yeah?”
The opener is an alternative rock band I’ve been a fan of for a while, so it doesn’t take long for me to get lost in the music. The half an edible and the vodka helps, too. By the time their set is finished, I’ve almost lost all the tension from my argument with Becket. I’ve almost embraced the feeling of numbness, and then the chant starts.
Heartless, Heartless, Heartless.
Immediately, my heart kicks up and my stomach flutters with butterflies.
Torren.
The stage lights have dimmed, and people have started pushing toward the stage, so the guys and I let ourselves be carried into a more cramped, bodies-on-bodies, type of pit. The energy and excitement are so palpable that I can’t fight the way my grin takes over my whole face.
