Page 39 of The Bookworm Who Stole Christmas
“Parker, you need to tell her,” Samantha implores. “You can’t keep it a secret any longer.”
I watch as Parker runs a hand through his hair, a familiar gesture he does when he’s thinking too hard. “She doesn’t need to know, Mom,” he says, turning his back on her and walking over to the workbench.
I have to strain to hear what they’re saying, so I press myself a little closer to the glass. I don’t want to open thedoor fully yet, not if it means interrupting whatever’s going on.
“Yes, she does, Parker. Everything is based on a lie.”
“No, it’s not,” he roars, arms flying in the air in exasperation. “I told one white lie; that’s not the end of the world.”
Samantha puts her hands on her hips. “Maybe not to you, but to a girl who’s been treated as poorly as that girl has? It’s going to destroy her.”
“I know what I’m doing,” he mumbles before placing his hands in his hair and looking toward the ceiling. “How do I tell her, Mom?” He finally looks down, his face a painting of misery as he looks at her. “Oh, hey, Maddie, by the way, you were just a challenge?—”
A gasp slips out before I can stop it, loud enough that I’m sure they heard, but I don’t wait to find out. I turn and bolt, my feet pounding against the sidewalk and my heart thumping even harder.I don’t know where I’m going. I just run. Past the bakery, past the bookstore, past the glowing holiday lights that suddenly feel way too cheerful. The cold air bites at my cheeks, mixing with tears I didn’t even realize were falling.
It’s like something cracked open inside me, and now I can’t shove it back in. I don’t know what I heard, or maybe I didn’t hear anything at all, but whatever it was, it hurts, and now I’m just trying to outrun it.
“You were just a challenge.”
I keep running and running, those words on a constant loop in my head as I push myself. Tears cloud my vision, but I keep going, the sobs sounding like a familiar tune I’ve played one too many times throughout the years.
The snowfall is heavy, almost to the point of a blizzard, and my steps falter as they pound through the snow. I trip and fall over, my hands landing on the ground.I don’t bother getting up. I can’t. I let him into my life because I thought he was one of the good ones, and I just ended up as… what? A pity date? Poor Maddison, she’s so pathetic she needs my help?
At least his mom had the right idea to come clean. I just wish Parker had. Maybe then I wouldn’t feel so crappy. I wipe my face with the back of my hand and realize I’m in the town square. The lights from the Christmas tree are twinkling in the night, tormenting me. Laughing at my stupidity.
“I hate Christmas,” I scream, clutching my hair and pulling at the strands, hoping the pain will distract me from the pain in my chest.
It doesn’t.
Pushing myself up, I stumble to the tree, angry at the world around me. I start grabbing baubles and tinsel, ripping them from the tree. Everything about it offends me, and I want it gone.
I feel like I’m spiraling, but I can’t seem to stop.
Heusedme.
The first guy I’ve truly felt anything for in… well, ever, used me. Tears continue to stream down my face as my hands shred into the tree, throwing things behind me. I use the sleeve of my coat to wipe the tears away, allowing me to see just enough. My fingers protest from the cold, the pine needles stabbing into me as I grab at anything and everything.
“Maddie!”
I don’t turn around, I just keep going. I want this town to wake up in the morning and see the tree destroyed so they know how I feel. How I feel like my world is completely splintering right down the center. How I feel like I can’t trust anything anyone says, no matter hownicely they treat me. They’re all just a bunch of liars and fakes.
“Maddie?”
A hand touches my shoulder, and I freak out, jumping back. I lose my footing, my hands automatically reaching out to brace for the fall, but instead, I crash into the tree.
“Ooomph.”
Pushing myself away from the tree, I watch in horror as it starts to wobble violently. The bucket the tree is sitting in precariously moves back and forth. If I try and do anything now, I’m only going to make it worse, which means I have no choice but to stand and watch it all unfold.
“Oh no,” I gasp, bringing my hands up to my face. “No, no, no, no, no.”
But it’s too late. The tree falls over, crashing to the ground. The ornaments spread across the town square, rolling this way and that way before sinking into the snow.
It’s completely wrecked, and it’s all my fault.
Chapter Twenty-Four
PARKER
