I don’t take my eyes off Lukas and have to throw my hand up when he takes a hesitant step toward me. “Don’t even fucking bother,” I tell him. “You’re a liar. I should have known not to doubt my best friend.”
“Babe, come on. This is nothing. I love you.”
“You’re fucking kidding me, right?” I laugh. “You’re an idiot if you think I’m about to give you a second chance.”
“Brooke, don’t be like that. We can work this out. It was one time.”
I shake my head. “I’m out, Lukas. You and me, we’re finished. I don’t want a damn thing to do with you. You fucked up my relationship with my best friend and have lied who the fuck knows how many times, so from now on, you can go and screw every fucking girl on campus, but as of now, you’re done screwing me.”
I step back out of the doorway and slam the fucking thing between us. The sound bounces off the walls around me but the second I hear Lukas on the other side start rushing forward, I make my break.
With my back turned on this sham of a relationship, the emotions well up inside and it’s too much for me to bear. The tears flow free and I struggle to find myself.
There’s only one thing that can help me. I have to get home. I need my best friend. I need to grovel at her feet and apologize for not believing her. He made a fool of me and I nearly lost everything that mattered.
I’m a fucking idiot.
How could I have been so stupid as to believe a football player I’d just met over my best friend that I’ve known and loved for years?
Knowing just how much I’ve screwed up has the tears coming in thick and fast. I need to get home. I drop down into my car and I race to Tora. What if she can’t forgive me? A sob rips from my throat. I’m so fucking stupid. She has to forgive me. She’s all I have in this world.
I get home faster than I ever have before and struggled to see the road through my teary vision the whole way. My shirt is stained with tears and mascara is smudge all over the back of both of my arms. I look like a hot mess, but the only thing that matters is getting inside.
I hurry into my home with sobs pulling from my throat so violently that it hurts. I don’t know if it’s my heart hurting from allowing another guy in to tear me apart or if it’s from knowing that my actions and disbelief have hurt my friend.
I get to Tora’s room and barge my way through her door, needing so desperately to apologize. She jumps at my intrusion from her position in the middle of her bed. She’s holding her phone to her ear, most likely talking to her boyfriend, who I realize I’m going to have to apologize to as well.
Tora gapes at me wide-eyed. “What the hell?” she shrieks before letting the sight of me sink in. Compassion filters through her expression and just like that, she knows exactly what happened, but what’s more, she looks just as hurt as I do. “Shit.”
I swallow back a sob and nod ever so slightly, not even sure if she sees me doing it. One second she’s watching me from her bed and the next, she’s throwing her phone down and racing across her room until she’s pulling me into her arms.
I hold onto her tight, and just like that, I know we’re going to be okay. As of now, I have my best friend back and know that everything that was said and done over the past few weeks has been washed away and moving forward, we have a clean slate.
Chapter 10
Maxen
“Yo, Maxen. You’re a hard guy to find,” a voice calls over the sound of Nate’s Jaguar kicking to life.
I glance over my shoulder to see Noah Cage striding towards me with a grin, taking in everything in Nate’s shop, knowing he’s probably just walked into his version of heaven. “Yeah,” I say, walking to meet him in the middle as he nods a greeting toward Nate. “Me? Why the fuck are you looking for me?”
Noah reaches me and holds out his hand. I take it and pull him in, clapping him on the back as he does the same in return. “How ya been?” he questions, releasing my hand before turning to look at the incredible sight before him.
“Can’t fucking complain when I’ve got my fucking track to look forward to every morning.”
“I don’t doubt it,” he says, looking impressed. “It’s incredible.”
I nod, knowing he would appreciate it just as much as any other driver. Noah is from Haven Falls and in his senior year. He’s basically the Jesse of his school, in fact, if things go how it has gone in other years, Noah should be Jesse’s rival, but something tells me that’s not going to happen. Jesse is too carefree while Noah makes a point of not making other peoples’ bullshit his own. He’s a good kid, but that begs the question – what the fuck is he doing here?