The Hazed Series (New Edition)

by Brittany Butler

  This is the Taylor I know and love, always on the defense. I can handle this. In fact, I’m enjoying it. I adjust my pants and take a step near her.

  “I work here. I have for two years,” I say, dropping my voice low so no one hears our conversation.

  Not buying it, she rolls her eyes. “But only when it’s convenient, right?”

  My grin grows wider. “Right,” I say. With my eyes scan down her body, a blush creeps across her face. “And it was convenient today.”

  I grab a dish towel walk through the bar to the secluded section. It’s always closed off, meaning it’s dusty and it’ll require more attention. I know she’ll storm in here after me.

  “This doesn’t have anything to do with seeing me today, does it?” She inquires, stalking in the room. With my back turned to her, I smile, and lift the cushions from the booths.

  “What are you talking about?” I ask.

  “It just seems a little weird that you would show up the day you saw me in class.”

  I shrug my shoulders. I don’t turn around. I continue to wipe down the booth. I admit I’m having fun getting her worked up, so I see where I can get her.

  “I’ve been busy, haven’t really been home much. Randy said I could come back, so here I am.”

  She walks up to me, putting her hand on my arm, she makes me look at her. “Where have you been staying?”

  Her green eyes dance around my face; she can’t hide the hurt on her face. Immediately I regret saying it. I just wanted to see her get angry or jealous like she did today.

  “I didn’t mean it like that,” I say, but that doesn’t help. Her scowl deepens.

  She jerks her hand off me as if she is disgusted, and takes a step away from me. “Whatever Hayze, I honestly don’t care if you’ve moved on or not.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask, tossing the towel down, I walk after her.

  She shrugs, trying to look nonchalant. “It wouldn’t change anything. Go ahead, screw every girl on campus.”

  When she turns to walk away from me, I see red. I don’t let people walk away unaffected after they’ve gutted me. She broke up with me, she doesn’t get to be like this. I laugh without humor.

  “Maybe I already have, but you can’t say shit about it because you did this to yourself!”

  That stops her dead in her tracks. She turns and throws her towel as hard as she can at me. Fortunately for her, it flew halfway across the room before it fell to the ground.

  “You’re right, Hayze, I drugged myself,” she says.

  I cross my arms over my chest and clench my teeth, willing myself to keep quiet. She knows how guilty I feel about that; she knows I’ll never live that down. Even if she forgives me, it’ll always be the elephant in the room. It’ll never go away. I try to contain my anger, but I can’t believe she fucking threw that in my face.

  Randy walks up, looking between both of us, he senses the tension in the room. “The faster we work, the faster we can get out, guys. Let’s keep this about work, okay?”

  “Don’t worry it’s over,” Taylor says. Her eyes are like ice as they bore into mine.

  “We’ll talk about it later,” I say.

  “No need. Everything that needed to be said has been said.” She stalks from the room.

  Randy looks at me with his brows raised. He doesn’t ask what’s going on, he doesn’t care, but he feels obligated.

  “She always says that. We’ll talk later,” I say, making a joke to break the ice.

  “Sure hope so,” he says. He’s trying to be polite, but I know he’s really saying: this isn’t going to happen at work. “Look Hayze, I’m glad to have you back, but I need to know that was the last time. I know you’re going through a lot, and if anyone understands that, it’s me. But I have a business to run and I need to know you’re serious.”

  I look at Taylor, she’s wiping down a booth and talking to Shea. Her eyes meet mine and she frowns as she walks from my view.

  “I am. This time I’m serious,” I say.

  He clasp me on the shoulder. “Good,” he says and walks off.

  In a rush, I wipe down the remaining booths in the room and walk into the main bar. Eric glares at me as he walks in the side room with a broom.

  “Looks like we have three more booths and the floors to do! Good job everyone,” Randy encourages.

  I walk to the booth where Shea and Taylor are. They stop talking, without acknowledging me, they move on to the next table when they’re finished.

  “I am serious, Taylor, maybe we can go somewhere and talk after this?” I ask as I walked toward her.

  “Oh, awesome, he’s only here to get Taylor back. He’ll be gone again in a week,” Eric says as he passes by us. He laughs, clearly amused with himself.

  I grabbed his arm and get in his face. “She’s the only reason you aren’t picking yourself off the fucking ground right now. Don’t fuck with me, I won’t be so kind next time,” I threaten. With a shove, I lift my hold on him, he gulps and walks off.

  “Hayze,” Taylor warns in a hushed voice.

  “It’s not like I hit him.”

  Shea grabs my arm and drags me to the hallway that divides the room and the bar. “You’ve gotta leave her alone,” she says, not wasting anytime.

  “I’m not doing anything. I’m just talking to her,” I say in defense.

  “She was doing fine, she was moving on, and…”

  I cut her off. “She doesn’t need to move on,” I seethe.

  “You don’t think maybe you aren’t good for her? Maybe someone else could make her happy?” She asks hesitantly.

  I glare at her and she raises her hands up, feigning innocence. “Look, Hayze, why don’t you back off for a little while? Just see where it goes, you might be surprised,” she says, eyeing me and waiting for my reaction. “If you keep pushing her she’s going to push back…. And not in the way you want.”

  I don’t say anything to her. I walk away and pick up where I left off. I could feel Shea watching me as I work, but I don’t turn around. I don’t talk to either of them; not even when Randy dismisses us.

  When I got to my car, I shove my aviators on and drive from the lot, but not before I catch her looking at me. Her puppy dog eyes leave me wondering if I’m making the right decision.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Taylor

  The awkward tension in the bar shifts to strange. Hayze flaunts around like he hasn’t missed weeks of work. The staff isn’t happy to have him back, but that seemed to change as the weekend comes to a close.

  After he showed up during cleanup, I was nervous to work the next day. In the past he’d show his ass at work, bossing me around and laying claim over what table I could wait on, and who I could talk to; I expected nothing less than this, but he proved me wrong.

  He spoke to me only when I handed him a drink order, and that was last resort, he tried to shove the other bartenders in my direction. He’s finally accepting it’s over, and that’s what I wanted; so, why am I swiping tears from my eyes as I pull into my brother’s house?

  I work quickly to swipe smeared mascara away. I blow my side bangs from my face, and cringe when I see my reflection. Scott’s going to know, he’ll hound me for information and make a big deal out of it. When the truth is, I’m getting what I told Hayze I wanted. I’m learning to be careful what I ask for, the words tumbling from my mouth hardly ever match my feelings.

  I climb from the car, stretching my legs after a long shift and a forty-minute drive. I knock, never knowing what to expect.

  “Come in,” he yells, muffled.

  “Hi,” I say, enthusiastically.

  Standing next to the door, I kick my shoes off. He stands from the couch; his brows raise when he sees my face. I must resemble a cartoon character with smeared makeup and a grin as wide as Texas.

  “What’s wrong?” He asks.

  I knew I couldn’t fool him. “Allergies, I sneezed the whole drive. I better
get my things so I can get back to the dorm,” I say, pointing to his guest room. I walk inside and he follows me.

  “Did you talk to mom?” He asks, walking behind me.

  “No, I’ve been at work,” I say, grabbing my suitcase by the bed. I stuff the mounds of clothes inside before turning to him. His eyebrows bump together as he watches me with ease. “Why?”

  “You look like you’ve been crying…I just thought you talked to her,” he say, shrugging nonchalantly.

  “Why would I be crying after talking to her?” I ask.

  “They haven’t been getting along.”

  His shoulders rise and fall with each breath he takes, he seems off. I continue packing. When everything is stuffed inside, I zip it and pull it from the bed.

  “They never get along,” I say.

  “It’s different this time. He’s been staying with Sean, and he’s lookin’ for his own place.”

  “She finally came to her senses.”

  “Taylor…”

  “Please tell me you don’t feel sorry for him.” I roll my eyes and throw my hands up.

  “I don’t. I’m just sayin’ Mom is pretty torn up over it. Maybe give her a call or go by there when you can.”

  “Okay,” I say, nodding.

  I grab my bag, walking to my car with him following me. I throw my bag in the passenger seat and crawl in. He stands, watching me, from the porch. I wave at him as I pull from his house. Before I get on the highway, I dial my mom’s number, and she answered on the first ring.

  “Taylor,” she breathes out, sounding hopeless.

  “Mom, what’s going on? I just left Scott’s.”

  “I’m so sorry, I let my kids down, I know I did, but I couldn’t keep on anymore,” she says, her voice broke at the end.

  “You didn’t let us down! Scott and I are so happy for you. You deserve better than him,” I assure her, pulling on the long highway leading to Nacogdoches. My heart breaks for her as she sniffles and I wonder if I should go there and be with her.

  “I just keep thinking I should’ve held on a little longer. I can’t imagine what he’ll be like toward you and Scott now.”

  I sigh, she’s always thinking about us. She knows she doesn’t have to worry about Sean and Dad’s relationship because they’re too much alike to have problems. In fact, Sean is probably angry with Mom as Dad pours out his pitiful, sob story to him.

  “I couldn’t care less, Mom. I just want you be happy and I think, eventually you will be.”

  “He’s not going to help you anymore,” she says, heeding a warning. I know this, but it’s a sharp blow to the stomach. Knowing him, he probably yelled it at her as an ultimatum. I’m so proud she stood her ground this time.

  “It’s fine, if he doesn’t, I’ll figure something out,” I say.

  She doesn’t answer, just sniffles.

  “Do you want me to stay with you tonight?” I ask.

  “Goodness no, I’m not asking you to drive all the way down here tonight. But I’ll tell you what, you and Hayze come stay with me, maybe this weekend and we can catch up. How does that sound?”

  Like a bad idea. “Um, great, yeah. I’ll run it by him.”

  “Is something going on between you two?” She asks. I was never a good liar.

  “Nope, everything’s perfect,” I say, thankful Scott didn’t mention what happened. He was livid, and I’m surprised he didn’t tell our parents.

  “I think I was wrong about that boy,” she says, her voice perks up as she talked about him.

  “Yeah, he’s great, we’re great,” I say, sounding forced. “So, you’re sure I don’t need to come down tonight?”

  “No, baby. Thanks for checking on me,” she says and I can hear the smile returning in her voice.

  “Of course. I love you, mom.”

  “Love you, too.”

  I press end, holding my phone against my chest, thinking. For the second time tonight, I break down. I can’t stop the steady flow of tears as I drive into town. It doesn’t make sense; I’ve waited for this day to happen. I prayed countless times for my mom to kick him out, yet here I am, crying for her loss.

  The next day I had a letter waiting on my bed. Sure I knew it was coming, but not this soon. I folded the letter that informed me I’m homeless, in my back pocket and look around my room, wondering where to start.

  “Talk to the manager. I’m sure they’ll give you a few days,” Lea says, snapping me from my daze.

  “I’m pretty sure he won’t budge on this. He’s been talking to my dad.”

  “Let me see that!”

  She snatched the envelope sticking out of my pocket, and buries her eyes in the paper. She reads it once, scrunches her nose while looking at me, then goes back for a second reading.

  “See? I have to leave today,” I say.

  She crumples the paper up and tosses it over her shoulder. “Bullshit.”

  For the next hour, Lea helps me pack all of my belongings. Some of it fits in the few bags I have; other things are shoved into bags Lea lets me borrow. Although I appreciate her help, the constant rants and slew of vulgarities coming from her mouth doesn’t do much for my mood. She helped me load everything in my car and insists I walk back to the dorm with her.

  “Just stay here tonight. I mean, it’s late, what’s the guy gonna do? Come lookin’ for you?”

  I looked around the room, biting my lip. “I don’t know, Lea…I don’t wanna get in trouble.”

  “C’mon, no one will ever know,” she says, with her hands clasped together, begging.

  “Okay, okay! But only because I have an eight-am class,” I say.

  Her face breaks into a brilliant grin as she pulls me into a hug. The truth is, I’m relieved she asked me to stay for one more night. I’ve looked up apartments in this area, and with the bills I’m inheriting, I’m getting stressed out. I kick off my flats and make myself comfortable on my bare bed.

  “You won’t regret it! We’ll order pizza and watch movies! It’ll be fun,” she says.

  A firm knock comes from the door; she skips over to answer. I could tell by her stiff posture, it isn’t good. She turns to me, her eyes are sad, and steps away from the door. A man I’ve only seen once steps through the door.

  He coughs nervously and nods to my empty bed. “I see you got the letter.”

  “I did.”

  “We have a student ready to get in. So, I guess you’ll be going soon?”

  My jaw hit the floor before I could stop it. Salt in the wound. I pull my flats on and stand from my bed, looking between him and Lea. “Yeah, I’m uh…headed out now.

  Like a child, Lea plants her hands on her hips and stomps her foot. “Seriously! Do you know how late it is? Give her another day to find a place!”

  He shrugs, looking as sincere as he could. “My hands are tied.”

  “It’s fine,” I say, smiling at her. She wraps her arms around me for a quick hug.

  “You know you have a place to go,” she says.

  I followed the dorm manager from the room. As much as I hate to admit it, she’s right. It’s the only place I can go. My brother’s place is forty minutes away and my parents are over an hour away. Since I’m about to be forced to put a deposit on an apartment, I can’t afford a hotel room right now.

  It only makes sense to stay at his place. It’s strictly because I don’t have a place to go; that’s the only reason. I don’t want to go, but I have to. I can stay with him for a few days and nothing will change between us.

  By the time I turn into his apartment, I’ve chewed off my nails and I wonder if I’m making the right decision.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Hayze

  “I think that’s everything,” I bark out at my unwelcomed house guest.

  Like the sleaze he is, Joel grins and walks to the kitchen. I shove my fist in my pockets, moving closely behind him. I know what he’s looking for, and it’s gone. He should just be glad I let him back in the a
partment, and he needs to get the fuck out before he overstays his welcome.

  He taps his chin, thinking. “On second thought, I think I forgot something,” he says as he bends down. With an amused expression, he rummages through the last cabinet, searching. His smug grin falls. He slams the cabinet door, and walks over to me, stopping inches in front of my face.

  “Where’s it at, Hayze?” He ask, trying to intimidate me.

  I laugh at him, thinking he can faze me. “What are you gonna do? Hmm? Call the cops?”

  “You know he’s gonna come for his money,” he taunts me.

  “Fuck ‘em. Come up with it yourself. I’m out.”

  He shakes his head, laughing in disbelief. “She really did a number on you, huh?”

  “This isn’t about her. I’ve been over this shit for a while,” I lie.

  “Well, when he comes to collect, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  With long, precise strides, he walks to the couch, grabs his backpack, and walks to the door, thinking he’s won this round.

  “I appreciate the warning,” I say, the sarcasm isn’t missing from my tone. “But I do wonder what he’d have to say about you and his daughter.”

  He smirks, “He wouldn’t believe you, and she wouldn’t admit to it.”

  I shrug, pretending to be distant, like I didn’t care. “I would hate it if she found out what was really going on.” I take a few steps closer to him, blocking the door. “What if someone let it slip what her daddy really does? Maybe throw in who’s a part of it. How do you think Jenny would handle that?”

  He doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t have to. The look of defeat on his pathetic face is all the confirmation I need. With his cooperation, I step closer. So he gets the message loud and clear.

  “Here’s how it’s gonna go. You’re gonna tell him you got fucked up and gave all the shit away, then you can deal with the repercussion.”

  He shakes his head. “Fuck you.”

  I tilt my head, pointing to my ear. “What was that? Every fucking time I see you, I have to talk myself out beating the life out of your sorry ass. I don’t think you’re in a position to tell me no.”