“Okay, if you want to call her then let me write her number down for you.” Mason
grabbed her pencil writing Harley’s number down on the corner of her notebook paper. Maisy
giggled. That stupid, know-it-all smile was plastered on her face. He growled.
“So … you have her number memorized, and you almost referred to her a few seconds
ago as your girlfriend. You, my brother, are a goner…” Mason balled his fist, fighting the urge to shove that pencil up her tiny nose. “From the sounds of it though, Mase, you’re not alone in this crush thing. I do believe Harley’s got it bad for you too.”
He froze as he stood to place the dishes at the sink, suddenly intrigued with his sister’s
observation, so intrigued, that he barely noticed the dish falling from his fingers until it shattered on the floor.
“Shit …”
“Yeah, uh, that was mom’s favorite too. You’re in for it now, buddy.” Mason turned to
glare at Maisy flipping his all-time favorite finger at her, before bending down to pick up the broken pieces. Damn, know it all bratty sisters. “Anyways big brother, you should have seen the way that girl blushed when I mentioned your name that day in the bathroom. She lit up like a freaking star and stayed that way for the entire class period. She’s crazy in love with you too, Mase. I can guarantee it!”
He frowned but didn’t respond. No, it wasn’t love; it couldn’t be. Deep like and maybe
even some lust thrown into the mix, but love? No way in hell was that even a remote possibility.
Mason gave Maisy’s chair a kick as he walked by, snarling at her insinuations.
Annoyance rose in his chest as she whistled and stood. “I’ve changed my mind, Maisy. I’ll call her myself, so don’t even think about dialing her number.” She flipped her hands up in mock surrender. Mason rolled his eyes as he finished cleaning up his mess. He could only imagine what she was thinking.
* * *
As Harley stepped out of the shower, body still shivering even after using all of the hot
water she could fathom, she heard the familiar chirping sound of her cell. Quickly, she wrapped a towel around her, running to grab the thing from her purse in her bedroom. She didn’t take the time to look at the caller ID, so she had no idea that it was Mason until she heard his hypnotic voice respond.
“Harley? It’s Mason. How are you?”
“I’m good!” She spoke, her voice cracking. Silently, she flinched, praying he hadn’t
noticed. She slipped a t-shirt over her head and crawled under her sheets, nervously gnawing on her lip as she waited for his response.
“Great. That’s good to hear.” He sounded nervous too; his own voice had raised an
octave as well. Harley grinned to herself. He sounded so … adorable. “I was kind of worried when I didn’t see you the rest of the day today. Everything alright?”
Oh, God. Chivalrous Mason was back and messing with her head.
Biting her lip harder, cutting off any and all circulation, she decided that the best and
quickest way to avoid the truth was to obviously lie about it. The last thing Mason needed to know was that she was practically molested in the hall by Toby or worse yet, that she had to go home like an idiot because of it. “I felt like throwing up, so I had to leave and go home. I feel much better now. It must have been something I ate for breakfast.” She slapped her hand against her head. Stupid, rambling, moronic mouth!
“Ah … I see.” His voice was soft; he didn’t sound at all convinced. Seriously, what he
didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. “So anyways … I was calling because I wanted to talk to you
about our plans for this Saturday. I, um, needed to know what time I should, uh, pick you up and stuff.” Harley sat up, panic consumed her, and she gripped her throat as if that would make it go away.
“Um, whatever time works for you,” she squeezed her eyes shut.
“How about six-thirty?”
“Yeah, Mase. That sounds good.” An awkward silence passed between them, and Harley
reopened her eyes, nervously fiddling with her wet curls as she waited for him to say something.
She’d never been one to handle awkwardness with grace, and it seemed as though that
was the main emotion she’d been feeling lately. “Umm … are you there, Mason?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m here, sorry. I was just thinking about … some crap, that’s all.”
Crap? Hmm? Did said crap have anything to do with their meeting this morning? Was he thinking about the way their hands had meshed together? The way his breath blew against her cheek? Was he thinking that he wanted it to happen again over and over like she did?
Mason Daniel had her on a rollercoaster ride that she was pretty sure she was going to get
sick of riding if something wasn’t done to ease her nerves and nausea soon.
“So, are you going to tell me what you’re thinking about, or are you going to just sit here and not say a word for the rest of the conversation?” She tried teasing him, tried to make light of the uneasiness that had formed, but it only ended in more silence.
She threw herself back against her pillow again and harrumphed, but then she heard it …
a sound on the other end of the line that sounded like a dog … a growling dog. She gripped the phone tight in her palm, holding her breath as she waited…
“Okay, little beast, you wanna know the truth? You want to know what’s been pissing me
off for two days now, for weeks even?”
Harley gripped the covers of her bed, pulling them tight under her chin, waiting in her
frozen state of fear. “I’m thinking about us, Harley. I’m thinking about kissing you. I’m thinking about touching every inch of your body. I thinking about making you mine. Is that what you
were hoping to hear? Because I’ll tell you what, ever since I God damn met you, all I do is fantasize about you. From the time I wake up until the time I go to bed, you’re in my damn head, little beast, consuming my every waking thought, consuming my body and dreams at night. It’s freaking torture to feel like this, you know, as if your world is constantly on the verge of cracking and you’re always hanging on for dear life, praying to freaking God that he doesn’t let you fall. That right there, little beast, is what I’m thinking about.”
Harley didn’t have an answer; her throat burned. Were those tears of joy forming in her
eyes, or tears of regret and pain? She waited, unwilling to answer him because she had no clue what to say, and then he started in again. “The truth is, Harley, I don’t know how much longer I can go without consuming you in all states – body, mind, soul. Do you need to hear anymore, or is that enough?”
Holy shit-balls! He did not just say what she thought he did … did he? She’d never had a
problem with her hearing before, but she was thinking maybe a quick midnight trip to the ear doctor was about to be in order.
She sucked in a breath, “I … um…” She was in a dream. It had to be or a coma that she
couldn’t wake up from. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Yeah, it may have felt incredible to hear his words, especially since she had been secretly starting to feel the same way, but it was honestly the last thing she expected he would ever be telling her tonight.
“Mase, I … uh … I don’t know what to say.”
“Well, little beast, you can start off by telling me that you feel the same way.” She could hear a smile in his voice. She closed her eyes, imagining him there with those dimples sucked deeply into his cheeks. She groaned. Yeah that vision didn’t exactly ease the burn in her throat.
“And that you desperately want to be with me as much as I want to be with you. That sounds like a good start to me, don’t you think?” he chuckled while sounding painstakingly nervous.
Her entire being was on the verge of collapsing and falling through a tunnel she couldn’t
dig out of once she was buri
ed deep inside. The truth was she wanted to be with him too, more than anything in her entire life. The problem being she wasn’t sure if she could mentally do the whole relationship thing again. She didn’t deserve to be happy either, especially since every time happiness would consume her, tragedy was soon to follow.
The past, it was just that though, right? She was supposed to properly place it in the
closet for good, but this was what happened when she let herself feel again. Damn skeletons –
they never failed to murder her chances at moving on to happiness. Maybe she wasn’t meant to be happy though. Maybe just getting by in life would be her punishment for not helping the
people she loved.
“Harley, talk to me here. I just put my freaking heart out on the line, and you’re, uh, kind of leaving me hanging ...” Of course she was. She was in shock. Didn’t he realize that? Her brain came out swinging like a mad woman, and her next words were not the words her heart had intended her to say…
“Mason, I’m flattered. You’re an awesome guy. I love spending time with you, but
having a boyfriend right now is not something that I can do. I’m sorry.”
She slapped her hand over her face and cowered into a little ball under her blankets. Her
tears suddenly decided to make yet another appearance. She sure as hell wished they’d warn her next time.
“Well, at least I know that it’s not me. It’s obvious you have feelings for somebody else,
huh? Let’s just say, for example, the guy in that picture frame on your dresser? You two looked pretty cozy together,” the anger in his voice was booming, cruel even. He wasn’t backing down anytime soon was he?
“Does he go to a different school? I wonder what he would say if he knew how much
you’ve been throwing yourself at me.” She lost the battle with the tears. Hell, she lost them decades ago, and as they fell, they left little, tiny prickles of pain along her cheeks. She couldn’t wipe them away. She was too stunned with his next words to do or say anything.
“Have you been leading me on this whole time? Why don’t you just take your little
boyfriend to that dumb-ass dance? I don’t need this shit, and I certainly don’t need you either.”
“You don’t know what you are saying. Please, Mason. Just … stop …” she begged,
pleaded, the contents of her dinner fermented in her stomach. She moved to sit up on her bed, her feet hung over the side as his words ran together.
“Well obviously I do, Harley, and I can tell you one thing. You are no less of a whore
than any other girl I’ve ever dated,” he snarled, her entire body shut down. “So much for
thinking you’re any different from the others.”
Harley swiped her phone screen to end, threw it on her bed, and stood, running towards
the bathroom. Bile formed in her throat as she locked the door behind her. She pressed her back against the door, her finger nails scratched against the wood. Her hands shook as she placed them on her stomach, willing the nausea away, but the pounding of the door only made her knees
buckle. She fell to the floor, helpless and broken.
She didn’t answer David’s pleas as he pounded insistently. She couldn’t do anything but
roll up into a fetal position, hands wrapped over her head and stomach as the cold white tile cooled her trembling body.
She cried big, sobbing tears over and over again for what seemed like hours, an eternity
even, and it wasn’t just over Mason’s cruel words but also the memory of that beautiful, lost boy in the picture he had mentioned.
Chapter Fourteen
Shit!
Mason slapped his palm down onto his desk. His other hand ran carelessly through his
hair. Waiting sucked, especially today. Harley had yet to show up for class, and the bell had just rung. It wasn’t like her. Not Miss Studious. Not the girl who panicked whenever she got a tardy slip. He almost laughed at the thought, but then thoughts of the night before came creeping back into his head. His hatred towards himself grew with every, single breath he inhaled.
He tried calling her back, for over an hour straight the previous night. He needed to
grovel, to tell her how sorry he was for being a grade-A asshole. The crap he said, damn. It was downright hateful, and he sure as shit felt like a dog. Hell, who knew if she’d even accept his sorry ass apology anyways. If he was her, then he’d tell himself to take a flying leap into the burning fire pits of hell.
At the time, it was as if he was in a jealous fog and could only think about the sting of his pride, not the results of his words. He never thought he’d be refused by the only girl who’d ever gotten to him. His biggest fear out of everything? That’ he’d somehow screwed up their
friendship, something that had become pretty damn important to him.
The bell rang fifty minutes later, and he jumped from his seat. His eyes narrowed
hatefully as he headed towards the hall. She hadn’t come. He slapped a nearby locker. Shit! She hadn’t freaking come! The girl who he’d come to know as the perpetual perfect attendance girl, had skipped freaking school.
Grrr! He had to see her. He had to talk to her to see if she was okay.
He had to find her best friend. She’d know what to do.
Walking at a pace that was beyond fast, Mason spotted Abigail leaning casually against a
row of lockers talking amongst a few girls outside her classroom. He studied her as he
approached. Her long, thick blonde hair, her petite frame, curves he’d usually have his hands all over covered her body, but no girl would ever compare to the one who had already screwed up his heart.
“Where is she?” he said as he grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the wide eyed
group of girls. Yeah, he was being a dick, but he needed to talk to her. He had to make sure Harley wasn’t sick or hurt or worse… “Have you talked to Harley today?”
Her eyes turned hateful. “Um, yeah, I did,” she crossed her arms over her chest. She held her chin up high in that snooty to-do attitude sort of way. She still wasn’t answering.
“Okay, well, did she, um, say anything? I mean, about me? Because’ I kind of said some
crap, and now she’d not here today–”
“Don’t talk. Just shut up, and listen. You seriously have no idea what you’ve done. Hell,
I bet you set her back by at least seventy-percent now.” He pulled his chin into his chest, feeling every bit as guilty as she made him out to be.
“Look, I know I was a jerk, but I was hurt. I mean, I told her how I felt about her, and she denied me and –“.
“Oh you poor, poor baby. You want mama to kiss your boo-boo? Hug you till your heart
doesn’t hurt anymore? You want a baba too?” Yeah, okay, he deserved that. “You’re one selfish bastard, you know that? How dare you call Harley a whore and treat her like dirt just because your pride got hurt.” He nodded, taking his verbal punishment. He deserved it.
Her voice softened and slowed. A resolved looked passed over her face as he stared back
up at her. “Listen … do you remember when we talked in study hall that time about finding out about some things in Harley’s past?”
“Um, yeah, I remember. It was about David and his accident, right? She told me about
it,” Mason responded carefully, shifting under her glare. He had to tread lightly. This girl obviously wasn’t in his corner; he couldn’t forget that. He needed to know what was going on.
“Well … Harley’s had other issues in the past before David and the accident. It’s not something I want to delve into because it’s not my story to tell, but I will tell you this. Bringing up that guy in the picture wasn’t your smartest move. You opened up a raw sore, one that had only just recently started to heal.”
Shit, was it honestly that bad? “What happened? Did he break her heart, move away?”
; Mason hated cryptic answers; he needed real ones, something solid to go on otherwise he
wouldn’t be able to fix it. It was who he was, among other things.
“Like I said,” she sighed exasperatedly. “It’s not my story to tell. Just be careful with her heart,” she paused and swallowed, her chin quivered. “It’s not whole. The remainder of it will most likely shatter if you hurt her anymore.” With her last threatening warning and pointed glare, Abigail walked away leaving Mason in a slack jawed state of wonderment.
What the hell was going on?
* * *
It had been three days, yet Harley couldn’t bring herself to move much past her bedroom.
Mason had tried to call her every single night since Monday, even coming over once or twice she thought, but she wasn’t ready to face him, not yet. Not when his hateful words still haunted her and stung her wounds.
Her mom had been doting on her since the moment David found her on the floor of their
shared bathroom. It was embarrassing to say the least, but she couldn’t shake it. Three days of this was nothing compared to what she went through before...
David was ready to go kick some serious Mason ass after he found her that night,
automatically assuming that the “surfer dick” had been the problem, but for some weird reason, Harley denied that he was the cause of her breakdown. Truthfully, it’d been a long time coming, and Mason’s cruelty just brought her to the breaking point. All she knew was that she had to get herself together … and soon … otherwise her mom would be calling the psych ward.
“Honey, are you up yet? It’s after ten...” Harley dove under the blankets as her mom sat
next to her on the bed. Harley cringed as her mom pulled the covers back, immediately feeling the guilt because of how awful her mom looked. Her eyes were swollen, tired, and pained.
Whenever Harley got like this, it was as if her mom was suffering with her. “I was thinking we could go shoe shopping today since we haven’t found a pair of heels to go with your dress for Saturday yet.”
Shoe shopping. Right. For a dance she had no intention of attending anymore.
“Don’t cry, sweetie. Please?” Harley’s mom pleaded, tenderly wiping away at her
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