Kassidy
I want to scream.
Scream until my voice is so broken no sound comes out. But most of all, I want to cry until I can’t feel my face. We must’ve gotten here less than five minutes ago and I’m already dying to leave. I only realize how fast I’m running when I bump into someone.
“Sorry,” I mutter, rounding the stranger, whose arm goes out to stop me.
“Kass?”
I look up.
It’s Luke.
“We really have to stop meeting like this.” I wipe my cheeks, my embarrassment deepening. That’s the second time he’s seen me sob today. That’s got to be some kind of record.
His eyes are pointed straight at me.
Those green eyes.
Those kind, loving, I would never kiss your best friend eyes.
“Are you crying? What’s wrong?”
“Will… he…” I croak. “I can’t believe him.”
“What happened?”
“With… with Zoey,” I manage.
He puts it together, shaking his head in disgust.
“Come on, let’s get you out of here. I’ll drive you.”
“But Morgan…” I realize. “We came together. She just left to get us a drink. I-I can’t leave her.”
“Text her what happened. I’m sure she’ll understand.”
Defeated, I shoot Morgan a text and mirror Luke’s steps to the parking lot near the beach. I’d rather not have to wait for a ride in this state. Luke manually unlocks his door, climbing into the driver’s seat as I stand by, waiting for him to unlock my side. Then the last voice I wanted to hear echoes in the distance.
“Kass, wait!”
I flick my head to see Will charging toward us.
He must be ten feet away.
Nine.
Eight.
Seven.
Luke unlocks my door, the familiar click halting Will’s race. Our eyes meet across the parking lot.
“Don’t,” he begs, his voice strained. “Please.”
He doesn’t elaborate, but I know exactly what he’s saying: Please don’t get in the car. Please don’t leave with him. So, as a fuck-you for kissing my ex-best friend, I do just that. I slide into Luke’s passenger seat and shut the door.
“Where are we going?” Luke asks as we drive away.
Heartbroken, I say, “Let’s go back to my place.”
Kassidy
“He’s an idiot, whatever he did,” Luke says as I swing the door to my bedroom open. I don’t know why I told him to follow me up. The last thing I want is to give him the wrong impression, but I also really, really don’t want to be alone right now.
My mom is having dinner at an old friend’s house tonight, and my brother is at the kegger. Oh, and Winter is probably somewhere making out with Haze Adams.
Silent, I take a seat on the edge of my bed and swab down my tears with the heels of my hands.
I am so freaking sick of crying. I feel like I’ve been weeping all day.
Luke sits next to me. “Do you… want to talk about it?”
“Nope.” I sniffle.
My phone pings with a text.
It’s Morgan.
Morgan: I just thought you’d like to know I roasted the living heck out of Will, then he went right back to Zoey and dumped a whole beer on her head. Safe to say that girl’s luck with beverages is not improving?
He did what?
I crack a smile at the scene unraveling in my mind. He spilled his drink on her? That certainly doesn’t look like the behavior of a guy who purposefully kissed her. And he did push her away.
Stop, he still let her get close enough to kiss him in the first place!
I’m about to tell Luke about the message when he stops me.
One move is all it takes.
He places a hand on top of mine.
Please tell me this is a friendly gesture.
“You’re amazing, you know that?” He smiles. “Smart, funny, gorgeous. He may not see it, but I do.”
Okay, definitely not friendly.
“Luke, I…” The words leave me.
I can’t for the life of me figure out what to say. How do I turn him down after everything he’s done for me? It’d be so much easier if I felt the same. If I liked the guy who likes me. The good guy.
The guy who’d never kiss my best friend.
Panic takes over my body when Luke zeroes in on my lips, leaning in. Ironically, this is the exact moment my brain decides to take a nap. For the first time in my life, I don’t know what I want. I, Kassidy Kingston, the obsessive planner, have no clue what direction to take. But I know what I don’t want.
And what I don’t want…
Is to kiss Luke Jenson.
He is everything I need: stable, loving, respectful. I should want him. I should want the guy with the good manners and bright future, but what can I say? I’m a sucker for damaged blonds with walls higher than the Empire State Building.
I love myself a heart harder to penetrate than Fort Knox.
And yes, Will is probably never going to give me what I want. He kissed Zoey. Out of all people.
He kissed her.
But kissing Luke would be stooping down to his level.
“Luke, wait.” My hands fly up to his chest, but I don’t get to push him away…
Because someone does it for me.
“In your fucking dreams!”
Luke is torn off me with such strength that his shirt nearly rips. I yelp as he wobbles a few steps backward, gripping my desk for balance. I take in the fuming, broad-shouldered guy at the foot of my bed. How did he…
I didn’t even hear him come in.
“Will?”
Did I forget to lock the front door? Guess I was too busy drowning in my snot.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“I just… I had to see you. To explain,” he begs.
I can’t handle his puppy eyes.
“So what? Now you give a shit about her, Martins?” Luke spits. “What happened? Did Zoey get boring?”
Radiating anger, Will tilts his head to the side. There are no more jokes in his eyes, no more escapes. Not a trace of the cocky, prankster guy I fell for. He’s this close to ripping Luke a new one.
“Back off. This doesn’t concern you,” Will cautions.
Luke overlooks his warning. “You’ve hurt her enough, don’t you think? You can’t
