Page 37 of Drown in You

As we head for his car, I spot a red Cadillac parked along the sidewalk a few vehicles down.

My heart stops. The same car Marcus drives.

But no, he can’t be here. He wouldn’t follow me all the way to Diamond. His goal was to drive me out of Wakefield—he accomplished that. Besides, he wouldn’t have any way of finding me. I wiped my existence from the internet, and there’s no way Juliet’s parents would’ve told him where we are.

I take a few deep breaths to try to slow my racing heart.

“What?” Luke frowns at me from where he stands by his car, door propped open for me.

I shake my head and force a smile. “Nothing.”

In the car, I pull out my phone. No texts from Ten. I hate the way my heart still sinks with disappointment every time. I was hoping that photo in my dress would get him to respond. He’d at least tell me to have fun or be safe. But he’s still ignoring me.

A hint of frustration joins the disappointment. I didn’t do anything wrong, and there hasn’t been a time I’ve ever needed him more. Yet this is when he chooses to abandon me, even after he knows how much my dad’s abandonment screwed me up. He’s always been my rock, but right now, he’s being a shitty friend. But if I call him out on it, I’m terrified I’ll only drive him further away.

Luke cranks on the heat, and I bite back my gratitude. He’s blasting the heat because he’s cold too—it’s not just for me. He nods down to my phone. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” But he keeps staring at me. We’re not leaving until I give him an answer. “I just haven’t heard from a friend in a while.”

“What friend?”

I brace myself for his jealous streak. Not that he has any right to claim any sort of possession over me. I’ve known Ten way longer than Luke. “His name is Ten.”

Luke flicks the turn signal and pulls away from the sidewalk. “Sounds like a dick.”

I snort. “You don’t even know him.”

“Tell me about him.”

That’s not at all the response I expected. I would’ve assumed Luke would demand that I hand my phone over so he could delete and block Ten’s number. “He’s really funny.” I smile just thinking of all our corny inside jokes. “He always knows the right thing to say. He wears a mask, so I don’t know what he looks like, but I know him better than anybody. He’s basically been my rock since I was fifteen. I tell him almost everything. Even more than I’ve told Juliet.”

“Almost everything?” Luke lifts a brow. “What haven’t you told him?”

“If I didn’t tell him, I’m not telling you.”

In the darkness, with the glow of the streetlights passing, Luke is impossibly handsome. Still the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen. “If he was in front of you right now, what would you say to him?”

God, there’s so much I want to say to Ten. I want to smack him and scream at him for making me worry, for driving me crazy, for making me doubt myself the way my father did. But I also want to throw my arms around him and thank him. Thank him for being there for me every time I needed someone these past few years, thank him for reassuring me that my dad leaving me behind wasn’t my fault, thank him for always making me feel loved and worthy.

“I’d tell him he’s an asshole for ghosting me,” I say. “And that I missed him and he better never do it again. And he owes me, like, ten dozen flowers.”

“Would that make you feel better?”

“Worth a shot.” I need to change the subject. Talking about Ten is bringing the familiar prickle of tears to my eyes. “So have you talked to your mom lately?”

“Yeah, she texts and calls every day.”

It’s actually kind of sweet that Luke talks to his mom every day. I grit my teeth. It’s annoying that anything he does is sweet. “So does my dad. My mom calls me every day too, but she’s not living it up in Europe.”

Luke averts his gaze from the road to give me a small smile. “I’m glad your dad’s trying to fix things with you.”

His sincerity throws me. He cares more than I’d expect for someone who’s still little more than a stranger. “Yeah. Me too.”

“You deserve a dad who does more than send you cards and call you on your birthday.”

My spine stiffens. “How do you know about that?”

Luke hesitates for a second, concentrating on the road in front of him. “He mentioned it. Pretty sure that’s his biggest regret—missing so much of your life. And it should be.”

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