Page 77 of Give You Up

“So he’s pissed at you. What’s the big deal? You told him to trust you, right?”

“Of course not!”

“Why the hell not?”

“Would you trust someone who tells you to trust them?”

“Fuck no.”

“Point made.” Crossing my arms, I slouch into the couch and watch two naked people meet for the first time. Awkward.

“What’d he say exactly when you told him you would be spending time with Hunter and Rhett?”

“He demanded to know for what reason.”

“And?”

I sigh. “That Midnight said so.”

Dare laughs this insanely loud noise from deep within his core, and it puts me in a worse mood.

“It’s not funny, Dare.”

“Hell yeah it is. ’Cause Midnight says so,” he mimics me. “No wonder it went over like a load of bricks. You should’ve given a different reason.”

“Like what?”

He turns off the television, and looking me in the eye, he starts coaxing the truth from me. His patience and understanding are the reason I love him like a brother and why our friendship works without there being other feelings that can complicate a friendship between a guy and a girl.

“Like the honest-to-God truth, B.”

I have never told Dare about my life with Hunter and Rhett. All he knows is a guy hurt me because I’d hurt him first.

God, Taron never hurt me when we were together. He did everything possible to keep me safe. Hunter did the opposite. He teased out my wilder side, getting me in over my head with partying, drinking, and smoking the occasional bud. It was Hunter who paid for my face piercings. I paid for my own bling after ditching the ones he gifted me when I told him I was pregnant with his baby.

“What truth?”

“That you and this Hunter dude have history.”

“You know this how?”

“The way you look at one another. There are unspoken words, things left unsaid.”

“Pfft. As if.”

“You sassing me, B? ’Cause I am being completely honest with you, and my honesty radar is telling you to clear the air up fast between you and Hunter. Get your closure, then get out of Dodge. Don’t be risking poking the slumbering bear.”

“I am not poking Hunter.”

“I meant the meaner of the two.”

“I’m not poking Taron either.”

“Sure, keep telling yourself there’s nothing going on, Syn. I see the way he looks at you. He’s had a taste of you and won’t give up on your sweet and spicy, B.”

Sweet and spicy? I smile. This guy.

“Talk to them. Decide who gets your time now and who will stick around for the longer term.”

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