Page 65 of No Romeo
Tears stung my eyes. I loved him, and I wanted him, and I was hurting us both.
I had a renewed hatred for Johan Taylor. He’d broken me, ruined my life, and cost me Hendrix and my sister. But worse, two years later, he was still destroying me, and I was still protecting Johan from Hendrix and Hendrix from himself.
I knew if he ever found out what Johan had done, it wouldn’t matter whether I was with Hendrix or not; he’d kill him. I also knew that was unlikely given the sealed records, but what were we going to do? Get back together and skip off into the sunset? He’d just asked me if I was with someone else. That seed of betrayal planted two years ago had grown roots and forced cracks into our once-solid foundation.
To keep Hendrix out of jail, I’d have to let him think I cheated on him for the rest of our lives. Which meant he would never trust me, never truly forgive me, and I couldn’t live like that.
Chapter22
HENDRIX
Thursday morning, as per usual, I sat on the tailgate of Wolf’s truck, exchanging baggies of weed for ten bucks. I’d just passed over the last bag when a truck with a straight exhaust roared into Dayton High’s parking lot. A group of Barrington preps wearing their stupid letterman jackets filled the bed, Ethan Taylor and his bruised face smack dab in the middle.
“Here we go…” Wolf huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. “Dumbasses coming over here, trying to start shit. Just don’t hit him.”
And based on the way my blood pressure shot up when my gaze landed on that piece of shit, that was going to be a problem. “How long is the sentence for assault, anyway?”
“You really want to let a Barrington asshole win?”
Win? Like a breathing tube and a long stint in the ICU was winning. “Fuck you and your reasoning skills, Wolf.”
The truck barreled down the row of shitty cars. I fully expected it to come to a screeching halt in front of Wolf’s truck, but it didn’t slow down. If anything, it went a little faster.
“Dude…” Wolf scowled, plucking the joint from behind his ear. “What the hell are they doing?”
The vehicle made an abrupt swerve toward us, and we jumped up, scrambling over the roof and launching ourselves to the ground. A loud, metallic bang rang out before Wolf’s truck lurched forward in the spot.
“That dickhead just hit my truck!” Wolf’s face reddened as a crowd of frowning Dayton students circled around.
The angry demons inside of me screeched. If Ethan wanted my fist in his face, that was a damn good way to get it.
Wolf shoved my back. “Don’t do it, Hendrix.”
I waved a hand at the crumpled tailgate and shattered taillight plastic decorating the pavement. “He fucked up your truck, man.”
“And their daddy’s insurance is going to pay to fix it.”
We stepped out from between the cars, and a handful of the Barrington guys hopped over the bed of the shiny, now-dented truck. The letterman jackets parted, and Ethan moved forward, a smug smile on his battered face.
The memory of him pressing Lola against that wall surfaced, and every muscle in my body coiled, begging for release by way of my fists to that asshole’s skull.
Ethan jabbed a finger at me. “You and yourslutgirlfriend torched my car.”
Liquid rage fired through my veins. I hadn’t realized I’d moved to lunge at him until Wolf latched onto me like a Pitbull on a leash.
“Oh, that a sore spot?” His face lit up with delight, and the brave little shit took another step toward me. “She sucks dick like a champ.”
The rumble of anger echoed through my head. I imagined taking his head and slamming it into the front grill until his bleached teeth scattered the asphalt, then taking a bat to his ribs until he couldn’t draw in a good breath.
“Get the hell outta here,” Wolf said, his hold on me still tight.
Ethan took one more step toward me that I swore would be his last. “Not even going to defend her?” he said, the sarcasm in his voice grating every thin nerve I had.
“There are a lot of rich-dick witnesses, dude.” Wolf yanked me back again. “Save it.”
I wasn’t saving shit.
I jerk in his hold, and my shirt ripped. The second I broke free, the smartass smirk on Ethan’s face dropped.
