Page 34 of One Good Crash
"Because you're my girlfriend, remember? If you ditch me now, what'll they say?"
I almost laughed. One thing I knew for certain. Thiswasn'ta guy who obsessed over the opinions of others. I saw his argument for what it was – a way for me to stay under the happy illusion that I was doing this for him and not for myself.
Just then, Jaden appeared out of nowhere and said to Jax, "You ready?"
Jax looked to me and said, "You’re staying, right?"
Unsure what else to do, I gave him a short nod and then watched as the brothers turned and disappeared out the front door.
I stood there for a long moment, sipping my champagne and wondering what on Earth was going on. I still hadn't moved when a female voice said, "So he ditched you, huh?"
I turned to look and stifled a groan. It was the redhead.Of course.
She was eying me with obvious satisfaction. "Wanna know whatIthink?"
Not particularly.But I didn't say it, mostly because it was pretty obvious that she'd be sharing her opinion no matter what.
Sure enough, she said, "I think he's tired of you already."
When I made no reply, she added, "And just so you know, I didn't buy that whole 'girlfriend' story. And you wanna know why?"
I sighed. "Not really."
Sure enough, she told me anyway. "Because I don't know you." She smiled. "AndIknow everyone."
"Well, goodie for you," I said, turning away. Before I could take a single step, a hand clamped onto my elbow.
When I whirled to look, she said, "You're not gonna land him, you know."
I almost laughed in her face. "Land him? What, like he's a fish or something?"
"If he is," she said, "he's the biggest fish of all, and I've been danglingmyfine hook for a long time, chickie."
Again with the chickie?
I forced a smile. "Really? Where do you keep it?"
"Keep what?"
"The hook."
"Oh, shut up," she said. "You know what I meant."
Yes. I did.But I was so tired of this. Her hand was still on my elbow, and for some reason, it reminded me of my mom.
She was still talking. "And I'll tell you one thing fordamnsure, I'mnotgoing to be pushed aside by some nobody in a fake dress."
I looked down.Wasmy dress a fake? Itcouldbe, not that I cared. I hadn't checked the label, and even if I had, odds were pretty good that I wouldn't've recognized it, anyway.
Still, her words found their mark – not because of the dress, but because it was a grim reminder that I didn't belong here.
Belatedly, it hit me that Jax had never answered my question.
Wasthis his house? Ithoughtit was. But if not, I was crashing someone else's party.
What if I was about to be tossed out on my ass?
As if sensing my uncertainty, the redhead said, "I'm right. Aren't I?"
