“Careful,” I went on, my voice dropping so only he could hear. “You keep watching her like that, one night you’re going to feel someone watching you back.” I leaned in a fraction, letting the fire throw my shadow over his shoes. “And I promise you, Jackson, it won’t be her.”
A log shifted in the pit with a loud crack.
He flinched.
20
MACKENZIE
Icouldn’t breathe.
I felt that kiss between Heather and Max like it had happened to me. Heather’s lip gloss was on his mouth. He didn’t stop her. How long did it take him before he pushed her away?
So, theywerefucking. It was apparent they knew each other well.
Heather sat back like a cat with blood in her mouth. Max looked sick. Guilty. But the damage was done.
My throat was tight. My heart thundered in my chest like it wanted to escape.
I didn’t want to cry in front of him, but when I felt the tears in my eyes, I looked away quickly. I loved him, and this hurt. So much more than I could’ve imagined.
“Truth or dare, Mackenzie?” Heather asked, a smug smile on her lips. I wanted to punch her.
“Dare,” I said, my voice dry, wobbly.
Heather paused and said, “I dare you to kiss Jackson.”
Silence dropped over the group. Max tensed next to me. I felt it in my bones. But I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction oflooking his way. This was his chance to say something. To do something. To prove that I washis.
My pulse pounded painfully in my ears. I should’ve said no. I should’ve laughed it off, rolled my eyes, or told him to get lost. But the image of Heather on Max’s lap haunted my mind, more vivid than ever. I was drunk, hurt, blinded by a pain that cut deeper than jealousy. Everything was so blurred, so uncertain—I didn’t know what to do, only that the ache was so overwhelming I couldn’t imagine us ever going back to being friends after this.
I stood up and walked over to Jackson, who had moved next to the cooler.
Every step felt like a betrayal of the distance I had built with Jackson and the relationship I was starting with Max. But I kept moving.
Jackson was already smirking, a sinister gleam in his eyes. When I reached him, he leaned back on his hands, his cocky demeanor masking something unsettling.
“Are you sure, baby?” he whispered, his tone now edged with menace. I hated it when he called me baby. “Wouldn’t want to upset your little boyfriend.”
I hesitated. I didn’t want to do this. But the burning jealousy inside me drove me forward.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” I spat out.
I grabbed the front of Jackson’s shirt like I had done so many times and was about to put my lips on his when a pair of strong hands grabbed my waist.
“This isn’t fucking happening.” The voice was deep, full of rage.
Before I could react, my feet were off the ground. Air rushed past as the world flipped, my stomach slamming into a stiff shoulder. The impact punched the breath from my lungs, a startled gasp tearing from my throat.
The ground swayed below me, distant and tilting, as Irealized where I was. I was draped over Max’s shoulder, his arm secured around my legs.
I clawed at his back, staring down at the forest floor as he hauled me away like I weighed nothing.
“Put me down!” My voice cracked, more desperate than defiant.
“No,” his grip tightened, his breath rough against my side. “I’m not watching you self-destruct like this. Not with him.”
My chest constricted.
