AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And they’d kill you for saving me?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know.” He paused. “Did Merrick ever tell you what really happened at that carnival last week?”
She nodded against his chest. “Some of it. A girl named Calla Dean was trying to bring the Guides here. She wanted to start a war.”
Tyler drew back to look at her. “Calla Dean? I don’t know her. Her family wasn’t part of the original deal with the Merricks.”
Quinn swiped remnants of tears from her eyes. “You might not ever know her. She disappeared after the carnival. Nick said they don’t know if she was killed or if she ran. But there haven’t been any further arson attacks, so . . .”
Gabriel was in the foyer and Nick couldn’t breathe.
Gabriel took one look at them and shook his head before pushing between them to head upstairs. He smacked Hunter on the back of the head. “Leave my brother alone, jackass. He’s already got enough freaks pining after him.”
It was a miracle Nick didn’t shatter the mug between his hands.
Hunter didn’t move until Gabriel disappeared into the bathroom. Then he said softly, “Look, I get it. Why you don’t want to tell him.”
Nick had to put the mug down or he was going to spill coffee everywhere. “Really? You sure? He’s so subtle. ”
“He doesn’t understand—”
“No, but I do. He thinks g*y guys are creepy freaks. Got it.”
Nick didn’t want to stay here. He was almost shaking with rage.
He couldn’t imagine sleeping under the same roof as his brother.
But he had nowhere to go.
Hunter took a breath. “He doesn’t think you are a creepy freak, Nick. I think you should give him a chance.”
“Fuck him. He doesn’t deserve a chance.”
“Wow.” Hunter pushed the hair back from his face. “All right. Your secret, your call.” He stood.
“Hey,” Nick said, losing some of the rage. “Thanks. It—it means a lot.”
“No problem.” Hunter paused and leaned against the bannister. “You’re wrong, by the way.”
“I’m wrong?”
“I’m not his best friend, Nick. You are.”
CHAPTER 20
Quinn studied herself in Tyler’s bathroom mirror. Steam clouded the glass, but she could make out her face, her neck, and the edge of the towel wrapped around her body. A shadowed bruise remained across her cheek, but the swelling was gone, along with her headache.
She was glad for the lingering bruise. She didn’t want to forget her mother’s voice or the way she’d swung that trophy.
Or the things she’d said.
Whore. You ruin everything.
The worst part was, Quinn believed her mother. Hell, she had proof. She dated guy after guy who was perfectly content to sleep with her and shell out the bucks for a movie or a dinner, but when she needed a friend? Yeah, busy. Or the dance team at school, who’d kicked her to the curb for a bad attitude. Well, who could blame her, with those bitchy girls. Attitude was just a way to endure it all.
Maybe that was her fault, after all. Maybe she had ruined it.
But then Nick. And Becca. No one wanted her. No one needed her. Even when she was needed—like for Adam’s dance audition—she couldn’t get it together to show up with any reg-ularity. Clearly her fault.
