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“Listen, I have a thing to take care of later. I might be late.”
“What thing?”
“Don’t worry your pretty little head about it.” He smirks.
“It’s okay, I can catch a ride with Shelbie. I’m sure she won’t mind.”
“You’ll come straight home?”
“Where else would I go?” I shrug. “You know,” I hesitate, “it would make life easier if you give me my cell phone back.”
“Already on it,” he says.
“Yeah?” A seed of hope takes root inside me.
“I’m getting you a new one. But you’ll have to wait until your birthday.”
A new phone. Which probably means he’s put a tracker on it to monitor my every move.
“Thank you.” I smile, but it doesn’t reach my eyes.
“I don’t want to keep you caged up like some animal, Ken. But after what happened... I need to be able to trust you, baby.”
He talks like I was the one who beat myself half to death. But that’s Warren; he doesn’t think like most people. He’s paranoid and highly strung, and where I’m concerned he’s borderline psycho with stalker tendencies.
“You can trust me,” I say.
A knock on the window startles me and I turn to find Shelbie grinning at me.
“She’s really starting to fucking annoy me.” Warren is referring to the fact that she’s personally escorted me from his car every morning.
It’s weird—I wouldn’t have called Shelbie my best friend before I went to the Bay, but since returning, she’s been nothing but rock solid. It’s a small mercy in this nightmare I’ve found myself in.
“So I’ll see you later at the trailer?” I lean over to kiss his cheek, but Warren catches my neck and plants a big, sloppy kiss on my lips.
“I want to come home and find you naked and waiting for me, okay?”
“Mm-hmm,” I mumble, reaching for the door. “Have a good day.”
“Hey, girl. Warren,” Shelbie clips out.
“Garret, always a pleasure.”
Giving him a small wave, I slam the door and enjoy the smell of freedom.
“You seem different.” Shelbie regards me for a second before looping her arm through mine.
“I’m okay,” I lie.
Because I don’t have the heart to tell her that she’s right.
I am different.
I’m slowly withering away.
The longer I stay in the Heights with Warren, the more pieces of my heart will rot.
Until eventually, there’s nothing left.
