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Without letting him get another word out, I swing my fist right into the side of his face, immediately knocking him off balance. “Don’t ever fucking talk to me about her like that again! Do you hear me?”
“Watch it, Grayson.” He stretches out his jaw. “You’re eighteen now. There is nothing to keep me from kicking your ass.”
I step toward him, once again leaving him with no personal space. “I’d love to see you try.”
The door opens and my mother stands there, wide eyed and panicked. “What the hell is going on out here?”
My hand pushes Justin down onto the lower step. “I’m just telling this prick to stay the fuck away from places he doesn’t belong.”
“Grayson!” She hisses.
“What? You know what—I’ll make this real fucking easy for you. It’s him or me, because I’m not just going to sit here and play happy family with him until he decides to try his hand at attempted murder again.”
My mom glances between him and me, not saying a word. When I realize she isn’t going to answer, I shake my head.
“Un-fucking-believable.”
Ignoring the calls of my name, I get back into my car. My tires squeal against the pavement as I peel out o
f the driveway. That answer should be one of the simplest decisions of her life. What kind of mother would hesitate when needing to choose between her son or the man who almost took her life? All I know for sure, is that my father would be disgusted with who she’s become.
I’M DRIVING AROUND, TRYING to kill time and calm down before I go back home. Since we moved back, I haven’t really gotten a chance to look around this place. So much has changed from what I remember. The restaurants have all either closed down or been renovated. The stores I remember going to have all been replaced, except for the big department stores. Even the playground I used to love has been torn down. It’s just another harsh reminder that nothing in my life will ever be the same as it was.
As I pull down Main Street, a familiar Cadillac catches my eye. The same Haven Grace Prep sticker sits in the back window, making me sure it’s his car. Savannah’s boyfriend. Even thinking about him enrages me. She was supposed to be mine. She and I stood there in that stupid treehouse and promised that when we were old enough, we would get married. We may have only been nine at the time, but I’ve never meant something more in my life. And then she went and ruined it.
I park my car and get out. It only takes a second before my eyes land on her. She’s moving gracefully across a dance studio floor. I lean against the hood and watch her through the large window. The way she throws herself into every movement, telling a story using only her body—it’s mesmerizing. She lifts her leg as she spins, completing so many rotations I’m getting dizzy just watching her, but she doesn’t seem to falter at all. She continues to move in ways that make me imagine myself pressed against her as her ass grinds into me, touching all the right places.
Like the universe is playing some kind of sick joke on me, she’s suddenly not alone. Brady joins her and runs his hands over her shoulders. They move together in synchrony, but it’s clear everything he’s doing is meant to showcase her.
I glance up at the name of the studio and it all comes flooding back to me. An eight-year-old Savi, sitting in my room and telling me about the boy she met at dance. Her teacher’s son. I didn’t like him then, and I sure as shit don’t like him now. Brady Laurence just became another one of my targets.
7
Savannah
I’m getting ready for school in the morning when the doorbell rings. I freeze. The last time someone came here this early, it was a big guy ready to wring my dad’s neck for owing him money. Still, after the second time, I head to the door.
“Savannah Montgomery?” a guy asks, looking down at his clipboard then back up at me.
“Yes?”
He smiles. “We’re here to install a new window. Mind showing me where it’s going?”
“Uh, sure.” I answer hesitantly and lead him into the house.
I’m not stupid enough to believe my father used his precious drug and alcohol money on a new window. The night it broke, he sat in a drunken stupor and watched as I cut my hand on the broken glass and then covered the gaping hole with a large piece of cardboard. No, this has to be the work of someone else.
“It’s this one.” Pointing to the window, I back away. “I have to go to school. My dad is asleep in his room, I think. So just lock the door behind you when you leave.”
He nods and then gets to work, starting to remove the makeshift cover.
I grab my bag from my room and head out to where Brady is already waiting. It’s unusually chilly for a September morning in California, so when I climb into the car, I welcome the warmth. He looks over at me and grins as he puts the car in drive.
“New window?”
“Yeah.” I sigh. “Thank you.”
He chuckles at how I already know who’s responsible. “Don’t mention it.”
