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"Let me go! I'm not done yet!" Emily yells as she thrashes in Caleb's arms.
Holden snickers next to me. "Put her down, Sutter." Everyone looks at him as if he's lost his mind. "What? It's not like she doesn't deserve it."
Jade slowly pushes herself up off the floor, wiping the blood off on her sleeve. "Really, Kayleigh? You just let her beat on me like that?"
Emily gets out of Caleb's grasp and jumps in front of me. "No. You don't get to talk to her. You don't even think her name, or I swear to God – I’ll come back here, and I will finish you."
Bree and Skylar stand on each side of Emily, shielding me from Jade entirely. "I think you should go now." Bree remarks.
Jade spares one last glance at me before grabbing her stomach and walking out of the house. Em turns around to face me and I lunge towards her, wrapping my arms around her neck and hugging her tightly. She chuckles as we embrace.
; "No one fucks with my best friend and gets away with it. Especially not some lowlife crack whore."
Since that night, Emily is a legend at a school she doesn't even go to, and Jade has made sure to stay far away from me. A part of me almost felt bad for her. Holden fixed that, though, before it could become anything more than a thought – reminding me about how she attempted to ruin my life. From that point forward, the only time she has crossed my mind is when someone talks about how my best friend from back home taught her a lesson she'll never forget.
As for Holden and I, we're currently on our way to the airport – destination: Holden's family's house for Thanksgiving. Josephine is meeting us there, which has me panicking since I found out Jason told her about the infamous cocaine video. Despite Holden's constant assurance that she doesn't hold it against me, I can't help but worry that he's wrong.
"Does everyone know? I mean, is there anyone who doesn't know?" I ask, holding his hand in the backseat of the cab.
He rests his head back against the seat. "The only person I told was Brandon."
I nod slightly. "I already assumed that. He's your best friend." Taking a deep breath, I try to relax. "Okay, so just Brandon and Jo. I can handle that."
After arriving at the airport and making our way through security, we finally get to the terminal and find Jo is already there waiting. My heart starts to race as I think about this being the first time I've seen her since she found out about my past. Thankfully, she jumps up and runs over to hug me.
"I'm so excited for Thanksgiving. My family, seeing my friends, the view of the beach. I love the start of the holidays, don't you?"
Holden chuckles beside me. "Easy, hyperactive. You've got more energy than the plane."
"Or someone on a little white stimulant?"
"Jo!"
I put my hand on Holden's chest to calm him down. "No, it's fine. I had that one coming."
She links her arm through mine and leads me to the seat beside her. "I'm only kidding. It's not like I haven't tried the stuff."
"You what?!" My boyfriend's face turns red in an instant.
"Shush, big brother. It wasn't my cup of tea." She replies nonchalantly. "If I wanted to feel like I drank an entire twelve pack of red bulls in an hour, I'd just do that. The point is... there's no judgement here."
I exhale in relief and smile. "Thank you."
"Always."
OUR FLIGHT LANDS A little after six o'clock in the evening. Brandon is waiting for us in baggage claim when we get there. As soon as we approach him, Holden lights up like a little kid on Christmas morning.
Jo mocks a look of judgement as they hug. "You're such girls. You saw each other like three months ago."
"Aw." Brandon coos as he wraps his arm around her shoulders. "I missed you too baby sister."
"Please don't touch me." She feigns disgust, tensing up in his arms.
He lets her go and then turns his attention to me. "Kayleigh, you're looking stunning as usual."
Holden grabs my shoulders and pulls me toward him possessively. "Mine." He growls, burying his head into my hair.
