Confessions of a Heartbreaker (19 page)

He's not disappointed either because there's a couple who look to be executing some sort of complicated gymnastic move on the queen size bed. And there just so happens to be a whole lot of sound effects to go along with it. Apparently clothing is optional because I'm, unfortunately, seeing naked body parts flailing around. Thankfully it's pretty dark in there but from what I can still make out, I'm almost positive that the couple in question is not Jordan or Hartley. The chick (who kind of looks like she's riding a bucking bronco and hanging on for dear life) has brown hair. Not blond.  I finally release the breath I wasn't even aware I was holding.

Okay, one down, three to go.

"I think that was Mark Kabash and Jessica Lanister." Before I can even ask how he knows, he adds, "I'd know those tits anywhere."

That has my brows drawing together because Mark Kabash is seeing Lizzy Mendleson. Not Jessica Lanister... or her tits.

"Dude, Lizzy is going to cut his balls off when she finds out about this." Especially since both Jessica and Lizzy are on the varsity football cheerleading team.  Shaking my head, I quietly close the door.

And then we move on to door number two. I gently creak it open before looking inside. Again it's dark, but from what I can see- there aren't any naked body parts flying around.  Which is a relief. Just a group of five or six kids passing around a bowl.

No Jordan.  No Hartley.

"Hey- Montgomery, you want a hit? There's plenty for everyone."

I shake my head as a few of them giggle. I'm not into that shit at all. I think we can all agree that I can't afford to lose any more brain cells than I already have, so I don't mess around with drugs. Like at all. Plus, I'm still hoping to play college ball and I'm not about to flush that pipe dream down the shitter by toking up. "No thanks." With that, I close the door and head to the next room.

"Maybe that Lindsey chick was wrong- maybe they're not up here at all."

"Maybe," I mumble because at this point, I just want to know where she is. Jeez, do you see what this girl has done to me? I'm like a freaking mother hen right now clucking over her chicks. And that rather disturbing mental image almost has me wincing.

Now it's time to find out what's behind door number three.  And I'm not banking on it being a brand new car either. Without another word spoken between us, I push open the door. Again, the lights are off, it's pitch black inside. For just a moment, as my eyes scan the dark room, it looks completely empty. But then I hear a little whimper from the far side of the room. Quickly I flick on the lights before rounding the king size bed. As I do, I find Hartley stretched out on top of Jordan. Her back is pinned to the floor. He must outweigh her by a solid eighty pounds. He's using one hand to restrain her wrists above her head while his other hand is slapped over her mouth. Her wide frightened eyes latch onto mine and the absolute terror filling them is like a roundhouse kick to my gut.  Scorching hot rage skyrockets through my body until I’m all but blinded with it. Until I want nothing more than to tear Hartley apart piece by fucking piece.

And then all hell breaks loose.

I'm proud to say that ten years of football serve me well as I spring forward, knocking Hartley off her before tackling him to the ground. He makes a few garbled noises as I land on top of him. He and I are more evenly matched in the weight department but I have rage on my side. And then my fists are flying, smashing into his face at warp speed. Man, it's such a satisfying feeling when your fist slams into flesh and bone.

I'm yelling- but I have no idea what's spewing out of my mouth. I'm so effing pissed right now. Pissed that he would dare to take something from Jordan, from any girl really, that she wasn't willing to give.

At this point, I've punched him so many times that I've lost count. He's trying his damnedest to fight me off which only makes this doubly satisfying. And then someone grabs me from behind and I find myself being pulled away from him. But I'm not quite ready to stop pummeling the bastard for what he tried doing to Jordan. And that's when I remember that Jordan is still here, probably watching all this.

"Come on, dude, his face is a serious mess. You've done enough damage."

The red haze that came over me at the sight of Hartley hurting her, slowly begins to recede until I'm once again staring at him. His face is bloodied. I'm sure he'll have two shiners in the morning along with an assortment of other bumps and bruises. If I'm lucky, maybe a contusion or two.  The dude deserves to have his ass beat way worse than what I just did.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I can't help but bellow the words as I continue struggling against Max. Because damn it, I just want to continue smashing his face in until there is nothing recognizable left.

Holding my eyes, he touches his busted lip. "She's a cock tease, man. She was totally asking for it."

My hands instantly ball into fists and all I want is to freaking smash one of them right into his face again when Max tightens his hold on me. "Don't do it," he says calmly, "Let's just get out of here. You should probably take Jordan home anyway."

"I wouldn't waste your time with that one, Montgomery, she's-"

Max has yet to slacken his hold but still I struggle to go after Hartley. "Just shut your fucking mouth right now before I beat the shit out of you!"

He laughs before his hard eyes slide to Jordan. "You're a real bitch, you know that?"

"That's it," I growl continuing to fight against Max's tight grasp. I just want to shut him up. I don't want him speaking to her or about her again. Not ever.

"Please Parker, I want to go home." Her voice breaks. "Please, just take me home."

It's the first time that Jordan has said anything. I shake off Max's hands before standing up. Max slides between me and Hartley so I can't get to the dumb bastard if he decides to open his stupid mouth again. Which I'm sure he will. Even though I want to beat him to a bloody pulp (well, more than I already have), I finally turn my attention towards Jordan. Her hair is a little mussed as if she's been fooling around but none of her clothing is ripped or torn- thank God. But still, I can see just how shaken up she is. Her face is pale and there's a sheen of tears glazing her wide green eyes.

"Are you okay?" Even as I softly ask the question, I know she's not. And it just makes me want to kick Hartley's ass all over again for daring to touch one little hair on her beautiful head.

"She wanted to come up here with me- she was into it before you crashed the party uninvited."

"Shut the fuck up, Hartley, or I swear I'll kill you!"  Because right now, looking at Jordan, yeah, I'd totally do it.

I hear him grunt as Max leans down and punches him in the gut. "Dude, shut your stupid pie hole or I'll let Montgomery finish kicking your pathetic ass."

All I can do is hold Jordan's gaze. I just want to gather her up in my arms and never let her go again. Not ever. I've never felt this protective about a girl before. Her arms are wrapped around her middle which makes her look even smaller than she already is.

"I need to get out of here," she says quietly.

I take a deep breath before sliding my arms around her. She flinches for just a moment before relaxing against me which totally makes me want to go berserk but I'm not about to let her go. And then I kiss the top of her head. "Come on, let's go."

For just a moment my eyes slide to Max who's still standing over Hartley. There's a strange look on his face but I have no idea what it means. And frankly, I don't give a crap. I only care about the girl in my arms, she's all that matters. I realize in that moment there's nothing I wouldn't do to keep her safe.

Chapter Sixteen

"Are you sure you're okay?"

I think I've probably asked her this question a hundred times now. Honestly- I can't get the image of Hartley pinning her to the floor out of my mind. Every time it loops through my head, my hands tighten into fists and it takes every ounce of self-control I have not to go back to that damn party and smash his face in all over again. And yeah, I got in a couple good hits, but not enough of them (thanks to Max). Not nearly enough to make up for what he tried doing to her.

Needing to calm myself down, I kiss the top of her head which is resting against my chest. Her arms are wrapped around me just like mine are wrapped protectively around her. It's like we're both holding on for dear life in the front seat of my truck as we stare out over the dark water of Lake Michigan. She wasn't ready to go home and I wasn't ready to let her go either.

I'm wondering if I'll ever be able to let her go.

I'm also starting to realize that what Max said the other day is completely true. I am totally whipped over this girl. But unlike before, the thought doesn't bother me. In fact, (and yeah- this is really sick) I think I kind of like it. Of course, I'll be keeping that little tidbit of information to myself for the time being.  After all, I have a reputation to maintain.  Although, admittedly, I'm caring less and less about that with the passing of each day.

"I'm fine, Parker. Really." She inhales a long shuddering breath before pushing it out slowly. "I'm just glad you got there when you did."

That’s one hell of a major understatement.  One I can’t stop thinking about.

I haven’t exactly mentioned this yet... but it keeps circling round and round in my head.  And so it’s gently that I ask, "Do you think we should go to the police and file a report or something?  He shouldn’t get away with what he tried doing to you."

Almost instantly Jordan stills in my arms.  I'm almost wondering if she’ll answer when she whispers, "No," her voice becomes even more hushed.  "I don't want to do that. I just want to forget it ever happened."

I'll admit that I'm conflicted because part of me thinks that douche bag should pay big time for trying to hurt Jordan. But another part doesn't want to push her into doing something she's obviously uncomfortable with. She's already been through enough tonight.  I tighten my hold on her because I don't even want to imagine what would have happened if I hadn't charged up those stairs when I did. All these what-ifs keep flashing through my head. They're literally driving me insane.

What if I'd stayed outside with Max a little bit longer?

What if Max had just wanted to leave the party?

What if I'd lost track of time and never realized she was missing?

What if I hadn't run into Lindsey?

Any other decision on my part could have had tonight's outcome turning out radically different. And it makes me physically sick every time I think about it.

So tell me, how am I seriously supposed to let this girl out of my sight?  Even for one damn minute?

I've got four words for you-
not going to happen.

This girl has no idea what she's just unleashed within me. Frankly, I'm a little taken aback by the protectiveness surging through me at the moment.

The sound of my cell phone cuts through the thick silence now blanketing the truck. Fishing it out of my pocket, I glance down at the screen. It's my parents. I press ignore and send it to voicemail before tightening my arms around her once again.

"I won't let him hurt you." Actually, as I just stated previously, I won't be letting
anyone
hurt her ever again.

A shaky little laugh escapes from her lips.  "Well, I don't plan on putting myself in that kind of situation ever again." She pauses. "I just never thought... he would do something like that."

You know what? I never liked that dude.

No, really... and it's not just because he was going out with Jordan (okay, maybe a little bit). But, seriously, I never had anything for Chris Hartley. He always struck me as a conceited tool. Which clearly, after tonight, he totally is.  Actually, he's much worse than that.  Now I have even less for him. In fact, that kid better steer clear of me from now on because he is so on my shit list. And yeah, I have one. It's called
The
Parker Montgomery Shit List
and trust me, you don't want to find yourself on it. Right now Chris Hartley is the top shit on my list. Of course, Psycho-Crazy-I'm-going-To-Make-Out-With-Another-Dude-Right-In-Front-Of-My-Freaking-Boyfriend's-Face (seriously, who does that?) has the number two slot on that infamous list after all the drama she pulled tonight.  I'm really praying hard that Max will finally kick that bad habit to the curb.

But I'm not going to get my hopes up too high though because we all know just how many times this has happened before. Yeah, I'm not even going to get into that right now.

He is so effing screwed in the head over that chick it's not even funny. And I'm totally serious about finding him a nice normal girl. Of course, he probably wouldn't even know what to do with a girl like that. And I'm not sure how many nice normal girls would be willing to put up with his BS (not to be confused with BDSM) but still... I'm going to start working on that pronto. There's got to be someone better than Crazy Pants with a Capital C out there for him.  I mean, come on, there's just gotta be...

My phone rings again.

And then again... it's the parental unit. Weird. But still, I send it to voicemail. It's probably my dad wanting to harass me some more about college. And yeah, I really do need to get on that...