Home is Where the Heart Is (Home #1) (2 page)

To Tate’s credit he didn’t even acknowledge the tears or that Isabelle was trying to hold herself together, instead he just took her arm and pulled her along.

“Tate we just passed Maths, where are we going?”

“
You’re
heading home,” he said factually. “I’ll cover for you.”

“I’ll get in trouble.”

And hadn’t she pissed her parents off enough already?

“It’s the last week of school, we’ve had our exams so it’s just the assignments left which I know you’ve already handed in early. So just take a break alright?”

“Why are you so good to me Tate?” she asked, reminded of the many times Tate had come to her rescue.

“We’re family,” he said as he pushed her hair behind her ears. “That means we’ve got to stick together.”

Isabella hugged Tate close. “I love you.”

She felt him tense slightly, then return her hug. “You too kiddo, now get out of here.”

The school bell rung out as Isabelle moved further away from school, walking aimlessly with her racing thoughts.
How was it possible that someone you only really knew for a few months had the power to hurt you so much?
If she wasn’t so obsessed with Jason she would hate him for deciding to pay attention to her now after spending months callously ignoring her.

She had no idea what his motives were and, although she knew she was probably being an idiot, she couldn’t just leave without finding out what he wanted and maybe getting some sort of closure from it all as well.

Tate would be furious with her but she needed to do this for herself, which meant that like it or not, they had a party to attend next weekend.

*

“So, you’re really going to do this?” Tate asked as he lay on her bed.

Isabelle brushed her long blonde hair for the hundredth time in the mirror.

“
We’re
going to do this,” she corrected.

Obsessively she tugged at her black skirt wondering if she should change her outfit for the tenth time.

Tate got up and placed his hands on hers.

“Stop it, you look fine. You’re always beautiful; it’s your mind I’m worried about.”

Isabelle rolled her eyes. “This is closure Tate, can’t you just be supportive?”

“Not when it involves that douche.”

She turned and put her hands on his shoulders. “Come on, we’ll go for one hour, OK? And if you really hate it, then I promise I’ll leave with you and we can just watch movies instead.”

He eyed her suspiciously. “One hour?”

“One.”

“And if I really hate it you’ll leave?”

“I promise.”

He put his hand through his messy brown hair. “Alright, fine.”

Isabelle beamed at him. “Thank you!”

He raised his hands. “Just to be clear, I am doing this under protest.”

“You’re the best,” she beamed and went back to primping.

Tate rolled his eyes and flopped back on the bed, an air of anxiety radiating off him. “We’re going to be late if you keep staring at yourself.”

“I don’t want to get there too early,” Isabelle said.

“Why?”

“I can’t be too eager, can I?”

Tate shook his head. “I will never understand girls.”

Isabelle ignored him and stared at her reflection, knowing that with her curves and hazel eyes she wasn’t classically beautiful but maybe tonight she could be enough to get noticed and show Jason what an idiot he was for ever treating her like she was disposable.

“Alright, we’re going,” he said suddenly.

Isabelle spun around. “What? I told you I wasn’t ready to go.”

“We’re not going to the party yet,” he said as he opened her door.

“All right, we’re going,” he said suddenly.

Isabelle spun around. “What? I told you I wasn’t ready to go.”

“We’re not going to the party yet,” he said as he opened her door.

“Well, where are we going then?” she asked, accepting her jacket from him.

He pushed her out the door.

“We are going to get some dinner and enjoy our last full weekend together. Is that ok with you?”

Isabella linked her arms with his, relishing every moment she managed to spend with him. “Sounds perfect to me.”

*

Arriving at the party hours later, Isabelle instantly regretted the delay.Everyone was already so drunk or stoned and Isabelle was so intensely sober that she felt completely out of place.

“You still want to go in?” Tate whispered behind her.

She forgot her hesitation as the calming effect of Tate washed over her.

“Yeah, let’s go get a drink,” she told him with a firm nod.

Tate raised his eyebrows but said nothing as he followed her into the crowd.

Isabelle pulled two beers out of the Esky at the back of the party and handed one to Tate.

“You know, I’m going to miss this,” she admitted sometime later.

“Drunken idiots grinding against each other in a sweaty mass?” Tate mused with a lazy grin.

She laughed. “No, just being around familiar people, having you here with me always. I’m going to miss feeling like I have a place.”

He nudged her gently. “You’ll always have a place and you’re always going to have me. Our dads have been best friends since forever, that sort of means we’re stuck in each other’s lives.”

“Such a typical boy! You’re meant to say that you can’t live without me and life is going to be a dark abyss without my sunny disposition to brighten your days.”

He raised an eyebrow. “I thought that was just assumed and understood.”

“Nice save,” she said admiringly, flicking his chin with her fingers.

“Bro! We’re doing keg stands in the kitchen and seeing who can avoid throwing up the longest, you’ve gotta come join!” Kane slurred to Tate, stumbling over his own feet. “Bring your girl with you too.”

Isabelle rolled her eyes at Kane’s offhand remark. Tate Stevens had been her best friend her entire life since their fathers had been childhood best friends. Tall, athletic and beautiful, with shaggy brown hair and bright green eyes, he was eye catching to almost every girl around them.
Unfortunately, since they were only three months apart, Isabelle had seen Tate through his ‘eating mud’ and ‘awkward primary school’ phases so he was just Tate to her, although their close knit and incredibly affectionate friendship had people constantly questioning the context of their relationship.

Pushing Kane in the other direction with a look of disgust, Tate turned his attention back to Isabelle.

“We can leave right now, rent a movie and still salvage this night.”

“I didn’t get all dressed up for nothing!”

He eyed her tiny black skirt and grey button up shirt with a low V neck.

“I don’t know that you can call that dressed, Belle.”

“Stop playing the big brother role and relax a little, OK?”

She pulled Tate over to a log by the fire bin, relieved to be off her feet again.

“Thank you so much for coming with me tonight, I really appreciate it.”

Slinging his arm around her shoulders casually he relaxed into her body. “Yeah well, you’re going to owe me.”

“I’ll start making it up to you right now and wing woman the shit out you,” she suggested.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever heard a more terrible idea.”

“Shut up and let me work, OK? Take off your grandpa goggles and have a look around, do you see anything you like?” she asked gesturing around them.

Tate looked around the party where various girls were already half undressed and attached to different guys or giggling in groups.

“Oh yeah, so much class to choose from,” he responded dryly.

“I resent that!”

Isabelle looked up to see the only two people aside from Tate she felt even remotely close with. Sylvia and Hannah both looked at Tate with eyebrows raised but Sylvia’s attitude doubled Hannah’s.

Tate raised his hands in surrender as he settled himself on the log. “I didn’t mean you!”

Sylvia, clearly already drunk, flicked her brunette hair out of her face and made herself comfortable on Tate’s knee, tracing shapes on his cheek with her bright pink manicured nails.

Hannah shook her short black hair at her best friend and perched next to Isabelle.

“So, you came.”

Isabelle looked at Hannah in confusion. “Why wouldn’t I? It’s a good chance to say goodbye to everyone.”

Sylvia smirked. “It wouldn’t have anything to do with the party host would it?”

Isabelle tried to shrug casually. “No, I’m here for you guys.”

Hannah snorted. “Cute.”

“Yeah, come on Belle, did you honestly think that anyone would believe you didn’t come here for Jason?” Sylvia prodded. “Let’s be honest, aside from Tate there’s only one other person you would actually care enough about to say goodbye to.”

Isabelle didn’t have a comeback. She was totally busted and if they could see through her in all of three seconds then she was going to need a different tactic before facing Jason.

“He’s been asking for you all night,” Sylvia whispered.

Isabelle whipped around to face her. “He has?”

Sylvia smirked back. “Yep.”

“Oh…cool,” what was she meant to say to something like that?

Sylvia laughed. “He’s in the kitchen.”

“I didn’t ask,” Isabelle responded a little defensively.

“You didn’t have to,” she replied with a lusty wink.

Knowing there was no use pretending anymore, Isabelle smiled shyly. “Ok, I guess I did come because I wanted to…I don’t know…”

“One last steamy night together?” Sylvia asked with a hint of theatrics.

Isabelle stiffened. “No, I’ve never… we never…”

“He’s a piece of shit that ruined Isabelle’s trust and broke her heart,” Tate said harshly. “And if he thinks for one second he can use Isabelle because she’s leaving, then he’s dumber than I thought.”

“Whoa, feel the hate!” Sylvia crooned ruffling Tate’s wavy brown locks.

Isabelle patted Tate’s leg. “Don’t be nasty Tate, that’s not why he called me here.”

“Then why did he?”

Isabelle opened her mouth and then closed it. She honestly didn’t know, and hadn’t really given it any deep thought. All she saw was a chance to see Jason before she left and didn’t really think much past how memorable she needed to look. In hindsight she could see how the plan could use some improvements.

Sylvia wrapped her arms around Tate’s shoulders and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Don’t be so grumpy. Let the girl have some fun.”

Rising to her feet, she tugged him up. “Come on, I want to dance.”

He sighed. “Well, I can’t deny a beautiful girl one dance.”

Sylvia grinned broadly. “You think I’m beautiful?”

He shrugged. “Aren’t you?”

His tone was more factual then complimentary, not that Sylvia could tell the difference.

Isabelle watched Sylvia lure Tate away, making full use of her long legs and limber body. Isabelle definitely felt too sober for this, so she turned away and took a long sip of her drink, hoping to calm her nerves even a little.

“Why aren’t you off dancing too?” she asked Hannah.

Hannah rested her head on her shoulder. “I can’t leave you alone. Besides, this is probably the last time I’ll get to see you since you leave on Monday, right?”

“Right,” she agreed. “I can’t believe how fast time has gone.”

“I know! We’re going to be graduating this year, how crazy is that?”

After a beat of silence, Isabelle quietly admitted. “I’m really nervous about moving.”

“Are you kidding me? You get a whole fresh pool of hot guys to choose from, you’ve basically hit the lottery!”

Isabelle tuned out a little bit as Hannah began to babble on and on about the lack of male talent the school had to offer. She nodded every so often and feigned enough interest to keep Hannah going but really, she was stuck in her own head again.

She hadn’t lied when she’d told Tate that she was going to miss having a place to fit in, but now that she had a moment to herself and had accepted her leaving was inevitable, it didn’t actually seem like the worst thing in the world. She was comfortable here, had enough friends she enjoyed spending time with, but it was all pretty superficial except for her family and Tate. In fact, if Tate wasn’t going to be left behind she might even be relieved that she had the chance to reinvent herself somewhere new.

“You look very serious,” Jason whispered into her ear, in what he probably thought was a seductive voice.

Both girls jumped at his sudden arrival which made Jason chuckle and ruffle their hair.

“I spent an hour straightening that,” Hannah snapped, turning around and smacking him over the head.

He smiled and raised his hands. “I am very sorry for wrecking your hair.”