Unbreak My Heart (10 page)

“Because he did it to a friend of mine. They were drinking and then the next thing she remembered was waking up with him on top of her.”

“Oh God.”

Then Boone was face-to-face with me again. “I told you to stay away from Kara. And I heard you’ve been here, at her brother Tyler’s house, for the past two weekends.”

“I didn’t know it was his house.” I swallowed hard. “I didn’t know Tyler was her brother.”

His eyes turned hard. “You just showed up at some random person’s house and started drinking with strangers? Jesus. Sierra. You’re smarter than that. Why would you do that?”

“Because I’m fucking sick and tired of sitting at home by myself all the time, okay? No one in this godforsaken town wants anything to do with me. So when Kara and Angie asked me to hang out, I said yes. I thought maybe I’d meet people.”

“You don’t want to meet the people they hang out with,” he snapped. “For Christsake, Tyler is twenty-three. He’s been in jail. The only people who hang around him are his loser jailbird buddies and his sister’s high school friends who don’t have any other place to drink.”

“Then why are you here?” I demanded. “Are
you
one of his loser friends?”

“Fuck no. I showed up because I heard at school this is your new weekend hangout.”

“Bull. I haven’t seen you in school for weeks, so I doubt you
heard
anything.”

“I only need one credit to graduate so I’m there for one class in the morning, so yeah, I heard. You’re some kind of party girl now.”

So?”

“So you don’t need to head down this road again, Sierra. Making bad choices like you did in Arizona.”

Maybe he was right. But he had no idea how alone I felt. And it wasn’t like he called to check up on me like he’d said he might. I mumbled under my breath that he had no business judging me and tried to sidestep him.

He was crowding me. “What did you say?”

“Why do you care? We aren’t anything to each other.”

“You don’t believe that because you know it’s not true.”

“Then what are we?” I demanded.

Boone said something under his breath.

Screw this. Screw
him
and his stupid brooding ways. I slumped against the door. “Whatever. You’ve done your good deed, protecting me from Tyler. Thank you. You’ve made it clear I’m a fucking idiot and a pain in your ass. So go away.”

“I’m just supposed to what? Leave you here?”

“Yes. I’ve got my own car now.”

Boone’s hands were on my arms. “You think you’re gonna drive after you’ve been drinking? Bullshit. What the fuck is wrong with you?”

I twisted out of his hold. “I wasn’t gonna leave right now, asshole. I’ll be sober enough to drive in a couple of hours. I’ll just hang out until then.”

“Listen to yourself. Do you really think Tyler will let you
hang out
? Especially after I convinced him that we’re together? What exactly do you think the people out there think we’re doing in here? Talking?” he half-sneered.

I opened my mouth to deny it, but Boone was right. “Fine. You can stay in here with me until I sober up. That oughta add to your stud reputation. That you banged me for two solid hours.”

Boone blushed. Then he got pissed off. “Right. Because that’s all I give a shit about. My reputation as some kind of stud. Even if we stay in here, that doesn’t deal with the problem when we leave the bedroom.”

“Which is what?”

“We’ll have to act like we’re together, so Tyler doesn’t track me down and beat the fuck out of me for pulling one over on him. That’s the kind of guy he is. Making him look stupid turns him psycho.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Dammit. This is the last thing I wanted.”

Meaning, I’m the last one you wanted to be tied to
—
in reality or even pretend
.

“You know what, Boone? Fuck off. You don’t have to act so disgusted that people will think we’re together.”

Boone was back in my face. “That’s what you think? That being with you would be an embarrassment to me? God. You are drunk because you are not that clueless, Sierra. You know that I—”

“Shut up. We’ll have a very loud and public breakup Monday morning at school. Or better yet, let’s have a big fight now. Want me to scream and storm out?”

“Jesus. I’m
not
doing this with you.” He gave me a once-over. “Where’s your coat?”

“In the living room.”

“Do you have snow boots?”

“No.”

“Gloves?”

“Yes, I’m not a total idiot.”

Boone scowled at me. “Did you even check the weather before you went out tonight?”

I blinked at him.

“I take that as a no. The road conditions were shitty an hour ago. They’ve gotta be worse by now.”

“Did you ride your bike here?”

“No.”

“How’d you expect to get home?”

“How’d
you
expect to get home?” he countered. “Or did you tell your dad you were spending the night someplace?”

“No. My curfew is midnight.”

He glanced at his watch. “It’s only nine thirty. Give me your keys.”

“They’re in my coat.”

He blew out a frustrated breath. “When we get out there, go ahead and act like you’re mad at me.”

“Won’t be an act.” I flashed my teeth at him.

Boone jammed his hands into my hair and messed it up. He popped the button on his jeans. Then he pulled my shirt down my arm, exposing my bra strap. “There. At least it looks like we’ve been going at it.”

My head pounded and I just wanted to leave.

He held onto me tightly as he opened the door.

A few catcalls greeted us.

Kara and Angie sidled up to me. “Omigod, Sierra. Why didn’t you tell us you were with Boone West?”

Because I’m not.

“Is that why you ignored all the guys hitting on you the last month?” Kara asked. “I guess that’s a better secret than what
we
thought.”

“Which was what?”

“That you’re a virgin working up the nerve to ask one of these guys to pop your cherry. That’s why I wanted you to meet Tyler.”

Boone made a growling noise that sent weird chills up my spine.

That memory faded
and the present came sharply into focus.

I’d heard that snarl earlier.

When Boone thought I was with Tug.

When Hayden had mentioned Lex.

Now I realized Boone had made that same sound after Kara had mentioned Tyler.

Not because Boone had been mad at me that night.

Because he’d felt possessive of me.

Then.

And now.

Get the fuck out.

Maybe I did need to talk to him after all.

I
played it
cool, not chasing after Sierra, when everything inside urged me to go after her.

“What’s up with you and her?” Hayden asked.

“We’re talking.”

“But you’d rather be doing?”

I spared Hayden a dark look but didn’t respond because it was none of his fucking business.

“Watch it with her,” Hayden warned. “Sierra is family. I get that sounds stupid because you’re family too.”

“But?” I said without looking at him.

“But you vanished out of everyone’s life, Boone. I’ve been around her a lot more than I have you, so…”

“If I fuck with her, you’ll fuck with me.”

“Count on it. Sierra isn’t as much the ballbuster outside of work as she pretends to be. Guys who zero in on vulnerable shit like that piss me the hell off.”

“Guys like you?”

He laughed. “Fuck you very much, cuz, but no, I was talking about
you
.”

“Me? Games ain’t ever been my thing, college boy.”

“From what I understand, you’ll be living in Phoenix, joining the ranks as a ‘college boy’ soon enough, so stand down,” Hayden said, the edge in his tone sharp enough to get my back up.

Who else had Kyler told? If that asshole told Sierra the truth before I—

You could’ve told her. You should’ve told her. She’ll kick your balls into your brain to see if that’ll shake some sense loose because you obviously ain’t got any.

“Hey, soldier, are you even listening to me?”

I refocused on Hayden. “What? Did I miss another threat?”

“A suggestion. If your eye fucking turns into real fucking? Don’t make promises to her that you can’t keep.”

Hayden walked off.

Standing there alone, holding a foamy, lukewarm beer I didn’t want, I was tempted to chuck it all and head back to Raj’s.

My phone buzzed with a text from my younger sister.

Oakley:
I’m bored. Tell me you’re doing something fun.

I set my beer on the ground. I sucked at texting and had to totally focus to do it.

Me:
At a party.

Oakley:
Jealous!

Me:
Don’t be. It sucks. I want to leave. Why r u bored?

Oakley:
I’m babysitting. The kid crashed and there’s nothing to do in this house.

Me:
Homework?

Oakley:
Oops. I forgot to bring it
but I’m not failing any classes. Yet.

I snorted. My sister had been born with one of those brains that found anything science related fascinating and easy to understand.

Me:
U done with college apps?

Oakley:
My counselor has been really cool, so yeah. She’s making me apply everywhere.

I had a brief moment of panic. Applying for college wasn’t free. How was she paying for it?

Oakley:
STOP freaking out about where I’m getting the money to apply.

I laughed. Brat knew me so well.

Oakley:
As much as I hate being a charity case, most admissions programs are waiving the fees, due to my “financial hardship and living in a rural area” reality.

Me:
Did u hear my huge sigh of relief all the way in Montana?

Oakley:
Yeah. It smelled like beer and farts.

Me:
Brat. Later, Twig.

Oakley:
Same to you, Coon.

“Must’ve been a fascinating conversation,” Sierra said.

I glanced up and said, “What?”

She pointed at the ground. “Your beer tipped over and you didn’t even notice.”

“It didn’t tip over. I kicked it over because it tasted like shit.”

“Are you a beer snob now, West?”

“When it comes to cheap, warm beer? Yep.”

“Then I won’t offer to get you another.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “Couldn’t find anyone who wasn’t a judgmental dickhead?”

“It’s better to stick with the dickhead you know, so I’m back with you.”

“I should be offended by that.”

“And yet…you’re not.” Sierra sipped her beer and a foam mustache clung to her upper lip.

Jesus. I wanted to swipe my tongue over it. Lick and suck and taste her mouth for hours. When our eyes met again I swear to fucking god she was testing my control by just leaving it like that.

“What?” she asked innocently.

“So this Lex guy is a dickhead?”

“No. He’s a friend of Hayden’s I’ve been trying to hook—”

“I do not want to hear about your hookups, Sierra,” I snarled.

She laughed. And kept laughing.

I leaned in and squinted at her. “Are you high?”

“What? I’d have to be high to find something you say funny? Piss off. Getting high is for squares.”

“You are such a dork, McKay. Who even says
squares
anymore?”

“My dad. His vernacular is da bomb. He’s totally on fleek.”

I laughed. I wanted to grab her and get right in her face and tell her how goddamned much I missed this. This part had always been so easy with her. Didn’t she remember?

“Anyway, growly caveman, if you would’ve let me finish instead of cutting me off, I could’ve told you that Lex has applied for an internship at DDG next semester. I’ve been trying to set up a meeting between him and Marty in personnel for two weeks.
Hookup
was a bad word choice.” Sierra took another drink and licked her lips. “Not that it matters. Given the intense way you were texting, I figured you were making hookup plans of your own anyway.”