The morning went by painfully slow on Monday. I knew a great deal of it had to do with my sour mood and the fact that I was still pissed at Luke and Cole, but I continued on glaring at everyone who so much as breathed in my direction all morning. I’m pretty sure I scared a freshman girl half to death with the look I gave her when she was in front of my locker this morning.
Of course, my outfit wasn’t helping my attitude, either. The material of my tights were scratchy, the shirt was two sizes too small, and the jean skirt Stephanie insisted I wear was suffocating my hips. The uncomfortable clothes only added to my already fueled anger and I glowered my way through the first half of the day.
When the lunch bell rang, I went to my locker with every intention of putting my things away and taking refuge in the art room to avoid Nathan. Just like Luke and Cole, I was pissed at him, too. He had been at the tracks when Luke got into a fight and didn’t tell me when he came back to his house later.
My emotions were so out of whack, I wasn’t sure if I was angry or just plain hurt, so I settled with anger and decided it was best to ignore Nathan altogether. Unfortunately, that plan came to a screeching halt when I heard my name being called in an annoyingly sexy voice.
“Collins, you coming to lunch?” Nathan asks lazily as he walks toward me.
I bite my lip to keep myself from talking and instead focus on changing my books out of my locker. The hallways were becoming increasingly empty as minutes pass into the lunch hour until I can hear his footsteps approach me.
“Lauren?” Nathan asks, closer this time, and then pauses. “Are you ignoring me?”
I shut my locker and turned towards him, but looked past him. And then I started walking to the art room just a few halls away. I heard a second set of footsteps moments after I began walking away and sighed.
“What did I do?” Nathan sounded amused and it only pissed me off more. “Give me a hint, kitten.”
My nose scrunches up in distaste as my resolve breaks and I whip around to face him with a scowl. Like I had predicted, his eyes were alight with amusement, as if I were playing a game with him instead of ignoring him out of sheer anger. It infuriated me more to see him take my anger with amusement, so I decided to stop ignoring him to yell at him instead.
“You didn’t tell me that Luke got into a fight!” I hissed nastily at him as my eyes narrow accusingly.
The amusement slowly faded from his expression, as did Nathan’s little playful smirk. “Oh, shit.”
I laugh humorlessly. “That’s the best you can come up with?”
Nathan hesitated before speaking, like he knew his next words held little importance. “Lauren, he asked me not to tell you.”
“I bet he told you not to tell me he raced at the tracks, too.” I snapped at him, unable to control myself. “I’m his sister, Nathan! Do you really think I want to be left in the dark about these things? Would you?”
Nathan blinked at me and then frowned. “You know about him racing?”
“No thanks to you. You kept this a secret from me!” I shouted in the midst of my anger, fleetingly thankful that the halls had cleared out. I was too irrationally angry to stop now.
“Listen, I’m sorry,” Nathan says, and genuinely looks it. His eyebrow is furrowed with worry as he looks at me with his big grey blue eyes, his voice near pleading. “I should’ve told you, I know. But Luke told me that if you found out, you would act like, well, this. He doesn’t want you to fight his battles for him, and to be honest, I wouldn’t either.”
I glared at Nathan when he tried to defend himself because I didn’t agree with his reasoning at all. Nathan looked in between my eyes like he was trying to read my thoughts, so I decided to finally voice them instead of keeping them all jumbled.
“Why wouldn’t I freak out? Or try to help him? It’s not safe for him to be getting into all of this shit. He’s been getting in fights, coming home late, and hanging out with a bad crowd.” There is an edge in my voice that dares Nathan to disagree with me.
But instead of continuing his reasoning, Nathan’s frown deepens until he masks his emotions altogether. “You mean me.”
His voice was devoid of any emotion and his expression was the same cold mask that he wore around strangers instead of the more thoughtful side that he showed me. I immediately begin to backtrack, my anger slowly fading as I say, “No, not you. He’s getting mixed up with Holden, Walker, and Andrew. I don’t like him being around those guys.”
“In case you forgot, I am one of those guys.” Nathan’s deep voice is ice cold.
“You’re different than them,” My anger is long forgotten as I try to rid Nathan of the hardened mask he suddenly wore again. “Both times Luke got into a fight, you were there to help him. You may hang around those guys, but you’re not some asshole bad boy cliche. You’re so much better than that, Nate. You’re a good person.”
Something about my words makes Nathan’s rough exterior soften. My heart that was previously pounding from anger slowed down considerably, and I felt myself able to breathe again when I realized that he was no longer mad at me. All of the screaming made me tired. I was no longer furious, but rather a mixture of overwhelmed, exhausted, and helpless.
I think Nathan saw this break in my attitude too, because he dared to take a step closer to me. My eyes followed the movement warily before they shut altogether in exhaustion and, a moment later, I felt a strong pair of arms wrap around me. A familiar scent enveloped me and I allowed myself the tiniest smile as Nathan forgot about his previous anger and comforted me.
“I know you’re worried about Luke, but he’s a big boy, alright? He knows exactly what he’s getting into,” Nathan’s voice is gentle and quiet, his words made just for me.
One of his hands reaches up and smoothes down my hair and I lean into his chest. My arms raise from my side to wrap around his torso so that I could hug him back and reciprocate the comfort he gave me. He tightens his grip and I finally feel myself calm down as I let his words resonate with me. Nathan was right: Luke was smart enough to know what he was getting into.
“You’re right,” I say so quietly that I’m not sure he heard me.
After another minute of blissfully letting Nathan hold me, he speaks up again. “You know, you have a habit of judging me for things before listening to what I have to say.”
I let out a breathy laugh and mumble, “Yeah, I should work on that.”
“And Lauren?”
Nathan loosens his grip and lets go of me just a little bit, so he can look into my eyes. My words catch in my throat as I see his gorgeous blue eyes smiling at me, and eventually somehow choke out, “Yes?”
“Thanks for thinking I’m better than some asshole bad boy cliche.” His lips quirk into a the brilliant half smile that I loved so much.
I feel my cheeks warm up. I had said that, hadn’t I? He grins at me and- to my utter disappointment- finally lets go of me. I just smile back at him amidst my embarrassment in the hopes that he couldn’t see my flaming cheeks.
“Anytime,” I answer simply.
His smile stretches wider as he declares, “Now let’s go to lunch.”
Somehow, in the course of ten minutes, my emotions had done a complete one eighty. I screamed at, made up with, and then melted because of Nathan Rhodes. And somehow, despite the fact that I’ve been in a bitter mood all day, I couldn’t stop smiling.
* * *
I was lying in bed on Monday night when I heard a car pull in front of the house through my open window. I had been lying down with my eyes wide open since ten at night, completely unable to find sleep. My mind had been racing all night about my father, which was a common occurrence, and it kept me awake.
I sit up in bed and glance at the clock on my bedside table to see the neon numbers read 2:55 AM. My brow furrows as I pull myself out of bed, wondering who the hell could be at my house at this hour, and I peer out the window. My eyes widened and body froze when I caught sight of the familiar black Mustang idling outside.
I watched for a minute, waiting for something to happen or someone to get out, but the car remained idling in my driveway. My brow pulled together in confusion and, before I could think about it, I make my way toward my bedroom door. I tip toe down the stairs, careful not to wake Luke, and head to the front door.
The second I pull the door open, I feel a large gust of cold air slap against my bare skin, and it was only then that I realized I was wearing yoga pants and a tank top. As I approached the Mustang, the passengers side door open, and Luke’s head pops up. He looks at me with wide eyes as he rounds the car and I stare at him in shock.
He was supposed to be in his bedroom asleep. This was the second time he has come home at an ungodly hour on a school night. My eyes narrow angrily as they follow his movements while he walks toward me and eventually stops in front of me, acting as a barrier between the Mustang and I.
“Luke,” I say warningly. “What are you doing out at three in the morning?”
His blue eyes are widened in fear because he knew he was in trouble. “I was just, uh, hanging out with Nathan.”
I open my mouth to either make a sarcastic response or snap at him, but Nathan climbs out of the drivers side door. My mouth shuts automatically and I look back at Luke to give him a stern glare and say firmly, “We will talk about this later. Go inside.”
Luke hesitates before he nods, hanging his head as he walks past me, towards the house. A breeze rolls by that makes the hairs on my arms stand up and my goosebumps tenfold, so I rub my arms to generate warmth as I watch Luke retreat.
When he finally makes it inside, I turn around to face Nathan, who is watching me with a frown. I take in his all black outfit and, even though he blends in with the night, his vibrant eyes give him away. When my gaze meets his, he peels his sweatshirt off and holds it out to me.
“You’re making me cold just looking at you,” Nathan mumbles by way of an explanation. “Take it.”
I shake my head. “I’m fine. I just-”
“Lauren, you’re so stubborn.” Nathan interjects and takes a step closer to me as he holds the sweatshirt out. “As much as I love to see you in that tiny little shirt, I would feel guilty if I let you freeze to death.”
I felt my face heat up and took the sweatshirt from his hands, eagerly this time, and pulled it up over my head. Nathan’s scent surrounded me and it took a surprising amount of effort to keep myself from inhaling a big whiff from the jacket. It was big on me, coming down past my butt, but was an instant source of comfort. When I looked back at Nathan, I notice he has a navy blue long sleeve shirt on, and he was grinning.
“I guess chivalry isn’t dead,” I mock with a small smile. “Well, kind of.”
Nathan laughed, the sound deep and sexy and rough and it made my smile widen. “Who needs to be chivalrous when you look this good?”
I started laughing again, but stopped when I remembered why I was standing outside my house with Nathan at three in the morning. My smile faded and I frowned at Nathan. “You’re trying to distract me.”
To my surprise, his smile widened. “Is it working?”
“Why are you dropping Luke off at three in the morning, Nathan?” I ask him warily as my expression turns serious.
“Why are you awake at three in the morning, kitten?” His tone was challenging mine, and even in the moonlight, his grey eyed gaze was on me.
I let out a breath of exasperation. “Please just give me an answer.”
“I want one too,” Nathan crosses his arms and leans back against his car. “An answer for an answer.”
My hands find themselves stuffed in the warm pocket of the sweatshirt as I get comfortable too. Something told me that I wouldn’t be getting my way and I would have to play by Nathan’s rules. But even though I would give him an answer, it surely wouldn’t be a descriptive one; I remember vaguely blubbering to him about my feelings when I was drunk, and had no intention to do it sober.
I met his gaze and say curtly, “I couldn’t sleep. There’s a lot on my mind.”
“Like your sad house?” My jaw slips ajar when Nathan says this. It’s not in a teasing way, but rather he sounds concerned and curious. Still, it made me stand completely still the second I heard him.
I stare at Nathan incredulously before somehow forming a coherent response. “Terms were an answer for an answer. So what were you doing out with Luke all night?”
Nathan frowns at me silently for a moment before speaking. “I was driving him back because Holden ditched him.”
I frowned too. “Why was Luke with Holden? And why did Holden ditch him?”
“The terms were an answer for an answer, remember?” Nathan asked coolly, but I was pretty sure I could detect some haste behind his words.
I was about to agree to the same terms as before and suck it up for an answer, but another burst of wind nipped at my cheeks, and I was instantly discouraged. My mouth clamped shut and I braced myself for the breeze, my legs still only covered in the thin material of my yoga pants.
“Go inside Collins,” Nathan sighs from in front of me suddenly, bringing my attention back to him. “And go to sleep.”
“Trying to get rid of me?” I attempt to joke, but the idea of the heater is more appealing than I let on.
“You’re going to freeze. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Nathan pushes off his car and opens the driver side door.
I tug at the bottom of the sweatshirt. “Wait, Nathan, your sweatshirt.”
He refocuses his gaze on me again and the type of smirk that makes me not want to hear what’s about to come from his mouth stretches across his lips. “Keep it; it’ll help you dream of me.”
My cheeks warmed up, and all I could think was, thank God it was dark out and he couldn’t see my face. I couldn’t help the smile that reached my lips regardlessly and took a step away from the car as I snuggled deeper into the warmth of his sweatshirt. “You wish, Rhodes.”
“Maybe I do.” Nathan’s sexy voice made my cheeks beat red by now. “Goodnight, Lauren.”
Somehow I manage, “Goodnight, Nate.”
I turn around and head towards the front door as Nathan’s car pulls away. My heart was thumping violently in my chest and I slipped inside the house, shut the door, and then leaned against it as a deep breath escaped my lips. But then I heard footsteps and my gaze snapped to the doorway, where Luke was slowing his walk to stand in front of me.
“Are you going to kill me?” Luke rushes, the concern from earlier still evident in his features.
He was seriously lucky that Nathan had my mind in a puddle and I could hardly concentrate. “No, I’m not going to kill you.”
“Thank God,” Luke let out a large breath dramatically.
Once I regained composure, I straightened up and gave Luke a harsh look. “What were you doing with Holden?”
Luke blinked at me. “You mean Nathan didn’t tell you?”
I frowned. “Why would he?”
“You were out there talking for awhile,” Luke begins, and then his gaze falls on the sweatshirt I was wearing. “And you two seem to be a thing. I thought he’d tell you.”
“We’re not a thing,” I say quickly, and Luke catches me out. He smirks at me widely, but I ignore it. “What were you and Holden doing?”
Luke seems no longer afraid or nervous. “Well, since your boyfriend didn’t tell you, I’m not going to spill the beans. In fact, I’m going to go to bed.” And then he climbs the stairs, calling over his shoulder, “Night, Lauren!”
And when he was out of sight, and I was alone, I ducked my head into the sweatshirt and inhaled Nathan’s lingering scent.