Embracing Trouble (Trouble Series)
Read Embracing Trouble (Trouble Series) Online
Authors: Dee Bridle
E
MBRACING
T
ROUBLE
Published by:
Dee Bridle
Copyright
©
2013, Dee Bridle
Cover Artist: Kellie Dennis at Book Cover By Design
Edited by: Candace Sinclair at
www.WordsRU.com
All Rights Reserved. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.
November, 2013.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
For questions or comments about this book, please contact the author at:
[email protected]
EMBRACING
TROUBLE
Trouble Series
Book One: Zac & Ava
By Dee Bridle
Table of Contents
Chapter One: The Party That Started Everything
Chapter Three: Good Girls Don’t Make Calls at 2:30 a.m.
Chapter Four: Stay Away From Me
Chapter Five: Driving Me to the Point Of Madness
Chapter Six: No One Is Going To Hear You
Chapter Seven: A Big Ball of Mess Inside
Chapter Eight: Don’t Even Breathe On Her
Chapter Nine: I’m Worth More Than a One-Night Stand
Chapter Eleven: You Make Me Crazy
Chapter Fourteen: To Ruin and Damage
Chapter Sixteen: Heaven and Hell
Chapter Seventeen: Girls Night
Chapter Eighteen: When It All Went Very Wrong
Chapter Nineteen: Relationship
Chapter Twenty-One: Coming Home
Chapter One: The Party That Started Everything
Ava
I could hear the house party as soon as we rounded the corner. Music mixed with laughter and squeals drifted through the night air as we walked towards the house.
“I can’t wait to get inside and party,” said Sophie excitedly next to me as her heels clicked on the pavement.
I didn’t go to many parties and she had talked me into going to this one tonight. I folded my arms and looked over at her tight dress and high heels, knowing she had gone all out tonight. I looked down at my skinny jeans and Converse sneakers and hid a smile, knowing I hadn’t, according to her.
Cars were parked tightly along both sides of the street as other cars slowly inched forward after dropping people off. We were halfway through the last year of high school and apparently tonight’s party would be a big one. Luckily, my house was only two blocks away from Antony’s party tonight, so Sophie didn’t have to drive us. Turning eighteen had made me a proud owner of a driver’s license without a car, while Sophie’s brand new BMW had been delivered on the morning of her birthday, with a great big pink bow on its hood. I was sure my father was too busy with his own life to even think about getting me one, with or without a pink bow. I didn’t give myself much time to feel bad though. I was too busy spending every spare moment I had studying and getting good grades.
“I’m so glad you’re finally letting loose and coming to a party,” said Sophie.
I frowned.
“I’ve been to parties with you before, you know.”
“I know,” she said flicking her hair over her shoulder. “But not since this year started, and this is when all the proper fun happens.”
I wondered if “proper fun” meant flirting with the school’s brawny popular footballers? She could honestly have that fun all to herself as they held no appeal to me.
“So, apparently Tyler was asking around to see if you were coming tonight,” she said with a knowing smile.
I replied, “So?”
She rolled her eyes.
“Wake up, Ava! He’s interested. Just like I hope Antony is tonight with me.”
“It was Chad last week.”
She sighed in frustration as we crossed the street.
“Chad is very taken. Antony isn’t. Keep up, Avs.”
It was my turn to roll my eyes at her. She seemed hell bent on partying with the school football team, and I knew they would all be there tonight at Antony’s party. Sophie had started late with her fascination of the opposite sex and was now trying to make up for lost time.
“Hasn’t Antony slept with every girl in our year level?” I asked next.
“Not me…yet,” she said with a wicked smile.
I shook my head and followed her to Antony’s large white house, music and laughter even louder now. We walked past a group of guys who were standing at the end of the driveway next door. I looked down at the pavement as I walked through a thick cloud of their sweet smoke.
“Hello baby,” said one.
“Nice legs,” said another as they all chuckled.
Sophie turned back to them.
“Thanks,” she said with a giggle.
“You going to the party?” said another.
“We are,” grinned Sophie.
I stopped with her and glanced over at them to see they all seemed older, at least in their early twenties. Sophie giggled some more with them and I folded my arms unsurely.
“Save a Vodka Cruiser for me,” said one.
They all chuckled again like it was an inside joke.
“Maybe I will,” she returned with a flirty smile.
I looked them over again to see they were laughing at her, not with her. I was about to grab her arm to pull her away when a set of deep brown eyes caught mine. I paused in that moment of time, unable to look away, feeling somewhat exhilarated. Panic set in, and I looked away.
“Let’s go,” I said to Sophie grabbing her hand.
“Where is your sense of adventure?” whispered Sophie angrily as we walked up the garden path to the front door of Antony’s house.
“You’d be safer sticking to footballers,” I mumbled as we stepped inside.
People were everywhere, some in groups drinking, others dancing to the loud thumping music. It wasn’t long before a shot of something was shoved into my hand, and we made our way through the house. I tried not to feel nervous and look uncomfortable as I downed the shot, hoping it would calm me. It burned my throat and I swallowed down a cough. A couple of friends greeted me with a smile, knowing I wasn’t one of those girls who did the air kisses and mock squealing thing. I watched Sophie flirt with everyone around her and take two shots to every one of mine.
I thought of the guy outside who had been watching me with his deep brown eyes, and I took another shot. I felt strange when I thought of it and couldn’t imagine why he had been staring at me. I didn’t think for a minute that a guy, especially an older one who looked like him, would lust after me. Maybe I looked weird to him and he was trying to work me out?
We soon headed outside to the large backyard where some people were already in the pool, drinking and laughing. Further on, there was a tennis court at the back and couples seemed to be making good use of the lack of lighting at the back of the garden. Speakers had been set up outside, too, and the same music was blaring out over the garden.
“Hey you two,” said Antony coming over, already looking very happy with himself. “Glad you came, Sophie. You’re looking hot,” he said, while sloppily kissing her on the cheek.
I watched Sophie giggle at him, brushing her fingers up his arm. Who was she tonight? She was giggling with the school football captain like he was hilarious. Antony seemed to love the attention and sipped his beer with an arrogant smirk as he looked over to me.
“Drinks are over there. Help yourselves,” he said, giving me a wink.
I looked away from him and headed over to the drinks section, soon realizing that Sophie hadn’t followed me. She was still with Antony, and she was still giggling. I grabbed a drink and looked around the party, taking a sip. I watched Monica dance in her bikini beside the pool, waving her arms around so everyone could see her. Chad was too busy to see her, as he hurtled himself into the pool while doing a back flip. Applause erupted around the pool like he was a god. I let out a sigh and sipped my drink.
Some days I felt so different from everyone around me, like I was missing some important part that an eighteen-year-old girl should have. I was a good girl, but not in a prudish, high moral way. But I also wasn’t one to chase boys, get drunk, whip my clothes off, and jump in a pool in the middle of a party. I never showed more skin than necessary or experimented with drugs. And I didn’t go to see bands or jump around at music festivals.
I hadn’t gone all the way with a guy, or even half the way, come to think about it. I knew I was missing out on things that everyone else seemed to enjoy doing. Since I had turned eighteen a couple of months ago, these things had become a little more important to me. Maybe I wanted to be wicked and be rebellious, but as I looked around at my school friends, I didn’t want to be that with them.
I had been so busy being perfect for my father over the years that I had somehow lost myself along the way. After my mother disappeared five years ago, I did everything I could to not push the boundaries, hoping it would return her to me and fill the gaping hole she had left behind.
“Hey, Ava, you made it.”
I turned to see a girl from my biology class walking past me and gave her a friendly smile.
“Hi.”
I was sure I had only spoken to her twice in the last six months. People knew me and talked to me, but I was never someone that people would actively search out. For most of my high school existence, I was known as the girl with the mother who had disappeared, and I resented the gossip and the pity. No one knew the real me. Hell, I didn’t even know the real me.
I sipped my drink and watched Chad grab Monica and pretend to throw her into the pool. She squealed loudly, begging him not to get her wet while others cheered him on. He soon gave up on throwing her in and started to kiss her instead. She returned his kisses by pushing herself against him while his hands gripped her bottom.
I had kissed two boys in my life and both times they hadn’t rocked my world. I honestly didn’t know what the fuss was about, because it was a slobbering mess of an exercise, if you asked me. Boys had shown interest in me, but I never really took the time to show any interest back.
I was sure there were only a couple of virgins left in Year Twelve, and Sophie and I were two of them. She had started to despise the fact, but I didn’t care too much, knowing it would happen when it was right. I didn’t have the urge to lose it to just anyone. I thought the boys in my classes were still quite silly, even though most of them were already eighteen like me.
I wanted the fairy tale.
“He’s so cute,” said Sophie interrupting my thoughts, her cheeks flushed and her eyes twinkling.
“I can’t believe you have a crush on Antony,” I said.
“Why not? He’s gorgeous.”
“He plays football,” I muttered.
“So?”
“So, since when do you go for the typical jock? I know you. You want romance and poetry and…brains.”
