Hector (32 page)

“Why are you here?” She finally asked but still didn’t lift her face
away from her hands.

“Because I was worried about you.”

She turned her face, removing one hand to look at him but still cradled
her head in the other. Hector couldn’t tell if she’d been crying or if her
makeup was just smeared. Somehow even the dark smeared makeup around her eyes
made her eyes bluer. “Worried about me?”

“Yeah, you’re my friend, and I didn’t want anyone taking
advantage of you. I know what happens at these parties. You do things when
you’re drinking that you might not otherwise. Guys like Raul are banking on
that.”

She stared at him for a moment, a little too thoughtful. “Were
you . . .” she began but then seemed hesitant.

“What?” She’d already said something tonight he’d be wondering
about all weekend. He didn’t want her adding more to that. “Was I what?”

“Were
you
drunk that
night?”

She stared at him as his stomach took a dive because he knew
exactly what she was asking and why. “No, I wasn’t, not at all.”

“Then why?”

Now
he wasn’t sure what
she was asking, but he took a guess anyway. “Why did I kiss you?”

“No.” Her eyes welled up fast, and she shook her head, burying
her face back in her hands.
“Never mind.”

Oh, hell no!
“No, tell
me,” he said, squeezing her leg now.
“Why what?”

She reached into the glove compartment and pulled out a tissue,
still shaking her head. Dabbing her eyes, she sniffled a little.

Hector slipped his hand into hers. “Charlee, please don’t cry.”
He’d seen plenty of
drunk
girls crying over silliness,
but instinct and her expression told him this wasn’t the case. This wasn’t
something she was feeling just because of the alcohol. He thought he’d
suspected resentment from her before, and now he knew he’d been spot on, but this
was more than resentment. She was hurt.
Shit
.

She still wouldn’t look at him. “Forget it, Hector. You’ve
already told me why anyway.” She reached for the glove and grabbed the tissue.
“You don’t need to say it again. In fact, I don’t want you to, so please
don’t.”

Hector pushed up on his back leg so he could get closer to her
inside the car. “Okay, I won’t,” he said so close to her face he could smell
the gum in her mouth, feel the warmth of her skin. He knew he shouldn’t ask,
but he had to. It would drive him crazy if he didn’t. “Why did you say I make
you sad?” She closed her eyes and her entire face scrunched in what looked like
pain. He grazed the side of her face with the backs of his fingers. “What’s
wrong, baby?” her eyes flew open at the sound of that last word, and those
beautiful but too sad eyes searched his.

If she asked why he called her that, he wouldn’t have an answer
because he had no idea why either. It just came out—felt right. Slowly she sat
up a little and touched his face with the tips of her fingers as her eyes
traveled down to his lips. A single tear traveled down the side of her cheek,
and he caught it with his finger. “Tell me,” he whispered. “Why are you sad?”

“You,” she said then pressed her lips together. Before he could
urge her to finish, because he sure as hell wasn’t leaving her this way tonight
without finding out what she meant, she went on. “You don’t feel what I do.”

“What do you feel?” The words flew out instantaneously, but
before she could say anything, he took them back. “No, don’t tell me.”

“
Why
?” Her expression
was a frustrated one now.

“Because, Charlee, you’ve been drinking and it’s not fair. You
probably wouldn’t be saying any of this if you weren’t, even the part about me
making you sad. So it was wrong of me to ask you why you had. I’m sorry.”

Charlee dropped her hand away from his face and fell back into
the seat. “You’re sorry?” She laughed, but it was hardly a happy laugh.

“Yes, and I’m sorry that I make you sad, whatever the reason.”

He looked away from her when he saw someone walking toward them
from the corner of his eye. Drew was already on her way back to them. He leaned
in quickly and kissed Charlee on the cheek, making her close her eyes for a
moment. He wasn’t
that
dense. If she
was hurt—sad—he knew why. “But you’re wrong about one thing. I won’t let you
tell me what you’re feeling, but I’m pretty sure I’m feeling it too.”

She sat up, getting dangerously close to him again. “If that were
true, you wouldn’t have asked me to pretend what happened between us never did.”

“It is true, but it’s better if nothing like that ever happens
again.”

Her wounded expression made him want to take her face in his
hands and kiss her despite what he’d just said. “Because you’re afraid I’ll
want more?”

Staring into those beautiful eyes—eyes that could own him with
one single request—he frowned. “Something
like
that.”

It was partly true. If she did want more, as much as he’d be
willing to give it her, he couldn’t, but it wasn’t for the reasons she was
thinking. She stared at him for a moment before sitting back in her seat and sighing.
“You’re right. I
would
want more.”

He wanted nothing more than to tell her that if she wanted it then
she had it. It’s all he could think about now anyway.

“Okay delete, delete, delete!” Drew said as she reached them.
Hector stood up, still lost in
Charlee’s
last
statement. “Remember,” Drew continued, “whatever she said tonight doesn’t
count. This is probably the drunkest I’ve ever seen her. In fact,” as soon as
Hector had moved away, Drew closed the passenger door, “let me just make sure
she doesn’t say anything else that she’ll be killing me tomorrow for letting
her say.” Drew turned to him and smiled. “Thank you for, once again, coming to
her rescue. It’s like you’re becoming her personal guardian angel.”

Hector managed a smile. “You two are going straight home, right?”

“Yes. Well I’ll probably go through a drive-thru and get her
something to eat before taking her home and putting her in bed.”

For the first time since the night he won the tournament, he
really looked at Drew. She was a little on the spunky side, and he liked that, but
she obviously had a good heart and really cared about Charlee. That made him
like her even more. He was glad now he’d told Nestor to stay away from her too.
“You’re a good friend, Drew.
Charlee’s
lucky to have
you.”

Strangely that made her smile nearly
flatline
.
“Thanks,” she said simply before walking around the car and got in.

Hector waited until the car was out of sight before making his
way back to his truck.

~*~

Bits and pieces were all Charlee remembered of what
happened last night after she started drinking the Jack and Coke. Some parts
were clearer than others, like chunks of her conversation with Hector, while
she sat in Drew’s car. Though parts were still choppy, and she couldn’t
remember when he got there exactly or how she got to Drew’s car.

Drew assured her she’d walked on her own and no one had to carry
her. She didn’t even remember Hector grabbing what’s his face by the neck until
Drew jarred her memory. Another thing she sat there thinking about now was what
Hector said last night. Thankfully she’d told Drew last night what he said;
otherwise, she wouldn’t actually remember him saying it.

“You were right, but you were also wrong. He
is
feeling for me what I’m feeling for him. He told me so. But
you’re wrong about him finding his match in me. He’s afraid if we ever do what
we did before I’ll want more, and apparently, he’s not willing to give any more
than that to even me.”

Drew said after that Charlee had cried most of the way home until
she passed out. Her best friend set the cup of chamomile tea in front of
Charlee a little too loudly. Even though Charlee knew her head was just
sensitive to any noises right now, she caught the added force in which she set
the cup down. “You seem angry.”

“I
am
angry,” Drew said,
pouring the pancake batter onto the skillet.

“I’m sorry, Drew.” She laid her head against her arm on the
table. “I swear to you I will never get that drunk again. I doubt I’ll ever
drink again period.”

Drew flipped the pancake and then turned to Charlee. “Not at
you
, silly. The whole point of last
night was for you to get a little juiced and hang loose, just not as juiced
as
you did, and even that wasn’t your
fault.”

Ah
. Charlee closed her
eyes. She should’ve known Drew would never be mad at her for trying to have a
good time at a party. She was mad at Raul for getting her
that
drunk.

“I still can’t believe what a jerk Hector really is.”

Charlee lifted her head a little too fast and paid the price.
“Ouch!” She held her fingers at her throbbing temples. “Hector? But he saved me
from getting in the van with that guy.”

“Yes, and that’s exactly my point. Charlee, he went above and
beyond last night to go there and find you because he was worried about you.
You should’ve seen the look on his face when he realized I didn’t know where
you were. I swear to you he seemed almost as freaked out as I was.”

That almost made Charlee smile, but her head was still pounding
too much.

“You don’t remember,” Drew continued. “But, God, I wish you did,
because that rage in his eyes, when he wanted to strangle Raul to death for
simply insisting you were leaving with him, was like none I’d ever seen.” Drew
flipped her pancake again and then turned to Charlee. “No, I take that back. I
have seen it. It was the same look on his face the day he saw you with Ross and
he called him your
fucking little
boyfriend
. Remember that look?”

Charlee closed her eyes, pretending to be trying to remember, but
how could she forget? She’d played that scene in her head over and over. But
she just nodded without saying a word.

“Okay, picture that only ten times worse. He looked ready to kill
Raul. There is no denying he’s got it bad for you. Then he actually admits he
does have feelings for you?” Drew shook her head, looking back at the skillet.
“The concern was written all over his face when I reached the car and saw your
teary eyes, Charlee. I knew whatever it was you two had been talking about was
something that weighed heavily on him. And he’s still going to fight everything
he’s feeling because he can’t commit to just one girl?” She flipped her final
pancake onto her plate and shook her head again. “I’m sorry, but that just
makes him such a pig. Someone outta call him on it.”

“Don’t you dare,” Charlee said as her friend took a seat in front
of her. “At least he admits it and doesn’t do what some guys do—promise to be
true and then not follow through. We at least have to give him credit for that.”

Charlee hated to admit it, but it was actually noble of him to do
be doing this. She was sure no matter how many times he tried to kiss her
without the promise of anything more she’d probably let him and he probably sensed
that she would. He could take advantage of that and he hadn’t. It just hurt
that she obviously wasn’t enough for him.

Taking a deep breath, she glanced up at Drew, who looked a little
too pensive for
Charlee’s
comfort. She knew that
look. Drew was up to something again.

“Drew?”

“Hmm?”

“We’re dropping this now, okay? No more games. No more trying to
prove your theories. No more of anything. There’s nothing to prove anymore.
He’s admitted it now. It is what it is. We can’t change who he is, and I’m done
getting emotionally beat up over this. In fact, I’m considering going back home
for a week or so. Maybe that would help me stop thinking about this so much and
move on already.”

“Go home? You can’t go home in the middle of the semester.”

“I can if I’m way ahead and make sure I do it on a week like next
week when I know I have no tests or anything important do.”

Making the most pathetic begging face, Drew placed her hands in
front of her as if she were praying. “No, Charlee. Please! I don’t want you
go.”

“Then promise me we’re done with all this.”

The pathetic expression was gone, and Drew chewed her food now
with a little smile but didn’t say anything.

“You haven’t promised.”

Reaching for a napkin, Drew was able to cover her nose and mouth
just before sneezing. “Bless you,” Charlee waited through three more sneezes,
and still Drew promised nothing. “Drew?”

“Yes, yes,” Drew finally conceded. “No more games. No more
theories.”

“No more
anything
.”
Charlee repeated. “I’m done with all this.” She stood up from the table, taking
her cup with her. “Say it, Drew.”

“
You’re
done with all
of this.”

Charlee turned to look at her too-smug-sounding friend and peered
at her. If her head weren’t pounding so much, she might put more effort into
trying to figure out what that grin on her face was about. Instead she gave in
to the pain. “Good. I’m going back to bed now.”

Charlee was glad that the pain was all she could think of right
that minute, so she headed for her bed and would worry about having to face
Hector again after last night’s disaster later.

Chapter 20

Walter hadn’t talked about Charlee nearly as much as he
normally did, and still the workout with him that morning had been grueling.
After hearing Charlee say she wanted more last night, it made it that much more
torturous to have to hold back from giving it to her. To think, if it weren’t for
his loyalty to Walter, a guy whose only move so far was to invite her over to
see his robot and play chess with his grandpa, Hector could be holding Charlee
every day now.