Keep From Falling (Markson Grove Series Book 1) (5 page)

“Sure.”

“What did that girl do to you to make you not want to bother with anyone else?” I realize as I ask this question that I must come across as intrusive.
Why the hell would I even ask something like that?

His face turns very serious and for a moment I worry that I might have crossed the line with my curiosity, but before I get a chance to take the question back, he begins to speak. “A couple of years ago I was with a girl who I was sure that I loved. I thought she loved me too, she’d never said it, but I felt like it was getting there, you know? Anyway, in the end, I learned that she never really cared about me at all, and I was a fool for ever thinking she had.”

“Did she dump you?”

He nods. “Not before we slept together, though.”

I don’t know why it surprises me that he’s not a virgin. It really shouldn’t. A lot of people our age have had sex by now, but Evan seems so innocent.

“Did she break up with you right after or something?”

He shrugs, “It doesn’t matter.”

“It does. She’s obviously really hurt you.”

He looks to me as though he’s deciding if he can trust me. I can tell that he’s unsure but after a bit of hesitation he finally decides to reveal his secret. “She was seeing two other guys while she was with me. She was sleeping with them both. They were friends and they were… sharing her, I guess… It was a real wake-up call.”

“Oh,” I say with wide eyes. I want to call her a slut, but I don’t want to hurt Evan’s feelings in case he still cares about her. So instead I ask, “How old were you?”

“Sixteen.”

“Oh,” I say again, and we both grow silent.

My mind drifts off to my first time with Skylar. I’m suddenly feeling pretty blessed to have had my first sexual experience with someone who truly loves me. Skylar made it a warm, and loving experience. I didn’t realize until this very moment how important that actually is. Sex with the wrong person can break you.

“So what’s your story?” Evan asks, interrupting my thoughts as if he’d been able to read them. For a second, I’m scared that he knows about Skylar and me.

I shrug, as casually as I can. “I really don’t have one. I’ve never had a boyfriend.” It’s not a lie, but not telling him the whole truth makes me feel guilty.

“Oh,” he says, visibly surprised. “I find that very hard to believe.”

I look at him suspiciously, wondering if he knows that I have more experience than I’m letting on. “Why?” I ask.

“Because… you’re beautiful.”

Did he just say that? He thinks I’m beautiful? My legs feel like jelly and I stumble a bit in surprise. He catches me by the arm and holds me up so I don’t face-plant into the sidewalk.

“Thanks,” I manage to say as I regain my composure.

He smiles, an adorable half-smile that makes me want to melt, and I’m suddenly feeling sick to my stomach.
What is wrong with me?
Why is he making me feel like this?
I can’t feel like this with someone else. I’m with Skylar.
I love Skylar.

“I can walk the rest of the way by myself,” I say, pulling my arm from his gentle grasp. I need to get away from him. I begin to jog ahead.

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” he calls out after me. I can tell that my behavior is really confusing him and it makes me feel bad, but not so much that I want him walking next to me again.

“No. It’s fine. It’s just that I’m almost home. I’ll see you later, ok? Thanks for walking me.”

He gives me a disappointed wave. “No problem,” he replies, as he turns to walk in the opposite direction.

Evan

Is there any way I could possibly be more stupid? I should have never told Bree that I thought she was beautiful. What was I thinking? I’m a person she just met, telling her something that, judging by her reaction, she isn’t used to hearing at all.

So. Incredibly. Fucking. Stupid.

As I continue to walk toward my house, my phone buzzes in my pocket letting me know that I have a text waiting for me. I quickly fish it out and take a look at the shattered screen. It’s Kelsie.

Kels:
How did your first shift go?

Me:
Pn.gkt b8gty

Kels:
??

Piece of crap phone.

I let out a loud sigh and shove the broken phone back into my pocket. A few moments later it begins to ring. I yank it out and peer at the screen before attempting to answer it. Not much of a surprise, it’s Kelsie again, wanting to get the scoop. I manage to find a small spot on the busted screen that lets me answer it and I put it to my ear.

“My phone’s screen is all busted,” I tell her instead of saying ‘hello’.

“How the hell did that happen?”

I shake my head even though she can’t see me. “Long story,” I mumble.

“I’m a block away from your house. Are you home yet?” she asks.

“I’m not in the mood for company.”

“Too bad. I’m on my way already. See you in five.”

The phone clicks off and I clench my fist around it angrily for a moment before shoving it back into my pocket. Why is she insisting on seeing me tonight? She should know me by now, I’m irritated and that means I don’t want company.

I decide to slow my walking pace down out of spite so that I end up reaching my house fifteen minutes after she hangs up with me.

“Jeez, Evan. What took you so long?” she asks when I finally arrive, putting her phone down on the step and pushing herself to her feet to greet me.

I’m still annoyed. “You know I didn’t have my mom’s car, Kels. It’s sitting right there,” I snap, pointing at the vehicle parked in the driveway beside us.

She doesn’t seem to be affected by my outburst in the least. In fact, I’m not even sure she noticed it. “So?” She tugs at my arm and forces me to the steps with her. “Tell me everything.”

“Kelsie… I’m not going to just sit with you and dish about a girl. It’s… it’s weird.”

Kelsie laughs, shaking her head. “I’m your best friend. Who else are you going to tell? Derrick? He’d just make fun of you, and you know it. You have a pass by having a girl best friend, Evan. You can be as lovesick and corny as you want and I won’t make fun of you. That’s a promise.” She motions her index finger over her heart and draws an invisible X.

I can’t help but smile slightly.

She nudges her shoulder into mine. “Come on, you know you wanna.”

I laugh. “You’re impossible.”

“Impossible is my specialty,” she says with a huge grin, her dyed red hair gleaming in the moonlight.

“I think I scared her off,” I confess.

“How?” she asks, growing serious. Kelsie knows how much I’ve been worrying about being alone with Bree Porter tonight; worrying about how I should introduce myself and try to get to know her. I’ve wanted to get to know her for a long while, but was never able to work up the courage to. So, when I got the job at Pete’s and learned she’d be working with me, I couldn’t believe it. Kelsie called it ‘fate’. I called it ‘damn lucky’. Either way, I’d been sick about it ever since.

“I told her she was beautiful.”

Kelsie tries to hold back a snort of laughter but is unsuccessful.

“So much for having a friend who won’t laugh at me for being corny and lovesick,” I say.

She begins to laugh even harder.

“I’m serious, Kels. She told me she’s never had a boyfriend and I told her that she was beautiful.” I shake my head in disgust.

Kelsie calms her fit of giggles. “So what? Bree Porter
is
beautiful. You weren’t lying.”

“Yeah, but she got all freaked out after that and took off.”

“What did you talk about before she got freaked?”

I shrug. “Dating history and stuff.”

Kelsie’s eyes open wide, “Adrienne history?” She asked with a small gasp.

I shoot her an annoyed glare. “Yeah, because I have so much more history other than Adrienne.”

“Calm down cranky pants. I meant it like you never tell anyone about your Adrienne history, you know?”

“Yeah, I know.” I sigh, “Sorry.”

“I forgive you,” she says with a matter-of-fact nod. She goes on, “are you going to tell me what you told her, or what?”

“Oh, you know, the usual. I was with a girl. I loved a girl. I had sex with a girl. The girl cheated on me with two assholes… at the same time.” I cock my head to the side and shoot her a little half smile.

“Yeah,” she says with a sympathetic nod. Kelsie knows that Adrienne cheating on me with those two guys, one of them being my so-called friend at the time, is an incredibly touchy subject for me and we rarely ever speak of it. “On the plus side, I’ve had you all to myself for the last two years,” she says cheerfully.

“That’s supposed to be a bonus?” I tease.

She shoves me off the step playfully. “Shut up. You know you love me.”

I laugh. “Where’s Derrick?” I ask, attempting to change the subject. I don’t want to keep drudging up what happened with Bree tonight.

“Oh no, you don’t! We are talking about Bree Porter. No subject changes until I know exactly what happened tonight.”

“I told you, I scared her off. I was a complete idiot.”

“Oh, stop being so hard on yourself. She probably was just caught off guard by your flirting. If she’s never had a boyfriend before, then she might not be used to that.”

“I doubt it,” I reply bitterly.

“I’m serious Evan. Tomorrow at school, go see her. I promise you, she will be more at ease about your interest in her and it will go smoothly. I’m sure of it.”

“It definitely couldn’t get any worse.”

“Exactly!” She pats me on the back with an extra burst of cheerfulness as I get up to go into the house.

“You staying the night?” I ask her once I reach the door.

She stands, wiping invisible dirt from her hands onto the front of her jeans. “Yeah, your mom already set up the hid-a-bed for me.”

I smile. “I’m surprised she didn’t insist that you sleep in my room.”

She laughs. “Nah, your mom’s over trying to set us up. Besides, she’s a big fan of Derrick so there’s no way she’d want to do that to him.”

I hold the door open and motion for her to go in ahead of me, “That’s true. You hungry?”

“I could eat.”

“I’m starved. Mom has some lasagna in the fridge.”

“Awesome,” she says, hurrying toward the kitchen.

I laugh at her excitement as I shut the door behind us.

Bree

I wake up Thursday morning with an overwhelming sense of guilt about how I took off on Evan after his unexpected compliment the night before. My attraction to him worries me.

Evan Daniels has captured me. His beautiful brown eyes have looked into mine and left me with so many questions.

There’s a tap on my window followed by the sound of it being slid open. I don’t look to see who it is, I know it’s Skylar. She climbs the trellis outside to my second story window every morning before my parents wake.

I am facing the bedroom door, so I don’t see her, but I can tell by the rustling of fabric that she’s taking her clothes off. She slides in the bed beside me and pushes her naked body close to mine. Her entire body cradles me as she kisses the back of my neck.

I turn around. “Good morning,” I say with a grin.

She runs her fingers across my cheek and then gently combs them through my hair. “Good morning to you.”

Her long black hair is hanging seductively in her face, and her pouty lips are the most beautiful color of pink when she is not wearing her usual dark lipstick. I love her face the best when it’s clean of makeup like this. Innocent and beautiful. The dark black eye makeup and harsh red lipstick don’t take away from her beauty, but they hide who she really is and I love the real her. The Skylar no one else but me ever gets to see.

I kiss her softly.

“Are your parents still asleep?” she asks quietly. Her cheeks are flush and I can tell that she wants to have sex.

I feel a bit strange about doing that with her this morning after everything that’s happened with Evan last night. I mean, it’s not like anything
actually
happened, but the thoughts I’ve had make me feel guilty.

“I think my dad is up,” I lie.

“What do you say we do something really quiet then?” she asks with a giggle, climbing on top of me.