The Boyfriend Deal (5 page)

“I had every intention of giving you some space,” Tyler said. “But do you think your mom would mind if I stayed at your house and worked on homework for a little while? Assuming you have any that is.”

“Did you really just ask if you could do homework with me?”

He nodded.

“I don’t guess Mom will have an issue with it. Hunter never wanted to do homework with me.”

“I thought we already decided that Hunter was an idiot.”

I smiled as we walked out to his truck, then froze in horror. “I think Alicia is pissed at you too.”

His gaze swerved to his truck, and the very flat tire with a knife sticking out of it. Except, on closer inspection, I knew it hadn’t been Alicia who had done this. I knew that knife. Hunter had kept it in his glove compartment for as long as we’d dated.

“Hunter,” I hissed.

Tyler looked down at me. “Hunter did this?”

“I recognize the knife. It seems he’s transferred his attention to you now that it’s gotten around school that we’re dating. I’m really sorry, Tyler.”

“No worries. I have a spare tire, but it’s going to take me a few minutes to change it. Are you okay waiting with me or do you want to catch a ride with someone else?”

“I can wait.”

It was the least I could do. After all, my psycho ex was the one who’d vandalized his truck. I shouldn’t have been surprised by the move. Hunter was unstable when it came to me, which I didn’t understand. He’d cheated on me repeatedly, if the rumors were to be believed, so why did he want me back so badly? It couldn’t be because he had feelings for me. Was it a control thing? I’d been weak and he’d been able to push me around; maybe he wasn’t ready to give that up?

I watched as Tyler changed the tire on his truck, his muscles bulging. I didn’t like the fact that Hunter had done this, but I had to admit that I was entertained for the moment. What girl wouldn’t like seeing Tyler like this? Was this why the cheerleaders hung out around football practice to watch the guys do push-ups and sit-ups? I had to admit, I saw the attraction in doing something like that, if the boy I was watching was Tyler.

When he was finished, he grimaced at his dirty hands. “I’d help you into the truck, but I don’t want to mess up your outfit.”

“It’s okay. I’m really sorry about Hunter. You should tell Principal Richards. It’s only fair that my ex gets into trouble for trashing your truck when yours got in trouble for trashing my locker.”

“I just want to get you home.”

“Please, Tyler? He shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this.”

Tyler sighed, but agreed. It took another twenty minutes to discuss the issue with Principal Richards, who wanted to take pictures of the tire with the knife in it and call the police. It took a while for officers to arrive but once they’d taken our statement and some pictures of their own, and I’d told the principal that I knew it was Hunter’s knife because I’d seen it in his car, we were finally free to go. I knew Mom was probably worrying because we were about an hour late, and I hadn’t thought to call or text.

“What do you think will happen to Hunter?” I asked.

“Since we involved the police, he may do some jail time. Is he still seventeen?”

I shook my head. “He turned eighteen last month.”

“Then he may be tried as an adult. I don’t think he’s going to college in the fall, or graduating high school.”

I felt bad for Hunter, but he’d brought this on himself.

Tyler got us to my house without incident and I apologized to Mom when she opened the door.

“I’m really sorry, Mom, but we had some problems at school today. Tyler’s ex-girlfriend squirted yogurt all over the inside of my locker, then Hunter decided to put a knife through one of Tyler’s tires. It took a while to change it and talk to the principal and then the police were called.”

Her look said she was both relieved and worried.

“You should have called,” she said.

“I know. I just got caught up in the moment.”

“Would you mind if I wash my hands, Mrs. Ryan?” Tyler asked, holding up his blackened hands.

“Not at all, Tyler. The bathroom is down the hall.” Mom waved him in that direction before facing me again. “Are you sure this relationship is worth the trouble you seem to be having?”

“Mom, Hunter was a problem before I agreed to date Tyler. Alicia is a new complication, but maybe she got the message after the principal made her clean my locker. I heard she got detention too and was warned another infraction would end with a suspension.”

“And Hunter?” Mom asked.

“The principal was going to call his parents after he got back to his office. Tyler told the cops he didn’t want to press charges, but they said since he was a minor it wasn’t up to him. He said he could understand the guy being upset because if he’d lost me, he’d feel the same way.”

“That’s not comforting, Hadley. You don’t need two boys that are completely nuts.”

I laughed and shook my head. “Tyler isn’t like that, Mom. I promise.”

“Very well. What are your plans for today?” she asked.

Tyler cleared his throat to alert her to his presence as he walked up to us. “I asked Hadley if I could do homework with her, as long as you’re all right with it, Mrs. Ryan. I’ll understand if you want me to go. I’ve caused Hadley a lot of trouble by asking her out.”

Mom patted him on the shoulder. “It’s all right, Tyler. You can stay if you want. Dinner will be served at six, if you think it would be okay with your mother for you to stay. We’re having meatloaf, green beans, corn on the cob, and rolls.”

Tyler’s stomach rumbled and we laughed.

“I’ll make sure I send my mom a text to let her know I’ll be home after dinner.”

“Hadley, you may study in your room, but the door remains open.”

I felt my cheeks burn as I led Tyler up to my room. What would he think of it? It was kind of girly, but I liked it. I tried to see the room through his eyes. The lilac walls, white eyelet comforter, the deep purple armchair near the window. My desk was a mess, and it wasn’t big enough for two people. I wasn’t sure where Mom thought we were going to sit.

Tyler took my hand and led me over to the bed, pulling me down beside him. Did he think homework was a keyword for something else? Because I had every intention of actually working on my assignments. Then again…

His lips brushed against mine and I couldn’t help but lean into him. His fingers tangled in my hair and I fisted the front of his shirt. I’d never enjoyed kissing someone as much as I loved kissing Tyler. I was really going to miss this when it was all over. But what if it didn’t have to be over? Was there anything I could possibly do to make him want to keep me after his mom had been appeased?

He pulled away and rested his forehead against mine. “I could kiss you all day and all night.”

My toes curled at his words and I smiled up at him.

“So, what kind of homework do you have?” he asked, picking up his bag.

“Well, there’s the essay we both have. We could work on that, if you want?”

He nodded. “Sounds good. Are you going to type yours later or just turn in a handwritten one? Our class was told that either would be acceptable, but a handwritten one has to be longer. I think it was three typed pages or five handwritten pages.”

“I’m definitely going to type mine, but I’ll probably start it by hand.”

“If I’d thought of doing homework with you before I left this morning, I’d have brought my laptop with me. I’ll stick it in the truck tomorrow, just in case.”

“You want to do homework with me again tomorrow?” Did he really want to spend so much time with me? Or was it all for show? Not that his mother would know the difference between him being at my house or hanging with his friends. Either way, he wasn’t home.

“I like spending time with you, Hadley. I enjoyed our date yesterday. I liked having dinner with your family last night. And I loved going to breakfast with you this morning. I’m not here because I have to be; I’m here because I want to be.”

“But your mom and military school…”

He nodded. “Yeah, that’s a part of it, but I really do like hanging out with you. I just wish it hadn’t taken me so long to get to this point. Maybe if we’d talked sooner, my mom never would have felt she needed to threaten me.”

I snorted. “Yeah, like you would have asked me out otherwise.”

“Hadley, the fact that you’re a band geek had nothing to do with it. I didn’t care that you were a geek and I still don’t. But I dated a certain type of girl because that’s what I wanted. Easy. And you are far from easy. You’re the kind of girl someone takes home to their mother, the kind you go away to college with, and the kind you eventually marry.”

“That’s a bad thing?” I asked softly.

“No. It’s a really good thing, but most guys aren’t looking for that in high school. Most of us just want to have a good time, and you’re not a good time girl. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you, or that you’re less somehow. If anything, it means you’re better than all of them. Better than me.”

“Tyler…”

He placed a finger over my lips, then followed it with a kiss. His tongue traced my lips until I opened and let him in. If I’d thought our other kisses were hot, this one was hotter. If what he’d said was true, did that mean he was no longer looking for those party girls? Was he ready to have a serious girlfriend, the kind you took to college with you? Was that why he’d mentioned needing to apply to two more schools?

My heart pounded in my chest as I thought about the possibilities. A future with Tyler was all I’d ever dreamed of, but I’d always been too afraid to reach for it. Was it now within my grasp?

“We should do homework,” he said, pulling away. “Although, I can’t promise to keep my hands off you.”

“Tyler, what are we doing? I mean really.”

“I don’t know, Hadley. Let’s just see where things go, okay? I know this started out as a way to get Mom off my back, but the more time I spend with you, the more I like you. I’m not saying I’m great boyfriend material or anything, but this may end up being more than just a deal between friends.”

“Were we friends?” I asked.

“I’ve always had my eye on you, Hadley. I just knew better than to go after you.”

“Better you than Hunter,” I muttered. “That’s one mistake I’d love to take back.”

He laughed and kissed me again. “And I’d love to go back and never ask Alicia out. Yes, she had a purpose in my life, but I’m not sure it was worth it. She’s a little crazy, if you haven’t noticed.”

“As long as she’s satisfied with her prank and doesn’t come after me with a bat or something…”

“I’d never let her hurt you.” He laced our fingers together. “Please believe that, if nothing else.”

I nodded, my cheeks flushed, and released his hand to pick up my notebook. As I worked on my essay, I caught him watching me several times. It wasn’t a bad feeling to have, to be wanted like this, but I wasn’t used to it, and I wasn’t sure what exactly he wanted from me. If we were to make this relationship the real thing, would he expect more from me? More than I had given Hunter? I was a little worried I’d be all too willing to give in to him.

I had trouble concentrating, but I was happy with my progress, all things considered. It wasn’t every day I had the most popular boy in school in my bedroom. Setting my essay aside, I stood and stretched. The bedside clock said we’d been working for an hour already.

“Want to take a break?” I asked.

“What did you have in mind?”

From the gleam in his eyes, I knew what
he
had in mind. “I thought we could go downstairs and get a snack.”

Tyler stood and took my hand. Since he started leading me toward the stairs, I assumed he was in agreement. Either that or he was going to take me hostage and toss me in his truck. I didn’t think that second option was really all that viable since his things were still in my bedroom. When we got to the kitchen, I could smell dinner cooking, but my mom was nowhere in sight. That didn’t mean she wasn’t lurking nearby though.

I took out two sodas, handing one to Tyler, then pulled open the snack drawer.

“We have cookies, peanut butter crackers, honey buns, and chocolate cupcakes.” I looked at him expectantly, and he reached into the drawer and pulled out a package of crackers. Deciding I wanted the same, I grabbed another package then shut the drawer.

“Are we eating down here so your mom can see I’m not molesting you?”

I choked on my swallow of soda, and he thumped me on the back.

“I’m not allowed to eat in my room. Mom complains when I leave crumbs upstairs.”

I sat next to Tyler while we devoured our snack. I was getting a little too used to him being around. When we broke up, it was really going to suck. I’d gotten used to being alone and then he came barging into my life with this ridiculous deal. And me being the idiot I was, I’d agreed to it.

“Why don’t you have a pet?” he asked out of the blue.

“A pet?”

He shrugged. “You seem like a cat person, but I haven’t seen any food dishes or anything around. There’s no dog in the backyard yapping to be let in.”