It left a sour taste in my mouth.
And then Adam dropped the last bomb. "Yeah, and I guess some of the Kades' cousins are here too. They brought half of the party with them when they showed with Logan."
"Logan's here?" I jerked forward in my seat. My heart started racing. Logan was here. Mason was here. This party was too big for any parent not to know about. I had to get out of there. "Stop. Stop the car."
"What—wait!"
It was too late.
He slowed for another group of people that crossed the driveway and I shot out of there. I had no idea what I was doing or where I was going, but I started to run towards the road. My heart was pounding; it was a solid thump in my ears. The same panic started again, it threatened to choke me, but I kept going.
I was distantly aware of Adam calling my name, but I kept going.
"Hey, whoa!" A husky chuckle sounded next to me as I tore through a group. An arm snaked in front of my chest. As I ran into it, I started to fall, but a strong arm curled into my waist and I was lifted before I fell to the ground. I was held against a massive chest, but I gulped as I saw Heather through a haze in my eyes.
She'd been laughing before. I saw the small lines still around the corners of her lips, but she grew serious as she saw my fear. My chest kept heaving up and down and I clawed at the arm that held me in place. He grunted behind me. "Damn, Heather. She's going to make me bleed."
"Hold her still, Norm!" Heather snapped at him. She softened her voice and brushed some of my hair out of my eyes. "Hey, hey. What's going on? What's wrong? What happened between here and Manny's?"
"You know this chick, Heather?" A different voice chimed in.
She gave him a dirty look over her shoulder. "Yeah,so shut your pie-hole. She's my friend."
"She's Kade's bitch. Drop her, Norm."
"Shut up, Channing!" She gave Norm a look over my shoulder. "You drop her and I will rip your balls off tonight after you've passed out. She's my friend."
The arm tightened around me. A deep voice rumbled through the chest that held me. "I don't know, Heather. I don't want to mess with the Kades. They might be rich pricks, but they don't mess around."
"They're not preps, Heather." That same voice argued from the side. It was low and full of warning. "You might like the girl, but she's theirs. We shouldn't even be here. I knew it was a stupid idea to come."
Heather's eyes snapped in irritation before she twisted back around. "There are no other parties. This one is it. Besides, we're not doing anything wrong. I know this girl and she's scared. I want to know what happened—"
"And if it's because the Kades did something to her? What then?" the guy mused. He didn't sound threatened, just reasonable. "She's not our problem. You're not sticking your neck out for her."
Her mouth dropped, ready to fight back—
He spoke over her, "I don't care. You're not pulling us into a fight against them and I won't let them hurt you. If it comes to it, we're walking away. All of us. You too."
"Channing," she seethed.
As she turned back, the haze had dissipated enough so I could think a bit clearer. I could also see clearer, and the guy who had been speaking was tall and lean. He had a model's face, but his body was covered in tattoos. The simple black tee shirt that he wore didn't hide the muscular build he had despite his lean physique. And I'd been right. There was no fear in his dark eyes, but he was wary. As he gazed down at Heather in front of him, there was also concern.
The plan I had to introduce her to Logan was gone now. I didn't know the story between those two, but she wasn't single. As I thought about it, I never asked if she had a boyfriend or not. I'd been so focused on keeping my own love life to myself.
"Norm." The guy sent him a pointed look. "Drop her."
"Don't—" Heather gasped.
But the arm abruptly released me and down I went. I caught myself before I fell all the way and choked from the sudden oxygen I could now breathe. When I looked up, with tears in my eyes, I saw that the guy who'd been holding me could've been a bodybuilder. He was a giant, but he gave me a timid smile. "Sorry about that. He said drop so I dropped."
I nodded as I still coughed from all the air. "No problem."
Heather glared at him before she touched my arm. "Hey, you okay, hon? What had you so spooked before?"
I shook my head. I couldn't tell anyone about it.
"Sam?"
It didn't matter now.
I turned and stared at Mason, who stood a few feet from the group. His hands were clenched in fists. There was no one behind him. He had come alone. His eyes never left mine, but I felt the sudden question in his depths.
I didn't think. I couldn't.
I ran toward him and he caught me as I threw myself at him. His arms felt like home as he held me against his chest and I breathed him in. My legs wrapped around his waist. When his hand brushed my hair back and he kissed my forehead, I burrowed into him. I couldn't have been anywhere else.
We were both going to hell.
CHAPTER TEN
Still enveloped in Mason's arm, I felt him look over his shoulder. "It's fine. I'll take care of her."
"You sure? She freaked." Adam's voice sounded far away.
I sucked in my breath as his hand ran down my face and arm. I didn't want the moment to end. I wanted to make it last as long as it could because when the real world came back, I knew there would be consequences, serious consequences, and I couldn't think about them now. The damage was done. I was already in his arms. My mom said not to see him and I had already broken that rule once.