Fallen Crest Family (3 page)

Her mouth hung open, no sound came from it. Then one of the guys let loose a snicker and she exploded, "Shut the hell up, Strauss! This ain't got a goddamn thing to do with you."

His snicker doubled in volume. A slap to his thig
h was heard as he chuckled, "Its sure fun to watch you getting your rear end handed to you."

If she could've killed me, she would've in that moment. The blood drained from her face, and she crossed her arms over her chest. Her lips were stiff as she promised, "I will make you pay for this. The guys might be okay with you, but the girls won't be and we're no picnic, honey. You better watch out from now on."

As she stormed away, I knew her shoulder was going to slam into mine. With gritted teeth, I reacted before I thought about the consequences and I shoulder-checked her instead. She bounced back into a counter, and gasped again. The loathing had always been there, but now white-hot hatred came at me. A low growl emitted from her throat before she rushed from the room.

Again, there was silence in the room.

My heart dropped to my gut as I waited for the next showdown. There were a handful of girls spread out among the other guys.

I wasn't stupid. I had learned that Mason and Logan's friends from Fallen Crest Public were the rough and tumble sort of kids. They weren't from money. They didn't give a damn about whose daddy paid for their trip overseas or the secret trysts of which daddy was with which mommy, or even who was cheating with whose secretary. These were the kids that partied hard, played harder, and turned into a single unit against an outsider. They were tight-knit. They were closed-mouthed. And they weren't stupid, even though I knew those from my school would mislabel them as that. They were far from stupid and I knew something pivotal had just happened.

Ethan, the fourth in command after Mason, Logan, and Nate, had turned against one of the girls. I also knew that meant there would be a divide. The girls would hate me, while the guys were now okay. And judging by the relieved shoulders and carefree laughter in the room, the guys might've been hoping for this for awhile. Then again, who would willingly want to go against Mason and Logan?

But I still had a fight on my hands. The girls were going to be the toughest, and since they had divorced from the guys' support, I figured they would be worse than normal. This was going to be hell.

Kate was the leader. Parker was her sidekick, but there was another twosome that made up the core group of their four. Natalie and Jasmine. They weren't in the kitchen that morning, but I knew they were somewhere. They were going to be coming for me, somehow, someplace.

Ethan went to the refrigerator and grabbed another beer. As he leaned against a counter, crossed one faded jean-clad leg over the other, and folded his arms across his chest again, he smirked at me. "You need to learn how to kick some ass because you're going to need it. Those girls don't care two hoots if Mason and Logan don't like it. Those girls are vicious. They stick together like a pack of jacked-up wolves. You best get some bite to you."

Oh great. I didn't think running long distances was going to help me with that, but I couldn't be surprised. I had known this would come. This was a group that you had to fight your way in to prove you deserved your spot amongst them.

There was a reason why Mason and Logan were friends with them.

Mason wasn't in our room when I went back, so I went in search for him. As I was going past some stairs that led to the basement, or one of the basement areas, a whistle stopped me.

"Sam, what's going on?"

Logan came up with no shirt and his jeans unbuttoned. His hair was messily rumpled, as if he'd just woken up or just had sex. With him, I never knew. And then I got my answer.

My eyes went wide. Jessica was behind him. Her shirt was twisted to the side and she was zipping up her own jeans when she saw me. A thick bunch of her hair slipped over her face and covered her eyes, but she brushed it back before she stopped behind Logan.

A smug smirk came over her as she leaned against the wall. "Hiya, Sam. How's it going?"

I rounded on Logan. "Are you kidding me?"

Regret flashed over his face, but then he reached for my hand. "You okay? You seem upset."

"You screwed her?"

"You seemed upset before you saw us. What's going on?"

"Oh." I bit my lip. He didn't want to talk about Jessica, I got the message. I hated it. I hated the idea of him and her together. It was one of my worst nightmares. "If you date her, I'm gone."

His eyes widened a fraction, but that was the only reaction I got from him. A cocky glimmer came over him and he rolled his shoulders back. "Oh, come on, Sam. It's not like that. I promise."

"Jerk," Jessica hissed.

"But something else is going on. What is it?"

"Logan." I pressed my hands against my forehead. A headache was coming on. I already knew that I couldn't stop it. It'd be full blown within an hour and I'd be on the bathroom floor very soon. "I can't deal with this right now. Do you know where Mason is?"

A snort came from the sideline.

I whirled on her. "Do not make one more sound. This morning hasn't been the greatest, and I'd love to take it out on you. I really would."

Her haughty eyes met mine, but there was no retort. I was shocked. Jessica wasn't one to not have a hateful comment ready on the tip of her tongue. That was who she was, spiteful and mean. But then I realized she was keeping quiet because of Logan. I wanted to throw my hands in the air and pull my hair out. She was back to him. I couldn't believe it. I didn't know what she had said to him or done to him to do whatever they did together, but I knew it was sneaky. Then I remembered something else.

"Aren't you dating Jeff?"

She shrugged. "Yeah, but it's not like we're based on good relationship morals. You should know that more than anyone." A smug look came over her.

I wanted that look gone, and I reacted before I thought about it. I raised my hand and slapped her.

She gasped. When her face snapped back to mine, the old Jessica was back in place. The hatred I always saw from her was there. She sucked in her breath. Her chest rose up and down in dramatic breaths, and I knew she was trying to keep herself under control.

I said, heated, "You were my best friend for years. I dated Jeff for three years. If you think I was more hurt because you screwed my boyfriend for two years, then you really are a shallow person. I lost a friend, you idiot. I lost
both
of my best friends at the same time."

A different look came to her then. Her hand fell from her cheek slowly.

"Hey. Okay." Logan stepped between us. His hand touched my elbow, and he urged me up the stairs. "What's going on? What happened this morning?"

I let him lead me down a hallway and away from her. When I glanced back, Jessica slipped further down the hallway. I hoped she was leaving. I couldn't handle her being there, not in my world. I wouldn't let her destroy my life again.

"Hey."

I snapped back to him. I was still shaking from the anger inside of me. "Did you sleep with her?"

He grimaced again and ran a hand through his hair. As he rubbed at his jaw, he let loose a deep breath. "Man, I wasn't thinking that through last night."

"So you did."

It stung, it stung a lot.

"Yeah," he whispered. "I am sorry, Sam. I didn't think about you. That seemed so long ago, and I was drunk. I was alone. I was on the couch downstairs, and she was there. She was whispering all these great promises to me. Her hands were all over me. I liked her touch last night. I liked it a lot. That girl is good in bed, but damn, I should've thought more clearly. I really am sorry."

"She took my friends away." It hurt to admit that, but it was the truth. Jeff hadn't been a stand-up guy, but I was certain that she had seduced him. And she had gotten Lydia to cover for them. She took them both away. When it had come out, she tried to turn more against me. Whatever I had done to her, it must've been horrible, but I had no idea. That was the worst part of it. I had no idea why someone who I had loved since we were kids hated me so much. Had we ever really been friends?

A strong arm wrapped around my shoulders, and I was pulled against Logan's hard chest. He dipped his head and pressed a kiss to my forehead. "I'm really sorry, Sam. But I promise last night was the one and only time. I won't have anything to do with her again. I'm sorry."

I nodded. It took some of the pain away, but until Jessica had sprung up in my life again, I had no idea how much I'd been hurt by her. The door was open now, and more pain came through. Then I blocked it. I repressed it all back down again, and tuned into what Logan was saying, "…pool house maybe."

"Huh?"

"If you're looking for Mason, he's probably in the pool house. It's where he and Nate hang out. They think no one knows about it, but we all do. It's their alone time together." He winked at me as he squeezed me close for one more hug. "You okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine. She brings bad memories. That's all."

"Okay." Then he yawned and ran a hand over his face again. "I've got to wake up. Man. You eat yet?"

"I was in there, yeah."

"Okay, go check the pool house. I'm sure he's in there. I'm going to get some grub." He pressed one more kiss to my forehead before he let me go. As he left, I watched him saunter away. I rolled my eyes. I didn't think Logan knew how to walk without a cocky strut.

When I slipped out through one of the patio doors, there were more people in the pool. A group had congregated at some of the tables near it. I didn't recognize any of them so I continued to the pool house. When I stepped inside, Mason was at the bar. He sat on a stool with a cup of coffee in front of him.
It looked like it hadn't been touched, but the steam still rose in the air. He was hunched over with his phone stuck to his ear.

"Hey."

I jumped and whirled around. Nate sat on a couch with a grin from ear to ear. His shoulders shook in amusement, but he gestured towards Mason. "He's been on the phone the whole time."

"He was talking to his dad." I glanced over, but he hadn't looked up or acknowledged me. Then I heard his next words, "Fuck off, dad. I mean it!" The hostility in them blasted me. I jumped in reaction but was dumbfounded when I heard Nate's soft laughter. I whirled back around. "You think that's funny?"

"Yeah." The laughter died away, but a small grin was still in place. He lounged back on the couch and threw one arm to rest on the top. "When Mason gets pissed, it's never good for the other person. And since it's his dad, I'm excited for what we're going to be doing."

"If that's what you want, fine." Mason's loud exclamation was followed with a curse as he dropped his phone on the bar. He shoved back from the stool but stopped when he saw me. All the rage drained from him, and he sighed before his head slowly hung down. "I'm sorry, Sam. I am."

"What are you talking about?" My throat was suddenly so dry. It was painful for me to speak. "What did your dad say?"

"Your mom's being a bitch. We're supposed to head home right now."

"What else did he say?" I knew there was more. I could see it on his face, but he shook his head. "Mason."

"We should go home."

This wasn't good. Mason didn't stand down to anyone and that was what he was doing. Dread turned to a sick feeling. I didn't want to go into that house. I didn't want to deal with my mother, not when she had affected him like this.

Nate stood with us. He had a small grin on his face, like he was anticipating some fireworks. But Mason held a hand out. "No, man. Just me and Sam."

The grin vanished. Nate straightened to his fullest height of six feet and one inch. His shoulders squared back. "You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Logan?"

"Don't tell him what's going on." Mason touched the small of my back and urged me ahead of him. He paused at the door. "Keep him here. Keep him happy. He can't rush into this, he'd make it worse."

Nate nodded. Mission received and accepted.

As I watched the exchange, a different perverse feeling came over me. This was the dynamic between the two that I didn't like, where they cut everyone else out. If they did it with Logan, I knew they could do it with me. That didn't sit well with me. I didn't like the idea of Mason having someone 'handle' me as he had Nate handle Logan at times.

But I didn't say anything. I was too scared to, not because of how Mason would react, but because I couldn't handle any more deep stuff. The hurt that I was blasted with when I saw Jessica still felt raw. It made me realize how much I had suppressed at the beginning of the year, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. There was so much more pain where that came from, and right now, as Mason and I slipped around the side of the house and went to his car, I knew we weren't headed to an afternoon of kissing and cuddling. We were headed to meet with my mom and his dad. Not good.

Once we had left the driveway and headed back towards town, I reached over and turned the radio off. Then I leaned back and took a breath. I readied myself. "Okay, so what did your dad say?"