#Hater (Hashtag #2) (22 page)

“You didn’t. You wouldn’t know what I’m involved in. But I’d like to put together a charity event for the shelter. Rimmel can help me with the details.”

Both ladies looked at me. I swallowed thickly. “Of course.” I agreed. “I’d be happy to help. Anything for the animals.”

I wondered how it was going to be working with Valerie. I wondered how much time we would have to spend together.

“Great! Just let me know what you need and when you need it. I’ll help as much as I can.”

“Wonderful.” Valerie smiled. “I’ll be in touch.” She looked over at me. “Ready?”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said.

I followed her to the door, and on my way out, I glanced back at Michelle. She gave me a thumbs-up.

Valerie drove an Audi SUV. The seats were leather and the interior of the car smelled like vanilla. Once I was settled in the seat, I pulled out my phone to text Romeo.

I GOT A RIDE BACK TO CAMPUS.

He replied a few seconds later.

WHO?

YOUR MOTHER.

WTF?

I suppressed the urge to laugh and replied.

CALL ME LATER.

WILL DO.

It was a fast ride to campus, and we didn’t have much time to talk. Mostly, she threw out ideas for the fundraiser event, and I agreed with everything because I knew nothing about this stuff. I directed her to my dorm, and she parked at the curb.

“Thank you for the ride,” I said, unhooking my seatbelt.

“Thank you for giving me a tour of the shelter.”

“Sure. It was fun.” Awkward. But fun.

I started to climb out of the SUV, but she said my name. When I looked back, I read on her face that there was something she wanted to say. I came back in the vehicle and looked at her expectantly.

“I know I haven’t been the easiest to get along with.” She began. “But I’d like to change that. I’d like to make up for the way I treated you when you first started dating my son.”

“You don’t have to make up for anything. I understand. It’s forgotten.”

“I appreciate that. But I’d still like to spend time with you.”

An immediate rush of emotion burned the back of my throat. I hadn’t expected it, but it was there all the same. I swallowed several times, trying to be certain I would be able to speak over it. “I’d like that,” I said. The words didn’t come out sounding like they usually would have. Instead, they were slightly high-pitched and a little cracked.

She smiled. I didn’t know if she was just being polite about my sudden emotion or if she really just hadn’t noticed. “Wonderful. I’ll get some ideas and plans together for the event and then we can meet to discuss it. Maybe we could have lunch?”

I cleared my throat. “Um, yeah, sure.”

“I haven’t had a real girls’ lunch in forever,” she said, her voice warming. It reminded me more now of how she sounded when she talked to Braeden.

I could only smile. Mrs. Anderson was a mother figure to me. She was Romeo’s mom. She had the whole maternal thing down to a science. I guess it shouldn’t surprise me that I had the sudden longing for my own mother. That I suddenly became acutely aware of all the mother-daughter “girl” time we’d missed out on over the years.

And now here was Romeo’s mom, offering me a version of the very thing I didn’t have.

I wanted it so badly that it hurt my chest. It scared me. It scared me so much I just wanted to get away.

“Great!” I said brightly, maybe too brightly, but it was too late to take it back. “Thanks again for the ride. I’ll see you later.”

I didn’t wait for her to reply. Instead, I bolted. I rushed into the dorm and didn’t stop until I was safely inside my room.

From her position on her bed, Ivy looked up from the homework she was doing. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, great.” I lied. “It’s freezing out there.”

“It’s supposed to snow.”

“Big surprise there,” I said, tossing all my stuff on the bed.

“What do you have going on the rest of the night?” she asked.

“Studying. I have a paper to finish.”

“Ugh,” she said. “Homework sucks.”

Out loud, I agreed with her, but on the inside, I was glad for the homework tonight. I was glad for the distraction. I didn’t want Romeo’s mom to hate me, but I wasn’t sure I wanted a relationship with her either.

I’d already lost my mother. I didn’t want to risk losing another.

Romeo

“Think I can get in without calling Rim down to open the door?” I asked, grinning at Braeden.

“Please,” he replied. “Do women have tits?”

“Dude. That was wrong.”

Braeden looked at me with a
what the hell?
expression. “What?”

I chuckled, got out of the Hellcat, and leaned in the door. “I’ll be right back.”

“Oh, hells no,” Braeden replied and got out. “You think you can waltz into a dorm full of chicks and tell me to wait in the car? Dude. I thought we were BFFs for life!”

I laughed. “C’mon, then.”

“Besides, I gotta make sure Rim survived the freak visit from your mom.”

I glanced at Braeden as we approached the entrance. “You like her, huh?”

“Your mom?” he replied, knowing damn well I wasn’t talking about my mother. “She’s cool.”

“B.” I gave him a level look.

“You know I do, Rome. I’ve liked her since the day she didn’t want to wear your hoodie and be associated with you.” He cackled.

“Well, she’s associated with me now.” She was mine. Everyone knew it.

“Chill, bro.” Braeden sighed as he checked out a pair of girls walking by. They flashed us their smiles and Braeden grinned. “She’s like the little sister I never had.”

“You mean it?”

Braeden turned all his attention away from the girls and gave me a serious look. “What’s going on? Why you asking?”

I blew out a breath. I hadn’t expected all this to come out of me, not tonight. I guess seeing Zach earlier and the look in his eyes… it scared me. It scared me that pushing her into getting this restraining order would only make things worse.

I just wanted to know she had more than me, that Braeden would have her back when I wasn’t able to.

“Fuck, man,” I muttered. “I guess I’m just worried Zach’s gonna try something else. I don’t want her getting hurt.”

Braeden nodded. “He’d be stupid to pull anything else. But I get it. You know I’ll watch out for her, Rome. I got her back. And yours.”

“Dude.” I held out my fist. He bumped his against mine. “Thanks.”

“Ladies,” Braeden called to the pair he was staring at before. He jogged over to them as they were opening the dorm entrance. “Let me get that for ya,” he said, holding open the door.

One of the girls laughed and went ahead. The other one looked at him suspiciously. “You trying to get in the building, Braeden?”

“She knows my name,” he said and put a hand over his heart like he’d been shot.

I shook my head and suppressed a laugh.

“Everyone knows your name,” she muttered.

Braeden grinned. “Yeah, we need an in.”

“You have a girlfriend in here?” the other girl said from inside, her voice pouty.

“Hells no,” Braeden said. “I’m open for business.”

Both the girls giggled, and I stepped forward. Both of them looked away from him and at me. “Romeo,” said the girl questioning Braeden.

“Ladies.” I gave them my charming smile. “I was just on my way in to see my girl. It’s a surprise.” I grinned a little wider.

Someone inside the building sighed.

“She’s so lucky,” the girl at the door said. “Come on in.”

On the steps to the second floor, Braeden punched me in the arm. “Damn, man. You had to steal my thunder.”

I chuckled. “Are you kidding? No one steals your thunder.”

“Mm-hmm,” he drawled. “Even taken, you still get the attention.”

“What can I say? It’s a gift.”

We drew lots of stares and giggles as we stood outside Rimmel’s door and knocked. Braeden ate up the attention, but I was focused on the girl inside.

The door swung open, and Ivy’s blond head appeared. Her eyes widened when she took in both Braeden and me. “It’s for you!” Ivy called behind her, then pulled the door all the way open so I could see inside.

“Me?” Rimmel grumbled, sitting on her bed with her laptop in her lap. The glowing screen reflected off her glasses and her hair was in this massive pile on her head and it looked like there were several pencils sticking out.

She was a hot mess.

And I fucking loved every inch of it.

“Sis!” Braeden called loudly and pushed past me to walk in.

Rimmel made a strangled sound and looked up, surprised. “Braeden?” Her eyes went behind him to me and she smiled.

“Hey, baby.”

She moved the laptop off her lap and slid off the bed. She was wearing a loose pair of sweats and my hoodie. Braeden scooped her up off the floor and hugged her. She laughed when he spun her around. “Damn, girl,” he said. “You need a steak.”

Then he looked over at me. “How the hell have you not broken her by now?”

Rimmel gasped and Ivy burst out laughing. Braeden turned to smile at her, but when Ivy saw him looking, her laughter stopped and she looked away.

Braeden looked at me and lifted an eyebrow in silent question.

“You done?” I asked, pointedly staring at him with Rimmel in his arms.

“Sure, man,” he said and held her out to me like a ragdoll. Her feet dangled over the floor, and she gave me a withering look.

I ignored it and reached for her. Her frown was pronounced when I pressed my lips to hers, but the second we made contact, she melted and kissed me back.

“What are you doing here?” she asked when I pulled back.

“I told you I’d call,” I said and sat on the bed, pulling her into my lap.

“We had to make sure you were still in once piece after Mrs. A came to see ya,” Braeden said.

Ivy gave Rimmel a curious look. “You never told me that.”

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Rimmel replied quickly. “Nothing to tell.”

Braeden pulled the desk chair around and sank into it. Then he propped his feet on her bed. “I knew you could handle it,” he said and gestured with his chin at me. “This guy’s been worrying like a damn woman.”

Rimmel glanced around at me with an amused expression on her face. “You were worried?”

“Not really,” I said.
Not about that anyway.

“Well,” Ivy said, getting up from her bed and shooting Braeden a look. “You two take up way too much space in here. I’m gonna hit the showers.”

“Want some company?” Braeden asked.

“As if,” Ivy muttered.

“Icy,” Braeden muttered.

Rimmel shot him a dirty look.

“You know, no,” Ivy said, drawing all our attention. Then she smacked Braeden in the shoulder.

“Ow!” he yelled. “What’s wrong with you, woman?”

“That’s for what you did to Missy.”

“Shit,” he muttered.

“Ivy is upset about what happened between you and Missy,” Rimmel explained. I mean, really, I think Ivy made the point without her saying, but maybe she thought Braeden needed it spelled out.

“Nothing happened.” Braeden groaned.

“Exactly,” Rimmel and Ivy said at the same time.

“Aw, shit, B. They tag-teaming ya now.” I grinned. I liked seeing Braeden in the hot seat.

“I expected better, baby sis.” He gave Rimmel the stink eye.

She laughed.

“Seriously, though,” Ivy said. “Why didn’t you ever call her?”

Braeden rubbed a hand over his face. “Because I was getting the feels.”

“You didn’t call her because you were having feelings for her?” Rimmel asked, confused. I gave her a little squeeze around the waist.

“No, he meant
she
was getting the feels,” I said.

“Was that so bad? Someone actually wanting you for more than sex?” Ivy demanded.

Braeden frowned. “No.”

Then he looked over at Ivy. “I said we were just having fun. I was upfront about it. I never promised her more than that. Then I started getting the feels from her. I didn’t want to hurt her, so I walked away.”

“Dropping someone so abruptly is kind of wrong,” Rimmel said.

Ivy snorted. “She’s being nice. You acted like a dick.”

Braeden’s eyes flickered with anger. “No. A dick would have been someone who let her think I was interested, toyed with her feelings, and then dropped her.”

Rimmel tensed against me. I didn’t think she’d ever seen Braeden angry. He had a temper. He wasn’t all cool like me.

“Dude,” I said, throwing some ice on his heat. “You did the right thing.”

“I’m going to shower,” Ivy said. She picked up her stuff and was gone seconds later.

I couldn’t help but wonder if anyone was lurking in the bathroom like some creep, waiting to watch her.

“Chicks.” Braeden sighed when Ivy was gone.

“I’m a chick,” Rimmel said.

“Nah, you’re different.” Braeden grinned.

“So what did my mom want?” I asked.

She looked up at me. “She wanted to see the shelter, wanted to know more about it. She’s offered to put together a fundraiser to help us.”

“I knew she’d come around.” I patted her leg.

“Yeah.” She agreed, but her voice was off and she seemed a lot less thrilled about my mother’s sudden acceptance.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing.” She was a terrible liar.

I was about to make her tell me when Braeden interrupted. “Rome tell you the good news yet?”

“What news?” She looked between us.

“Zach was served. He can’t come near you now,” I said. Why did it not seem like such a great thing anymore?

“He got thrown out of Omega too,” Braeden said. “We had front row seats.”

Rimmel glanced at me and I nodded. “He’s done.”

“Well, I can’t say I’m sorry,” she said, leaning into me.

Braeden snorted. “Fucker deserved it.”

Silently, I agreed.

“Hey, man, give us a minute?” I asked.

He nodded and dropped his feet off the bed. “Of course. I saw some fine-looking ladies in the hall.”

Rimmel laughed.

“Hey.” He looked at her. “How come you aren’t pissed at me about Missy? You two still friends?”

“Yeah, we are.” She nodded. “I guess I kind of think you did the right thing.”

Braeden smiled. “Yeah?”

“Better to end it now before her feelings really got hurt.”

He nodded. “Missy is a cool girl. But I don’t do relationships.”

“People change,” I told him, thinking of a time not that long ago when I felt the very same way.

“Nah. You two are just freaks,” Braeden cracked. Then he reached out and ruffled Rimmel’s already messy hair.

“Ow!” he yelled and jerked his hand back. “What the hell! You packing weapons?”

She laughed and pulled a pencil out of the mess. “Yep.”

“Girl…” He shook his head. “You ain’t right.”

“Feels pretty right to me,” I said, and she grinned.

“See?” Braeden shook his head. “Freaks.”

He opened the door and stepped into the hall. “Ladies!” he called out as the door shut behind him.

“I didn’t think he’d ever leave,” I said and gathered her close. She laid her cheek against my chest and I rested my chin on top her head.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she whispered and wrapped her hand around my bicep.

“You gonna tell me what’s wrong?” I asked after just a few minutes of nothing but her in my arms.

“Hadn’t planned on it.”

“Rim,” I growled.

She sighed. “It’s stupid.”

“Did my mother say something?” I knew she said things with Mom had gone fine, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she was just saying that.

“No. Yes,” she said. Then she blew out a breath. “I don’t know.”

“You’re gonna have to help me here, baby. I don’t speak woman.”

She giggled and the sound tightened my gut and stirred my desire.

“She wants me to help plan the fundraiser. She wants to have
girl
time.”