I Want It That Way - Aguirre Ann - Страница 37

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Nobody was awake when I crept in. Though I had my tablet in my lap, pretending to read, I heard when Ty left. But on a deeper level, I felt it, too, just like he’d said. It sounded poetic and slightly improbable, but the whole building felt emptier, an echo where there had been warmth. Shaking my head, I actually did read the chapter for my mild-impairment class, and I was dozing on the couch when Lauren got up just past noon.

She showed no mercy in poking me awake. “So how was it?”

“Phenomenal.”

“One word? That’s all I get?”

Before I could respond, Angus came tromping out of his room, disheveled and adorable. “About what? Did something delicious happen?”

“From Nadia’s expression, yeah. Repeatedly. But she’s refusing to tell me more.”

“It’s rude to kiss and tell, especially when we can gawk at the sex monster who lives downstairs. We totally heard you screaming through the floor.” His back was to me as he made coffee, using the fancy machine I hated, and for a few seconds, I just stared in mute horror, remembering how I cried out while Ty was going down on me.

Lauren took pity. “He’s kidding. We heard nothing.”

“Thank God.”

“But apparently, it was scream-worthy,” Angus said, dropping onto the couch next to me. “Now that is interesting.”

“If you two don’t shut up, I’m hiding in Max’s room.”

Lauren’s expression flickered, some strange combination of sadness and remorse. “That would be fine. He’s not in it.”

“Oooh, sour.” Angus didn’t know they’d slept together, I suspected, or he wouldn’t poke at her. “I didn’t get any play this weekend, either, so try not to be grumpy that our roomies did.”

“Who’s up for going out later?” A change in topic seemed to be in order.

She seemed grateful. “Count me in. I haven’t left the apartment since Friday.”

“You could’ve borrowed my car. I left the keys on the hook by the door.”

“I know. There were some parties I could’ve gone to. I was just feeling lazy.” The way her eyes cut away from mine told me she was lying. Indolence had nothing to do with it.

Before I could call her on it, Angus put in, “I know a guy who’s throwing a Halloween bash tonight. We could check it out.”

“Costumes?” Lauren wondered aloud.

He made a face. “Hell, no.”

Since I had no plan when I made the suggestion, this sounded fine. “I don’t feel like dressing up, but I’m down for a party. What time?”

“Starts at eight, which means it should be good by nine,” Angus answered.

Lauren hesitated, glancing between us like she had mixed feelings. “I don’t know. When you mentioned going out, I thought it would be the mall or a movie.”

“You don’t have to,” I said. “If you’re not up to it.”

She appeared to square away some inner conflict. “No, it’s fine. I’m in.”

“Leave by eight-thirty?” Angus asked.

I confirmed with a nod, then I escaped to my room on the pretext of working on my lesson plan for the practicum. Instead, I took a nap. It was late afternoon when I rolled out of bed. Hunger drove me to the kitchen, where I showed off my mad culinary skills by making cup ramen. I didn’t see Lauren or Angus, so maybe they went to lunch. Max was parked on the couch, still bruised, but the marks were fading.

“Good weekend?” I asked.

“It was shit,” he muttered.

“What happened?”

“I spent it at the garage. The owner doesn’t mind if I crash on the couch in his office.”

It seemed like our talk on Friday hadn’t helped. “Maybe you should consider subletting. I don’t want you to go, but you shouldn’t pay rent if you can’t stand to sleep here.”

“I know,” he said tiredly. “I just need to get over it. She doesn’t care what I do.”

“You should tell her how you feel, dude. Lauren can’t read your mind.”

In all honesty, I wasn’t sure it would make a difference. I didn’t get the sense that she was haunted by their night together. Something else seemed to be eating at her, but she’d stopped confiding in me, and I didn’t know what to do about it. With a pang, I remembered how we used to make a pillow fort in my room, hide inside and whisper our secrets. Back then, there was nothing I didn’t know about Lauren Barrett. I couldn’t pinpoint the precise moment that changed.

He swallowed hard. “I’d rather get punched in the face again.”

“Are you ever going to tell me what happened?” My gaze skimmed over his battered features, worried about both him and Lauren.

“I promised not to talk about it. With anyone.”

That shot holes in my theory that he was out fighting because he was pissed off. “Promised who? Lauren?”

“Stop digging. This is her story, not mine. If she wanted you to know—”

“Okay, I get it.” But it stung realizing how completely she’d iced me out. Other than reiterating that I was willing to listen, I didn’t know how else to help.

“Stop looking at me that way. She didn’t invite me into her business. I was just there.”

I understood Max well enough to be sure he wouldn’t spill Lauren’s secrets, even to me. Accepting that, I changed the subject. “So we’re going to a party tonight, some guy Angus knows. You in?”

Max thought about it. “I guess.”

That settled, I sucked down my ramen and went to get ready. Despite the tension between Max and Lauren, it had been a while since the four of us went out together, and excitement percolated through me, enough to dispel the residual gloom over leaving Ty’s place. Focusing on fun—not my normal mandate—I put aside the subtext. The closer we got to departure, the more pumped I got, so by the time I put on my boots and jacket, I was ready to cut loose.

“I’ll be the DD tonight,” Angus said. “I definitely owe you, Nadia, and I’ve got that awful hangover memory to keep me straight.”

“Really?” Lauren smirked at him.

Angus flipped his hand at her in a whatever gesture. “You can be so literal.”

Max and I snickered as we followed them to the car. Lauren got in front with Angus, so I crawled into the back of the Audi. The drive took fifteen minutes, as the party was being held off campus, hosted by somebody who lived with his parents. I’d met Scott a couple of times, but we’d never hung out. Angus was in Biology, preparing for med school, and they had classes together.

Mount Albion didn’t have posh neighborhoods or houses worth millions, but this much land would definitely cost a lot. Scott lived in a farmhouse on at least twenty acres, judging by the length of the private-access road. It was an old place, but from what I could tell in the dark, beautifully restored, and the wooded privacy of the area meant nobody would call the cops. Part of me was also glad that we wouldn’t be bothering Sam and Ty. The sheer number of cars in the gravel parking area was insane. Later, they’d probably be lined up all the way down the drive.

“Who else is glad we don’t have to clean up?” I said as Angus parked.

“Cosigned,” Max answered.

The farmhouse was lit up from all angles, and Scott hadn’t skimped on the decor. Most of it was cheesy, holiday-store stuff, like the motion-activated skull that said “Happy Halloween” when you walked by. There were also paper witches and glowing, plastic jack-o’-lanterns. Already, the music was loud as hell, and we were still fifty yards from the house.

“Looks like Scott posted the invite somewhere. We’ll end up with bikers and truck drivers,” Angus predicted.

I shrugged. It wasn’t my house.

Max led the way inside, and I followed. The kitchen was bright yellow and jam-packed with people. Some of them were grabbing at chip bags while others were prowling through the alcoholic options. Scott was down the hall, but he recognized Angus and yelled something at him, then gave a thumbs-up. Following Max, I grabbed a beer as he forged a path into the living room, which was big enough to dance with the furniture shoved back against the walls. The floors were hardwood, easier to move; I could never spin quite the same on carpet. As I bent to take off my boots, my mood picked up even more. I shouldn’t feel responsible for Lauren or obsess over my relationship with Ty.

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