her eyes flashing fire. “He’s my friend. You broke up with me, War. And you kicked me out of the group without even giving me the courtesy of telling me yourself. So, it’s done between us, like you said. And done means you don’t get to dictate anything in my life anymore. Who I’m friends with, or who I decide to go out with, is my own business.” She glanced at Bryan.
Was she trying to imply they were dating? Oh, hell no.
She refocused on me. “Are we clear?”
Fucking hell. She pissed me off, and yet I admired her for it. This girl never backed down. Not from anyone.
“You’re clear. But now it’s my turn to speak,” I said snidely, “and it’s your turn to listen.”
“I don’t have to—”
“A year ago in front of the Fast Mart, I laid myself out to the bone for you.”
Her eyes widened.
“Never did that for any piece of ass. Never tapped another pussy after that, though I had plenty of opportunities.”
“Warren!”
“Sorry, Mrs. Jackson.” I acknowledged her and noted her horrified expression, but I refocused on Lace. “I gave you all of me, and I told you that my plans for the future were our plans. Do you remember that, babe?”
“Yes,” Lace said, looking shockingly pale.
“You threw that in my face last night like it meant nothing.”
“I—”
“In front of the band and two music reps, you made me look like a pussy.”
“That’s not fair.”
“Fucking grow up, Lacey. Life isn’t fair. In Southside, you make your own rules, or you get shit on.”
“Sure. Okay. You’re right.” Her gaze even brighter than before, she swallowed, then bobbed her head. But she didn’t cry. “Thanks for that explanation. It was lovely to be cut into even smaller pieces than last night.”
“Lace.” Sounding all empathetic, Bryan took a step toward her, but I blocked that step.
“I’m taking off,” Lace said. “I shouldn’t have come here.”
“No. Wait.” Bryan shouldered me out of his way, but he only got that play because I was off guard, watching her fall apart.
“No.” She waved him off. “I’ll call Chad. He’ll come get me, my one friend outside the band. You called it, Bry—Bryan. I didn’t see it then, but I see it now. I see it all clearly.” She cranked up her chin. “It was nice to see you again, Mrs. Jackson. I meant what I said. You made a big difference in my life. Thanks again for that. Miriam and Ann, I wish you well.”
Lace paused her gaze on each of them while avoiding looking directly at Bryan or me. Then she turned away from everyone without another word. The hem of her short dress whirled around her toned upper thighs, her spine as inflexible as her sewing shears.
She was giving me the cut, just like I’d given her last night. Bryan too, apparently.
But I didn’t notice how he took it. Watching her leave for the second time in less than twenty-four hours, I bled out all over Mrs. Jackson’s pristine floor. Not him.
Lace
I leaned into the consignment shop counter, flipping page after glossy page of an Alluring fashion magazine that I’d thumbed through hundreds of times. But boredom wasn’t why the details that usually interested me blurred before my eyes.
War.
Bry.
Me.
Round and round, my thoughts went, like a merry-go-round with no off switch.
I glanced at the two-inch-thick secondhand SAT study book beside the magazine. Lack of sleep and the reasons for it aside, I should be memorizing math formulas, not wasting any more headspace on the impossible variables in my life.
The shop bell rang as if to underscore my thought.
“Welcome to Janet’s Design,” I said, glancing up, and my greeting stalled.
It was Bryan.
Just seeing him, I felt my heart flutter. His brown hair wind-mussed, he was wearing his leather jacket (he and my brother rocked that look better than any other guy did) with his standard black T-shirt and jeans.
But today it wasn’t his handsome face or the way his clothing clung to his chiseled body that made me react the way I did. It was the warmth in his gorgeous eyes. It was like no time had passed, and I had my childhood best friend back. Only not really, because he wasn’t a boy anymore, and I wasn’t a little girl.
“Hi, Bryan,” I said, keeping my tone neutral, since the past was gone and now was now. The current situation between us was clear in a way it never had been, thanks to his mom. We couldn’t go backward, but I also