Rebel at Spruce High (Spruce Texas Romance #5) - Daryl Banner Page 0,139

go with Billy to their house by the lake to change into a clean set of clothes—their house was a total mess, what with the renovations and construction going on—and I missed out on the costume contest I was looking forward to competing in.”

“Julio didn’t mean to do it. It was an accident.”

Again, with the accident crap. The truth is, I don’t know if it was deliberate or if Julio really did bump into that table on accident. “I guess the punch station was kinda flimsy …”

“Very flimsy. Look.” He throws his arm around me and pulls me against him, bringing his face close. “My buds and I, we might be kinda nuts, we might not be the sensitive crowd you’re used to, but at least you know what you’re gettin’ with us. Vann? He’s … He’s a loose cannon. He isn’t like us. He isn’t from here.”

I hug my knees to my chest. “I think that’s the exact reason I fell for him so hard. He’s … nothing like this place.”

After a minute of taking that in, Hoyt frowns at me. “Hey, are you not havin’ fun with me here? Isn’t this great, spending time at my place, kickin’ back, no responsibilities, no boyfriend drama, no family fights or whatever?” He shakes me. “C’mon. I haven’t even tried to give you a wedgie or nothin’.”

I bite my lip, mulling it over. “Well, to be fair, he hasn’t texted me, either,” I reason with a sigh.

“Right? If he really loved you, he’d be the one to text you and try to work it out. He holds grudges. I can tell that about him. He’s got a bad chip on his shoulder. Hey, got a question for ya.” He gives me a quizzical look. “Do you work at all this weekend?”

“Just tomorrow night. Gets busy with Black Friday shoppers. Mrs. Tucker insisted I take the rest of the weekend off for family time. How ironic. Why?”

“Alright. I’ll take you to work Friday, no prob. But if you’re open Saturday, wanna come hang with me at G-Man’s? His parents are out of town again. We can really kick back over there.”

A knot ties itself in my stomach. I wonder what his definition of “really kick back” means. Also: “Are your … other friends … gonna be there, too?”

Hoyt shrugs. “So what if they are? They won’t do nothin’.” My eyes must convey my worry, because he slaps a hand to my back and says, “Look, just stick by me, alright? You’ll see that Julio isn’t a monster. Neither’s Benji. They’re harmless. Unless the girl Julio’s seeing is there, too. Then you might hear a few bumps against the wall while we’re hangin’ in the living room, if you get what I mean.” He snorts, and I’m left to roll my eyes.

And while that may be the last time I mention Vann in Hoyt’s house, it isn’t the last time I think about him. That night when I’m on the air mattress again and Hoyt’s asleep, I pull out my phone, flip through my pics, and find the selfie I took of my mom, myself, and Vann opening night of I’ll Always Remember Seaside.

I stare at our happy faces, my heart aching with tons of unanswered questions. I know Vann said the ball’s in my court, but I really wish he’d be the first one to call me anyway. I’d listen. I’d hear him out. I might even give him another shot. Yet some sense of righteousness keeps making me pocket my phone and tell myself I’m doing the right thing by giving us time apart. When he’s around, I can’t think straight. All I want to do in his presence is tear off his clothes, slip under a set of sheets, and feel like we’re the only people in the world. That’s the thought I take with me as I close my eyes to sleep.

It’s also the thought that gets me through my shift the next night at Biggie’s, too. Every time I pass by the front door, I wonder if by some miracle Vann might come in. Isn’t he going to reach some breaking point, too? Isn’t he going mad? Quite frankly, I’m shocked he hasn’t done something super horrible or unexpected, like showing up at my house demanding to see me, or hunting me down here at Biggie’s where he obviously knows I work, or even showing up on the steps of the Strong ranch. He’s definitely bold enough to