Unraveling (Second Chances) - By Micalea Smeltzer Page 0,41
room, the person you miss the minute they’re gone. I think you should be in love, not lust. If that means I’ll be a virgin the rest of my life, so be it. But I’m not giving it up just because some guy thinks with the wrong head.”
I laughed loudly, and Jared looked over at us with a funny look.
“Well said,” I told her. “I agree completely with you.”
She smiled. “I really like you, Katy. I don’t have many friends, but I think we could be.”
“I think we could be too,” I said. I didn’t think Piper would mind, so I asked Karlie if she’d like to join us at the mall.
“Yes!” she squealed. “Jared never wants to take me shopping!”
“What are you screaming about?” Jared asked, appearing in front of us. “I can’t be distracted my entire match by you two.”
“Katy, invited me to go shopping tomorrow with her and her friend,” Karlie explained.
“Really?” Jared looked at me with a raised brow.
“It will be a girls day,” I shrugged.
Jared grinned. “That sounds like an awesome idea. What time are you going? I can drop Karls off at the mall.”
“No, no,” I waved my hand back and forth, “I’ll pick her up.”
“You sure?” he asked, putting his hands on his hips.
“Positive, there’s no point in you having to drive out of your way. I can pick her up,” I assured him.
His smile grew. “I’ll text you my address,” he winked and walked back over to Dan.
“I’m so excited now!” Karlie squirmed on the bleachers. “Tomorrow is going to be so much fun.”
“It is,” I smiled. “So, how come you live with Jared and not Dan and Patsy?”
Karlie sighed. “I love Dan and Patsy, but Jared is my brother. When he got his own place, he asked if I wanted to move in and I said yes. Dan and Patsy didn’t mind; they know Jared will take care of me. He always has.”
“You and Jared are very close,” I commented.
“We are,” she said, pushing her long hair back, away from her face. “Most siblings aren’t, especially ones eight years apart, but Jared’s always been there for me.”
“That’s good,” I said, starting to freak out a bit as the people began to trickle in, trying to get the best seat.
Holden was among them, Patsy trailing behind him.
Holden took the space next to me, and Patsy took the empty place next to Karlie. I could feel Karlie tensing, beside me, but I didn’t know how to comfort her.
“Hey Holden,” I said.
“Hey,” he replied, looking down at the floor.
Okay, then.
Dan climbed into the middle of the ring, and spoke to the crowd.
I didn’t hear a thing he said, because I was too busy watching Jared.
Jared danced from foot to foot, shaking out his arms, with his eyes closed. I saw his lips moving silently, and wondered if he was praying. He looked imposing, dangerous even, as he stood there.
Dan said something and Jared bound into the ring, under the ropes.
The other guy soon followed. He was a little shorter than Jared, but bulkier. They were definitely on even footing.
I was so lost as to what was happening that I jumped when the other guy threw a punch at Jared.
I jumped straight up out of my seat and screamed, “Jared! Get him!”
I swear I could hear Jared chuckle.
Jared ducked out of the way of the guy’s flailing fist and sunk his own fist into the guy’s side. The guy -what did Dan say his name was? Joe? Josh? Jake? I’m pretty sure Dan said his name was Jake- grunted from the impact, throwing a kick at Jared.
Jared seemed to glide around the ring. A few times, I was sure his feet weren’t touching the ground. His body glistened with a sheen of sweat, but he didn’t seem to be breathing heavily.
He was incredible, the only way to adequately describe him was, a beast.
Jared completely dominated in the ring. The other guy never stood a chance.
The fight was over in a matter of minutes. Jake fell down and stayed down.
Dan came back into the ring and declared Jared the winner.
Jared didn’t smile, when Dan raised his arm in the air. Instead, he looked solemnly at Jake. I could tell Jared felt bad, but what else was he supposed to do.
Jared climbed out of the ring and Dan tossed him a towel. He wiped his face, chest, and arms, clean of sweat and then made his way towards us.