Broken Beautiful Hearts(79)

Cam is sitting on a crate at the makeshift table where everyone is playing Bullshit, and he has an unobstructed view of Christian and Grace. He slams a beer, crumples the plastic cup in his hand, and tosses it onto the floor.

“Your cousin looks pissed,” Owen says.

“I know.”

Cam motions for one of his teammates to hand him another beer, and he slams that one, too.

“I’m gonna grab a beer,” Owen says. “Can I get you one?”

“No thanks.” I’m watching people play a drinking game that involves scavenging crap in a condemned building—there’s no way I’m drinking tonight.

“I’ll be back.” He smiles at me, then heads for the keg.

I’m so focused on Cam that I don’t notice when Owen sits down on a crate around the table until he calls out to my cousin. “Cameron, are you gonna play with us or what?”

Cam tears his eyes away from his brother and refocuses on the game.

“What the hell is Owen doing?” It was rhetorical, but Tucker answers me anyway.

“He’s trying to keep your cousin from killing someone.” Tucker flips the front of his board back and forth.

But what if he loses and he has to go into the basement? Did he think about that?

It’s probably filthy and dusty—the worst possible conditions for someone with asthma. Not to mention the fact that it could collapse at any second.

Christian puts his hand on the wall and shifts position so he’s standing in front of Grace and her back is against the wall. He has her boxed in with his arms, and it almost looks as if he’s leaning in to kiss her. But I’m standing off to the side, and from my vantage point, I realize he’s just whispering in her ear.

Unfortunately, Cameron and April don’t have the same angle. Cam stares at them, wide-eyed. Then his face falls, and he pounds another beer. If April wasn’t standing at the table, I’d just go over there and tell Cam that it’s not how it looks.

The conversation stirs around the card game.

“Bullshit,” Titan calls out. “Let’s see those cards, Owen.”

I hold my breath. Owen flips over his cards from the top of the discard pile. “Three sixes.”

Thank god.

Titan looks annoyed. Now that Owen is playing he’s taking the game more seriously.

“Titan already went down to the basement once,” says a perky cheerleader.

Owen points at the beer in front of Titan. “Then start drinking.”

“Drink!” everyone shouts while Titan chugs it.

Two girls wander over from behind the tanks. I’ve never seen them before, which doesn’t mean much. But they look older, closer to college age than high school. They’re checking out the guys. I’m relieved when they look past Owen and focus on Cameron instead.

“Do you know those girls?” I ask Tucker.

“Nope. They’re probably from West Valley, or they graduated from there. It’s a lot bigger than our school.”

The girls whisper and do a double take when they see Christian. With all the giggling they’re doing, you’d think they had never seen a set of twins before.

Christian still has one arm up against the wall, but he moved to the side, giving me—and the girls—a clear view of his profile. The two girls stroll in Christian’s direction. He stops talking midsentence and looks over at them. The tall redhead wags her fingers at him in a sexy wave. He tips his chin at her in acknowledgment and smiles.

Grace’s shoulders sag as she watches the exchange. She turns her back on Christian and walks away. But he catches her arm.

The redhead and her friend snicker at Grace’s reaction, which is not okay with me. I walk toward them, and just before I pass by, I veer to the left as if I’m going to plow right into them. It startles them both, and the redhead yelps.

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t see you,” I say in a sickeningly sweet tone.

The girls back off, but they linger.

“Come on, Grace. Don’t be mad,” I hear Christian say. He reaches for Grace’s arm, but she snatches it away.

“If you’re going to flirt with other girls, the least you could do is wait until I’m not standing right in front of you. But that would require you to notice me in the first place.”

Christian frowns and scratches the back of his head. “What are you talking about? I always notice you.”

She laughs. “You pay attention to me when you’re in between girlfriends, Christian. Or when there’s no one else around for you to flirt with. I’m tired of being your backup.”

“You’re not.” Christian looks completely baffled. “I don’t understand where this is coming from.”

“That’s the problem. If you paid any attention, you’d know. I’m tired of playing standin until you get back together with April or you find a new girlfriend.” Grace storms away and walks right past me.

April smirks. “Trouble in paradise?”

Grace stops walking and turns around to face her nemesis. “Do you ever get tired of being such a bitch?”

Nobody in the room moves.

I’m not even sure anyone breathes.

Everyone is in a state of shock—including April. It takes her a moment to recover. Then she turns into a pit viper. “I don’t know, Grace. Do you ever get tired of chasing a guy who has zero interest in you? I mean, if Christian was going to ask you out don’t you think he would’ve done it by now?”