Fallen Fourth Down (Fallen Crest #4)(41)

“Sam?” He tilted my head up and peered down at me. His thumb brushed a tear from my cheek. “You okay? I am sorry.”

“I know. I am.” Things were changing. “You’re my anchor and you’re not there and she’s here and I didn’t hear about it until today. It doesn’t sit well. It doesn’t make me feel good.”

A swift curse left him and he rested his forehead on mine. His thumb rested on my cheek. “I am so sorry. I mean it.”

I believed him. “Yeah.” But it didn't make it hurt any less.

“Yo—oh. Sorry!”

Twisting around, we saw the tail end of Logan as he left the room. Once the door was shut, he said from the other side, “Sam, your phone is off or you’re not answering. Your dad called me. He wants to talk to you about something.”

Mason asked me, “What’s that about?”

I shrugged. “If I were to guess, Garrett.”

“We haven’t talked about him yet.”

“I know.” I stepped back, and as soon as his hands left me, I missed his touch.

“I am sorry, Sam. I really am.”

I shook my head. “No. That wasn’t…never mind. I don’t know if I should be worried. I’m not. Maybe I should, but I’m not. You not telling me she was here bothers me.” Tate had. He hadn’t. That was an extra kick in the gut. “Tate told me that Marissa was coming here. I should’ve asked you about it, but I didn’t.”

“Wait. What?”

“Yeah.” I lifted a shoulder up and let it drop. “I should’ve asked you. I shouldn’t have waited to see if you would tell me or not.” But even as I said that, I was the liar this time. I hadn’t told him about Tate because I didn’t want him asking more questions, about what else she had said. Biting my lip, I waited to see if he would do that.

“Tate? When did you talk to Tate?”

“At Manny’s. You guys left to prank some of the Fallen Crest Academy people. She showed up to talk to Heather about something, and I was there.” I felt a pang of regret slice through me. “I didn’t believe her. I thought she was making it up, trying to cause problems with you and me, so I didn’t want to give her the satisfaction. I didn’t say anything.”

“Did she say anything else?”

That Logan is in love with me. “No.”

“Oh.” He crushed me against his chest again. His arms wrapped tight around me once more, and his shoulders lifted with tension. “Tate’s such a bitch. I should’ve told you immediately. This is all my fault.”

No. No, it wasn't. It’s mine too, but I can’t find the voice to tell him that, so, feeling like a coward, I pulled away. My hands rested on his chest, feeling the strength of his heartbeat underneath them. He was so warm, so strong. I just wanted to bury myself against him again. Life would be so much simpler if I never had to leave his side.

Knock. “Sam?”

Hearing Logan again, we pulled away. Mason skimmed a hand down my arm and slipped it into mine. We had an entire year to get through.

“What?”

Mason must’ve sensed my thoughts.

“I was just thinking that we have to talk more.”

He grinned and I saw the love in it. Lifting my hand to his mouth, he pressed a kiss there and murmured, against my knuckles, “I love you, Samantha.”

Choking on a sob, I whispered back, “I love you too.”

When we went to the hallway, Logan was outside the doorway, leaning against the wall, a small scowl on his face. He straightened from the wall and handed the phone to me. David’s name was on the screen. Logan shrugged. “I didn’t know what to say. He doesn’t usually call me. If it’s not an emergency, I’m really sorry. But he says it is.”

I lifted the phone to my ear. “David?”

“Honey.” He sounded relieved. “Oh good. I didn’t know if I would get ahold of you in time.”

“We’re about to leave. What’s going on?”

“Nothing too important, but I wanted to let you know that Malinda is headed out of town tonight. She and some of her friends are going to Vegas for a couple nights. I won’t be home when you get there. I have to head out of town for a football meeting so it’ll be just you and Mark. His girlfriend might be there too. I’ll head back as soon as I can. I’m really sorry, Sam. I meant to be home when you got there. I wanted to talk more about Garrett, and I was hoping to have some father/daughter time.”

“Oh.”

He waited a beat, then asked, “Is that okay? I can cancel. I could reschedule for another weekend, but—”

I gripped the phone tighter, pressing it harder to my ear. “No.” I hadn’t gotten a phone call like this in so long. “That’s fine, Dad. I’ll be fine. I’ll just do homework or hang out with Logan.”

“Okay. How’s your time with Mason? No, don’t answer that. I’ll ask later tonight. Maybe we can still get a movie in. I’ll hurry and try to get home as soon as possible.”

“Okay.” My throat was raw. “Sounds good. Thank you.”

He chuckled. “You don’t have to thank me, Sam. I’m being your parent. This is what we do.”