Breaking Through the Wall (Guarded Hearts Book 2) (7 page)

When I was walking back into the living room
, Jason and Nicole were making their way down the steps hand-in-hand. I smiled up at my best friend and she started to giggle like a little schoolgirl.

I loved that they were finally going to
be with each other and be happy. They deserved it. Someone knocked on the door and when I pulled it open, I saw that it was Shawn. He looked so different. He had bulked up a lot over the summer and his shaggy hair was now buzzed.

“Hey
, Maddy!” He wrapped his arms around me and picked me up a little. I hadn’t seen him for most of the summer. Carter had said that he had been working for his dad at home to help out.

He put me down and started to make his rounds with everyone. It felt so good to have everyone back together again. I had missed this
, and I felt like this would help me finally move on too.

Nicole

I
couldn’t believe it worked and we were finally together! I had wanted this since last New Year’s! I knew I probably shouldn’t have tried to trick him, but I was so glad I did! We walked into the living room together, and he pulled me down so I was sitting on top of him.

“This dress is way too short
, Nic. You’re gonna make me kill someone tonight.”

I laughed and
lay back against him. I felt like I was dreaming and someone was going to come and wake me up. Jason sat me up and moved me, so I was now sitting next to him. I looked up at him and gave him my sad pouty face.

“Don’t look at me like that
, woman. That dress is too short for you to be lying on me like that.” He wrapped his arm around me and tucked me against his side.

I felt Jason tense beside me and when I looked up
, I saw Jamie coming over to us. He was so ridiculous. I went to stand up, but he held me tight. “Listen, Tarzan, he is my friend and isn’t even interested like that. Let me go.” He still had a tight hold on me, so I slipped my hand down to his side and squeezed the only spot on his body that was ticklish. It worked long enough for me to jump off the couch and go over to Jamie.

“Well
, that worked fast, you little hoe.”

I laughed.
Jamie and I were like one soul sometimes. Most people looked at us like we were crazy, but names like hoe, slut, and bitch were terms of endearment to us. “Well, I guess it proves just how good of an actor you are then.”

I felt an arm snake around my waist and didn’t even need to turn and see who it was. Did he really think he needed to stake his claim with my gay best friend?

“Well, hello there tall, dark, and brooding. Listen, if you ever want to switch teams, I could be a great teacher.” He leaned in, kissed me on the cheek, and then leaned in and gave Jason a peck too. I thought he was going to collapse on the floor! “Bye, bitch, I’ll see you in class.”

When I looked back at Jason
, he had a look of horror on his face. “Come on, macho man, let’s go get you a drink.”

Jason

The first day back at school was always the worst. Each and every class was the same boring bullshit. Usually, the only thing keeping me awake was checking out all the new girls, but not this year. Nicole and I had been inseparable since their party a couple days ago, and I have to say, I had never been happier. I was not going to turn into one of those sentimental saps like Carter, though.

I was waiting for Nic to get out of her audition for the play, when I felt a hand run up and down my arm. When I looked down
, I saw Stacey. She and I had fooled around once last year. I never would have attempted it, if I knew what a pain in the ass she would be afterward.

“The summer tan looks hot on you
, Jason. I have one too, if you didn’t notice, but I only have one little tan line. Do you wanna go back to my room and we can compare?”

Was this chick serious? Even if I wasn’t with Nicole
, I couldn’t stand girls that made it this easy. Throwing yourself at a guy was not the way to get noticed or to get what you wanted. I removed her hand from my arm and then turned to face her. “Listen, Stacey, I’m not interested. Go find someone else to play ‘where’s my tan line’ with.”

“Come on
, J, you know I can take care of you.”

She went to reach for me again
, but I caught her hand midair. “I said, no. Go throw yourself at someone that is interested.”

She turned and walked away without a word. When I tu
rned back toward the drama building, I saw Nicole standing there staring at me. Shit, I was hoping she didn’t see that. I hoped she isn’t pissed off. I couldn’t change my past. Unfortunately, situations like this were probably going to be happening for a little while. No one ever expected I would actually settle down. She walked up to me, wrapped her arms around my neck, and leaned up to kiss me.

“Hey, how was the audition?” I
was hoping that the change of topic would keep the conversation off of Stacey.

“It went ok
ay. They are going to post the cast list at the end of the week. I tried out for the lead, but I’m only a sophomore and they usually give it to juniors or seniors.”

We started to walk toward the cafeteria to meet up with everyone for lunch. I couldn’t help but notice all of the looks I was getting
, walking through campus with my arm around Nicole. I felt like a fucking zoo exhibit. Is it that crazy that I would have a girlfriend? When I thought about it, though, even I agreed it probably was.

We grabbed our food and I looked around to see if anyone else was here yet. Then I saw the table we usu
ally sat at. Maddy, Carter, Christen, and Shawn were all already there. Once we sat down, Shawn turned to me and hit me on the arm. “What the fuck?”

“All day I have had girls coming up to me
, asking about you. Shit, it’s like having a girlfriend has suddenly made you famous.”

I turned to Nic and I saw that she was irritated by it
. I didn’t know how to handle any of this crap. “I know. Hopefully it will die down soon. I mean, they have to get bored eventually, right?” I put my hand on Nicole’s thigh to try and comfort her. We just got together and I really didn’t need anything coming between us already.

“Anyway, how was your audition
, Nic?” Christen asked from the end of the table. Thank God for the change of subject. “What play was it for?”

“Um…it went ok
ay, I think. The school always does Shakespeare in the fall. This semester it is Romeo and Juliet.”

Romeo and Juliet? Isn’t that about two people in love? She said she was going for lead earlier
, didn’t she? There is no way I am going to watch some guy make out with my girl.
“Please tell me you are playing a nun or something?”

“First, I don’t know what I am playing yet
, because the roles haven’t been cast. Second, I auditioned for Juliet and I’m really hoping I get it.”

“Nic, are you really gonna take a role where some asshole gets to maul you onstage in front of everyone?”

“J, stop it, no one is going to maul me. It’s a kiss, and it is acting. You are just going to have to get used to it.”

Get used to seeing someone else kiss her and have their hands all over her. Not a chance in hell.

“Anyway, I really want to go to that new karaoke place, Shattered Glass, tonight. What does everyone think?” I knew she was trying to take the attention away from her and the play, but this was not over.

Everyone agreed to go tonight.
I couldn’t sing for shit, so there was absolutely no way that I was getting on stage.

Carter

After lunch I still had two more classes
. Now that all of my classes were for my major, I didn’t have any with Maddy. Everyone was going out tonight, and I was excited to get back to the way things used to be.

Everything
had been so different since the accident. Maddy was having nightmares on a daily basis, but she’d never talk to me about them. I felt like after all this time she had put her wall back up and I didn’t know how I could get past it.

We
hadn’t had sex since the accident either. At first, the doctor had told us that we couldn’t for at least two weeks. She had been to see him since, though, and I knew that he had given her the okay. It was not the fact that we hadn’t been having sex that was bothering me, although I couldn’t say I didn’t think about it constantly. I just wanted her to talk to me and stop shutting me out.

After classes were done for the day
, Maddy met me by my car so we could go home. I skipped one of my classes earlier and went to set up something for her. I hoped she likes it. When we walked into the house, she sat on the couch and turned the TV on. I couldn’t stand seeing her like this. She never smiled or laughed anymore, and I was scared to touch her.

I walked into the bedroom and after a couple minutes
, asked her to come in and help me with something. When she walked in and saw the room, she looked up at me and smiled. “Carter, what is all this?”

I had gotten a dozen roses and put them in a vase on the dresser. And when I just came in now
, I lit about twenty candles all around the room. I walked over to her, took her hand, and led her to the bed. I sat down and then pulled her next to me. “Maddy, I love you, baby. I understand how hard everything has been for you and I wish I could make it better. I know I can’t fix everything, but I need you to talk to me and stop shutting me out. I want to be able to touch you, and not feel like you don’t want me to.” I ran my hand down her arm and felt her tense. It was breaking my heart, the way she was right now. “I need you to let me back in, baby.”

Madison

Looking around the room and seeing everything that Carter did was overwhelming. I
knew I’d been distant lately, and I hated that I was hurting him. Having sex again after losing the baby scared me. I knew Carter didn’t deserve the way I’d been treating him lately, but I didn’t know how to fix it.

I lift
ed my hand up and ran my fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and leaned into my touch. We both needed this and I knew he was waiting for me to make the first move. I touched my lips to his and realized, immediately, how much I’d missed this and him. I moved myself over and straddled him, while I wrapped my arms around his neck.

Carter still
wasn’t touching me and I thought it was because he was scared of my reaction. I grabbed his hands and put them around me. I leaned back and eased both of us onto the bed.

“Maddy, if you’re not ready
, baby, it’s okay. This is not what this was about. I just wanted to show you that I was here and I still love you. I don’t want to force you into something you’re not ready for.”

I pulled back and looked him in the eye. “Carter, I love you and I didn’t realize how much I missed you
until we kissed. I want you to make love to me.”

He rolled over
, so that he was on top of me, and started to kiss my neck. Within a couple minutes all of our clothes were in a pile on the floor. If I said that I wasn’t scared, I would be lying. Carter was going slowly and I knew it was because he knew I needed it.

“Are you okay, baby?”

He looked down at me and the amount of love in his eyes told me everything would be okay. “Yes, I have missed you so much.” I leaned up to kiss him again and he positioned himself at my opening.

He gave me one last kiss, and then buried himself inside of me. I didn’t realize how much I missed making love to Carter, and I
couldn’t believe I was ever reluctant to do it. Carter was going so slow and I was loving every minute of it. “God, Carter, I have missed you so much!”

“Me too
, baby, I love you.”

Our bodies moved as one
, and I could feel myself getting close. Carter lowered his head to kiss me and I came, crying out his name.

I
felt like today might be a turning point for us. I felt like I might finally be ready to start living again.

Jason

When we walked into Shattered Glass
, I’m not gonna lie, I felt out of place. This was Nicole’s scene. The girl had the voice of an angel and the body of a temptress. I really liked how she kept me on my toes. I never knew what to expect when she was around.

She tried to convince me at the house to get on stage, and even though she was really good at convincing
, there was no way in hell I was getting up there to sing. I would definitely enjoy seeing her, though. This kind of feeling was new for me, and I wasn’t really sure how to deal with it.

I felt so protective of her, and I knew
, that if anyone ever hurt her I would lose it. I never thought I would enjoy being in a regular relationship, but Nicole wasn’t just a regular girl. Most girls probably would have told me to fuck off with the way I was treating her. She didn’t. She refused to leave and I think that was what did it. Her showing me that she wasn’t going anywhere was definitely something I needed. Once all of the girls signed up, we ordered some drinks and the MC said they were about to start.