Broken Trouble (Broken Storm #1) (5 page)

              A hand on my leg disturbed me from my thoughts and I glanced to my right, where Jayden sat, "I know I'm glad she's here, she makes me work that much harder," he said, winking at me.

              "How can you all like her?" Gavin spat, "Her shirt described her completely, a living dead girl. I mean look at her!"

              I stayed quiet, I hadn't been happy with myself for arguing with him last night, but it seemed like I didn't need to today because everyone was sticking up for me.

              "Really, that's all you can find bad about her is how she looks? Open your eyes and actually take a good look. She's gorgeous," Landon announced, slightly amused. "she's got Dylan practically leaving a drool trail everywhere he goes."

              "Gorgeous? She's fucking hot," Jayden grinned.

              "Language," Polly warned.

              "She's not hot!" Gavin exploded, "And even if she was, she's a rotting corpse of a person on the inside and her outside is starting to show it."

              Maybe he was right about me looking a bit rough, but in my own defense, who doesn't when they're hung over?

              "Ooh!" Landon mocked, “What a hurtful thing for you to say."

              Gavin huffed, turning to Wyatt, who sat beside him eating, "You agree with me don't you?"

              Wyatt glanced up at him, then at me, his eyes lingering for a moment. He stayed quiet, chewing on his food as he thought. "I don't really know her," Wyatt shrugged, "but she doesn't seem too bad."

              Gavin's face turned red and his hands gripped the edge of the table, "Are you fucking kidding me? You too? You're my twin, you're supposed to side with me. Why are you all so blind? I keep repeating myself over and over and you all never listen!"

              My head throbbed and I rubbed my temple, wishing he would lower his voice a bit.

              "Why don't you try getting to know her Gavin?" Polly smiled, "I think you two will get along just fine once ya see for yourself the kind of person she is."

              "I don't need to get to know her! I already know all I need to know and nothing she says or does will change my mind."

              Well, that was nice to know. Glad I wasn't trying to impress him. "Good to know, I feel the same way about you."

              "Ah trust me, you don't hate me as much as I hate you," Gavin growled.

              "I doubt that," I muttered, taking a bite of bacon.

He only cursed at me, yelled and told me off every single time we were anywhere near each other. I may have burned down his barn, but he had burned down any hope of us getting along.

              It was probably time to accept the fact that he would never change and move on.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

              "We really appreciate you letting us borrow the cement truck, Clay," Chili said shaking an older man's hand. The cement truck sat running in the driveway, churning the cement inside around and around.

              "Well now that ain't no problem, you were in a predicament and I had to help. My cousin owns a cement company so here's a truck. I'll come back with my son to pick it up this evening when you're done," Clay mentioned as he patted the side of the truck.

              "Well ya know you and your family are welcome over to dinner anytime, you know how much Polly likes company."

              "This is going to make things go a lot faster," Landon spoke from beside me, bringing my attention back the guys around me. It appeared that almost everyone was going to be working on the barn today. It meant there would be more distraction, making it more likely for me to have an embarrassing moment of stupidity in front of them.

              Gavin and Polly had left directly after breakfast to go to town and I had no idea how long they would be gone, but I hoped it would be for awhile. I didn't know if, when they got back, Gavin would be working on the truck or helping with the barn, but I hoped for the truck. I really didn't want him looking over my shoulder every second.

              Jayden had his arm slung over my shoulder and I couldn't help but think maybe he was trying to stake a claim on me. Part of me was happy that a guy was paying attention to me, especially an attractive guy like Jayden. But then there was the another part of me, the part of me that was drawn to the other guys, was screaming to shove him away. A part of me needed to get to know each and every one of them.

              Of course, there was also a part of me that told me to run far away from all of them. It was my self-preservation kicking it, wanting to save myself from any future hurt I may experience.

              I didn't know what I was going to do, but for now, we had a barn to build.

              "Okay boys, we'll start pouring the cement into the frame and then Nova and a couple of you boys can even it out. Let's get to work," Chili ordered, moving over to work the cement truck.

              Everyone spread out, starting at one side and working to the other. Evening it out seemed pretty easy and I worked with a hoe to even out the cement, moving backwards slowly. After a bit I found I had worked my way up to beside where Dylan was working and I paused my work, glancing around to make sure no one was around to hear.

              I peeked at Dylan, noting his eyes kept moving in my direction as he glanced out of the corner of his eye. I didn't need to catch his attention as it was already on me. "Thank you."

              Dylan glanced over at me, brushing his hair out of his eyes, a blush heating his cheeks. "It was nothing."

              "No, it was something. I got drunk last night and you took care of me and didn't tell anyone that I can tell. It was sweet, so thank you." I tilted my head and rested it against the hoe, smiling at him.

              Dylan blushed harder and looked down at the ground and I felt the urge to hug him. Should I really hug him though? I didn't want to complicate things, but he deserved one. I couldn't remember the last time I bad actually hugged someone, because there was a difference in hugging someone back and hugging them first.

              I wrapped one arm awkwardly around his ribs and gave him a half hug, my other hand still holding the hoe. There, it was a friendly hug that wasn't too affectionate.

              Dylan tensed and glanced at me, his cheeks turning crimson as he grinned.

              I pulled away after a second of hugging and fumbled with the hoe. I noticed Dylan make a move to say something, but then seemed to change his mind, sighing.

              "What?" I asked, hoping he hadn't noticed my lack of experience in the hugging department.

              He seemed to watch me for a moment, as if thinking over something, then spoke, his voice low and uncertain, "Do you like Jayden?"

              When Dylan asked if I liked Jayden, I swear my heart stopped. How was I going to answer his question if I didn't even know the answer myself? If I said yes, he would back off and see me as Jayden's, but if I said no then that would be a lie.

              I did like Jayden, but I also liked Dylan and even Landon.

              How do you phrase an answer to a question like that without friend zoning them or looking like a total sleaze?

              I could tell by his tone and expression that this was something important to him. My answer would decide how my future went with not only him, but all of them. The cautious part of me told me to friend zone them all, to not enjoy their company at all or fall for any of them. The other part, the part that was tired of being held back inside the dark crevices of my soul, told me to live a little, to see how things went with each of them.

              Wasn't it about time I took a chance? They all seemed to have good intentions and were forgiving and in Dylan's case, sweet.

              I bit my lip and thought for a moment, glancing at Dylan who had went back to work. Maybe I had taken too long in my own head and he had given up on getting a response, but I would give him one, even if it didn't seem make any sense at all.

              "I like you,” Okay, maybe not the best way to start it out, because Dylan's eyes snapped up and hope flared in his eyes, "but I also like Jayden and Landon. I haven't made any decisions or commitments yet."

              His face fell for a moment, then got thoughtful, his brows furrowing. When he looked back at me, they had hope in them again. "So, if any of us, me for example, was to ask you on a date, then you could say yes?"

              Ah my gawd, was he adorable or what? "Are you trying to ask me out?"

              He blushed, looking down again. "Only if you would want to."

              What to say? If I accepted a date with him then what would the others think? And if I did go on a date with him, where would he take me?

Well, now I was just too curious not to say, "yes." I hoped that I wouldn't regret agreeing to a date with him, though the smile on his face told me I wouldn't.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

              We worked in happy silence for the next couple hours, nervous but excited about the date. Dylan hadn't said a word after I said yes, just smiled the biggest smile I had seen from him and blushed.

              We worked side by side, occasionally bumping against each other as we went. It didn't have the same feel as Jayden's heated touches or Landon's flirty ones. They were affectionate little bumps and I didn't mind them at all, which felt weird to me considering I hated physical contact.

              In the past, physical contact had always meant pain, from shoves to punches, and every one of them had made me hate being touched even more. Even the guiding hands of parole officers and social workers gave me a bad feeling as they had always led to yet another bad experience.

              But here, with Polly and these guys, I didn't mind the contact. They hadn't physically hurt me and I could feel my shell slowly pulling back as I relaxed around them. Maybe I wasn't as far gone as I had originally thought.

              "That looks like shit," a voice spoke from behind me and I felt the tension return, like it always did when Gavin was around.

              I hadn't heard him and Polly come back, the sound of their car being drowned out by the sound of the cement truck. I had been too focused on the job in front of me and my inner thoughts to see the car pull up or Gavin approach us.

              Polly was nowhere in sight, so I assumed she was already inside, probably working on food.

              I glanced behind me at Gavin, who was standing there with his hands on his hips, appearing as if he was repulsed at the cement I had been smoothing out in front of me. Ah great. I sighed heavily and continued smoothing, ignoring him.

              "That's not even," Gavin nitpicked before stepping towards me and yanking the hoe out of my hands
.
, "let me show you, since you obviously don't know anything."

              "I was working on it," I was annoyed. The other guys had told me I was doing a good job and now I had Gavin giving a blind eye to the cement I had already smoothed and nitpicking to cement I hadn't even gotten to yet.

              He smoothed the cement over quickly before turning towards me. I could tell by the set of his jaw and the look in his eyes that he was about to lay into me, before he had even opened his mouth. "Well you were doing a shit job of it, just like you do everything. It's no wonder your parents didn't want you. Who would want a worthless, delinquent witch who curses everything she touches?"

              "Gavin, stop it," Dylan spoke up, which was a surprise to me, because he usually stayed quiet, even when people were fighting.

              Gavin shoved him aside to get in my face, but I spoke before he could, "My parents are dead you fucking moron, and aside from the accident, I’ve done nothing but try to be civil to you. I know you hate me, but at least show a little respect to everyone else here. They don't deserve to have to deal with your arrogant ass attitude."

              "Ah, I'm an arrogant ass now?" Gavin bellowed.

              "Yes, you are!" I yelled right back.

              "Well, at least my parents didn’t kill themselves to get away from me. I can't even blame yours for doing it."

              Rage thumped through my veins, passing the point of no return as I snapped and punched Gavin in the face. He fell backwards and landed with a loud, wet splattering sound. Cement sprayed out from around him before slowly slopping back towards him, his entire backside and hair covered in cement.

              He sat up very slowly, his mouth wide in shock as he lifted his hands and jerked them downward, slinging cement off his arms. His eyes slowly trailed up from the ground and landed on me, where I was standing like a deer frozen in the headlights of an oncoming semi.

              Holy guacamole, did I just punch Gavin onto wet cement?

              I felt the familiar tug at my lips as they tried to decide whether to smirk or smile.

Ha, take that jerkface.

              Gavin's eyes darkened again and he reached forward, yanking me into the wet cement with him, his hand smashing my face into it. The grit and rocks in the cement scraped against my face and I held my breath, hoping it wouldn't go up my nose.

              When I felt his hand release, I pushed myself up out of the cement, sitting on my hip as I tried to brush all the cement off from around my eyes and face.

              It was extremely unpleasant.

              "When you push me down, you'll go right down with me," Gavin growled in my ear.

              I glanced up at him as he started to get up. It was time to have a little fun, plus I couldn't let him have the last word easily.

              I grabbed one of his legs and yanked it back hard, making him let out a yell as he fell back into the cement, one leg stretched out in front of him and the other behind him in a nice split. He groaned, his face contouring into one filled with pain as he fell back on his back, clutching his groin, curses flowing from his mouth.

              I grinned and kept wiping at my face. By this time the cement had started seeping through my clothes and into my jeans. It was uncomfortable, but at least it was cool compared to the searing heat of the sun.

              A hand appeared in front of me and I looked up, finding Dylan standing on the outskirts of the cement, offering me a hand to pull me out. I reached up and grasped it, putting my weight on his hand as I stood up, walking forward, cement dripping down my body.

              A sudden jerk from behind had me slipping backwards and I let out a yelp as I landed back into the wetness, Dylan landing on top on me.

              Dylan's eyes drifted down from my face to my chest, which was plastered heavily with cement, pressing my shirt against my skin and showing every contour of my body.

              I was a Pillsbury cement girl, leaving almost nothing to the imagination.

              Dylan's face turned red with a blush and he rolled off, mumbling an apology that was cut short when his body landed in the cement. He seemed to finally realize he was in the middle of a ton of cement.

              I glanced at Gavin, who had recovered from his banana split enough to crawl away from me and Dylan. No doubt he had dragged me back in and was now trying to make his escape.

              Landon and Jayden had made their way to the edge of the cement. Landon was laughing so hard he was running out of breath and Jayden just stood there smirking at us. Gavin made it to where Jayden stood and sludged out, but he grasped him by the shirt and slung him back in. Gavin slid through the cement on his back like a turtle.

"What the hell? You're supposed to be on my side!" Gavin yelled at Jayden, who was trying to brush the wet cement from his hands. "I'm with whoever looks the best, and right now Nova's looking pretty damn hot."

              Gavin huffed, "Wyatt! Help me get out of this shit!" he yelled, catching Wyatt's attention, who was over at the truck.

Wyatt began to slowly walk over.

              Jayden turned his eyes to Landon, who was still laughing like a madman. It took only a second before his laughter was cut short, as Jayden heaved him into the air and chucked him into the cement too.

              "Ah come on, that's no fair!" Landon complained.

              "You looked like you enjoyed watching it, so I thought you might like to join the fun," Jayden smirked, his eyes dark and evil.

              I crawled across the cement, hoping no one would notice as I tried to make my escape. The cement was starting to get really uncomfortable.

              "Where are you going sweetheart?" Jayden asked with a sexy grin.

              "Help me out," I said, lifting a hand towards him as I tried to find my footing.

              "I can never resist helping a damsel in distress. Perhaps I'll take you back to the castle and help you with your bath. I'm very good at scrubbing backs and other dirty body parts," Jayden wiggled his eyebrows and I rolled my eyes at his inappropriate remark.

              A huge ball of cement flew through the air and splattered Jayden's chest, then two more followed. He froze and glanced around and I did as well, finding both Landon and Dylan grabbing handfuls of cement and throwing it at him. Both guys looked pretty displeased with him.

              "Wait here, Sweetheart," Jayden growled and stomped through the cement towards his attackers.

              I took the opportunity to crawl out of the cement, my hands falling on dry ground as a hand grasped the back of my pants, plastering cement down the inside of my jeans, as I’m dragged backwards.

              I was so close.

              "You're not getting out of this shit before me," another handful of cement was shoved down the inside of my jeans, causing me to screech and jerk away.

So he wanted to play that way did he?

              I shoved Gavin down into the cement, slamming my knee against his chest while I used my hands to scoop cement into the front of his pants. Let's see how he likes that.

              He cursed, which was expected, and flung me aside, sitting up on his knees.  He pulled his pants away from his groin, as if trying to stop the cement from touching his man bits.

              "Having some problems brother?" Wyatt asked in amusement.

              "The bitch shoved cement down my pants. Fuck this," Gavin growled, moving carefully towards the edge.

              Wyatt pulled off his hat and ran a hand through his hair, a small grin tugged the corner of his mouth, but he still seemed extremely calm.

              Gavin paused, catching his brothers smirk, and his eyes narrowed. "You too?" he growled, then reached forward and grabbed his belt, yanking Wyatt into the cement with him.

              I heard a yell from behind me before getting sprayed with cement, a body landing near me. By this point, it was almost impossible to tell who was who.

              I laughed and threw a cement ball back at Landon, as I tried to defend who I thought was Dylan.

              "What in tarnation is going on here?" a voice yelled out, causing everyone to freeze. We turned as one, all of us dripping with cement as we looked towards where Chili stood.

              Uh oh.

              "She started it," Gavin growled, motioning towards me.

Of course, this was all my fault.

              Chili held up his hand, stopping any of us from speaking. "I don't want to hear it. Go spray the cement off of y'all and then get back here and smooth all this back out before it sets," Chili shook his head with a frown, before walking towards the house, "Polly's got food waiting inside when y'all are done."