Fallen Crest Alternative Version (2 page)

Oxygen left me in a rush. “Okay, maybe that’s when it started.” A flash of lust spread through me as I remembered that day. His arms had held me in place as he nuzzled under my neck, my cheeks, and under my ear. Adam had been there and he’d been a witness to the power Mason held over me. Heat flared through me as I recalled that time. It wasn’t one that I was proud of, but it pushed Adam back. I knew now that Mason had paraded our relationship in front of him for a reason.

“You were with him that day?”

I nodded.

Her cheeks flushed up and she squeezed her hands together, but she asked in a dreadful tone, “You had sex with him that day?”

Okay, enough with the sharing. I narrowed my eyes and asked in a flat voice, “Why do you care about that?”

She squeaked again and looked away. There was a frantic feeling to her when she hurried out, “I don’t. I just—did you? I mean, Adam said you did and I didn’t believe him.”

It took one step before I latched onto her arm.

Her eyes were round as she gaped up at me.

I gritted my teeth and tried to contain my anger. It was like whiplash. “Are you kidding me? You never cared before. You would’ve been excited. Now you care? Now you’re telling me Adam had something to say about it?”

She gulped and moved away from me. My hold tightened on her, and her eyes got bigger when she tried to pull her arm from me. “Let go of me.”

My eyes bore into her. I needed to know. “When it came out that Mason and I are dating and that Adam had been using you to get to me, you stopped talking to me. I thought it was because you felt hurt or betrayed, but now I’m starting to wonder. Why’d you stop talking to me, Becky?”

Her mouth had fallen open and she closed it now. Her eyes slid to the side.

“Tell me the truth too.”

“I…” She took a deep breath. “IstoppedbecauseAdamconfusedme.” Another deep breath. “Hesaidyouliedtomeonpurposeanddidn’tconsiderme,” another breath. “afriendotherwise

youwould’vetoldmeyouweredatingMasonKade,butnothatIblameyouwithJessicaandLydiaandallthatcrap.”

My fingers let loose, and I was ashamed to see there were white finger prints on her arm. “You’re an idiot? You know that, don’t you?”

She gulped and hung her head. “I’m starting to think that.”

“I didn’t tell you about Mason because I don’t trust anyone. You can’t blame me for that. I caught Jeff cheating on me, then found out that Jessica had been screwing him for two years, and to make it worse, Lydia knew about it. My other best friend covered for them. You showed up, and we were only friends for two months before this shit’s hit the fan again. Can you blame me for not telling you?”

She gave me a sad look.

I narrowed my eyes and clipped out, “And Adam’s talking to you? You’re listening to the guy that used you because you were the only one I was talking to? Really? Come on, Becky. I know you think Adam Quinn is this great guy, but he can be really low and dirty if he doesn’t get what he wants.”

“I know.” It came out like a whimper.

“Do you?”

Then the doorbell rang again, and I let loose with a string of curses. “It’s the pizza. Hold on.”

But it wasn’t the pizza.

CHAPTER TWO

“Malinda Decraw?” I blinked in shock. Mark’s mother stood on my doorstep with a covered casserole in her arms. She wore a red coat with a red scarf draped and knotted in a fashionable way. She had her long brown mane of hair with gentle curls swept over one shoulder. As she stood there for a moment, she rubbed at one of her jean-clad legs and stomped her feet in black boots.

“Hi, Samantha!” She held out a hand with a warm smile and brushed some of her long brown locks over her shoulder. “Could I come in?”

“Uh, sure.” I took two steps back, still dazed.

She came inside and rubbed her arms over her coat. “Oh, hello, Rebecca. How are you dear?”

Becky came forward with strained features. As Malinda kissed her on the cheek, she looked at the floor. “I’m good, Ms. Decraw. How are you?”

“It is quite chilly, even for January. Don’t you think, Rebecca? I have to say, I’ve gotten to know your mother a bit more from the Country Club and find her delightful. You must tell her.” The warmth Malinda oozed made me take a step back. It was immediate and seemed heartfelt. Her eyes twinkled a bit as she spoke to Becky, who seemed shy all the sudden.

“I will. I know she really likes you too.”

Malinda’s cheeks were pink and she pressed a hand to her neck as a gushing laugh bubbled forth. “Oh dear. Have I overwhelmed you? Laura told me that can happen sometimes. How is your friendship with Adam going along? He comes over all the time now for dinner. He’s such a charming young man. I couldn’t be happier for the two of you.”

“Wait—what?” I turned to Becky and lifted an eyebrow. “Are you and Adam dating?”

She stood frozen. The blood drained from her cheeks.

“Goodness, no.” Malinda laughed again and placed a gentle hand to my arm. “Laura and I have grown quite close. She’s told me all about Rebecca’s feelings for Adam. I approve, whole-heartedly. But I’ve never been a fan of some of Mark’s friends. Some of those girls are so aggressive and provocative. I say a girl should remain a girl, at least while in high school. She can go crazy in college. That’s the time to find herself. Rebecca, sweetheart, mum’s the word with me if you do have a few wild nights in college. I won’t tell a soul.”

I swung between the two and knew I must’ve looked as a scarecrow. “Huh? The two of you are close?”

“Oh, heavens, Samantha. I completely forgot why I came over.” She chuckled again and the sound filled the air. Dimples appeared in her flushed cheeks. “I live across the street. I wasn’t sure if you knew that. I’m so glad you and Mark have become friends, but I wasn’t sure if you were aware of where we lived. I know David hasn’t wanted to bother you with that information yet. You know how he is; he doesn’t want to put too much pressure on you. He thinks you’ve been through so much, but I keep telling him that you seem like a tough girl. You’ve got a clear head on your shoulders, and you’ve got oomph, if you know what I mean.”

Becky giggled behind her hands. When she saw my glare, she turned away. The laughter didn’t stop.

Malinda’s hand fluttered through the air, as if she were drawing a picture. “I’ve been so curious to see the inside of this home. An artist owned it before your father bought it, and I heard he renovated some of the rooms. I’ve been bursting at the seams for any little excuse to come over, and when David told me you’d be my neighbor, I was just tickled pink.”

The Kades lived two houses down. “I’ve been your neighbor for a while.”

“Oh.” She flapped her hand at me. “That doesn’t count. James Kade may have kept the house, but Helen was the one who owned it. That woman’s never been a neighbor, if you know what I mean. I had hoped for a little bit when Mark mentioned that he met Logan Kade at a football camp, but I knew not to get my hopes up too high. The Kades don’t let anyone in that home, and I mean anyone. I’m no dummy. Then when your mother moved in, pfft! I knew those gates will forever be locked up now, certainly now that David and I hope to get married.” She stopped suddenly and pierced me with her gaze. “You do know that, don’t you, darling? I wanted Mark to whisper that bit in your ears. David wants to wait, but heavens to pieces, I have no intention of waiting. I’ve been eyeing your daddy for a long time. When Mark told me the coach was splitting from his wife, I celebrated that night with my girlfriends and a little Mr. Merlot. If you know what I mean?” She giggled and her cheeks got pinker.

I’d never spoken to David’s girlfriend, but this wasn’t what I expected. She remained in the background the few times I saw them together. Since the settlement agreed that I could spend time with him, it’d only been the two of us at the old house. When Mark told me that he thought his mother and my father were going to get hitched, I hadn’t known what to say so I’d never spoken of it to David. Now that I heard confirmation that they hadn’t, I relaxed a bit. But from the determination in Malinda’s eyes, I knew the man who raised me was already spoken for. I wasn’t sure if David knew it was for the rest of his life.

“But enough with my chitter chatter. I’m so excited to finally be speaking to you. I’ve heard such great things from David and Mark. Even Adam’s spoken highly of you when he comes for dinner, and that’s quite a bit now. He practically lives with us now that his father’s got himself a new little missy—” Her eyes popped out and she gasped. Then she patted her cheeks. “Let’s let that be between us girls, hmmm? Adam never asked for me to be quiet, but I know he wouldn’t want that out. I feel so bad now.” But her voice perked up. “So, Samantha, would you like to come for dinner this Friday evening? We finally have those evenings free again and I love to entertain Friday evenings. Let’s say at six? Rebecca, would you like to come as well? Hell, I’ll invite Adam too.” She winked at us. “Let’s hope the two boys don’t bring their female friends. Those girls can be quite nasty.”

My mouth had fallen open at some point. It stayed there now.

“Okay.” She wiggled her fingers at us as she started for the door. “Toodles, wiggles, and all forms of positive energy I’m sending your way. I’ll see both of you this Friday at six? Oh, and maybe this can be a secret as well? I’d just love to surprise your father, Samantha. He’s been so worried about adding more stress, but I kept telling him it was all nonsense. It’d tickle his goat if he saw you for dinner that night.”

When she opened the door, a pizza delivery girl was on the other side. Her hand had been raised for the buzzer, but she stepped back when Malinda appeared.

“Oooh, pizza!” she cooed and reached into her purse. “Let me pay for that. How much was it, sweetie?”

The girl never blinked an eye as she told her the amount. When she got a ten dollar tip, she gave her a closed mouth grin and stuffed the money in her pocket. The pizza was handed over the next second, and we watched as she hurried to her car and drove away.

Malinda winked at us again. “They’re always scared I made a mistake with the tip and they need to speed off before I realize my mistake. They tend to think I’m a bit ditzy at times. Okay, have fun darlings. See you on Friday! I’m so excited. I’m going to hurry home and start choosing recipes!”

When I took the pizza to the kitchen and Becky had closed the door, we were quiet for a moment before both of us doubled over in laughter. As I wiped a tear from my eye, I shook my head. “David doesn’t know what he got himself into. That woman is anything but ditzy.”

Becky hopped on a barstool and tried to contain her giggles. “Mark’s been so embarrassed of her at the Club. Now I know why.”

“That woman’s a happy tornado.” I grabbed two plates and handed one to Becky before I pulled out some cheese and saw a bottle of wine in the refrigerator. It wasn’t long before we traipsed downstairs to the theatre with our plates full and our glasses just as full. When we settled in, with blankets draped over, and the movie starting, Becky sighed.

“What’s wrong?” I glanced over.

She gave me a pained look. “I’m real sorry for avoiding you these last three months. I was stupid.”

My chest tightened and I gripped harder on my plate. “That’s okay.” My throat had swollen.

She picked at her blanket. “It’s not. I wasn’t the friend to you that I said I’d be. I abandoned you too.”

“I didn’t really feel abandoned, you know.”

She grinned and gathered her blanket in her hands. She pressed it against her face, but the laughter peeled through it. “Miranda sure thought she was Queen of the town when Logan dated her.”

I grinned at the memory. Miranda and Logan dated for two months. It was long enough for her to feel secure and parade her new notch on the social ladder to make the rest of her friends get mad. Cassandra and Amelia had grown tired of Miranda’s ego after a week and they started to make snide comments to her not long after that. Emily remained quiet, but there was always a smirk on her face when their queen swished down the school’s hallway. Since Miranda dropped Peter Glasburg, he rebounded by dating Cassandra, which was another reason the snide comments doubled after another week.

Adam and Mark kept quiet, but they physically rallied behind Peter. The three guys of the Academy Elite were always with each other.

How did I know all this? Because Miranda considered herself my new best friend. As she put it one day, I was dating Mason. She was dating Logan. It would make sense if we were friends. It hadn’t made sense to me. I tried to keep my solitude going, but Miranda would flank me in the hallways, at my car, in the lunchroom.

She gushed about our future double dates. I kept quiet. Logan only laughed when I would tell him her plans. He had no intention of taking Miranda on a date, but he admitted one time that he enjoyed the sex. However, after two weeks and no dates had been planned, Miranda started to question me. The ego dropped a bit and her insecurity rose.

After the third week, it was past due when she expected to be invited inside the Kade mansion, and Logan’s nonchalant treatment turned Miranda into a sputtering girl with a crush. She talked about him, dreamt about him, asked others questions about him, and wrote a few essays for school about him.

Her notch as the school’s queen and leader of the Academy Elite was gone.