Playing Pretend (38 page)

Truth be told, I felt far worse than I looked.

My brown hair was disheveled, and my eyes were bloodshot, with dark purple bags underneath. Not exactly a pretty sight, but it wasn’t anything a hot shower and fresh coffee couldn’t fix.

When I was sure I’d all but scrubbed the alcohol out my system, I dried off, pulled on some clean clothes, and headed downstairs in search of some fresh java.

The house was a fucking mess. Empty cups, and beer bottles were strewn across the floor, along with a few random bottom feeders who’d obviously passed out at some point during the party. I stepped around the after-effects of last nights’ blow out, and found Reid leaning against a marble counter in the kitchen with a cup of steaming coffee in his hand.

“He has risen,” he joked, taking the cup to his mouth.

“Fuck off,” I replied. I grabbed my own cup, and silently praised the heavens that the coffee was still fresh.

“Did you have a bad night, pumpkin?”

Reid was joking, I knew that, but my sense of humor had yet to make a re-appearance after last night. Or perhaps it was chilling at the bottom of the empty Jack Daniels bottle I left next to my bed.

I flipped him the bird from over my shoulder, and then added milk and two sugars to my cup. Reid chuckled, and mumbled something under his breath. I would have asked him to repeat it, but I didn’t have the energy. Not to mention the fact that even talking hurt like a motherfucker.

“You disappeared last night,” remarked Reid. He emptied his cup, and rinsed it before turning back to face me.

When the caffeine made it possible to talk without hurting my head, I replied, “I got over it, so I went up to my room.”

I avoided his gaze, and shrugged, as if he’d accept that as a good enough explanation.

“Did it have anything to do with Kennedy showing up here last night? Because you were fine before she came. In fact, I seem to remember walking in on you with some brunette’s mouth around your junk.”

I frowned. “Don’t be stupid,” I replied, biting back my sudden annoyance. “Why the fuck would I care if Kennedy was here?”

Reid’s brows arched, and he crossed his arms. “Because you kinda threw that chick off like she was a disease as soon as you heard Kennedy’s voice.”

Fuck. He had me there because I did in fact throw Misty off me when I thought I’d heard Kennedy’s voice. She wasn’t impressed, but it’s not like I promised her more than getting the chance to suck me off. I might have hinted at the possibility of reciprocation, but the moment Kennedy showed up all bets were off.

“That’s what I thought,” Reid added. He pushed himself off the counter, and stopped at the mouth of the kitchen that led back into the living room. “We need to get going. You calling the cleaning service to come clean this place up before we lock up?”

I nodded, and then looked away. My jaw ticked, and my body was rife with agitation. Pushing that aside, I called the cleaning company I used after every party I had, and made arrangements for them to come clean up before Reid and I headed back to the university campus. They’d clean up, and cover all the furniture with cloth, and that’s how the house would stay until I needed a place to crash when the dorms closed over break. My parents moved out shortly after I graduated high school, and honestly I couldn’t blame them. It was no longer a home for us, and only held the memories that hurt.

My mother needed to get away, so my father took her with him on a few business trips, and when they came back I found out he’d bought another house for them a few hours away in Dallas. He couldn’t bring himself to sell our old one, so he’d left it vacant.

I used it for my parties, which were almost a nightly occurrence this past year, and sometimes I’d come back just to be alone. To remember. No matter how hard it was.

But, it was time to pack up again, and start my second year at Brighton University. I was studying a Bachelor of Science in Architecture, a decision I made because it was what I’d really wanted. I learned that life is too short to do what others wanted you to do, and you should follow
your
dreams instead of living out the plans someone else had set out for you. Too bad my douchebag of a father didn’t get that memo. He’d had his own dreams for me, and while we might have agreed on them at some point, fate had other ideas. And I listened.

“You ready to start packing?” Reid asked as he came back into the kitchen. I’d been so busy staring out the window that I hadn’t even noticed the cleaning service’s arrival.

“Let’s do it,” I replied. “Do you remember what dorm we’re in?”

“Yeah, McDonald Hall I think.” He wriggled his eyebrows, and grinned. “Co-ed.”

I shook my head, fighting the smile on my face. “And you accuse me of acting like a horny fifteen-year-old boy.”

Reid shrugged. “What can I say brother, girls can’t get enough.”

“Please,” I snorted. “You’re just waiting until Jade decides to give you the time of day.”

Surprise flashed across Reid face before he asked, “What makes you say that?”

“I’ve seen the way you look at her, and the way you watch out for her when she parties with us. I also know you guys got pretty close last year.”

Reid sighed, and then pulled his fingers through his hair. “I won’t deny that I care about her, but we’re both having fun right now. I don’t think she’s ready for more.”

I slapped him on the back, and started walking towards my bedroom. “It’ll happen if it’s meant to, you know that. Besides it’s a new year, and a fresh start. Who knows what’ll happen.”

I left Reid in the kitchen, and grabbed a few boxes before we hit the road.

I thought about what I’d said to Reid, and realized that a fresh start was exactly what I needed. I just hoped that nothing came along to derail my newfound determination to make a change for the better.