A loud crash echoes through the bar and mixes with the music, bursting our little bubble of euphoria. Graysons’ head whips up and I follow his gaze. Brody is standing toe-to-toe with someone, but his features are partially hidden by the dim lighting in the bar. Grayson wraps his hand around mine and he starts pushing through the throng of people to get to Brody. When we finally make it through, the person in front of Brody comes into view.
Tommy.
I let go of Grayson’s hand and scurry to where Demi is standing.
“You ok?” I whisper close to her ear. She looks at me and I see her eyes glistening with tears threatening to spill at any moment. She simply shakes her head ‘no’, so I wrap my arm around her shoulders and hug her tight. I turn my attention back to what’s going on in front of us but I don’t loosen my grip on Demi.
“You have a lot of nerve showing up here,” Brody says in Tommy’s face. He shoves Tommy’s shoulder and that’s when Grayson steps in between the two.
“This is not the place boys,” Grayson warns, his voice calm but stern.
“The hell it isn’t,” Brody growls. “He shouldn’t be here after what he did.”
Tommy takes a step forward, causing the tension to intensify. The atmosphere around us becomes thick, and to the outsider this would look like nothing more than a pissing contest between college boys. “After what I did?” Tommy snarls, “You were fucking my girlfriend behind my back for God knows how long. You’re supposed to be my friend, my team mate. And my brother. You betrayed me. I didn’t deserve that.”
“You’re right. I betrayed you, and I’m sorry. But you had no right to smack her around,” Brody replies. His back is rigid, like he’s ready to fight.
Tommy hangs is head in what I can only describe as shame. “I know. That was wrong of me. And I can’t take that back. But I am truly sorry.” He looks straight at Demi as he says it.
He walks to where Demi and I are standing and her body goes stiff. The people around us go quiet, watching to see what he's going to do.
He lifts his hand as if to touch her face but drops it in defeat when she flinches. Her eyes glaze over and her breathe falters. The look on his face is filled with regret, and maybe even love.
"Is he good to you?" He asks softly. The question surprises me and I almost feel sorry for him. Almost.
"Yes." Her voice cracks. I can see this is difficult for her, she's trembling and on the brink of crying.
"Do you love him?"
Demi looks over Tommy's shoulder and her eyes connect with Brody's. "More than anything."
Tommy winces. Demi steps out of my embrace and reaches up to cup Tommy's cheek. "I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you. It just happened, and I was powerless to stop it. He's my destiny."
Tommy sighs and his shoulders drop in surrender. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I have no excuse for what I did. But it’s my last night in town, and I need to know that you forgive me, that you don't hate me."
"I forgive you." Tears spill onto her cheeks and she does what no one expected. She hugs him. He returns it and kisses her head. I am stunned and in awe of her ability to forgive him after what he did.
"Goodbye Demi," he breathes. He lets her go and turns to disappear into the crowd. His friends follow and when Brody pulls Demi into his chest, she crumbles. My heart breaks for her. Walking away from someone who has been a permanent fixture in your life is never easy, but it took courage on her part to recognize that Tommy isn’t the one her heart belongs to. He never was.
“You ready to leave?” Grayson asks. He smiles at me but it doesn’t reach his eyes. There’s a storm brewing behind them, and Grayson’s muscles are rigid.
“Yes,” I sigh, “I think we’ve had enough fun and games for one night.”
Grayson wraps his arm around me and leads me out the bar. Suddenly I feel drained, and I can’t imagine how Demi feels. The cool air hits my skin and a shiver travels up my spine. We step into the parking lot, moving towards Graysons truck.
“Grayson?” a melodic voice calls from behind us.
I turn to see who it came from but Grayson’s vice grip stops me. His body is frozen in place, and I watch his face transform into stone. He turns around, slowly, as if bracing himself for something.
The girl in front of us is gorgeous. Her auburn hair hangs down to her waist in soft ringlets and makes her honey colored eyes shine. Her legs are a mile long and lead up to a tiny waist. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was a model.
“Haley.”
The way Grayson says her name causes a sick feeling to emerge and root itself in my stomach. His tone drips with contempt. The way her eyes survey me makes my skin crawl. Instinctively, my body straightens and I slip my hand into Grayson’s.
“What are you doing here?” It’s more of a bark than a question.
Haley shuffles from one foot to the other before she answers. “You know why I’m here. It’s the second anniversary of Em –“
“Don’t you dare speak my sisters’ name.” Grayson’s voice is low and menacing, his stance radiating anger. I look between the two of them and try to put the puzzle pieces together in my head. Something just doesn’t feel right.
“Don’t be like that Gray,” she pleads. I hate the way she says his name. With ease and familiarity. The thought that they’ve been intimate crosses my mind and I realize that she could be an ex. My guess is I’m right.
“You need to leave Haley. Now.”
Grayson turns around and almost pulls my arm out of its socket. He opens the passenger side door to his truck and I get in, jumping when he slams it shut. I watch Haley disappear in my side mirror as we peel out of the parking lot. I’m so distracted by what just happened that I don’t even notice when Brody and Demi drive in the opposite direction, towards the house him and Grayson share.
The drive to my apartment building is short, but an awkward silence fills the cab of the truck. Grayson’s anger and irritation comes off of him in waves, giving rise to my scrupulous thoughts and insecurities. I’m unsure of what to do, what to say, so I keep quiet until we get to my apartment. Grayson shuts the door and walks into the kitchen, grabbing a beer from the fridge. He pops the cap and downs half the bottle in one swig. His actions have me feeling uneasy, feeding my unrelenting need to know what the hell just happened. Our entire night turned to shit in less than an hour, and whoever this Haley girl is, she obviously has some effect on Grayson. His reaction to her presence alone was distressing to me.
“Are you going to tell me what that was about?” I ask quietly. I fiddle with the hem of my dress, my nerves getting the better of me. I’m worried about how he’s going to react. I’ve never seen him so angry and I never expected to see such an aggressive side to him. I don’t like it. I don’t like feeling on edge. It reminds me too much of my relationship with Jake.
Grayson’s jaw ticks and he brushes past me, moving to the living room. I follow him.
“Who was that girl Grayson?”
My irritation flares when he doesn’t answer me. “Are you going to talk to me?”
“Goddammit Huntley, will you stop with the fucking questions!” he yells.