Wicked Innocence (Wicked Innocence 1)

“Harry?” I asked, giggling.

“What? No! Nelson, you idiot,” she grumbled. “You saw how he looked at me.” She thought for a moment. “Though I wouldn’t half mind if Harry did. Does he have a girlfriend?” she whispered.

“No,” I smirked. “Why? Are you interested?”

She blushed. “I was just asking.”

I walked around the back of the car and slid in behind the passenger seat.

“You can sit up front,” I said to Dee.

She glared at me.

“What?” I said innocently.

“Thanks for picking us up,” I said to Harry.

He turned around and flashed me a smile.

My eyes widened when I saw his face. “What happened?” I gasped. His left eye was swollen and bruised, as was his cheek.

“Let’s just say a little family disagreement,” he chuckled. “But you should see the other guy.”

“Sax?” I whispered, my stomach twisting into a knot. Harry’s eyes met mine in the rear vision mirror. I looked away. He knew. The question was, how much did he know?

“Sax did that to you?” demanded Dee.

“Yeah, but I might’ve asked for it. We have a complicated relationship,” he muttered, slipping the car into gear. We took off, exiting the street, heading into the city.

“How is he?” I asked quietly. He raised his eyebrows and I blushed.

“Pissed off at the world,” he finally answered. “Don’t know why. Don’t really care, to be honest. I have a feeling it has to do with you, though.”

I cringed and looked out the window, focusing on the passing traffic.

“Don’t worry, tonight I don’t even want to think about my cousin. And I get the feeling you don’t want to, either,” he added pointedly.

“So maybe you should stop talking about him?” I suggested sweetly.

“So Harry, how long have you been into music?” Dee cut in. Harry smiled and began chatting. The tension eased.

I sighed and sank into my seat, silently thanking her for her subtle diversionary tactic. I needed a few minutes alone with my thoughts, even if they had my stomach twisted in knots as I thought about Sax. Was he hurt? Harry looked pretty messed up. What the hell had they been fighting about?

***

So glad I decided to come.

I sighed and ran my finger around the rim of my glass, wishing I’d just stayed at home. I was sitting alone at the bar after being abandoned by everyone. Dee had followed Harry outside like a puppy after he’d invited her to get some fresh air.

I snorted. ‘Fresh air’ my ass. This was supposed to be a way for me to keep my mind off Sax, yet there I was, drowning myself in a drink I technically wasn’t allowed to drink, checking my messages constantly for some kind of sign that he wasn’t going to hate me forever.

Things were looking pretty grim.

***

“Micah.” Dee grabbed my arm. Right away I could tell something was wrong. “It’s Harry. We were out front and this group of guys came out of nowhere.”

Shit. I grabbed her hand and ran back over to where I’d last seen the other guys. Fuck. They were gone. My hands on my head, I glanced around, trying to figure out what to do. My head was throbbing—a combination of not eating all day and my two glasses of vodka and soda.