Unbelievable (Haven Falls 2)

She pouts out her bottom lip. “I was much happier talking about piercings.”

“I bet you were,” I smile. “What do you say? Pull up your big girl panties and let him know how it is.”

She lets out a deep sigh. “I know, I’ve been thinking about doing it for so long, but I’m terrified of what his answer is going to be. It’ll break me if, after all that, he rejects me.”

I shake my head. “I don’t think that’ll happen. I see it every time he looks at you. He’s crazy about you. You just have to help him see that he’s more than enough.”

“Easier said than done,” she grumbles.

I scoff. “You think that’s hard. Try getting your brother to see reason.”

“Shit. We’re both fucked.”

With that, both of our spoons dig down into the ice cream which is exactly how we spend the rest of our afternoon.

Tully stays all night and we make the best damn nachos Haven Falls has ever seen and before I know it, she’s fast asleep on the couch, hugging my favorite pillow to her body while I scowl, wishing I’d never given it up.

I take myself down to the bathroom and quickly brush my teeth before heading into my room and searching out Noah’s shirt. The one I’d stolen from him when he shoved me in that cold shower and didn’t give in until I’d agreed to go on a date, not that it has really happened yet. We sort of skipped over the whole dating thing and jumped head first into a relationship.

I pull off my tank and quickly replace it with his shirt. The fabric falls to my knees and I grin down at myself. His smell has long worn out of it, but it’s still comfortable as hell and makes my heart smile every time I pull it on.

I freaking love it.

I climb into bed, minus my favorite pillow and find myself staring at the ceiling of my darkened room. This feels wrong. Not saying goodnight, not knowing where I stand, not knowing if he’s thinking of me just as I am of him.

I hate it.

I grab my phone and spin it around my fingers, deciding what to do. I’ll just send one quick message even though he won’t reply, but at least he knows he’s still in my head despite the fact that my heart is hurting without him.

Hmm…now what the hell do you write to someone who’s had the shits with you for three days?

A grin rips across my face as I start typing out the lyrics for the first verse of Afroman’s ‘Because I Got High’. I hit send before I change my mind and wait patiently, hoping and wishing the past three days have broken him down enough to let me off the hook.

A moment later, my phone lights up the room as it vibrates against the palm of my hand. Excitement bubbles within me and suddenly my heart is racing as though I’m halfway through a torturous marathon. “You’re a fucking idiot,” Noah says down the line.

His words are harsh, but the tone in his voice has a wave of relief sailing over me. I close my eyes as I listen to his even breathing on the other end, terrified to say anything that could screw this up. “Do you forgive me?” I murmur, hoping I’m not pushing my luck.

Noah lets out a sigh and it’s clear as day he’s still got the shits, but maybe not so much that he could let me back in, at least just a little. “You got fucking wasted at that party and then smoked a joint,” he points out. “It was fucking stupid. Do you have any idea how fucked up that was?”

“We were just having a little fun,” I defend.

“Fun?” he scoffs. “Do you know how I found out about it?” he questions, not bothering to wait for a response. “The whole fucking football team were talking about the chicks on their hands and knees, waiting for a fucking gang bang with their asses in the air. Rivers and I beat the living shit out of the three of them who decided to see how easy you’d be. Is that your idea of fun?”

Fuck. No wonder he’s so pissy about it.

“I’m sorry,” I tell him. “We fucked up. I fucked up.”

“You more than fucked up, Henley.”

My heart squeezes. Henley. Not Spitfire.

“What do you want me to say?” I throw back at him trying to keep my mouth shut, but the annoyance over the past few days comes ripping out of me. “I said I’m sorry. I’ve realized I fucked up, and next time I feel like getting high, I’ll get your written approval beforehand, your highness.”

“Are you serious, right now?”

“Well, yeah actually. You haven’t talked to me in three days. What the hell did you expect? I’m not some bitch you can just push aside because I didn’t follow your expectations of how a well behaved girlfriend should act.”