Broken Hill Havoc (Broken Hill High Series 5)

He could make a legitimate business out of it. Well, mostly legitimate, you know, apart from the whole ‘illegal’ aspect of it. He could charge entry and sell shit. It wouldn’t last forever. He’ll be caught sooner or later, but until he does, he could build something great.

“He’s going to end up in jail,” I tell Nate as a warning, knowing no matter what my thoughts are on it, Maxen is going to go ahead and do it anyway.

“Nah, not Maxen,” he tells me. “That bastard is too damn sneaky. You’ll see, he’ll be a fucking star.”

All I can do is roll my eyes as I raise my fork to my mouth and take another bite.

Chapter 15

I sit on my bed which is covered top to bottom in books while I giggle away like a love-sick puppy, chatting to Nate on the phone. I don’t know how he does it, but he somehow manages to pull these emotions from my body that I didn’t even know existed.

My bedroom door is barged in and I jump at the sudden intrusion. “What the hell?” I gasp as I stare at Brooke in my doorway. It takes me a moment to notice the tears streaked down her face and I let out a heartbroken sigh. “Shit.”

“What?” Nate demands through the phone.

I drop the phone on my bed, not bothering to hang up as I race across my room and pull Brooke into my arms. “What happened?” I ask, holding her tight.

The sobs take over and she struggles to get the words out. I lead her back to my bed and remember my phone. I grab it and shove it between my ear and shoulder. “Hey,” I say to Nate. “I got to go.”

“What happened?” he snaps, needing answers, most likely thinking the worst.

“I’m not sure,” I say as I watch Brooke. “But I’d assume she just figured out that Lukas is a piece of shit.”

Brooke nods and I take her hand. “Shit,” Nate sighs. “Do you want me to come around.”

“No,” I laugh. “That’s probably the last thing she needs, but when you come home later, make sure to bring some Ben & Jerry’s, preferably the chocolate kind.”

I can practically hear his eyes rolling. “Alright, message me if you need me.”

“K, love you,” I say before ending the call.

I drop the phone down in my lap and pull Brooke down on my bed before snuggling into the warm blankets. “What happened?”

She wipes her eyes on the back of her hand, smudging mascara all over her face, reminding me that I should probably go and buy her a waterproof one, but then, this is going to be the last time she cries over a douchebag boy. “I went over to his place to surprise him,” she starts.

“Oh no,” I sigh. I mean, surprising a lowlife is never a good plan.

I latch onto her hands and hold tight while she tries to compose herself for the rest of her story. “He was with someone else. Like, not just had some girl over, I walked in to see him giving it to her in a big fucking way. I mean, she was bent over, propping herself up against the wall while he slammed into her from behind. He even had her hair wrapped around his hand, forcing her head back like they do in those BDSM pornos.”

“Ok, that’s way too many details,” I tell her, cringing at the mental image circling my mind. “And for the record, I can’t say that I know anything about BDSM pornos. I’ve never watched one.”

She wipes her eyes. “You have to. They’re super kinky.”

“Hard pass.”

Brooke just lays there watching me with a heart-breaking pout across her face. “I’m sorry,” she finally says. “I thought… I don’t know. I thought there was something special there. I really felt it.”

“It’s ok,” I tell her.

“It’s not ok. You warned me and I should have believed you. I should have trusted you. You’re my best friend and instead of acting like a friend, I tore you down.”

“Brooke,” I say, stopping her as I wipe a tear from her face, hoping my pillows aren’t getting too wet. “It’s ok. I get it. You’re looking for something special and you want it so bad that you forced yourself to feel something incredible, it was just with the wrong guy. Besides, you warned me about Nate in the beginning, so it was only fair.”

“Yeah, but Nate turned out to be a good guy.”

“Well,” I shrug. “We can’t all be right.”

Her bottom lip pouts out again. “I thought he really meant it. I thought I was falling for him.”

“I know,” I say, trying to soothe her. “That’s what these guys do. They draw you in and wait until you fall. It’s part of their sick game. They don’t give a shit that your heart gets broken for their entertainment.”