Fury simmers in my brother’s eyes as he watches her stalk away. An irritated growl slides from his lips as he takes off after her. He doesn’t get more than three steps before grinding to a halt, swinging around, and stabbing a finger at me. “Stay right where you are! I’m going to find Lizzie and then take you home!”
The guy needs to take a chill pill. I’m eighteen years old. I’ll be leaving for college in three months. I can handle a party with older kids who are drinking.
I’m tempted to argue, but one look at his face has me rethinking that decision. When I remain silent, he jerks his head into a stiff nod before stomping off. Sure, I knew he might spaz out if he found us here, but I didn’t think he would totally go off the deep end.
Left to my own devices, I glance around, looking for a friendly face in the sea of people that surround me. Most I recognize from school, but I don’t know any well enough to go up to and say hello. Without Lizzie by my side, I’m alone and out of my element.
When my gaze collides with a blond giant, he gives me a wide smile before sauntering over.
“Hey, look who it is! Little Wentworth. Glad you could make it.”
I’ve known Chad Miller for most of my life but haven’t seen him since he graduated high school. He and my brother played little league together for years. He’s always been a laidback kind of guy. It wasn’t much of a surprise when he fell in with the potheads and bought a VW bus.
When he’s no more than a foot away, Chad pulls me in for a hug that lasts a little too long for comfort. Pressed against his wide chest, I’m inundated with the skunky scent of weed. Looks like somethings never change.
I hold my breath and fight my way free, needing distance before I get a contact high. “I heard this is a going-away party.”
“Fuckin’ A right, it is.” He beams another smile at me. “I’m a little burnt out on the whole college scene, so I decided to drop out and take a little time to find myself. I’m volunteering with Habitat for Humanity.” He shifts his weight. As he waves his hand, I realize he’s holding a joint. “You know, building houses and all that shit.”
“Wow.”
“Yeah, the old man wasn’t thrilled with the change in plans. He wanted me to apply to law school this fall and follow in his footsteps.” Chad shakes his head. “The corporate ladder is for money-hungry yuppies. That’s not me. All I want to do is chill out and help people live their best lives.”
“That’s really cool.” As much as I admire him for following his passion, there’s no way I’d drop out of school with only a year left. Plus, my parents would probably kill me.
“For sure.” With a nod, he lifts the rolled marijuana to his lips and inhales deeply, holding the smoke in his lungs before releasing it. “Sorry, where are my manners?” He offers me the joint. “You want a hit?”
As I shake my head, a muscular arm snakes around my waist and hauls me against a hard body. A jolt of electricity sizzles through me as I glance up and find Ty frowning at Chad.
“Hey, man.” The blond guy’s affable grin intensifies as he plows a hand through the long strands of his hair. “I was just offering little Wentworth a party favor.”
“For fuck’s sake, Miller,” Ty mutters, “she’s not into that shit. Brett would beat your ass if he knew you were offering his sister drugs.”
“You think so?” He scrunches his face as if seriously contemplating the possibility.
“Um, yeah.”
“What can I say? I was just trying to be a good host.” He cracks another high-wattage smile before holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender. “My bad.” His strung-out gaze meanders to me again. “You want a drink instead, little W?”
“Chad,” the guy at my side growls, “she just graduated from high school. Look at her—she’s a kid.”
His snapped-out retort has everything inside me wilting. No matter what my age, Ty will never see me as anything more than Brett’s little sister.
From within the shadows of the trees at the edge of the property, someone hollers Chad’s name. With a quick wave, he takes off, disappearing from sight. The moment we’re alone, I push out of Ty’s arms.
“Hey, are you all right?” His brow furrows as he searches my eyes in the darkness.
Instead of admitting the truth, I plaster a smile on my face and pretend my heart isn’t shattering into a million pieces. “Yeah, it’s all good. I really need to find Lizzie. She took off a little while ago, and I haven’t seen her since.”