Broken Hill High (Broken Hill High 1)

Three. Was I or was I not on a date with Jesse this morning?

Four. Did I actually sleep with Josh at Maxen’s party?

Five. Did I declare war against Ashley because I’m trying to steal her boyfriend?

I address them all and set the story straight. Yes, I’m staying with Nate and Jesse against my will. No, I’m not dating either of them. Yes, I was at Nate’s race. No, I’m not dating or sleeping with Josh. And hell no, I’m not trying to steal Ashley’s boyfriend.

I’ve been lucky that I still haven’t laid eyes on him since the race… or maybe he’s the lucky one as I have a few choice words to say to him regarding that whole situation.

I’ve hardly seen Jesse either, except for when he barged into the den with a plate of lunch and sat there until it was completely gone. The second it was, he picked up the plate and disappeared.

It’s been just me since then, and to be honest, I kind of like it that way.

A text message draws my attention away from my shopping cart on my laptop and down to my phone where I find a text from Brooke.

Brooke – Hey skank. I just heard you slept with Josh, Nate, and Jesse all in the same night. How the hell did you get so lucky?

My blood boils.

Tora – Are you serious?

Brooke – Yep. What are you doing? Can I come over?

I go to hash out a reply when I remember that this is not my home. I bring up Trish’s number that she demanded I store in my phone for just in case and hit call.

I bring the phone to my ear and wait patiently for her to answer. “Tora, honey. Is everything ok?”

“Yeah, hi,” I say. “I just wanted to quickly ask if it was ok for me to have a friend over?”

“Oh, of course, sweetheart,” she says with a proud smile in her voice. “Do you have any idea how nice it is to have somebody ask me that? My boys haven’t asked me permission to do anything in the last ten years.”

“I can imagine,” I laugh.

“Now, listen, Tori. Did the boys tell you that Cade and I are out for the night?”

“Um, no,” I say slowly.

“We have a benefit dinner out of town for Cade’s work so we won’t be home until tomorrow afternoon, but I’ve left money on the counter so you guys can order a pizza.”

“Ok,” I smile.

“I have to run, but make sure those boys get to bed at a decent hour, alright.”

“Alright,” I laugh. “I’ll try, but I’m not making any promises.”

“Ok, sweetie,” she says. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

With that, she hangs up the phone and I get straight back to messaging Brooke

Tora – Sure. I’ve been kidnapped again though, so unless you’re brave enough to walk through these doors, then I’ll see you in a bit.

Naturally, Brooke’s curiosity is far too great and has her buzzing at the gate within the space of five minutes. I run around the house, trying to figure out how the hell to open the stupid thing. It takes me a few minutes and I giggle to myself as I watch Brooke through the monitor looking ever so impatient.

Once I work it out, I meet her at the door and she barges her way in. I mean, Nate and Jesse have had plenty of parties here before, but this is different. When no one is here, it’s private. This isn’t the open home of a party, this is the privacy of the Ryder household. The one which holds all their secrets, not that I’ve really discovered any yet, only that Jesse isn’t as much of an ass as I thought. The jury is still out on Nate.

This is the place girls all over Broken Hill are dying to get a look at. They all want to be a part of these boys’ lives and if just getting a little look inside is all their going to get, then you better believe they’ll take the opportunity with both hands and hold on tight.

“This place is huge,” Brooke says from the front entrance.

“What are you talking about?” I grunt. “You’ve been here before.”

“I know,” she says as she walks deeper into the house. “But that was when there were people everywhere. It looks so much bigger now.”

I roll my eyes at her logic and lead her up the stairs to my room. “Oh my god,” she whisper yells beside me. “Is this where they sleep?”

“Yes,” I laugh pointing out the doors. “That’s Jesse’s room up the hallway and Nate’s right here.”

She jumps away from the door right beside her as if she’s about to get herpes from being too close, though, I wouldn’t be surprised. That room is probably crawling with diseases. “Are they here?” she questions.