Hooked by Love (Bellevue Bullies 3)

“Yeah, I am.”

“Okay,” he says and then lets out a long breath. “I guess I’ll get right to it, then.”

But I don’t say anything, my heart jackhammering in my chest. “What’s up?”

“So, you know how I play with Seth, Avery’s brother?”

Damn it. I knew this wasn’t going to be good. I’ve learned that any of her brothers and her in a sentence doesn’t end well. “Yeah. They don’t talk.”

“Yeah, I know, which is why I’m not sure how much stock I put in this, but I figure you need to know anyway.”

“Okay?”

“Okay, well, couple nights ago, we were out for drinks. And somehow, Seth and I were alone, which hardly ever happens, and I said, hey, my brother is dating your sister. He made a face and I laughed, saying that my brother is a good dude, he has nothing to worry about. Well, Seth makes another face and shakes his head, saying he isn’t worried about someone hurting Avery, but he’s worried about you. That she ruined some guy, Caleb’s, career when he broke up with her.”

“What?” I croak out, and while I thought it was something bad, I really didn’t think it was this bad.

She lied.

I feel like I’m going to pass out.

“Yeah, she went psycho apparently and tried to kill herself—”

“What? No. Really?” I say, because she didn’t tell me that. She told me it ended with cutting. Nothing more.

Fuck, she lied again.

“Yeah, and her parents freaked, and her dad made sure he was undraftable.”

Swallowing hard, I close my eyes as my teeth sink into my lip. “Wow,” is all I can say as I slowly shake my head.

“You know, I didn’t know if I should believe it. She doesn’t seem like the type to do something like that, but he was really adamant about it. Told me to make sure to let you know to get out. That she’s psycho, and that in the end, you’ll lose everything.”

Squeezing my eyes shut, I can’t believe this. “You believe him?”

“I don’t know, bro. I mean, it’s odd. I only know how I interact with my family, and if something like this had happened to, say, Lucy, I wouldn’t be so candid about it. He acted as if it was no big deal, that Avery was nothing, which is why I kind of don’t believe him. But then, I googled Caleb and asked Jayden, and he confirmed that Caleb completely turned his back on hockey and Facebook told me he is touring Africa at the moment.”

With my heart in my throat, making it hard to breathe, I shake my head. “She never told me anything like this. She told me Caleb was a douche and hurt her, but that was it. Not that she tried to kill herself.”

“Well, do you believe that part? That’s the part I’m sort of on the fence about.”

But I shake my head, knowing damn well she is capable. If she can cut herself, she can try to end it too, which just hurts me. Instead of being shitty to her, why didn’t her family help her? Fuck. But yet, I can’t tell my brother that. It isn’t his business.

“I don’t know.”

He sighs. “Well, Jace, the thing that worries me is that she didn’t tell you who her dad is either. I’m thinking maybe you should get out. You’ll never get the real story unless you go to Caleb, and I mean, then what? Why should you have to work so hard for a relationship with someone who has lied to you over and over again?”

“She doesn’t lie; she holds back.”

He hesitates, and I know he doesn’t want to hurt me. “So she told you her dad ruined Caleb’s chances in the draft?”

I pause. “No, she said he just disappeared.”

“Then she lied.”

“But that could be a lie from Seth.”

“True, but does it make sense? From what Jayden said, dude was good.”