Page 136 of A Little Jaded
Me
Hey! No biggie if you can’t come grab me. Just let me know.
Silence.
My phone buzzes, but Dodger’s name pops up instead of Pax’s.
Dodger
Tell me he’s there.
Me
Uh…not yet? I tried texting but haven’t heard back yet.
Dodger
Gonna kick his ass if he took a detour. He left twenty minutes ago.
Another message follows right after.
Dodger
That kid is on my last fucking nerve.
My nose scrunches, and I glance out the dark window again, checking for headlights or Pax’s car in case I missed it.The idea of Pax getting in trouble all because he didn’t want to run one of his bandmate’s errands makes me feel…terrible. Besides, I already feel bad enough that my brother, dad, and boyfriend all have the need to babysit me twenty-four-seven. Adding Pax to the mix and having him on the opposite end of Dodger’s wrath, all because he’s super overprotective of his baby sister feels even more wrong. When headlights appear seconds later, I exhale a breath of relief. My phone buzzes in my hand, and Everett’s picture flashes up at me. I bring my cell to my ear as I unlock the front door and open it. Juggling the keys, my cell, and my purse, I start locking up.
“Hey, you,” I answer.
“Hey, we’re almost to LAU.”
Sliding the key into the lock, I twist it and close Etch ‘N’ Ink, keeping my phone pinned between my ear and shoulder. “Perfect. Pax just got here.”
“Pax?”
“Yeah, something was wrong with Dodger’s bike, so he sent Pax to pick me up.” I pull the key from the lock and turn toward Pax’s car, anxious to get out of the freezing cold. With a clatter, my keys slip from my fingers, and my body freezes. “Shit.”
“Raine?” Everett prods.
It isn’t Pax’s car. It’s Drake’s.
“H-he’s here,” I breathe out.
“Storm—”
The creak of hinges cuts him off as Drake pushes the door open, and I swear he’s moving in slow motion, but I’m frozen. I can’t scream. I can’t do anything. Like a deer in the headlights, I simply…stare.
“Raine, talk to me. Talk to me, baby.” Everett sounds so far away. Like his words are spoken underwater, and I’m being dragged under. The cold glass hits my back. I lean into it, my mind reeling, while praying my legs don’t give out.
“Tell your boyfriend good game.” Drake slams his car door shut and slowly rounds the front of the hood toward me. “You’re talking to him, right?”
His voice tugs on my spine, and my feet feel like they’re glued to the concrete beneath my sneakers. He wants Everett to know I’m alone with him. That Everett’s helpless. That I’m helpless. That, despite a stupid piece of paper and a police officer’s promise, Drake’s still here. And he isn’t ready to let me go. If he was, he wouldn’t have sent the video. He wouldn’t be here now. And he sure as shit wouldn’t be prowling closer. One. Step. At a time.
“Storm, the bus just pulled in,” Everett says. “I’ll be right there. I promise, I’ll be right there.”
My ears whoosh, making it hard to focus on his words as I face my stalker head-on. He’s closing in. I want to run, but I’m afraid it’ll only snap Drake’s hunting instincts into overdrive. Part of me wonders if I could convince my body to move in the first place. Instead, I stay still and slowly slip my hand into my purse, blindly reaching for the taser I know is inside.
“Come on, baby.” Drake closes the last bit of distance between us. “Tell him.”