Bryce (Scandalous Boys #1)

by Natalie Decker

  “Why?” I ask. “Why even come over here and check on me? And don’t feed me the ‘double the grade’ line. We could have checked our work and answers before homeroom. So don’t feed me that bullshit. You like me. Admit it.”

  He’s halfway to my door. “Yes, I like you. I like you a lot. But that doesn’t mean I’m good for you.”

  I nod. “Fine. Just go. I don’t know why you even bothered to fight for me to stay in your stupid group if you constantly want to push me away.”

  He stops and turns. He marches back and growls, “Screw it.” His hands cradle my face, and his lips press against mine. The kiss is rough, and it’s blazing. Each time his lips brush mine, my body warms all over like I’ve been lying in the sun for hours. Tiny tingles run down my spine, arms, legs, and my heart pounds like a crazy drum against my ribs.

  I yank him down to my bed and twine my fingers through his messy mane. He pulls back slightly, his breathing a little rough, and he coughs one time. “Mads, get your stuff, pack a bag, whatever, and come to my house.”

  It’s like he threw a bucket of ice water all over me. Suddenly I’m awake. “What are we going to do?”

  “More of this.” He leans in and kisses me again. “Maybe more.”

  I sit up a little and shake my head. “I can’t. I’m, uh … not experienced.”

  “I know. Well, I gathered that. I promise I won’t take advantage of you. Ever. If you don’t want to, we don’t have to.”

  I nod. “Bryce, if I go, does this mean we’re dating?”

  He shakes his head. “No. It’ll be us having fun.”

  He tries to kiss me again, but I push him back. “Just fun. So, what, like friends with benefits?”

  “Sure.” He leans in to kiss me, and I smack him.

  He backs away and stares at me. “Why did you hit me?”

  “Are you kidding me? I’m only good enough for friends with benefits, nothing more?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “But you just said we wouldn’t be dating.”

  He nods. “Yeah, because I don’t date. This is why I said you wouldn’t want me. This is why I said I wasn’t right for you.”

  I blink back some tears. “Because you won’t change. Thanks. You’re right; you should go.”

  He leaves my room without looking back. I’m so stupid to have thought Bryce could actually fall for someone like me.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Bryce

  The Halloween party is tonight. Madison hasn’t spoken to me since we made out in her room and then I told her that she and I couldn’t be more than friends with benefits. It was the dumbest thing I’ve ever said, but I can’t have her falling for me. I’ve already fallen for her, but that’s different.

  She’s got to realize that she and I would be a very bad deal. In the end, I’d do something to screw it up. I’d make her cry and hate me. So really, I’m saving her from all that.

  I miss her lips. They were soft and warm, and tasted like cherry candy. Why did she have to smell delicious and taste so good it was like my own personal crack? Kissing her again will send me down a path neither of us will ever recover from. No, I’ve got to stand my ground.

  For the most part, I have been. I barely look at her in class. Okay, I try not to look at her too much. But today, I break code as soon as I see her tears.

  “Hey, what’s wrong?” I ask, touching her left arm.

  She immediately jerks away from me and mumbles, “Nothing.”

  “Really? Then why are you crying?”

  She looks at me. There are no traces of makeup—which I love about her—just fresh tears running down her face. She sniffles a little and runs a hand under her eyes. “I just got yelled at. That’s all.”

  “Who yelled at you?” I clench my fists, ready to pound whomever it is into the freaking ground.

  She shakes her head. “None of your business.”

  She’s shutting me out again. On a normal day, I would silently congratulate her. This is what she should be doing to me. It’s what I need her to do. But I don’t want her doing this to me now. I reach for her again, but she snaps, “I said it’s none of your business.”

  “And I want to make it my business.”

  “Well, you shouldn’t.” She breaks eye contact with me and mumbles, “I can handle this on my own.”

  Can she, though? Probably. But for some reason I don’t like that idea. Not even in the smallest amount. Graham interrupts my next round of questions, and I watch her relax a little. She seems relieved so I let her win this time. But mark my words, I will get to the bottom of this.

  “Hey, man, are you heading to Greg’s tonight?” Graham asks.

  “I don’t know,” I answer.

  Madison faces the board and mutters, “Sarah’s going. Just so you know.”

  “Well, she doesn’t own the guest list!” Graham grumbles. “I can be in the same places she is. Greg was my friend first.”

  Madison turns in her seat and glares at him. Her cheeks are puffy and red. “You sound like a two year old.” I stifle a laugh because he does sound like a toddler. “In the beginning, I was going to warn you about her, but I decided everyone had to learn for themselves. You bought her whole act, hook, line, and sinker. And for the last two weeks, I’ve had to listen to you moan and complain about her. ‘Can you believe she took that dick to our place?’ ‘I go to get some pizza, and there she is, like a damn nightmare that just won’t leave.’” Madison’s impression of Graham is spot-on. “So I was just warning you ahead of time so that maybe I won’t have to hear all about it on Monday!”

  She whips back around in her seat, and I chime in, “Dude, you have been super whiny about Sarah.”

  Graham turns in his seat. “Go screw off! Both of you. You two have never been cheated on. And one of you has never even been in a relationship with anyone. So excuse me when I say you can take your advice and shove it.”

  I shoot a look at Madison, who sighs and puts her head down. I know Graham is talking about her. Yeah, I figured that out already, but now it just makes me feel like more of an asshole. Just how inexperienced is Mads? She kisses like she’s done it a hundred times, but now I get the feeling I might have been her first. If that’s the case, I’m definitely going to hell.

  In my room, I drum my pencil against my notebook while looking over my chemistry homework. It’s Friday. Why the hell am I doing homework now? My door opens, and I watch Graham stroll into my room dressed like Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean. He looks over at me and snatches up my notebook. “What are you doing? Get ready. We’re leaving.”

  “I don’t feel like it.”

  He hits me with my notebook. “Get up. This isn’t like you, man. Doing homework on a Friday. Staying in instead of going to the biggest party of the year.”

  “Why does it matter?” I ask.

  He plops down on my bed. “You’ll stop being this dopey weird version of my friend if you come. That’s why.”

  “I’m not going.” I glance out my window and notice two figures in Madison’s room. One is Mads; the other is Sarah. Mads is flinging her arms around like a lunatic. Sarah has her arms crossed and is smirking like she’s enjoying every second of whatever is going on.

  Madison launches something at Sarah and then disappears. I head over to my window and scan the yard. Graham is mumbling, but I’m not listening to him. I spot Madison storming across her lawn and into her car. She peels from the driveway, and for some reason, I have this urge to follow her. Make sure she’s okay.

  Yeah, I know it kind of sounds stalkerish, but there’s a knot in my stomach. I grab my fitted Marlins hat and snatch up my keys. “We’re going?” Graham asks. I nod. “Awesome! I knew you’d see it my way.”

  Not sure what way he was talking about, but at this point it doesn’t matter. What matters is catching up to Madison and making sure she’s okay.

  When we get into my car and start heading down the road, Graham complains, “Um, where
are you going?”

  “I don’t know.” It really isn’t a lie. I don’t know where Madison is going.

  I roll to a stop sign. Graham looks around and huffs, “Where the hell are we?”

  I shrug. I’ve actually never been this far west of town. We could’ve hopped a city line, and I actually wouldn’t know. All I see is taillights up ahead, and I pray that’s Madison’s car. It’s not until the third stoplight, when the car turns, that I finally get a better glimpse of the make and license plate. And thankfully, it is Madison.

  She finally pulls over. There are a couple of rundown buildings along the street, but Madison walks to the one building that looks brand-new and out of place. There are only a few streetlights working, so the place is fairly dark. But there is just enough light to catch Maddy’s expression. A scowl is on her face, and her movements seem stiff as she stomps to the entrance of the building, which looks like it was cut from marble.

  Graham punches my shoulder. “What the hell? I thought we were going to Greg’s, not following Madison.”

  “Something isn’t right.”

  “She’s at her mom’s work. I’m sure whatever it is, she’ll be fine. Can we freaking go to Greg’s now?”

  I wait a moment longer, but when Madison doesn’t appear, I slowly pull away from the curb and take off. Fifteen minutes later, we’re driving to Greg’s house. There are cars lined on both sides of the street. There are people in costumes making their way across lawns to Greg’s parents’ mansion on the lake.

  Graham grumbles, “Dude, we’re going to be driving a mile down the road before we find a spot.”

  “Want me to let you out right here? Then it’ll look like you got a ride from your mom.”

  “Fuck off, ass.” I glance over at him and notice his posture changes. His arms are folded, and he turns his head to the passenger window. He’s right; it’s probably going to be a mile hike back when we finally do find a spot.

  I keep driving and scanning the street, and Graham yells, “Oh, that little punk ass is here tonight!”

  I don’t have to see who he’s talking about. I already know. “Don’t get in any fights.” We look at each other, and I shake my head. “Let me rephrase: don’t drag me into your mess. If you start some shit, you better finish it.”

  “You’re supposed to have my back, man.”

  “I’ve had your back before. In fact, more than once. So don’t pull that shit on me.” I leave out the fact that he’s never once had mine.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Bryce

  It takes me a while, but I finally find a spot in BFE—Bumfuck Egypt. We’re not the only ones parking out here, though. About five cars pass and pull off to the side in front of mine. Graham talks to Kelly as we make the hike down the hill to the party. I’ve completely tuned them both out. By the time we reach Greg’s, I’m in the mood for a beer. Maybe something harder in order to drown out everyone.

  I make my way to the kitchen where row of liquor rest on the countertop. It’s like a buffet of booze, and there is a line. I get in place. A scent of butterscotch hits me. It smells exactly like Madison. I search the room but don’t see her anywhere. My mind must be messing with me. This is a costume party—and yeah, I’m not the only one who didn’t really dress up—but I’m pretty sure I could pick out Madison even in costume. There’s just a certain thing about her, like how she walks straight but on the balls of her feet. She rarely lets her heels touch the ground. Almost like she’s a dancer or a runway model. But I don’t see any of that here.

  No, in front of me is a blond with thick curls. She groans loudly. “Do these people ever move? I mean, hello, the rest of us need some alcohol too.”

  “Sarah?” I ask.

  She turns and sneers. “Oh, Lord. Look, tell Graham it was fun, but seriously, he left me. End of story.”

  “I’m not here because of Graham. He’s a big boy and can deliver his own messages. I’m in line for a beer.”

  She nods. “Well, it’s probably gonna take us fifty years to get our drinks.”

  “What did you do to Madison?”

  Her eyes widen a little, and then she rolls them. “Nothing. I told her the truth. Unless you’re talking about that art thing—I just thought she wasn’t interested anymore because she threw out her drawings.”

  “You mean the ones you scribbled shit all over and then showed to Graham? That’s not cool. And why would you do that anyways? Madison didn’t throw a bitch fit when you painted her walls a color she hates. She didn’t even go off on you for humiliating her in front of her friend. What’s wrong with you?”

  Sarah smiles. “For starters, it’s sisterly affection. Second, it doesn’t matter. She can play innocent all she wants, but she kept a secret from me. A terrible secret. So this is my way of saying thanks to her.”

  “What the hell kind of secret did she keep from you? Are you talking about her crush on Graham? You know Madison wouldn’t have stolen him from you; she stepped aside. Not that it mattered because he was into you and not her. He sees her as a sister.”

  “No, that’s not what she kept from me. And, honestly, it was just fun watching Graham fall for me. The way she looked physically ill every time Graham and I kissed was just icing on the cake.”

  This girl is sick. I need to make sure Madison stays away from her. Hell, even if she has to spend the night in my bed and I have to sleep on the floor until the end of the school year. I’ll gladly do it in order to keep her safe from this little bitch. “There is something wrong with you. Stay the hell away from Madison.”

  “Can’t really do that, Romeo.” The line moves.

  I grab a red Solo cup and tap it against my thigh. Sarah glares at me. “Speak of the devil. Here she comes.”

  I shift, and sure enough, here comes Madison, marching over to the line. I’m about to tell her to cut in front of me, but I don’t want her near Sarah. Sarah’s grin is creepy, but she turns when someone ahead of us shouts at her. She leaves and weasels her way to the person in front.

  Someone touches me, and I turn to see Emily and Madison. “Hi. You ladies wanna cut me?”

  “Thanks,” Emily says. She grabs two cups. Madison shakes her head, but Emily insists. “You need this. Do you hear me? I won’t let you get so stupidly drunk you won’t be able to talk or do something with a dirty stranger. But you do need a few. You had a rough day, Maddy.”

  “I’ll take you both home,” I offer. I don’t know why I do. I’m supposed to be keeping my damn distance. And here I am roping myself back in.

  Madison gives me a look. “You don’t have to.”

  “But I want to. Go on. I’ll even watch you. I’ll make sure nothing happens to you.”

  Emily smiles. “Thank you, Bryce.” She shifts her attention to Madison. “See? It’ll be okay. Bryce will be our DD and make sure we aren’t out of control.”

  The line moves again, and we’re finally at the buffet of beverages. I was going to get a beer, but since I’m going to be driving Madison and Emily home I pour some Dr. Pepper into my cup and toss in some ice cubes. Emily fixes Madison and herself a drink. I’m not exactly sure what all is in it, but I can tell from Madison’s face it’s a lot of liquor.

  “Go easy,” I whisper in her ear as we leave the kitchen.

  “I’m not easy!” she shouts back.

  “No, I said go easy.”

  She glowers. “You’re not my mother.”

  “I’d hope the hell not. I’d have a lot of explaining to do to quite a few people.” I laugh.

  Madison’s face just sours. “I hate her.”

  “Who? Sarah? She seems like a real bitch.”

  Madison laughs. “Yeah, her too, but I was talking about my mom.”

  I start to ask why, but Emily whisks her off to the crowded dance floor. It’s not really a dance floor, but a lot of drunks are spinning around, grinding on each other or swaying to the loud beats thumping through the surround sound in the living room. I debate whether to do the go
od thing, which would be to give her space. It almost happens too—until I see Jake Foster wrapping his freaking hands around her waist and pressing his abs into her back.

  Nope. I will not be watching that. Sober. Drunk. It will not be happening. I march over and yank him away from her. Then I throw a right hook into his jaw. Jake stumbles a little. He drops his cup of probably beer and glares at me, raising his fists. “What the hell, Matthews?”

  “Don’t touch her. I told you to never fucking touch her!”

  Jake shoves me and then swings his fist toward my face, but I dodge it and hit him again. My fist connects with his chin, and he falls into a group of people who have now formed a giant circle around us. The booming of a techno jam turns into a chant. “Fight! Fight! Fight.”

  Jake pushes off the people, and I’m about to hit him again, but my upper arm is pulled down and a small voice that quakes with fear says, “Bryce, don’t. Please. Don’t. Let’s just go take a walk or something. Come on.”

  I glance back at Madison, and Jake sucker punches me right in my eye. What kind of wuss takes a cheap shot like that? Madison surprises me, though, and instead of mothering me and making sure I’m okay, she cocks her fist back and slugs Jake. He hits the ground with a loud thud and slumps against the floor.

  I’m in shock. Madison turns to me. I snatch her hand and examine it. “Are you okay?” The skin on her knuckles looks angry. “I had that handled.”

  She shrugs. “Maybe you did. I just thought it was a douche move for him to hit you while you were walking away.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Madison

  Emily winks at me as Bryce and I walk by. Her contact might be coming out, though; she was having issues with it earlier. Either way, she’s not the only one being all weird at the sight of Bryce and I holding hands. The crazy thing is, though, I actually like that he’s holding my hand and not ashamed of who sees or what they might say.