An older lady takes the seat beside me and takes one look at the horror on my face before giving me an encouraging smile. “Oh, sweet girl,” she coos, placing her hand over mine on the armrest. “It’s going to be just fine. Are you traveling for business or pleasure?”
“Pleasure,” I tell her, unable to string much of a sentence together, though somehow feeling somewhat at ease with her touch.
“Oh,” she smiles bashfully. “Are you going home to see a special man?”
My head instantly takes me to Tyson and I shake the thought out quicker than it came. “No, a special man isn’t even on the radar right now,” I say with a slight hesitation, unsure of what actually is on my radar. “I’m going home for my aunt’s wedding. She’s finally marrying the man of her dreams and asked me to be one of her bridesmaids.”
“That’s wonderful. There’s nothing quite like a wedding. They always bring people together.”
The plane starts taxiing toward the runway and all conversation ceases as my heart threatens to beat right out of my chest. Please don’t crash. Please don’t crash.
A warm hand slips into mine and the lady beside me gives me a warm slide. “Don’t fret, my dear. We’ll be up in the air before you know it.” I give her a smile, not wanting to be rude and her eyes light up, thinking that’s she’s cured me in some kind of way. “I’m Carol, by the way.”
“Brylee.”
“It’s lovely to meet you, Brylee,” she says, giving my hand a squeeze and offering me an encouraging smile. “Now, tell me about this man who isn’t on your radar.”
Two hours later, the plane touches down and I realize that I’ve been non-stop talking to Carol about Tyson the whole way here. Though despite me telling her all the reasons why I can’t be with him in very clear detail, she still thinks I was stupid for turning him down. We’ll have to agree to disagree on that, because when it comes down to it, Tyson is not a commitment kind of guy, despite how much he thinks he is. He’s a lady’s man through and through, and while it’s incredibly sexy, it’s not something I’m looking for in the man of my dreams.
Carol stays with me as we get off the plane and doesn’t leave my side until I have my bag and am getting inside my Uber, even then, she stands by the side of the road at the entrance of the airport and waits until the car is going over the hill.
I smile to myself. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone quite so selfless. No one else would have stayed with me like that, making sure that I was alright. She has three girls similar to my age and I swear, they’re the luckiest girls to have such an incredible mom. Don’t get me wrong, my mom would have done the same thing, but when it comes to strangers looking out for one another, it’s extremely rare.
The uber drops me home after getting stuck in nearly an hour’s worth of traffic and when I finally push through the door of my parents’ house and wrap my arms around my mother, my heart settles.
I’ve missed this so much. I never realized how much I took home for granted until the day I moved into my dorm. It was fun for about two days until I realized that I had to do my washing in a shared laundry room and found some random guy going through my underwear.
I tell mom all about the last few months of Yale and how I met Carol on the flight and she beams with pride. Though I don’t know if it’s because her little girl is growing up or just because she’s happy to have me home. Maybe both.
I get my things into my room and am running back down the stairs in a matter of seconds. “Are you hungry, sweetie?” mom asks as I race around, trying to figure out where I just put my phone.
I find it on the kitchen counter and instantly begin searching out mom’s car keys. “Nope,” I tell her. “Can I borrow your car?”
Mom rolls her eyes, knowing exactly where I’m headed as she grabs her handbag and pulls out her keys. She gingerly hands them over. “Drive safe,” she says, giving me a big, sloppy kiss on the cheek and then sending me on my way.
Chapter 3
Brylee
My fist pounds against the heavy wooden door until someone finally opens it. Only the someone who opens it really isn’t the someone I was hoping for. “Ugh,” Matty says, scrunching his face up in disgust. “It’s you.”
“Hey, dweeb,” I laugh, barging past Courtney’s little brother and making my way into their home uninvited, just as I’ve always done. “Is she here?”
“Uh-huh,” he grumbles in a strange tone, chasing after me, though there’s amusement in his little smirk, which instantly puts me on edge.
I race through the house, quickly waving to her mom who stands at her kitchen counter, going over some papers. After the years of being friends with Courtney, her home is practically my own and the same goes for her parents. Her mom doesn’t even bat an eyelash at me running through her house, just gives me a welcoming smile and gets back to her work.
I take the stairs two at a time and laugh to myself as Matty has a hard time keeping up, but whatever it is he has planned for me will be even better when he misses it.
I come to Courtney’s door and grin back at Matty as he’s only just clearing the top step. I shake my head at him, feigning disappointment. “Aren’t you kids supposed to be really fast? Have you not been keeping up with your fitness?” I call.
He gives me an award-winning scowl and I give myself a mental pat on the back for a job well done, but enough of this. I came here to surprise my best friend and that’s exactly what I intend to do.
I grab her door handle and throw it wide. “SURPRISE!” I scream into the room as I race in.
Courtney’s high-pitched screech comes tearing from inside her room as Puck stills with his perfectly delectable ass staring back up at me. I mean, those ridges of strong muscle have me drooling like never before.
Courtney’s eyes bug out of her head as embarrassment floods her. Though it shouldn’t, I’ve seen her strutting around in the nude more times than I care to remember, but it’s not like I’ve exactly seen her like this before…
Puck drops down on top of her to help cover her up but as she grins across at me and Puck laughs, I can’t help but see the humor in it. “Brylee,” she greets excitedly, curling her arms up around Puck and holding him there in case he felt the need to move. “You’re here.”
“Nope, sorry,” I laugh, making my way back to her door. “I can’t talk to you while you have your boyfriend’s dick still inside of you.”
“Good call,” Puck grunts.
Matty’s evil chuckle comes from down the hall and I hear Courtney’s horrified gasp and I start to run. I throw myself back through the door, slamming it just moments before Matty can get an eyeful of what Puck and Courtney are up to…better yet, what Puck is getting up.
“You forgot to mention that Puck was here,” I accuse, crossing my arms over my chest and raising a brow as he looks up at me.
He grins wide. “You didn’t ask me if Puck was here. You asked if Court was.”
That little turd. Matty knew exactly what he was doing when he chased me up the stairs. Though I doubt he knew that I was going to walk in to find them fucking. He probably assumed it’d be funny if I walked in on them making out or doing what little kids assume adults do together, which always warrants the response of ‘Ewwwwwww.’
Courtney and Puck emerge from her room moments later and I’m pleased to find them fully clothed. I hardly have a chance to laugh at them before Courtney’s arms are thrown around me and she’s squishing me into her chest. “I’ve missed you,” she squeals into my ear, making me momentarily deaf.
I squeeze her right back. It’s been way too long. We’ll have to make trips more often. Courtney offers to go back into her room and catch up but I quickly suggest the living room downstairs. After all, that bed needs some new sheets and probably disinfectant before I’ll go anywhere near it.
We go downstairs and I drop down into the couch as Courtney’s mom comes in with a juice for us all. I take it gratefully and smile down at the little straw and umbrella she a
dded, even to Puck’s juice.
“What are the girls doing today?” I ask, relaxing back into the couch and loving the feeling of home this place brings.
Courtney shrugs as she leans into Puck’s side while he zones out of our conversation and plays on his phone. “I don’t know. I think Tora and Brooke we’re just chilling at home. They finally kissed and made up after their fight and are probably just having some bonding time, though I wouldn’t be surprised if Maxen was hanging around. He seems to be sniffing around Brooke again.”
“Really?” I ask with a raised brow, wondering how the hell that’s going to go down.
Courtney gives me a smug grin, knowing my exact thoughts on the situation. “Oh, yeah, he totally wants her back.”
I look across at Puck who’s being particularly quiet and realize that he’s purposefully keeping his mouth shut in order to protect his boy. I laugh to myself and move on before I get anyone in trouble. “What about Elle?”
Courtney shrugs. “I wouldn’t have a clue. I haven’t heard from her today, but my guess would be chilling out with Jackson after he won the game for the team last night.”
An idea starts to form. “Should we go and surprise them?” I ask with a grin.
Courtney narrows her eyes. “Who? Elle and Jackson or Tora and Brooke?”
I think it over. I’m down for either but considering the likelihood of walking in to find Elle and Jackson in a similar position to what I found Courtney and Puck, Tora and Brooke are the safest option.
“Really?” Puck grumbles, curling his arms around Courtney and pulling her back to him. “Wouldn’t you prefer to stay home and fuck all day?”
I shake my head. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m not sure I’m down for that.”
Courtney rolls her eyes before agreeing that a surprise would be nice and not a second later, we hash out our plan and the more detailed it becomes, the more Puck is begging to be involved. Though somehow it goes from a happy little surprise to something so much more.
More than excited, we drop my mom’s car back to my place and pile into Puck’s Escalade, knowing that after this, I probably won’t be home for a while.
We get to Brooke and Tora’s place in no time and Puck parks down the street. We slide out of his Escalade, being careful not to make too much noise, though we shouldn’t have to worry, this place is close to a college campus and all the homes around here are filled with rowdy college students.
I slap a hand over my mouth as we get to their property, trying my hardest not to burst out into laughter and ruin it all. Night has already fallen which is going to make this even better, but I’m kind of hoping the girls aren’t going to kill me after this, which is very likely.
We all stop to pull on our hoodies, making sure the hood covers as much of our faces as possible. We creep quietly to their front window and peek inside to find both Brooke and Tora curled up on the couch, watching some ridiculous show that Brooke seems way too intrigued with.
I grin at Courtney and Puck. “Are you guys ready?”
Courtney nods while Puck picks up a stick with a sick grin and we all get into place. Courtney hurries around to the back of the house while Puck goes in search of the power box.
I rush past Tora’s bedroom window and notice it’s been left open. I laugh to myself, realizing Nate probably did that. I slip inside while listening to the soft chuckles coming from Puck as he watches me from the power box.
With the TV on, it’s no problem hurrying up the hallway without being caught, though the tricky part comes when I get to the top of the hallway and see Courtney’s head peering through the kitchen window.
I press my lips down into a hard line, forcing myself to keep my cool, but not a second later, the house plunges into darkness.
Tora and Brooke instantly groan, murmuring about the power going out and doing a quick round of ‘scissors, paper, rock,’ to figure out who has to go and fix it. Tora loses and as she goes to get up, Courtney appears at their back door, making the wood beneath her feet creak and instantly sending panic over the girls.
They gasp and I hold back a laugh, only feeling slightly like a bitch. They might not think it’s funny now, but come tomorrow…or maybe a few years, they’ll laugh along when we tell the story.
“Did you hear that?” Tora whispers into the too-quiet room.
Brooke nods, looking around the house but it’s a bit too dark to see. “Is someone in our house?”
Tora pulls Brooke to her feet and they silently start making their way to the front door, ready to make a run for it. I peer around the corner, making a floorboard creak under my foot and I curse myself. That wasn’t supposed to happen. We want to scare them for a little fun, not terrify them into shitting their pants.
A gust of wind has the back door clicking into place and I watch as both of Tora and Brooke’s expressions harden. Fuck. I can only imagine what they’re thinking. I’m just moments from stepping out of my hiding spot and screaming ‘Surprise’ when Puck makes his presence known with that ridiculous stick on their front window. He’s literally just a dark shadow at the window and despite knowing it’s just Puck, it’s kind of creeping me out too.
I hold back a laugh. They’ll be freaking out, but picturing the grin on Puck’s face as he does it is kind of worth it. Puck continues haunting the girls and Courtney starts moving across the house, making unintentional noises with every step.
A terrified scream rips out of Tora, prompting Brooke to scream right along with her and in the blink of an eye, they start running back towards the kitchen. Tora grabs a knife and shoves it into Brooke’s hand before scrambling around again and pulling out a frypan.
Oh, fuck. Too far. Way too far.
Puck must haul ass to get the power back on because one second the girls are screaming and the next, light flickers on and I step out from the hallway, pushing my hoodie back off my face with a cringe. “Surprise,” I tell them, throwing my hands up in a half-ass attempt to make this okay while Puck’s light laughter drifts in from outside Tora’s open bedroom window.
“Bry?” Brooke questions, bringing her hand up to wipe the tears from her confused face as Tora clutches the frypan a little tighter. Courtney pushes her hoodie back and makes sure they see her too, though she wears an equally as guilty expression on her face.
Tora is the first to snap into action and lowers the pan before helping Brooke to do the same with the knife. "What the hell was that?" she demands, throwing the frypan in the sink as Puck waltzes through the door, extremely proud of himself.
"Cutting the power was a good touch, huh?" Puck laughs, walking deeper into the house.
"Fucking stupid, is what it is," Tora growls, pretty fucking unimpressed with us. "I was about ready to beat the shit out of you guys with a frypan. Brooke has a fucking knife in her hands. Are you morons?"
That would be a yes.
"Shit, Tora," Courtney says with a cringe, trying to defuse the situation. "It's a joke. Calm down."
"Yeah, funny joke," Brooke scoffs, tossing the knife into the sink and walking out of the kitchen. "I nearly wet my fucking pants."
"Sorry," I grumble, hating that I’ve scared them this much. It was supposed to be a little innocent fun. "It originally wasn't our intention to scare you but when Puck suggested it, well...we couldn't resist."
Tora narrows her eyes and shoots a nasty glare at Puck. "Nate is going to pulverize you for this."
His eyes widen in horror, clearly not having thought that part through. "Fuck. I didn't even think about that," he says. "Shit, I'll make it up to you. Don't tell him. My face is too pretty to be broken into a hundred pieces."
Tora shrugs, teasing him. “Good luck with that.”
“Shiiiit,” he groans before turning to Courtney. “I told you, I wanted to stay home and fuck all day, but nooooo, we just had to leave the house. Are you happy now? I’m going to look like a fucking gorilla.” With that, he turns and stalks out the door as Courtney chuckles at his back.
“Understandable,” I laugh, having enough of holding back and crashing into my friend’s arms, giving her a tight squeeze. “How are you?”
“Exhausted,” she says with a sigh as Brooke comes to join us. “What are you doing here? Did Yale kick you out already?”
I roll my eyes. “No. I happen to be killing it. I’m at the top of most of my classes. It’s just this damn Suzie McFuckface who keeps besting me.”
“You’re such a nerd,” Brooke says, barging Tora out of the way and wrapping me in a big bear hug. “But seriously, what are you doing here?”
“It’s my aunt’s wedding on Sunday, so I thought I’d come down and see you all first.”
“Well then,” Brooke smiles, looking across at Tora with a knowing grin. “I guess we better call Elle.”
A grin rips across my face. Calling Elle could only mean that we’ll be partying the night away. Though a party would also mean that Tyson Wilder is bound to come storming back into my life and I’m going to have to do everything in my power to keep him away.
I’m fucked.
Chapter 4
Tyson
“Yo, fucker,” Jesse says through the phone. “Huge fucking party at Tora’s place. Brylee is back for the weekend and we’re celebrating.”
The fuck? I didn’t know she was coming back.
A grin spreads wide over my face as I sit up straight on my couch. “I’ll be there in ten.”
I practically race out the fucking door with a grin the size of Texas settling over my face. My girl is back. It’s been a long as fuck few months and I finally get another shot. I’ve been waiting for this since summer break, but the question is, why is she back? Is she here for me? No. Of course not.
Don’t be such an egotistical ass, Tyson.
If she was here for me, she would have come to me. Instead, she’s gone out of her way to make sure I don’t know that she’s here. How long has she been here anyway? I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s been here all fucking day with her girls. Hell, if she’s been with Courtney, then I can guarantee that Puck knows she’s here and if that’s the case, then that fucker can get screwed. What ever happened to guy code?
Tyson: Broken Hill Boys (Novella 4) Page 2