A car pulled up beside Brady’s, and I was pretty sure he and I both realized at the same time that we were causing a scene.
Well, I was causing a scene just by being here. I didn’t turn to look at the people who were piling out of their cars because…because why? I guess I was afraid I’d recognize them. That they’d recognize me.
I mean, it was obvious they recognized Tieg Larson, rock star extraordinaire—but I was afraid of seeing more people like Daisy and Brady—former classmates who wouldn’t just recognize the rock star, they’d remember the boy who left.
They’d remember the slacker, the loser, the pathetic reject who’d bounced from foster home to foster home after his parents stopped trying and gave him up for good.
They were both in jail now, by the way. And no, I didn’t write. I stayed up to date on them, though, and sent money regularly. But the money I sent only ever seemed to be used for drugs or booze and no amount of money could make them get help when they didn’t want it.
So no, I wasn’t exactly thrilled at the idea of being recognized.
Why am I back here at all? This was a terrible idea.
Brady was looking around us. “Dude, you really are a star, huh?”
I didn’t have to turn to know what he was seeing. I could feel the stares, hear the whispers and the high-pitched giggles. I could practically feel the shutters clicking as photos were taken on cell phones. I was used to it.
I hated it, but I was used to it.
Brady, however, was not.
I shifted as I watched him watching the crowds forming around us. I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from saying ‘play it cool.’ Brady hadn’t spent the last three years learning how to play it cool. He was still Brady—earnest, honest, strong.
Protective of Daisy.
Had he gotten together with her while I’d been gone? I thought of Oliver and Liv, the new friends I’d met through Jamie. They’d been best friends before they’d started dating. Was that what happened between Brady and Daisy, too?
I tried to ignore the bitterness in my gut. Brady and I had always been friends, but we’d both always been closer to Daisy. I wasn’t sure when exactly the rivalry had started. We’d never even talked about it, but sometime around middle school, we both started to realize that we both had a crush on Daisy. That threw a wrench between us that never truly went away.
I guess you could say we’d become frenemies. Objectively, I’d always liked the guy, and I was pretty sure he liked me too. On the rare occasion that it was just the two of us hanging out, we got along just great. But most of the time, it was the three of us, and it was impossible not to feel like there was an odd man out when what we both really wanted was to be alone with her.
I’d always wanted Daisy all to myself. I was selfish like that, and Brady had been the one to call me out on it. Because see, here was the real difference between us: Brady was a good guy. Me? Not so much.
Was that a little too black and white? Maybe. But it was the truth. With his relatively wealthy family and his stable upbringing, not to mention the blond hair and All-American good looks, he was basically Prince Charming.
I…was not. I was every cliché in the books. Kid from the wrong side of the tracks, scruffy, unkempt—I had been, as Brady had so kindly pointed out, the stray dog that Daisy couldn’t resist taking in.
But not anymore.
My hands clenched, and I had to force myself to release the tension. This new Tieg Larson, he didn’t do anger. He didn’t get into fights anymore, and he didn’t get jealous over some Dudley Do-Right quarterback from Podunk, Montana.
My smirk grew. “Are you the quarterback, Brady?”
He blinked, his gaze coming back to me like I’d hoped it would. When my words registered, he stiffened. “What?”
I shifted against the brick wall. “You heard me.” Mockery seeped into my voice, and I didn’t care. I was still caught in the memory of the last time we’d been here, standing in front of the school just like this.
That was the day he’d told me to cut her loose before I left for that audition. He’d told me she’d be better off without me, that she deserved better than me…
And he’d been right.
“You always said you’d be the star quarterback,” I said, my tone dripping with derision. “Just wanted to see if all your dreams have come true.”
His jaw clenched. “Yeah, I’m the quarterback.”
And Daisy? I wanted to ask. Is she your girl?
I couldn’t do it, though. I didn’t want to hear his answer, and there was no way I’d give him the satisfaction of knowing how much I cared.
He’d won. There’d never been any doubt in my mind that Brady would get the girl, just like he’d get the star quarterback position he’d always wanted. Brady was the golden child in Jordan Springs. This was his birthright.
I pushed off from the wall. “I’d better go check in at the rec center, huh?”
Brady shook his head. “I can’t believe you had the nerve to come back here after you left like that.”
I froze. The crowd around us was getting closer, any second now one of them would get the nerve to interrupt and ask me for a photo or an autograph or something. That wasn’t me being cocky, it was just my new reality. One that seemed so very far away from this world I’d left behind, and yet this world…this seemed so much more real than anything that had happened these past three years. In some ways it felt like these past three years were a dream and I was just now waking up to my real life. Maybe if I went back to the trailer park, my foster mom would still be there with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth, waiting to tell me how much I owe her for sending me out on that audition.
Never mind the fact that she’d only sent me there so she could make some money off me. There were no gigs for musical teens in these parts, but she’d been sure she could capitalize off my guitar playing skills, my voice, and my looks even at fourteen.
A talent agency was making a big production out of holding auditions for the next big boy band all over the country. I’d thought it was a joke, but it seemed as good a way as any to get out of town. I’d figured I’d go to the audition and then take off when my foster mom wasn’t paying attention. I’d had a plan to run away for good.
But, oddly enough, my foster mom had been right—I’d gotten the gig, and she’d gotten quite the payday from that first contract. She took her cut and ran, and I hadn’t seen her since.
I’d cut her out of my life along with everyone and everything that reminded me of this place.
That reminded me of Daisy.
“Do us all a favor,” Brady said. “Do this show and then go back to where you came from.”
The anger in his eyes threw me for a second, and it was another long silence before I realized just how pissed he was. “What are you so mad about?” I said, drawing closer so everyone around us wouldn’t hear. “I did like you told me to, didn’t I? I left. I left and I never came back.”
Brady looked away for a second, his nostrils flared. When he looked back, his blue eyes were flashing with anger. “I told you to leave her alone, man. I never told you to break her heart.”
I opened my mouth to retort, but no sound came out. My throat was choked with emotion, and my chest was painfully tight. I never meant to break her heart.
That was what I intended to say, but it was a lie.
I’d pushed her away on purpose. I’d made it so she wouldn’t follow me, and so that I couldn’t change my mind and go running back to her.
You’ll only hold me back. I don’t need you. My words came back to me now, haunting me like they always did when I let my defenses down. I hadn’t meant any of it, but I’d needed her to believe it when I’d said I was leaving and never coming back.
How was I supposed to know that I’d hit the jackpot? How could I have foreseen that one crappy audition for a stupid boy band open call would lead to more money than I knew what to do with? If you’d told me then that in a matter of yea
rs I’d be a household name and a famous musician, I would have laughed in your face.
Just like Brady, I’d thought I was going to end up like my parents…or worse. I’d been on a one-way road to hell before a miracle happened and somebody in some recording studio decided I had something worth saving.
That record executive hadn’t known me, and he hadn’t done it out of the goodness of his heart—he’d done it for a profit—but it had been a miracle, nonetheless.
But by the time I’d realized that maybe I wasn’t doomed to be the failure everyone expected, it was too late.
I’d lost her.
No…I’d pushed her away.
Brady was waiting for a response. An explanation. I ran a hand through my hair with a sigh. “I had to make a clean break, man.”
His anger softened a little and I wondered what he saw in my expression that had his anger morphing into pity.
“I didn’t trust myself not to cave,” I said with a helpless shrug. What was the point in trying to keep my pride? This guy was probably the only person in the world who truly understood what had happened all those years ago.
He was the only one who could understand what it meant to love Daisy Lou Whittaker and walk away.
Although, he’d gotten the happy ending, hadn’t he? I looked away. I didn’t want to think about what his life must be like. Not to sound ungrateful, because I was really happy with the way my life had turned out—I had enough money to know that I’d never end up in jail or worse, and I had Jamie, who was the closest thing to family I could ever have imagined.
I just didn’t have Daisy.
“Is she happy?” I asked.
Brady looked down at his feet. “You’d have to ask her.”
I gave a little snort of amusement that had him looking back up at me in surprise. “Yeah, because it seems like she’s really excited to talk to me.”
Brady’s mouth twitched up at the corners, and for a second, I remembered how it used to be between us during those rare times when it was just me and him hanging out.
Brady was a good guy. Always had been, always would be. In a weird sort of way, I was grateful that he was still in Daisy’s life. I mean, I resented the heck out of all he had that I didn’t, but I was glad he was still looking out for her. Someone needed to watch out for Daisy while she was busy taking care of everyone else. There was no one I’d trust more with her safety and her happiness than this guy.
His silence, however…that made me tense. “What is it?”
It should have been a simple question. Was she happy, or wasn’t she?
Brady’s jaw worked, and then he heaved a loud sigh. “You should talk to her.”
My brows shot up.
“She deserves to know why you left,” Brady said.
I blinked. This was…not what I’d expected.
“You can tell her that I told you to walk away,” he continued. “She deserves to know the truth.”
I opened my mouth and shut it, overly aware that he still hadn’t answered my question about how Daisy was doing. Paranoia was running rampant in my brain. Was something wrong? Was Daisy okay? Did she need something? I focused on what Brady had said instead of all he wasn’t saying. “What you said was the truth,” I said.
A flicker of emotion crossed his eyes. Regret. Shame. Guilt. It was too fleeting to say for sure, but whatever it was—I recognized it. I saw the same in my own eyes every time I looked in the mirror.
“I shouldn’t have said it,” he said. “I was just jealous…and angry that she kept getting in trouble for you.”
I glanced around, keenly aware that we were the subject of interest. No one was close enough to hear us, but we’d gathered quite the crowd. Mainly I was looking away from Brady because I was overwhelmed by emotion—blown away by the fact that he was being so honest about a topic we’d once spent years avoiding.
But I guess we’d both grown up these past years.
“You were right,” I said again, this time meeting his eyes. “I had been a loser and I was dragging her down with me.”
Brady gave a huff of amusement. “Yeah, you’re doing really badly for yourself. Clearly.”
I gave him a rueful smile. “This was a fluke, man. Totally unexpected. How were we supposed to know?”
It was what I’d been telling myself, but he needed to hear it too. I still couldn’t quite wrap my head around the fact that Brady felt just as bad about that day as I did. “It wasn’t your fault,” I said. “You were only trying to protect her, and everything you said was true.”
He looked down at his feet. “Yeah, but my motives weren’t all that selfless.”
I laughed, and he looked up in surprise. “What?”
“You think I didn’t know you had a thing for Daisy?”
He laughed softly under his breath. “But she only ever saw you.”
I shifted uncomfortably. Maybe back then that was the case, but the way she’d looked at me today… My heart felt like a shriveled-up raisin at the memory of that look. “Yeah, well… Everything’s different now. You’re the one who’s here, right?”
He nodded, but his expression turned weird…thoughtful. “You should talk to her.”
I nodded too. Yet again, he was right, and we both knew it. “She deserves an apology.”
He arched his brows. “You said it, man, not me.”
I looked up toward the sky and shoved my hands in my pockets. “I guess I should head to the rec center, huh?”
“Yeah, I’d better get to class before the bell rings.” He moved to walk away, and I think he just now noticed that we’d drawn a crowd because he looked around at the people staring with an amused look. He paused before turning his back to me and shifted his bookbag over his shoulder. “For what it’s worth…I’m glad you’re back.”
I’d love to say that I was too manly to get emotional about that, but that would be a lie. My chest tightened all over again, but this time it wasn’t all that bad a feeling. I gave him a little jerk of the chin in acknowledgement. “It’s good to see you again, man.”
When he was gone, I was left facing off with a group of grinning, giggling girls who looked too young to be in high school. Freshmen, I supposed. Too young for me to have known them when I was a kid, but I probably went to school with their older siblings.
That was the beauty and the curse of small towns like this one.
I saw them whisper amongst themselves as a group of older-looking students passed by them. I walked past the young girls on the way to my rental car and made a show of tilting my head and doffing an imaginary cap. “Ladies,” I said.
Their high-pitched giggles followed me into the car. On the way to the rec center, I called Jamie to check in and was met with a gushy verbal tirade of gratitude that left me grinning and eased some of the tension brought on by this morning’s emotional roller coaster.
What had I been thinking going there to surprise Daisy like that? I hadn’t been thinking, that was the answer. I’d been working on some sort of emotional autopilot since I got into town late last night. There were so many memories here, everywhere I looked, and everything in me had been drawn to Daisy. I always used to think that there was some sort of gravitational force between us, but it felt like that pull grew exponentially the closer I got to her.
Keeping my distance had never been easy, but I’d grown used to that longing and regret that was ever present in my life these past few years. The past twenty-four hours, knowing I’d be in the same town as Daisy?
The feeling had become a compulsion, driving me to distraction. She was all I’d been able to think about from the time I’d boarded the plane to the moment I saw her this morning.
“So?” Jamie asked on the other end. “How does it feel to be back on your old stomping grounds?”
“Uhh…” I had no idea how to answer that.
“It must be nice to see old friends.” Her voice was hinting, prompting. Jamie was my very best friend and I loved her like a sister, but I’d n
ever even told her the whole story of how I’d left and why. She knew enough to know that my life hadn’t been a picnic; she knew it was no Norman Rockwell scene. But she didn’t know about Daisy…
Honestly, I’d been too ashamed to tell her.
You see, there was a girl. My best friend and the love of my life and my soul mate… What happened? Well, I was cruel to her. I said nasty things that I didn’t mean just to push her away so she wouldn’t follow me, because we all believed I was as big a loser as my father in prison…
Not exactly a fairytale, and I felt nothing but shame when I thought of the way Daisy had looked at me before I’d walked away from her that last time.
“Tieg?” Jamie said. “You doing okay?”
“Yeah,” I said too quickly. “Yeah, I’m fine it’s just…it’s weird being back.”
“Weird good or weird bad?”
I thought of Daisy, how beautiful and perfect she’d looked…and how pissed. I thought of Brady—how complicated, but also how incredibly familiar. “Both, I guess.”
Jamie was quiet for a minute. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Eventually,” I said honestly. “But right now there’s too much going on. There’s a lot of history here, and it’s…” Daisy’s flashing green eyes popped up in my mind’s eye. “It’s unresolved.”
Jamie murmured something, a consoling sound. “Well then I’m glad you’re there,” she said. “I might not know the whole story, but it’s obvious that you need to get some closure.”
I nodded. Closure. Right. I tightened my grip on the wheel. I hated that word, it sounded so…final.
And this was final, I reminded myself. I hadn’t even thought I’d get a second chance to make things right with Daisy, but here I was. This was my opportunity, right? My chance to apologize and to say goodbye the right way.
“Make the most of it,” Jamie said. “Say what you need to say.”
I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. “I intend to.” I’d navigated the streets of Jordan Springs easily last night, funny how familiar it had all looked, but also how different. The stores that lined the small downtown streets were the same, but I wasn’t the same kid…not by a long shot. Nothing had changed and everything had changed.
The Man, The Myth, The Nerd: High School Billionaires #3 Page 3