Red at Night
Page 9
She tosses her hands in the air. “Of course. Why not? I’m a magnet for you stinking people. Why wouldn’t I be surrounded by more?” Her head falls back and she focuses on the ceiling. “Hey, God? It’s me, Haley. Not funny.”
“What?”
“Okay. All right. This can be managed. It can. I can manage this. This is entirely under my control. I can own this situation.”
“I don’t need to be managed.”
Haley tosses me an are-you-for-real gaze and her hair tumbles over her shoulder. It’s shiny and I bet if I ran my fingers through it, the strands would feel like silk. I like hair like that. I like kissing girls who have hair like that. My eyes flash to her lips and the memory of her stepping into me on Friday night sizzles in my mind: the walking, talking inferno. Kissing Haley would be a thrill ride experience.
“West?” Haley motions near her eyes. “Attention here, please?”
“I wasn’t checking out your curves.” Though now that it’s mentioned...
“Go there and I swear to God you’ll have to check ‘other’ when asked if you’re male or female.”
I chuckle and rest my palm against the cool cinder block wall, crowding her. Haley shifts and practically shrinks into the corner. She’s shorter than me, but not by much. I’d say she was afraid, but the way she studies my biceps tells me differently.
“Haley?” She refocuses on my face. “Eyes up here please.”
Gaped. Open. Mouth. “Okay, look. Me and you. We’ve got problems. Those guys that jumped us on Friday?”
My hand slips off the wall and I straighten. “Yeah?”
“They go to school here and I’m not exactly their best friend.”
My muscles tighten and I have to work to keep the smirk off my face. Payback is going to be sweet. “Do you know where they’re at?”
“Stay away from them. They’re dangerous.”
I don’t care if they play poker with the devil. They took me down. That doesn’t happen, and I won’t let that be the final say—especially since I’ll be spending the next four months in this hellhole.
Haley clutches my arm as if I were about to waltz into a minefield. “No!”
I lean into her—our heads less than an inch apart. “Have they threatened you?”
Her fingernails attempt to dig canyons into my arm. “There are things in my life you can’t understand, okay? I know you meant well on Friday, but to be honest, you screwed everything up, so I’m begging you to listen to me now. Stay away from them, stay away from me and, for the love of God, don’t mention Friday to anyone.”
The warning bell rings. Haley releases me and runs up the stairs. What the hell?
Copyright © 2014 by Katie McGarry
Dear Reader,
Remember that feeling of trying on a new pair of shoes as a child? Do you remember how you loved the feel of them, the look of them, and how you immediately stood a little taller?
One of the best honors I have ever received was being asked to write a novella showcasing the Goodie Two Shoes Foundation for the More Than Words program. This amazing foundation provides shoes for underprivileged children, but more important, they give them a choice and they give them hope.
The Goodie Two Shoes Foundation takes time with the children. They measure their feet and make sure the shoes properly fit. Then they allow the children to pick the pair of their choice. This is something very special, and I’m truly in awe of their organization.
I hope you enjoy the story.
Sincerely,
Katie McGarry
Two more FREE ebooks await!
In You Are Here, author Liz Fichera honors the work of Cheryl Sesnon, executive director of the Jubilee Women’s Center in Seattle—where troubled women can learn to leave homelessness behind forever.
And in The Gift of a Good Start, author Earl Sewell honors the work of Elizabeth Roelfs, a member of the Diller Community Foundation in Nebraska, a group dedicated to improving the community for the future of the Diller children.
To access your free ebooks visit www.HarlequinMoreThanWords.com.
ISBN-13: 9781460317921
RED AT NIGHT
Copyright © 2014 by Katie McGarry
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