Distraction (Westbrook Series Book 1) (34 page)

I decide to put it all out there right away. It feels kind like ripping a Band-Aid off. You do it fast and just wait for the sting to set in. All you can hope for is that the pain will pass quickly.

Avery's mouth forms a big O, before she covers it with her hands. She doesn't say anything at first. She looks at the wall again, and shakes her head in disbelief. She is, no doubt, filling in all of the blanks.

"
No way
," she finally says. "Where
were
you guys?" she asks.

"On my bed," I say quickly, before burying my red face under my pillow. I'm not sure why telling Avery this is so embarrassing. Maybe it's because I've never really
made out
with anyone besides Sam. I always assumed that telling my friends about things like this would be natural, but this feels very forced and awkward. Plus, it's kind of hard to be excited about it when there is a big honking hole in the wall, glaring back at me, reminding me of just how screwed up things are now.

"
Wow
. Kyle must have been
really
pissed," she says, while gawking at the damaged wall. "
Geeze
, Laila. Is his hand even okay? That hole is
huge.
" She grabs my other pillow, and tucks it under her chest and turns so she is lying on her stomach, facing me.

"Kyle dropped the
F-Bomb
about a hundred times."

"Wow. It must have been
bad
. Kyle
never
cusses."

"I know,
right?
He was beyond livid, Avery. At one point, I thought he was going to seriously
kill
Sam. I'm just glad he punched the wall instead."

"Yeah.
No kidding
. So, what did Kyle say?"

"That I'm basically too young. He called me
jailbait
, Avery. Can you believe that? I even reminded him that my birthday is next month, but he didn't want to hear anything I had to say. He kept blaming Sam for everything."

"Was he mad at you, too?"

"That's the weird thing. He just kept telling me to stay out of it. He was acting like it was none of my business."

"None of your business? Um . . .
Hello?
Weren't
you
the one that Sam was making out with?'

"That's pretty much what I said, but Kyle just dismissed me."

Avery bites her bottom lip and looks at me sympathetically.

"Sorry, Lays. That
really
sucks. I'm sure they'll work it out, though. Kyle and Sam have been best friends forever. They
have
to work it out."

I nod, not completely sure if I believe it myself . . . even though I want to, more than anything.

"So, what happened downstairs? Did you hear what they were talking about?" I ask curiously.

"Not really. I mean I was walking Trevor out when Kyle came downstairs. His face was all red, but he didn't really say anything about it. He just kept slamming stuff around in the kitchen, like he was really pissed off. Then, Sam came down after him, and I could hear them having a heated discussion. Trevor and I felt a little weird being down there while they were fighting. So, I walked him outside to the front porch. We stayed out there for a while."

"So, you didn't know why they were arguing?" I ask.

"No. I mean, the idea of Kyle finding out about you guys didn't even cross my mind. At one point, I heard the back door slam. Trevor was already in his car pulling out of the driveway, and I was about to go back inside. Then, Kyle came out onto the porch with a couple of bottles of cold beers. He just handed me one, and plopped down next to me on the swing, without ever saying anything about it."

My heart sinks. "So, Sam just
left?
Did he ever come back?" I ask hopefully.

"Not that I could tell. I mean Kyle and I hung outside for a while talking, but I didn't hear the back door open again, and he didn't come through the front."

"So, what were you and Kyle talking about?" I ask curiously.

She shrugs. "I asked him what was going on with him and Sam, but all he said was that Sam is an
asshole
. I could tell he didn't really want to talk about it, so I just left it alone."

"You said you were out there for a while. What else did you guys talk about?" I ask, trying to imagine my brother and Avery alone, drinking beer together, and talking on our front porch like they are best buds.

"Oh, so get
this
. Kyle kept asking me all these questions about Trevor. In fact, he was kind of going all
overly-protective-big-brother
on me, wanting to know if Trevor was pressuring me or making me uncomfortable tonight. It was kind of weird at the time, but now that I know why he was so upset in the first place. It all kind of makes sense," she explains.

"No, that has nothing to do with Sam and me. He was doing
that
before he caught us, Avery."

"What do you mean?"

"I overheard Kyle talking to Trevor about it. Actually, it was more like he was giving Trevor a very stern warning. He kept saying that he
better watch out
, and that
you aren't that kind of girl
."

"What? That doesn't even make sense. Why would he
even
care
about what Trevor is or isn't doing with me?"

I shrug even though I have a pretty good idea why, although Kyle would never admit it.

"Do you
really
want to know what I think?" I ask timidly.

Avery pushes one of my shoulders back playfully.

"Um
yeah?
Of course I do,
silly,
" she says dramatically, before rolling her eyes.

"Well, I could be wrong, but I kind of got the impression tonight that he might be a little jealous of Trevor. Although, he'd never in a million years admit it, of course," I confess.

"What do you mean? What
exactly
did he say?" she asks.

"It's not anything in particular that he said. It was more about the way he was acting. I mean, he was
all
about Georgia and really into her, until you guys came outside. Then, it was like his eyes never left you the rest of the night. The transformation was pretty big, Avery. I mean, you
had
to notice how much attention he was paying to you and Trevor tonight, right?" I ask.

She squints her eyes a little and cocks her head to the side, as if she is trying to recall. She shakes her head. "I honestly didn't pay that much attention to him. I think I was too busy trying to hate Georgia. I
really
wanted to hate her, Laila," she groans and shakes her head. "It's kind of impossible though, isn't it? She's really kind of great, isn't she?"

I laugh, remembering having similar thoughts myself earlier in the evening. "Well, she is no
Avery Brookes
, but yeah, she's all right." I try to downplay how much I like her in order to reassure Avery, knowing how hard it would be for me if I had to see Sam with a girlfriend like Georgia.

"So, you
really
think he might be jealous?" Avery squeezes her hands together excitedly, like a kid who is waiting for a surprise.

"Even if I am right, and he
is
, does it really matter? You and Trevor are dating now, right?" I ask, trying to gauge her level of commitment to her new relationship.

Her eyes suddenly light up. "We are. Isn't that
awesome?
I was truly shocked when he sort of
declared
that earlier to you guys before actually asking me. If I hadn't been so excited about it, I would have probably given him more trouble for just
assuming
that I would say yes." She sighs and shakes her head, but there is a smile on her face. "I probably still should. He sure is confident, isn't he?"

We both laugh. "That is a very nice way of putting it, Aves," I say, while nodding emphatically.

"Yeah, but who cares when you have lips like those?" she says dreamily.

I look at her curiously while my stomach sinks.

"Lays, we
finally
kissed," she squeals while bouncing up and down on my bed. I keep biting the inside of my cheek, wishing I didn't have to hear her describe how wonderful her first kiss with Trevor was.

"And
Oh. My. God
. It was completely
amazing
. He is hands-down
The. Best. Kisser. Ever.
His lips are so . . .
perfect
and the way he moves them?" She sighs again and fans herself with her hand. I try to ignore the way her eyes are all sparkly and her voice is breathless. "I swear, Laila. Those green eyes are going to be the death of me. Every time he looks at me, I just want to collapse."

You and me both, Aves. What is wrong with you Laila?
I force the guilt that is creeping up the back of my throat, down with one hard swallow. As soon as she had started describing what it is like to kiss him, my body began reacting in strange ways.
Can she tell that my face is all heated up, too?

"We started out just kissing and it was like the second our lips touched, fireworks were exploding all over my body. We could not get enough of each other. I swear, Laila. He makes me feel like a pool of butter when he touches me. I can tell he feels the same way, too. I mean we had to pull ourselves away from each other, to catch our breath and just cool off. At one point, I seriously thought I was going to lose my virginity right there on your basement couch."

I gasp. "
Avery
!" I am holding my hand over my mouth, as I stare at her in disbelief.
That image is more than I can handle right now.

"I'm not even exaggerating, Laila. I mean, don't get me wrong. I would never actually
do
that, I mean, not here and especially not on your couch, and definitely
not
so soon, but
damn
. He is just so crazy hot."

Okay, this is all definitely
not
what I need to hear right now, especially when I am still trying to sort out all of my own feelings. I am amazed by how freely she can discuss with me her make-out session with Trevor. She doesn't seem in the least bit embarrassed by it. I was barely able to spit out the fact that Sam and I were alone in my room to her, without feeling like I wanted to crawl into a hole afterward, and I didn't even go into any detail.

"Enough about
me
. Tell me about your big date.
Where
did you guys go?"

Now, this kind of discussion is much more my speed. I describe the whole evening, leaving out the part about our heated make-out session in the pool, and the whole incident regarding my swimsuit top. I still can't get out of my head, the look that was on Trevor's face when he caught me without it on
twice
.

"
Wow
. Who knew that Sam Woodson is such a hopeless romantic? You're so right. It really
does
sound like it was a date right out of the
Bachelor
. Nice job,
Sammy
boy. I'm sure he scored some major brownie points with you tonight. It kind of makes you wish he'd screw up more often, doesn't it?" she jokes with me.

"I thought the
same
thing, but he actually didn't do this to make up for that double date thing last night. He said that he had the whole thing planned before that. I'm sure it made him really nervous when I was mad at him, though."

"Yeah. I thought you were going to dump his ass, Lays. I've never seen you like that before. He was probably totally
freaking
out
after going through so much trouble to plan the perfect date for you guys."

"I still don't know
how
he knew that Kyle and my parents would be gone." I shake my head. "He was lucky. I mean, what would he have done if they would have decided to stay home?"

"Yeah. That
was
a pretty risky move. Well, I think it's safe to say he has it
bad
for you, Lays. I mean,
come on
. Look at this necklace." She gently tugs at my pendant and rubs it against her fingertips.

"It's gorgeous. And, it came in a little blue box."

"How do you know that?" I ask her.

"I've seen this one before and let me tell you, it is
not
cheap. Nothing at Tiffany's is.
Trust me
. My aunt takes me there every time I visit her in New York." She leans in to get a better look at it. "I think this might even be Elsa Perreti." Her eyes grow wide as she whistles.