Chapter 20

CHAPTER TWENTY

Seventeen years old

“You look fancy.” My grandpa took a break from watching the game to compliment me.

“I’m having dinner at the Dunnetts,” I replied nonchalantly. Even though my grandpa had warmed up to Max, that didn’t mean he suddenly though the rest of Max’s family was worth getting to know.

Neither did I.

I thought Grandpa would make fun of me or make a smart-ass comment, but he surprised me. “That boy won’t let anyone hurt you. He’s a good kid, Freya.”

“I know, Grandpa.” I smiled as I looked out the window, waiting for Max’s Mercedes. Prescott didn’t want the Mercedes; he and Juliet wanted something more modern, leaving Max with sole ownership of the Benz. When I saw headlights in front of our trailer, I got giddy with anticipation .

“Don’t smile like that at him. He’s going to think he can do whatever he wants,” Grandpa shouted as I went to open the door.

“ He can do anything he wants anytime ,” I murmured under my breath. It wasn’t like my grandpa and I had the talk. Ignorance was bliss in our case. I thought he knew I would know better, growing up the way I did.

“Baby.” I threw myself into Max’s waiting arms. My boy twirled me before he put me down. He was wearing white Bermuda shorts with a burgundy polo and white slip-on shoes, and even though I still thought he looked like a total tool, he was freaking cute.

“Look at you, looking like a rich boy.”

He usually laughed, but not today; instead, he kissed my forehead. “Not a rich boy, just yours.” Something about the way he said it made a chill go down my spine.

“Always,” I replied. Max grabbed my hand and led me back into the trailer, making his way to where Grandpa was sitting.

“I’ll have her home by midnight, sir.” Max never failed to greet my gramps, even when my grandpa refused to shake his hand.

“Eugene, you can call me Eugene.” My Grandpa shook Max’s hand with a smile. I wasn’t the only one who froze. This was huge. My grandpa was finally welcoming Max into our little family.

About damn time.

“All right, have a good night, Eugene.” Max waited for me to kiss my grandpa goodbye before going to his car. Except that wasn’t his car; it was a sleek, black Audi.

“Where’s your car?” I asked as he opened the car door. Max gave my butt a spank and pushed me in.

“It’s getting somework done. I borrowed my mom’s.” There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach, and it wasn’t just because Max was driving in his mom’s car. Even as Max held my hand, the feeling didn’t go away.

“Rusty didn’t mention having your car earlier today,” I said, since I knew Rusty was now the only person Max trusted with his car.

“Just dropped it off today.”

I didn’t think much of it. My nerves were acting crazy today. I wondered what kind of reaction I would get at the Dunnetts.

“It’ll be fine, babe.”Max brought my hand up to his lips and kissed it softly.

“I know, Max. I know you’d never let anyone hurt me, not even your own family.”

Max’s grip on my hand became tighter, more possessive. When he said, “Never,” I felt a chill all over my body at the conviction in his voice.

The party was in full swing when we arrived at Max’s house. Mrs. Dunnett went all out this time since it wasn’t a simple cookout. There were white tents filled with twinkling white lights, servers, and a makeshift dance floor.

It was by far the fanciest party I had ever attended. I was glad I had bought a dress for the occasion. Between prom and today, my savings had taken a hit, but it was all for a good reason. The white and navy blue floral maxi dress flowed nicely, accentuating my small frame. It had a small slit, nothing too flashy, and it tied at the neck. Since I didn’t want to sink my heels in the grass—a choice I now regretted—I wore tan, strappy sandals.

We said hello to a few people. Most of them were nice, but most of them were also here sucking up to Mr. Dunnett and the Newtons. I never let myself think on how much Max had because it was intimidating, but sometimes it stared me in the face, as it did now, and my demons would tell me he was too good for me. He could do so much better than me.

“I’m thinking about asking the mayor if I can help with his reelection campaign.”

“Why would you want to do that?” I laughed it off.

Max shrugged. “It would make a good experience. Besides, what else am I supposed to do while you and Russell work?”

“Rusty and I work because we have to.” I didn’t mean to sound so judgmental, but when Max lost his smile, I regretted what I said. I didn’t have a chance toapologize to him because Mr. Dunnett walked up to us with one of his friends.

“This is my other son, Maximilian. Max, this is Joshua, the man I was telling you about earlier.”

I stood next to Max, smiling at Mr. Dunnett and Joshua, waiting for an introduction, but one never came. Can you say awkward? I felt lonely, which was crazy because Max was next to me. I looped my arm over Max’s; it was something I did when we walked side by side. Max didn’t mind; he instantly inched closer, but I saw the hate in Mr. Dunnett’s eyes. I knew he didn’t like me, but I never thought he hated me. I stood there not paying attention to what was being discussed. If it weren’t for the way Max acted around his father, I would have felt worse. Max was tense, his words forced.

“If you’ll excuse us, Josh, I have to say hello to my mother.” Max gave the man an easy smile and clasped my hand, dragging me over to where his mom was sitting. Immediately I knew things could only go from bad to worse when I saw Mrs. Dunnett was sitting with Juliet, Jana, Abigail, and Mrs. Newton. The bad thing about summer, was that Abigail was around.

Ever since Nikki and Abigail graduated, Jana and Juliet didn’t bother me. They pretended like I didn’t exist. Why couldn’t all of them pretend I didn’t exist my freshman year? Nikki never got over the fact thatI “stole” Max from her. Could you even steal something that was never hers?

I watched as Max greeted his mother and gave Juliet, Jana, Abigail, and Mrs. Newton a kiss on the cheek. I, on the other hand, waved hello. I may be on my best behavior, but if I wasforced to kiss those bitches on the cheek, I might accidentally bite them.

“You look lovely, Freya,” Mrs. Dunnett said, and I wanted to believe she was sincere, but I wasn’t sure. Even though it hurt, and I knew one of Max parents hated me, I still smiled, hoping his mother might like me.

“Thank you, you look reallypretty, Mrs. Dunnett,” I timidly said, hating the way my voice faltered. Juliet rolled her eyes, and Abigail snickered.

“Like reallypretty.” Abigail mocked me loud enough for everyone at the table to hear, but at least no one laughed. Max, who was distracted pulling a chair out for me to sit in, didn’t hear a thing.

I tried not to show how alarmed I was when Max said, “I’ll be right back. I have to use the restroom.”

It was awkward as hell. I was witnessing two conversations happening at the same time and not taking part in either. Juliet was talking about homecoming while Mrs. Dunnett and Mrs. Newton were talking about one of Mrs. Newton’s cousins who left town over a decade ago. As awkward as things where, I knew they were about to get worse when Max’s mom and Mrs. Newton got up. My only saving grace was when Mrs. Newton told Abigail to accompany her. Taking on two vipers was much better than three.

“You’re not making things easy on my brother.” Juliet leaned back and crossed her arms. “You better not hurt him. The shit he puts up with for dating you is more than enough. Come on, Jana, let’s go look for Gary.”

They left me alone to wonder what the fuck Juliet was talking about. When I couldn’t do it anymore, I got up to look for Max. He had taken more than enough time taking a piss. I figured he was probably in his room hiding—that’s what I would do—but Max wouldn’t do that to me.But then again, he wasn’t acting like himself.

Since everyone was in the back, I figured it would be easier to go in through the front entrance, that way I could avoid socializing . By socializing, I meant round two with Juliet, Jana, and Abigail. The first thing I noticed as I rounded the corner was that the garage was open. Any other time, I would have walked away and not pried, but Max’s car was right there.

Max lied.

Max lied to me.

I made my way to the front of Max’s car, wondering what compelled him to lie. This was the first time he’d done it. I didn’t like it. I hated it. Everything about today had been a little absurd from the start. Calming myself, I took a deep breath before I did something reckless like storm the house shouting his name. It hurt to know he lied to my face. A million scenarios ran through my mind like wildfire, each worse than the last. When I heard footsteps behind me, I turned around, ready to tell Max off and demand an answer. God, if it was like anything I imagined, it would kill me. When I turned, it wasn’t Max behind me. It was his father. Paul Dunnett was the older version of Prescott, except his face was much harsher. Still, he was one handsome son of a bitch.

Paul made his way over, stopping a foot away, dwarfing me with his presence. He put his hand in his pocket and spoke with an arrogance that came from years of getting what he wanted. “Tell me what it will take for you to leave my son alone.”

“P-pardon?” So much for sounding like he didn’t intimidate me .

“Don’t be coy. Name your price. Then I’ll never have to see you near my son again.”

My stomach sank with unease, and my eyes watered at the thought of Max’s father thinking I was a gold-digging whore. I accepted the factI wasn’t good enough, thatI wasn’t the poster girl for perfection, but to insinuate that the only reason I was with Maximilian was for his money hurt so fucking deep.

“I’m not after his money; I love your son, Mr. Dunnett.”

“Oh please, you don’t have to pretend with me, girl. Your mother was the same way. She latched on to money until it left her high and dry. I will not have my son throw away his future for a nobody .”

Flinching, I opened my mouth to defend myself, but he didn’t give me a chance.

“My son could have gone to any college he wanted. Instead, he’s going to community college so that he can be close to you. He’s given up his car and his trust fund, for what? For a cheap thrill?”

“I never told him to stay,” I rasped. Mr. Dunnett didn’t know just how much he hit home. Was Max willing to give everything up for me? A part of me wanted to love him for it, but a part of me knew that if he did that, he would grow to resent me, and I would hate myself for it.

“I’ll tell him to go to Chicago like he had originally planned,” I said in a rush. I would talk to Max, make him see reason. We could fix this.

Mr. Dunnett laughed at my naivety. “And have him unfocused because you’re here? ”

“He’ll listento me. I love him, Mr. Dunnett. I want what’s best for him too.”

“Name your price,” he gritted.

“I’m not some money-hungry whore!” I yelled back. I needed him to get it through his head that no amount of money was worth the love Max gave me.

“If you loved my son, you wouldn’t hold him back. If you loved my son, you would have let him go because you aren’t enough for him. Is that what you want, Freya? For Max to not reach his full potential? My son could have it all, but he’s throwing it away for you! You won’t name a price, I’ll make this easy for you. If you don’t leave my son, you and your grandfather may find yourselves homeless.”

His voice was like ice, freezing me instantly. I knew he would do it, he had the money and the connections. He could find a bullshit clause that would force my Grandpa to sell. Every year my grandpa complained property taxes kept rising. I’m sure Mr. Dunnett was ruthless enough to seize any opportunity as long as it meant I would be far from his son. I also understood why Max was ready to leave it all for me, but I had already been selfish enough. Maybe if I had pushed harder and told Max to go away for college, we wouldn’t be here right now. I looked at Max’s car, a car he loved almost as much as he loved me, and I knew I had to do the right thing for him, even if it wasn’t the right thing for me.

When I spoke, my voice sounded foreign to my own ears. I was breaking, even if I didn’t let Mr. Dunnett see it. “I’ll do it. I’ll leave Max, but I don’t want a thing from you.” My heart broke with that sentence. I knew it would be painful to break Max’s heart, but it was the only way he would let me go. But in breaking Max’s heart, I would break my own.

Mr. Dunnett didn’t stick around to watch me cry. He had accomplished what he had set out to do. I took one last look at Max’s vintage Mercedes Benz and knew that the day of the crash would be the last memory either of us would have in that car. For Max to achieve his full potential, I had to break his heart to give him drive. Wiping the tears off my face, I took one look around Max’s home, a place I never fit in, and I told myself it was for the best.

I wouldn’t let Max ruin his life for me. My boy deserved greatness. Everyone knew it, and I couldn’t be the girl to hold him back.

Once I stopped crying, I went to look for Max. I didn’t have to search for long. My boy was already looking for me. As soon as I made it to the backyard, our eyes found each other. It happened every single time. It didn’t matter who was around; it was just him and me.

I gave him a big smile and waved him over. As soon as he saw me, his body sagged with relief. “Do you want to get out of here, baby?” He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead. I took a deep breath, smelling his unique scent and committing to memory the way his arms felt wrapped around me.

Strong. Protective. Secure. And for one more night, all mine . I would be selfish one more time. Just for tonight, I would pretend for a little longer, but starting tomorrow, I would set things in motion, so my boy could forget about me. “I’m fine right here.”

And that was the truth.

For one last time, I held him close.

I held him tight, and when I pulled away, I left my heart in his arms.

For one last time, I allowed myself to feel whole—to feel at home.