Chapter Eleven

Ava

I've been worried about Hallyn for the past couple of weeks. Before the Kolmont game she finally broke things off with Tanner.

They were working on repairing their relationship after their split over the summer. While Keaton wasn't far, it presented a new set of problems between their busy schedules and inability to see each other as often as before. Add on the fact Tanner still seemed to resent Hallyn for coming with me to Braysen.

She put on a good front, but even I could see she wasn't happy. When she called it quits, I knew it was different this time. This was for good.

We've discussed coming to Braysen and how this would be the year we'd embrace our freedom and find ourselves.

She's battled with her decision, especially because I know her heart and how much she loved Tanner. It hadn't been an easy choice. I think she always knew that the distance would eventually be the end of their relationship, but she still held out hope that they'd find a way to work through it.

I've let her sit around and mope, knowing she needed time to work through her feelings, but I wasn't going to let her waste the best years of our lives. So, when Friday rolled around and I found Hallyn sitting at home alone, I told her to get her butt up and get ready, even if it meant dragging her out with us tonight.

"You still gonna tell me that nothing is going on between you and Colter?" Hallyn asks, tilting her head to the side as we walk through the doors of Whiskey Sinner's.

A large bar in the middle of the open room has barstools lining the sides. Rustic beams are spread throughout the large space. The iron details and the dance floor near the back remind me of the bar Hallyn's mom works at in Beaufort. We spent many nights cutting up the dance floor together.

"We're just enjoying seeing where things go." I shrug, trying to play it off nonchalantly.

"What do you think Alec will say if he finds out?"

Hallyn presses her lips together in a thin smile.

"Honestly, at first, I just didn't want the drama, but I don't care anymore. It's not like the two didn't just play on the same team together. If he has a problem with us dating, or whatever the hell it is we're doing, then he can kiss my butt. He's my brother, but I'm sick of him trying to have a say in what I do."

"Amen to that, sister." Hallyn snickers as we slide up to the bar and order our drinks. The benefit of living in a small town is they turn a blind eye to our fake IDs.

"I think I'm falling in love with Colter," I mutter, glancing her way.

I felt bad talking about Colter to her, especially when I knew she was still moving on from her relationship with Tanner.

"Have you told him yet?"

I shake my head. "It's been on the tip of my tongue a few times, but I'm scared. What if this doesn't mean to him what it means to me? What if I'm misreading this between us, and he's only looking for something fun? I mean, hell, we talked about wanting to focus on us this year. Maybe that's what I should be doing and not falling over myself at the first man in Braysen I see."

Hallyn bursts out laughing. Damn, I have to admit, it's good to see my friend happy again.

"Is Colter coming out tonight?" Hallyn asks.

"Yeah, he and Reed are gonna meet us here," I answer as the bartender, Kenny, sets our drinks in front of us. I take a drink of my whiskey and Coke, sending a shiver down my spine and spreading warmth through my body.

"No Beckham?" Hallyn asks.

The two met at a party Colter and his roommates were having when the football season kicked off last month. They didn't get off on positive terms for obvious reasons. Beckham was the guy who took Tanner's starting QB spot, and Hallyn was determined to hate him, no matter how hard she had to try.

Things shifted when her car broke down, and he proposed to help her fix it, and as payment, she'd tutor him. The two have kept their tutoring sessions a secret, but now that her relationship with Tanner has ended, I guess it doesn't matter anymore.

Hallyn tries to pretend she hates him, but I know there's more to it. I've noticed the way she tries to downplay her reaction whenever his name is brought up or when we've run into him on campus. Even I can see how flustered he makes her.

She throws back the rest of her drink, and I can't help but laugh. I quirk my brow and lift my drink to hide my grin, but not before she catches me.

I wish she'd admit her feelings for him, but who am I to talk? Heck, look at me and Colter. If anyone needs to face their feelings and come out with it already, it's the two of us.

Colter and Reed both saunter into Whiskey Sinner's not long after we've finished our second drink. We snag a high-top table nearby, and Colter pulls me into his arms.

He buries his face into my neck, and I wrap my arms around his, holding him to me.

"I don't know what it says about me or where we're at, but when we're not together, all I can think about is how much I wish we were," Colter admits.

I press my lips together, resisting the urge to say what's been on my mind for a while. Instead, I ask, "What is this between us? What are we doing?"

"What do you mean?" he counters.

I pull away to stare up at him, and his eyes search my face. We're both skating around the topic, but neither of us wants to make the first move, and I can't help but wonder why.

"You know what I mean."

"If you're asking if I want to be with anyone else, the answer is no. If you're wondering if I'm dating, the answer would also be no. I haven't been with anyone else but you from the moment we first met. You're all I think about. You're everything I want."

Just when I'm about to tell him how I feel, Reed interjects and holds his phone up to us. He mutters a low sorry for interrupting, and I spot Mandy and one of her friends, Leslie, standing beside him.

"Beckham is on the phone. He's trying to find where Hallyn went. Have you seen her?" Reed asks us.

I shake my head, glancing around the bar, searching for her blond hair or the top I saw her in when we left our place.

"I thought I saw her talking to her ex. What's his name again?" Leslie's brows deepen when she turns to me. "It sounds like she might've taken off with him. Maybe try calling one of them?" she suggests, glancing from Reed over to me.

"Wait, who's asking?" I nod toward his phone, and Reed mouths Beckham's name.

Colter flicks his gaze over to me. While I kept my word to Hallyn about not telling a soul about their tutoring sessions, Colter figured it out for himself.

There were a couple of nights when he dropped me off at our place and saw Beckham's truck parked outside. It didn't take him long to put two and two together.

While I wasn't going to out her secret, I wouldn't lie to him about why his friend was at our apartment either. Besides, I trust Colter, and I know he'd never tell anyone anyway.

Reed slips his phone back into his pocket.

"Come with me?" he asks Colter. "Beckham wants us to see if we can find Hallyn. He seems concerned, so I told him we'd help him search for her. He's on his way here."

"Concerned?" I ask. Alarm bells start going off in my head.

We drove together, so it's not like she would've left. If she did, she wouldn't take off without telling me goodbye or filling me in on who she's with.

Colter stays with me while we loop around to the other side of the bar, and I check the women's bathroom before we meet up with Reed near the front door. We're heading out to the parking lot when I hear a man shouting Hallyn's name.

It isn't until I hear Reed say, "I think that's Beckham," before it clicks that he's yelling her name because he's searching for her too.

How the hell did he make it here so damn fast?

Something about knowing he raced here while hearing the panic in his voice has my chest tightening as worry settles in. We take off in his direction, and Colter reaches for me when we both hear a sob followed by a loud grunt.

"Run, Hallyn!" Beckham hollers as Reed takes off running toward them.

Colter grabs my hand and pulls me close to him when I finally spot Hallyn running between two cars. I jerk my hand free from Colter's and take off toward her.

"Are you okay? What's going on?" I cry out. Tears stream down her face when she realizes it's me, frantically wrapping her arms around me.

"I-I-I don't know. I was on the phone with Beckham when this man approached me, and he tried forcing me to—" Hallyn's words fumble out of her mouth as a silver Honda speeds off through the parking lot.

Colter steps in front of us and blocks us from the car, pushing me and Hallyn out of the way as the person peels out onto the street without stopping to check for oncoming traffic.

"What the fuck?" Reed bellows as he approaches us, Beckham beside him.

He grits his teeth, wincing as he rubs his hand and forearm. When Hallyn notices him coming, she releases me and crosses the space to wrap her arms around Beckham's waist without hesitation.

Colter and Reed exchange curious glances before Colter turns toward me, tugging me against his side. I exhale a shuddered breath, and Colter leans in, pressing his mouth against my ear.

"I know you'll want to be with Hallyn tonight. I understand," Colter whispers. "Let me stay with you, though. Please."

I nod, pressing my hands against his cheeks and pulling him in to kiss me.

When we break the kiss, Hallyn is standing next to me. She flashes me a sad smile, glancing between me over to Colter.

"Can I just say how happy it makes me seeing you two together?" she says, turning toward Colter. "Treat her right. She deserves only the best."

We exchange a hug. When she pulls away, she nods over her shoulder to Beckham.

"Are you okay?" I whisper, and she nods.

"I am now, just kinda freaked out is all." She waves her hand in front of us, once again trying to downplay everything. It's what she does. I reach for her hand to stop her and pull her close, wrapping my arms around Hallyn's neck in a tight hug. "I love you, Avs," Hallyn whispers. "Beckham's gonna give me a ride home. Go ahead and stay with Colter."

My brows deepen, and I shake my head. "Are you sure? I mean, I was the one who dragged you out tonight. We can head back to our place and have a girls' night instead."

She forces a heavy swallow and nods. "I'm sure, but I'm absolutely going to take you up on a girls' night soon."

Beckham stands behind her after she gives me another hug.

He lifts his hand in a wave. "Don't worry," he mutters. "I promise she's safe with me."

Hallyn and I exchange "I love yous" again before Beckham wraps his arm around her shoulder and leads her over to his truck.

When I turn to Colter, I don't realize right away that Reed has already taken off back toward Whiskey Sinner's, leaving the two of us alone.

His eyes have a softness, and I wonder if he's thinking the same thing I am.

But the first time I tell Colter I love him, I don't want it to be in the middle of a bar parking lot after whatever just happened.

I don't know how much longer I can keep my feelings to myself, though.