Page 49 of Almost Rotten

When I’m close enough to see the whites of her eyes, she looks me up and down. “Sit,” she demands.

Obediently, I ease onto the wooden floor and dangle my legs over the edge the way she does.

“Just so we’re clear, he came in here seconds before you did. I would have made myself known had you not shot him down so hard and fast.”

Pain blooms in my chest. “I didn’t shoot him down.”

Bella side-eyes me, then offers me the vape.

Fuck it.

I accept and inhale deeply. As the smoke infiltrates my lungs and a tart apple flavor tickles my tongue, I pull out my phone and send off a text.

Sawyer:You’re driving home.

I lock my phone before Ty can respond and pocket it again, then take another hit, this time letting the smoke linger a little longer.

When I finally exhale and pass back the vape, Bella is still staring.

“He likes you. A lot.”

Matching her tone, I deadpan, “I like him. A lot.”

Her lips curl up on one side. “And yet you wouldn’t let him kiss you. You barely let him touch you, then you gave him the emptiest excuses for why you couldn’t reciprocate.”

With a grimace, I duck my head and crack my knuckles. How the hell did she get all that from eavesdropping at this angle?

Before I can ask the question aloud, my brain slows and my body relaxes. I lean back a bit, rifling through my jumbledthoughts. I’ve gotten nowhere by the time a figure wanders past the open doorway below.

Instantly my body goes rigid. I don’t have to see his face to know it’s Tytus.

He lumbers past, only slowing slightly and glancing in the barn before moving on.

When he’s out of sight and I can no longer hear his footsteps, I exhale.

“So was your bullshit reaction about you, about Noah, or about the kid with the perpetual scowl on his face? I swear, every time I see that guy, he looks like he wants to shove dried corn husks under the fingernails of anyone who breathes in your vicinity.”

I shudder. That was shockingly graphic.

Before I can fumble through a half-truth, she blows smoke in my face and continues.

“Noah is special. He’s fought really fucking hard not to sink into the darkness, and he’s endured more than most people could bear to deal with.”

I want to tell her that I know. That I relate to him deeply. That I let him down easy tonight to protect him.

But I swallow back the words. If I can’t even tell Noah that, how can I tell this virtual stranger?

Abruptly, she stands and brushes off her bare legs, looming over me. I tip my head back, finding her eyes narrowed. I try to focus on her face instead of all her cool piercings, but I’m easily distracted when I’m high.

Shit.

Should I tell her the truth? She may not believe me, and obviously she’ll want to tell Noah, but maybe—

“He doesn’t deserve to be toyed with, and he certainly doesn’t deserve to lose another important person.” Bella plants her hands on her hips and glowers. “Either stick around or stay the fuck away from him.” With that, she stomps away, the soundof her Doc Martens hitting wood echoing off the rafters as she clomps down the ladder.

Shit.

I can’t stick around. Not tonight at least, and not when things are so tense with Ty.