Running his hand through his hair, he sighs. “I’m not doing this. I’m not going to entertain this little fucking twisted game you seem intent on playing.”
“It’s not a game.” I stare at Eli, and I know he believes I sent that text message. “I lost my phone.”
Scoffing, Eli glares down at me. “Yeah. Right.”
“I did. The day I took you to the doctor.”
Bending down so we’re close enough to kiss, he hisses, “You expect me to believe that you lost your phone and somehow, a mystery person decided to send me those text messages?”
And then it hits me.
“Amber.”
That little bitch. I’m going to murder her and I’m not even going to wait until she’s sleeping. I’m going to do it in broad daylight. I want her to know it was me.
“You expect me to believe yoursisterdid this?”
I feel a hand on my shoulder and know it’s Carley. “It makes sense. That little bitch is a snake in the grass. She was pissed that day.”
Carley’s right. She was angry about the milk. Then right before she went to the store, she suddenly changed her tune. When she got back, Amber was all smiles as she packed her bag. She claimed “we were right” and that she was going to head home and face the music first thing in the morning. She was gone before we woke up.
That’s not what she did, though.
She didn’t head home to face any music. My parents haven’t heard from her. They’ve been worried sick too. But now I know who has my phone.Why didn’t I think of that?Of course, Amber would do something like this.Of courseshe would steal my phone and mess with my life.
I can’t think about her right now, though, because that’s not the issue at hand. No, the issue is Eli believing I’d cheat on him.
I guess if I’d gotten a text like that, I’d believe it too.
“Eli.” It’s Carley speaking. “Amber got into trouble back home. She came up here to hide out or something. She told us she was going home to deal with it.”
It’s quiet. At least it is to me. Sure, there are a hundred people drinking and dancing around us, but I can’t hear a thing because Eli is staring down at me. Blinking. He no longer looks angry. He still looks really tired––the same as me. I haven’t gotten much sleep lately.
“Are you saying you didn’t cheat on me?”
“Of course she didn’t cheat on you.” Carley is still defending me.
“Do you mind?” Eli glares at Carley. “Can I talk to Emma alone, please?”
“Sure thing.” Carley looks at me, smiles, pats my shoulder, then winks.
Stupid winking.I guess it’s okay if Carley does it. I watch her walk away with Cody right behind her as Eli says, “Come on. Let’s go somewhere more private.”
Turning, Eli looks back at me and points to a stairway that leads down. “Let’s head to the basement.”
Without a word, I follow him down a rickety old set of stairs. When we get to the bottom, I’m a little surprised to see a fairly nice family room. It’s crowded with partiers too, so Eli bypasses them and leads me down a long hallway to a door at the end. He knocks once and waits. When he gets no response, he turns the knob and pushes the door open. Reaching in, he does something to make an overhead light flick on. “This is a spare bedroom. We can talk in here.”
“Okay.” I step into the small space and notice there’s only a double bed and a dresser. Not knowing what to do, I step in far enough for Eli to enter. When he shuts the door, I hold my breath. I don’t know why. Anticipation, perhaps.
When he looks at me, his face is unreadable. “You really didn’t cheat on me?”
“Of course not. I—”
I don’t get a chance to finish my sentence because right then, Eli’s lips are on mine. It’s a sweet, soft kiss that only lasts a few seconds. “I’ve missed you so much, Em.”
“I’ve missed you too.”
His arms are wrapped around me and I’m pressed against his body. He feels tense. Raising my arms, I place one on each of his broad shoulders, then join my hands behind his neck. “I’m sorry.”
