Chapter 37 The Barricade
The Barricade
Harper
When Luke and I come downstairs, Mom is waiting at the island. She points to the stools in front of the counter where two cups of coffee and two plates of toast and eggs wait.
“Sit.”
Warily, I drop my backpack by the door and sit down next to Luke. My heart is racing, but I take a sip of the coffee. She can’t be too mad. Right? She made us breakfast.
Or maybe she was furious and made us breakfast to keep from tearing down the door and grounding me?
I swallow, and my hand slides into Luke’s next to me. He squeezes it, and a little burst of warmth races through me. Who would have thought I’d turn to Luke Foster for comfort?
“I know you’re teenagers and sneaking around is—I won’t say it, but you know it can make people feel a certain way. Like forbidden romance.” She’s rambling. That’s not a good sign. If she offers to buy more condoms, I’m going to sink into the ground right here.
She looks at both of us. “What I’m failing to say so eloquently is you don’t have to sneak around that much for me.”
I tilt my head to one side. “What does that mean?”
“Meaning...” Her mouth snaps shut. Her brow furrows, and then she opens her mouth again and rubs her temple like she has a headache.
“You know, you weren’t supposed to be a tough kid.
You haven’t been. But damn if you don’t go big.
I appreciate you all were honest about your relationship with me.
I’m glad you have a social life, and they seem to make you happy. ”
Oh, fuck, could she hear us in the shower? Or does she think we had sex last night? I don’t want my mom thinking about me having sex. And definitely not with five guys.
“I don’t want you to have to sneak around.” Her gaze goes to Luke and he straightens. “I know your home life isn’t the best. Anytime you want to stay here, you should. I’m not condoning other activities, but as long as you are being—er, just don’t—”
She puts her hands on her red cheeks. “I’m a nurse. I should be able to discuss sex with teenagers like a professional. This is normal and healthy.”
“Nothing about this is normal.” Luke’s voice is gentle. “I don’t think any of us woke up one morning and thought hey, why don’t we date the same girl. But you know Harper. She’s amazing and any time we get to spend with her is worth everything. We value her.”
My heart skips a little, and warmth flushes through my system. My fingers tingle where they touch his.
“We’ll respect your rules and your house.” Luke squeezes my hand, and a little jolt of something I don’t recognize courses through me. It’s warm and comforting. “And thank you for letting me stay here. We’ve all worried about Harper with everything that’s been going on.”
Mom nods and lifts her coffee mug. “Thank you for keeping an eye out for my girl. What’s on the agenda today at school?”
“I’m going to apply to a few more colleges.” I take a bite of my eggs. Now that I know she’s not going to hand me condoms in front of Luke, or worse, make me prove I can put one on a banana, I can relax and eat.
“Yeah? Do you need to put more application fees on my card?”
I shake my head. “The fees are taken care of.”
“Cool.” She glances at Luke suspiciously.
We haven’t even discussed the colleges they want me to apply to yet. But I’m sure that talk is coming up.
“Where have you applied?” she asks Luke.
“My dad wants me to go to Harvard, so I’ve applied early action. But I’m also applying to a few others that have talked to me about scholarships to play football.” Luke takes a bite but doesn’t release my hand.
“Harvard. Wow.” My mom pours herself more coffee.
“I think Harper should apply there too.”
My coffee goes down the wrong pipe, making me cough. When I’m able to breathe again, I wheeze, “Harvard?”
Yeah, that’s way out of my price range. Not to mention, how would I even get in? Sure, I’ve got the single mom thing going for me. My grades are up there, but overall I have nothing to offer them that would make them say, hell yes, this kid is Harvard material.
“Like I said, when you go big,” Mom says out of the corner of her mouth.
I shake my head. “That one might be a hard sell to all those involved.”
Luke smiles. “You just have to wow them. But there are a few other schools nearby that might work for you too.”
Fuck, butterflies in my stomach? Seriously? For Luke? Maybe I should ask Mom about a therapist because my brain has to be broken somewhere.
“It doesn’t hurt to apply, Harper. You never know. Maybe you’ll get in, and Luke won’t.” She winks.
“I hope she does.” Luke chuckles. “I’d love to see my father’s face when I tell him that.”
The rest of breakfast, we eat and discuss Harvard. Luke talks about when he went to visit the campus. Mom seems to buy into me going to Harvard, but I don’t even know what I want to get a degree in.
“We need to go.” Luke touches my back, and I jolt out of my thoughts.
I almost forgot we had school today. “I’ll see you tonight at dinner.”
“Okay, have a great day at school. I love you.” Mom’s already cleaning up the dishes.
“I love you, too.” I call over my shoulder. Luke’s gaze collides with mine, and I almost stumble at the softness in them. Yeah, my heart is stupid.
He takes my hand as we walk to where he parked his car.
It’s still fall, and the leaves are just starting to turn. It’s not quite jacket weather yet though. Fall means football, parties, and dances. This year I get to participate in everything. I can go to all the dances.
“When is homecoming?” I ask.
Luke opens the car door for me. “A couple weeks. Logistically, that’s going to be a nightmare.”
“How so?” I slide in and put my backpack at my feet.
Luke settles into the driver’s seat and turns to me. “Your mother is the only one who knows about all of us.”
“Oh.” Yeah, that might be weird to the other parents. Most of them know I’m with their son, but not about all of us together.
He starts the car and weaves his way out of my neighborhood toward school.
“Eli’s parents will want pictures. Nico’s and Jack’s too. You’re fortunate. My dad’s just an asshole, so we don’t have to pretend for him to be satisfied. And Caden’s family is never around.”
I don’t know how to feel about Luke’s dad. That comment about wearing something pretty and then what he did to Luke. A fierce need to protect Luke from his father races through me. Fuck, that guy is sleazy. No wonder Luke wants to get away from him.
“I guess I’ll just do retouches between, and Mom will get pics of all of us together.”
“That’d be nice.” He pulls into the parking lot, and suddenly all my anxiety comes back to me. Fuck, Friday night’s game, being trapped, telling everyone that the horsemen have fucked me rush into my brain.
“Maybe we should skip school today.” I groan and sink into the seat.
“Not if we want to get you into Harvard, princess.” He smiles, but he turns to me and cups my cheek. “You’re with us. Nothing bad will happen to you in there. I’ve got you.”
Wow, butterflies again. Really? Luke is not a butterflies guy. Sparks and lust, yes. Butterflies, no.
When he gets out of the car and walks around to my side, I try to give myself a pep talk, but today is just going to suck.
Zach wanted to rape me. Tanner still has a plan none of us know, but we’re aware he’s going to go through me to hurt them.
The girls want my guys, and I don’t think the label of boyfriend is going to hold them off for long, if at all.
And me? Apparently the boys at school will think I’m open for business. The girls who’ve been calling me a slut will continue. This is not going to be my day.
Luke opens my door and holds his hand down to me. When he helps me out, his hand slides into my hair and he leans down to my ear.
“You’re stronger than you think, Harper. Just act like you’re above it all.” He draws back, and his eyes capture mine for a heartbeat before his lips claim mine.
My insides are a mess of desire and nerves by the time he draws away. His thumb rubs my jaw before he drops his hand to mine, tangling our fingers until we’re one.
We walk along the sidewalk to the others. I keep my chin high and try to ignore the looks. This is going to be my life for the rest of the school year. I might as well get used to it.
When we reach the others, Eli smiles and holds out his hand to me. I release Luke’s and go into his arms. He hugs me close in a warm, soft embrace before tipping my chin up and taking my mouth. It’s never about gentle with Eli’s kisses.
It’s a battle where he craves the war almost as much as he craves my surrender.
When he releases me, I draw in a dazed breath. Jack turns my face to his and captures my mouth. He’s not letting me take the lead this time. There’s almost a desperation to the kiss that makes me want to give him more.
“Good morning, sweetheart,” Jack whispers against my lips.
“Good morning, Jack.” I clench my thighs together at the heat in his eyes.
Caden draws me away and lifts me against him to kiss me. I’m grateful I wore jeans this morning as his hands cup my ass, knowing he doesn’t mind flashing my panties. His kiss is a little more forceful than usual. When he draws away and just holds me for a moment, I tighten my arms around him.
“You okay?” I whisper in his ear.
He nods. “Just missed you last night.”
A little spark of awareness floats through me. I’m not sure if that was sexual or emotional. But either way, it feels like Caden and I are back on solid ground. We still need to talk about Tanner, but I’m hoping to do that tonight.
He sets me down, turns me, and gives me a little shove toward Nico.
“Morning, sunshine.” Nico reaches out for me, and I step into his arms. I have to give a little or we’ll never fix what’s broken. He hugs me to him and kisses the top of my head.
I tip my head back and look into his dark eyes. Maybe he’s finally seeing me. Not the little girl who was his best friend, but who I’ve become.