2brown-eyes is an Angel!
How Do You Talk to an Angel—The Heights
"Rose booked the hotel rooms," Alice says, turning down The Heights as she whips her Mustang into the parking lot at First Beach. "Good thing she had a credit card, or they'd have said no."
"Nice," I say, pulling my feet off the dash and sitting up straighter. "The guys here yet?"
"Nah." She shuts off the car and tosses the keys under her seat. "Jaz won't be off until seven tonight."
"Oh." I'm oddly okay with that.
Ever since the other day, I've been feeling less and less like spending time with Mase is a good thing. He's cool as fuck and sexy as hell, but I've been using him as a band-aid, and I realize that now. He's fun to be around, and the attention he showers me with allows me to avoid the things I keep buried deep.
But when I'm alone, it burns its way through me.
Bitter and acrid.
Regret.
Doesn't mean I'm ready to change it.
I just accept that it exists now.
"You coming?" Alice asks, towel and ball in hand.
I shake my head to clear the fog and grab our bag before following her across the sand. The day burns hot, and Alice and I spend the time playing a not-so-textbook game of volleyball with Lauren and Jane before washing off in the ocean as the sun dips toward the horizon.
As we make our way back to where our towels are located, I nearly trip on sand when I notice Edward and Bree have set up camp close by. Too close for my comfort. I'm sure it wasn't intentional on their part, but the universe has a way of getting its point across.
He looks so goddamn good too.
Board shorts.
Tank top.
Tanned skin.
His hair is windblown and a little long on top, and damn, the summer has been good to him. I look away, not wanting to be caught ogling.
Alice brushes up against me, her voice low. "You okay?"
"Yeah." I blow off her concern. "Caught me by surprise is all."
"Tell me about it," she snips, sending a glare toward them as Bree laughs at something Edward said. "That laugh is so fake."
"Stop." I snort a laugh. "Why do they bother you so much? Don't you like Mase?"
She stops and turns to me. "I like you, and that boy over there is yours. Mase is only a cute placeholder."
Her words nearly knock me on my ass.
My eyes burn. "I know."
"Oh, Bella," she says, putting her arm across my shoulder and turning to lead us away. "Admitting you have a problem is the first step to solving it."
"I don't know what that solution looks like." We're walking down the beach now as the sun disappears below the horizon. "He's vocally chosen her, more than once."
"Have you given him another option?" She stops walking and glares at me. "Didn't think so. Now, I'm not telling you to march over there and snatch a bitch up by her hair or anything, but I am telling you to give it some thought. Seriously, B, you'd be doing both of you a favor."
"And Bree?" I ask because the thought of hurting her is a painful one. An innocent bystander, destroyed as a direct result of my actions.
"Fuck Bree," Alice snaps, and at my narrowed eyes, she huffs. "Fine, okay. So she'll be hurt, but it's a lot better than going on and accepting a proposal, or god forbid, marrying Edward only for him to realize he can't live without you. Because he would, Bella. I know it like I know my name is Mary Alice Brandon."
My stomach bunches.
Guilt gnaws at me.
"Let's just put this on ice," Alice finally says when I don't give in to her wishes. "But I want you to remember what I said."
"I'll think about it," I say, looking past her to where Jaz and Mase are headed our way, shirtless and smiling.
Last week, my stomach would've flipped at Mase's smile.
But today, it flips for an entirely different reason.
I feel queasy.
Confused.
Torn.
Haha so I read ahead for this week, and you're not gonna like me very much on Thursday.
Eek.
But I really, really need to get the Epis done before I change the posting schedule. I have about 4 more to write.
Also, I spent yesterday getting The Marriage Pact ready to go. The eBook will have a link soon (maybe tmr), and it goes live on Oct 3, and the paperback will be live before then, just need to tweak the cover a teensy bit and re-upload today.
I'll let ya know!
Anyway, see ya tmr :)
