Chasing McCree by J.C. Isabella Read Free Book Online

loosen up and stop
worrying so much. I deleted every message and text. But then I came
across one from someone else. It was from Chase. He’d called my
phone so that I’d have his number. I smiled and saved it in my
contacts; thankful I had someone who wasn’t judging me like my
so-called friends.
    After twenty minutes hiding in the
girl’s locker room I forced myself to go back out into the gym. It
was time for me to go. I couldn’t stand on the sidelines watching
everyone dance. That would only draw attention.
    “ Hey, Briar!” Beth tottered
over in a pair of platform heels, wearing a silver dress that
looked too tight to breathe in.“Oh my god. I am having so much
fun!”
    “ Great.” Super great…she
was already drunk!
    “ You look different.” Beth
motioned to my dress. “It’s almost…sweet.”
    From the inflection in her voice, I
didn’t take that as a compliment. “I felt over exposed in the dress
I bought with Rachel. This is a lot prettier. Besides, it’s
vintage.”
    She sniffed. “Oh, I guess vintage isn’t
so bad. Chanel?”
    “ Actually, I don’t know who
it’s by.”
    Beth waved to someone behind me, and
then met my eyes, with pity. “Everyone has an off
night.”
    “ I guess…” what was I
supposed to say, that I really didn’t care about the stupid dance?
Yeah, that would win me some major points.
    She gave me another pathetically
pitying look before leaving, making an excuse about needing to say
hi to someone super important.
    I headed for the door, not making eye
contact with anyone else. This was it. I’d officially screwed my
social life. It was finished. Poof. Out from the popular crowd. I
might as well change schools.
    “ Briar, wait.”
    I turned back to see Alex slipping out
of the sea of writhing bodies. He ran toward me. I knew I had to
face him sooner or later. Might as well get it over with now. My
cute dress seemed pretty repellant, and I was on a roll after
sending Beth running. Hopefully Alex followed her
example.
    “ When did you get
here?”
    I shrugged. “Not long ago.”
    He jerked his tie off and shoved it in
his pants pocket. I had to give him credit. He cleaned up nice and
was good looking in his own right. But looks were
deceiving.
    “ Do you want to dance?” he
asked as a slow song came on.
    “ Actually, I’m going
home.”
    He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m
sorry. Briar, I never mean to hurt you. Dance with me, please,
that’s all I’m asking. I just want to talk.”
    I sighed, knowing that if I danced with
him my mother would find out. She’d leave me alone, for a little
while. “Fine, one dance. That’s all the time you have, and then I’m
leaving.”
    He led me to the dance floor. I rested
my hands on his shoulders, keeping a good amount of space between
us.
    “ Say what you have to say
Alex.”
    “ Like I said, I’m sorry.”
His hands settled at my waist. “It’s just that I get these urges,
and I have to remember to control them.”
    Did he think I was going to fall for
this? “Okay.”
    “ But I’m going to work on
it. If I knew when you would be ready, then it would be easier to
wait.” His hands slipped a little lower and I raised my
eyebrows.
    “ Ready?”
    “ Yeah, I’ll wait. I can
ignore my needs for a while.”
    “ Alex, I can’t give you a
specific time. I’m not ready now, and I don’t know when I will be.
When I am ready though, I can promise you one thing.”
    “ What’s that?” he locked
his arms around me and swooped in for a kiss.
    I grimaced, shoving him back. “I
promise I won’t be ready for you.”
    “ Damn it, Briar.” He jerked
me closer. “Our parents expect this.”
    I balked at him. “What?”
    “ After high school we’re
going to announce our engagement.”
    This was more than just about Dartmouth
hiring my dad. This was about a merger. The Walkers and the
Thompsons. It would be front-page society, just like my mom wanted.
We would be family, and then my dad would get his shot at