Falling for the Wrong Guy by Sara Hantz Read Free Book Online Page A

helping at all?”
    As soon as the words were out of Ruby’s mouth, she wished she could take them back. How on earth was looking at a burned-out house gonna make him feel better? She could have kicked herself.
    “Not really. Standing here brings it all back to me.” His voice cracked.
    Tears formed in Ruby’s eyes. He was hurting so much, and she just felt…helpless. “Do you want to leave? We can walk back to school or go somewhere for a coffee, if you want to talk.” When he didn’t say anything, she stood up and moved directly into his personal space. “Drew, it’s okay. You can talk to me.”
    His gaze locked onto the house behind her. “It’s like I can hear Reese’s screams even now,” he said, his voice distant and flat, like he hadn’t even heard Ruby. “I couldn’t reach her. I tried. So hard. The flames pushed me back. And then the firefighters pulled me out.”
    Ruby shuddered. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how horrific it must have been for him. “Reese wouldn’t want you to blame yourself.”
    “How can I not?” He shuddered, and she reached out and gripped his upper arms, willing her own strength into him. He closed his eyes and sighed, leaning his head forward until his forehead rested against hers. And then, like they were inside their own private bubble, he began talking. “It was my fault. I saw Reese at the mall.” Ruby could feel the warmth of his breath on her face, and when she looked up at him she could see his long, dark lashes resting against the slightly shadowed skin under his eyes. She held as still as she could. “She’d been so upset by the breakup that I didn’t want to leave her. She asked me back here.” He jerked his chin slightly in the direction of the house but didn’t lose contact with Ruby. “I should have said no. Why didn’t I say no?” The expression on his face was filled with anguish.
    “You didn’t know what would happen.” All she wanted to do was pull him closer and comfort him, but she didn’t want to break the spell between them. He needed to talk, and she needed to listen.
    “We had a few beers and just started making out. I didn’t mean for it to happen,” he continued. “I tried to push her away, said it wasn’t right. But she kept telling me that they were broken up, so it was okay. And I— I wanted it to happen.”
    She couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy, which was ridiculous. Reese was dead. She squeezed his arms, silently urging him to continue.
    “I’d never have hurt Blake intentionally. He’s my best friend. Was my best friend. I—” He opened his eyes and shook his head, looking up at the sky. “God, I’m such a selfish bastard.”
    She couldn’t completely disagree. Blake and Reese had been on and off all through high school, so Drew should have known better, should have left her alone. For months after Reese’s death, Blake had refused to leave his bedroom, other than going to school and eating the occasional meal. The weight had dropped off of him. His cheeks had grown sunken, his blond hair dull. But the worst had been the fact that the brother who loved to play practical jokes and whooped like a hyena when he laughed had just—disappeared. Replaced by a sullen, perpetually angry imposter. It hurt to see him like that. At times, Ruby wondered if she’d ever see the old Blake again.
    And yet, she knew that it wasn’t Drew’s fault. It had just been a senseless, horrible accident. Blake would have gotten over it. He might have even started back up with Reese again once she got Drew out of her system and they’d been through their requisite share of drama and tears. But she’d died, and now, everything was so wrong.
    Drew and Blake—it felt like they were tearing her in two. It was all so impossible, and she felt so helpless.
    Could she help Drew and still remain loyal to Blake?
    “Looking back is pointless. You can’t change what happened. No one can. However much you wish you could.”