Rebound Therapy (Rebound #1) by Jerica MacMillan Read Free Book Online Page A

first name, you little bitch!"
    I flinch as though slapped.
    Robert has a hold of Cathy's arm and is trying to pull her away and calm her down. His face is decidedly blank and I can tell that he blames me for Tom's death, too, even if he has more control over his emotions in public. He succeeds in getting her to follow him to the door, and I just stare in shock as they leave. I'm suddenly aware that no one is talking anymore and all eyes are on me.
    "What was that?" I hear Brian ask behind me.
    "I have to go," I say. My face feels frozen, the muscles stiff, and I have to force my mouth to get the words out.
    "Jenna, wait—“
    "I have to go," I say again, fumbling to pull my keys out of my purse.
    "Jenna!" I hear Brian call as I push through the door. I don't turn. I can't. I just have to get out of there.
    *
    I wake up to banging on my front door.
    My eyes are puffy and gritty, and my head hurts. I groan and roll over, hoping whoever it is will take a hint and go away. After five minutes, the banging is still going on. I look at my phone to check the time and remember I turned it off before I went to bed. Amy and Brian kept calling me, and I didn’t want to talk to either of them. I turn it on and get notifications of all the voicemails and texts they left since I fled The Barrel Room last night.
    The next round of banging on my front door drags me out of bed to see who won’t give up at six o’clock on a Saturday morning.
    I take a quick look through the peephole and see Brian looking like hell. His eyes are red, he’s in the same rumpled clothes he was wearing last night, and his hair is sticking out like he’s been running his hands through it all night. As I watch, deciding whether or not to open the door, he runs a hand through his hair again. His expression is a mix of frustration and determination and he bangs on the door again.
    I sigh and contemplate what to do exactly. He’s apparently not going to give up and go away or he would have already.
    I open the door just as he has his hand raised to bang some more. He looks faintly surprised when he registers that his hand has hit empty air, and then looks down at me. A look of concern replaces the frustration he wore just seconds ago. He starts to reach out to me, but I step back, gesturing him inside.
    “What happened last night, Jenna?” he asks once I’ve closed the door. Before I can formulate an answer, he continues, “I know that was Tom’s parents. Amy told me.”
    I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “Did she also tell you they blame me for Tom’s death?”
    He nods, looking confused. “I got that from what his mom said last night. I don’t understand why, though. Amy said it was a car accident.”
    I nod, looking at the floor. “It was. I was driving. We’d been at a party and Tom had been drinking. I had, too, but only a couple drinks at the beginning of the party. We were on our way home, and an SUV ran a stop sign and smashed into Tom’s side. I lost consciousness from the impact. Apparently, my head hit the driver’s side window. When I woke up, Tom was almost on top of me and covered in blood. They managed to get both of us out through the driver’s side, but Tom had massive internal injuries. He died in surgery at the hospital.”
    Brian’s hand is cupping my face, wiping away my tears. I didn’t even realize I was crying. “How is that your fault, Jenna?”
    I shrug. “I wanted to go to the party. According to his parents, I made him go. Apparently I changed him into a party animal with my slutty party girl ways or something. They knew I’d been drinking at the party, too, so I was obviously driving drunk and it was all my fault.”
    “Did the police charge you?”
    “No. I wasn’t drunk. They ruled the other driver at fault. He died on impact.”
    Brian wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest. I let him, relishing his warmth and comfort, even though I shouldn’t. “Weren’t you engaged to