Read Online Friend Is a Four Letter Word by Steph Campbell - Free Book Online

heading home for a week or two soon.”
    I can’t read the tone in his voice. Is he happy? Homesick? Was his flirty text just a tease, or does he really miss me?
    So I take a deep breath and ask. “Carter, what did your text mean? Are you missing… home?” Not ‘me.’ I don’t ask if he’s missing me.
    “I miss some things about home. But I don’t miss feeling trapped. I don’t miss having my father looking over my shoulder, judging my every move, and deciding I come up short. I don’t miss feeling like I’m in some cage.” His voice has a bitter clip, like he’s venting. “I don’t miss looking after my mom. I know I shouldn’t say that, but it’s the truth.”
    And here’s where the weirdness of what we have gets clear. Because venting is pretty personal, right? So that means…
    “I miss being able to talk to you one on one,” he says, interrupting my thoughts. “I know we never got much time to just hang out, but it’s pretty rare for me to feel an instant connection to someone like I felt with you.” His voice dips low and seductive, like this is more of our game, just upped a level.
    And I want to play. Damn, I want to play so bad it burns.
    But this is also real. I’m about to walk out on and away from every single person who cares about me. I’m so nervous, I’m shaking.
    It’s crazy and so dumb, but I close my eyes and wish for one more sign.
    “Weird,” Carter says, breaking the awkward silence we slipped into.
    “What’s weird?” I ask, my voice breathy.
    “It’s just… do you remember the night we dropped Quinn off at Ben’s?” he asks.
    Christmas Eve. I touch the glitter on my window.
    “Yeah. I do.” I wait for him to continue.
    “You calling reminded me that my mother said I took the spare keys to my father’s car with me when I left, and they were in the coat I wore that night.” His voice is off, like he’s surprised. I guess car keys could be a big deal to a guy?
    “That’s great,” I say, feigning enthusiasm. “Your father will be relieved.”
    “It’s not the keys,” he says, his voice soft. “I found an earring caught in the sleeve. A diamond? It looks just like the ones you were wearing that night. Did you lose one?”
    “I… did,” I say, remembering that I only took a single one off when I cleaned up before Christmas day. I searched high and low for that earring, and it had been with Carter all along.
    “I’ll send it to you,” he offers. “I’m so sorry I never noticed before.”
    “Don’t!” I cry. I hear his surprised chuckle and feel a hot blush. “Um, it’s valuable. I wouldn’t want it to get lost in the mail.”
    “Okay,” Carter says slowly. “But it’s a shame that you haven’t had a chance to wear them, doll. You looked so beautiful in those earrings.”
    “Oh, don’t you worry,” I assure him, rubbing the little bit of glitter between my fingers. “I’ll figure something out.”
     

     
    “You can’t just leave,” Mom says, her voice rising up high enough to actually draw attention from the neighbors. I know how incredibly pissed she is at me if she’s not worried about what the neighbors might overhear. She pulls the bag I just shoved into the trunk of my car right back out and tosses it onto the driveway. “David, tell her she can’t leave.”
    “Shayna,” Dad says sharply. He looks over the rim of his glasses at me. “This is a terrible idea. Have you thought this through at all?”
    “Of course I have,” I say, tugging the duffel back to the truck. Of course I’ve thought about this all.
    For like, a solid couple of hours.
    “Where are you going to stay?” he demands, pacing back and forth. Is that where I get my terrible pacing habit from? I never noticed before. “What will you do for money?” he asks, crossing his arms in triumph when I look up at him, gaping like a fish out of water.
    Alright, so I hadn’t thought it totally through. My plan is to head to Quinn’s place in California.