Free A Flawed Heart by April Emerson Page B

by talking to Tony.
“So, is Kai your roommate?”
    “Yeah.”
    “He seems like a cool guy.”
    “Yeah, he is.”
    We take our turns pumping the keg and filling our cups from
the tap. Lydia and the girls get caught up talking to some friends, so Tony,
Kai, and I make our way back to my blanket. I sit down cross-legged, put my
beer down on the roof, and light a cigarette.
    “You look really pretty in that shirt, Claire.”
    I know that Tony has said something, but the words are
muffled. In the distance I see the unmistakably huge figure of Ben climbing
onto the roof with Alana—and behind them is Jason. He’s wearing a white shirt
and in the moonlight he looks like a fallen angel. The sight of him approaching
is breathtaking, and I can see and think of nothing else.
    “Claire? Claire?” Tony says.
    “Oh, I’m sorry. What did you say?”
    “Nothing. Do you want another beer?”
he asks.
    “Sure. Thanks.”
    Tony gets up, takes my cup out of my hand, and walks over to
crowd around the keg again. I see Jason stop near the edge of the roof,
separating himself from Ben and Alana. He has his guitar case slung over his
shoulder. It takes all of my restraint not to rush over to him. He scans the
crowd, and his eyes meet mine with a look of recognition and relief. When our
gazes lock, he walks toward me, his pace determined.
    I try to get to my feet in spite of my suddenly week knees,
when I see Lydia burst through a group of people. She grabs both of Jason’s
shoulders and turns him to face her. She stands on her tiptoes to look at his
eyes, and then brushes his cheek with her thumb. He pushes her hand away. Lydia
folds her arms and gives him a piece of her mind, but I can’t hear what they’re
saying. She wags her finger at him, and I hear her raise her voice. Jason looks
at his feet and Lydia reaches up and wraps her arms around his neck, kissing
him on the cheek and stroking his hair. She steps back, and he nods at whatever
she’s saying. She hands him a beer and returns to Ben and Alana.
    Jason sits down on the roof with his knees on his elbows,
and lights a cigarette with a flick of his Zippo. Watching this man smoke is
one of the sexiest things I have ever seen. I want to make whatever pain
he’s feeling disappear. I begin to walk over to him and he looks up at me as I
approach. I smile and try to hide my excitement over seeing him. He raises his
hand to wave and just as I am raising my hand to wave back, Tony runs up to me
and thrusts my full beer at me. It spills on my exposed cleavage.
    “Oh, shit. Um, thanks, Tony.”
    “Oh no! Shit, I’m sorry. I spilled it.”
He makes a move to wipe the beer from my chest and I grab his wrist with my
free hand, stopping him before his fingers can touch my skin.
    “I’ve got that. It’s fine, really.” I wipe the beer from my
skin and when I look up I see Jason looming over Tony, his fists balled and his
jaw clenched.
    “What the fuck are you doing?” Jason asks.
    Tony steps back, putting his free hand up in a gesture of
innocence. “I spilled her beer. Relax, man.”
    “Don’t tell me to relax, and don’t fucking touch her.” He’s practically growling at Tony.
    I touch Jason’s elbow to calm him down. “Jeez, Jason, it’s
okay.”
    His gaze doesn’t leave Tony’s face. “It’s most definitely not okay, Claire.”
    Tony stares at me and I try to apologize to him with my
eyes. He shakes his head and turns to go. “I’ll see you around.”
    Only after Tony has disappeared into the crowd does Jason
look at me. He has a bruise under his eye and it’s swollen. His eyebrow is
crusted over with blood and his shirt is stained with it.
    “What happened?” I bring my hand up to touch his eye. He
doesn’t stop me, but winces as my fingertips make contact with the bruise. I
withdraw my hand and stare at him as I await an explanation.
    “It’s nothing. Just a drunk local at
Alexa’s. He was messing with some girls, and I had to set him straight.