Free Shattered by Elizabeth Lee

 I felt my body tense when I saw her talking to that dirt bag.  Sure, he threw a great party but he was a grade-A dick.  “Rock star?  Really, Hap?”
    “Yeah,” he pulled his mouth to the side, rethinking his description.  “She’s had a little too much to drink.”
    “You think?” I watched as she practically threw herself on him.  I was ready to go over there and punch him the face for just looking at her.  She might not have technically been my girl, but I was damn sure not going to let her hang out with him.  I thought about all the girls he’d been with, not one of them had a nice thing to say about him.  I wasn’t an angel, but I least I treated the girls I’d been with respectably.  I was just about to storm across that yard, when Hap grabbed my arm pulling me back.
    “I’ll get her.  Let’s not give the press any scandal to work with. ” He smiled as he jogged over to meet her and January.  She squealed in delight after January whispered something in her ear that pleased her.  Hap turned his attention back to me and shrugged his shoulders.  He let January know that I was back in town, I could tell by the way she squinted into the darkness trying to see where I was standing. Alyssa traipsed her ass up on the picnic table and began dancing around like the slutty girls she’d always made fun of.  I was beyond pissed.  What happened to the girl I knew?  She would never let herself act this way.  It was bad enough that she was flirting with Collin, but then she goes on to shake her ass in his face. I watched as January tried to pull her down and Hap defended her from Dan’s catcalls and suggestive dollar waving.  Dan’s really lucky I had tunnel vision as I walked over to that table.  I wouldn’t have been near as nice as Hap was.  Just as I reached the table’s edge, she yanked her hand from January’s and tumbled off the back.  I wasn’t sure if she’d knocked herself out or passed out.  It wasn’t until I was carrying her back to my Jeep that I knew she was just passed out from the booze.  She picked up her head enough to nuzzle into my chest.
    “Jess,” she mumbled with a smile, never opening her eyes.
    “I gotcha, princess,” I whispered into her hair as I sat her down in the passenger seat and pulled the seat belt over her.  Her hair still smelled of coconut shampoo.  I was glad one thing I loved about her hadn’t changed. The smile remained on her lips and my heart melted.  She might not have been thinking about me that night at the party, but at least I had her dreams.
    January and Hap followed us in Alyssa’s car.  We turned off our lights and crept up the driveway as slow as possible, careful not to wake Alyssa’s parents. Thank God people in this town didn’t lock their front doors.  I managed to sneak her into her upstairs bedroom undetected.  I didn’t want to leave her alone, but I knew if her parents found me in her room they’d call the cops before I could explain what was going on.  Plus, as pissed as I was about her behavior, I didn’t want to get her in any trouble.  I tucked her in and brushed the hair that had fallen from her ponytail out of her face.  I couldn’t stop myself from placing a kiss on her forehead before leaving.  I decided on the drive home, after I dropped January and Hap back off at the party, that tomorrow I’d let her know I was back. Apparently, we had a lot to talk about.

Chapter 7
    Alyssa
     
    Jesse Vaughn was back.  
    Was he the one who took me home from the party last night?  Why didn’t I remember?  How drunk was I?
      It had been nine long months since I’d last seen him, or even heard from him for that matter.  I turned back to face January and Hap in utter disbelief.    
    “Yep.” Hap nodded with a confirming smile.  January’s expression matched her boyfriend’s.  They were excited about the possible reunion of Jesse and me.  January knew everything that almost happened, so it went