Free Shades of Sydney (Sydney West #1) by Brittney Coon Page A

wanted to fade away, to move and open the freaking door. Didn’t she know the pain that caused me?
    I shuffled to the door. I knew it would be Hunter and he’d be dressed up like he was going to some damn wedding or classy school dance. My heart jumped into my throat when I realized someone was tagging along with him. It happened to be Jason.
    “Hey Syd,” Hunter said as he passed by me into the house. I didn’t reply. Instead I stared at Jason like he was a serial killer who was standing over me in my pitch-black bedroom. I hadn’t seen him since I fled that party with Derek.
    “What do you want?” I managed to ask. My voice sounded annoyed, and I was glad.
    “Can’t I hang with my best bud and see how you’re doing as well?”
    “I see no point in killing two birds with one stone when I’m nothing to you.” I stood my ground in the doorway, not letting him pass.
    He ran his hands through his thick hair. I kept my hands at my sides, resisting the urge to slip my hands into his hair to see how soft it was.
    “I see you as a friend,” he said simply.
    “Why? Because your bud and my best friend are fuck buddies?”
    “What’s wrong with you? They’re together. Don’t you think about anything else besides sex and parties?”
    I grabbed a strand of my dirty blonde hair, finding the spilt ends fascinating. “Don’t know. If I did, I still wouldn’t tell you.”
    He clenched his jaw and closed his eyes for a moment, clearly upset. “I don’t have time for this. If you want to wallow in your self-pity and drink to the bottom of liquor bottles, be my guest.” He turned to leave and I was going to let him.
    “Wait!” Amelia shouted. She was behind me, pushing me out of the way.
    Her face said it all: deep lines in her forehead, pinched lips, and her hazel eyes were glassy. For a heartbeat I thought a tear was going to run down her cheek. She was worried about me. Looking behind her to my mess of fast food wrappers and empty bottles, I could see why she’d want someone to watch over me.
    Jason stopped, turning back as if in slow motion. He stood there, waiting. Amelia looked at me with wild eyes, as if I seemed crazed. “Don’t let him go, Syd.”
    “Why not?”
    “Because I’m afraid of leaving you alone. You’re spiraling.”
    I crossed by arms over my chest and felt like a child whose mother wouldn’t buy her a toy at the store. “You really feel like I need a babysitter?”
    Her face softened, as if she was trying to reason with a toddler. “Humor me, okay?”
    I ran my left hand up and down my right arm. “Fine.”
    She waved Jason inside. His face twisted in distaste. He wasn’t pleased about staying at the house of a girl who was on the edge and loathed him. Couldn’t blame him.
    Amelia hugged me. My bare legs were lost in the folds of her skirt as she wrapped her arms around me. She had on a long white gown. I think they were going to a fancy restaurant on Sunset and it required black tie attire.
    With Hunter and Amelia out of the picture, that left Jason and me standing in my living room like fools. Embarrassed by how dirty I let my house get, I went to clean up. As I gathered liquor bottles and trash in my arms, Jason watched me. Ignoring the burn on my skin, I went to the kitchen to toss away the debris.
    “How are we spending this night?”
    I looked over my shoulder to see him standing by my kitchen table.
    “Excuse me?” I asked, tilting my head to the side.
    “I was wondering if I had to prepare myself for watching you sulk all night.”
    I ran my fingertips over my right eyebrow. “I don’t sulk. You can do whatever.”
    “So I can pirate music using your Wi-Fi?”
    The paper in my hand floated to the ground. I picked it up and said, “What? No, don’t do that.”
    “Then don’t say I can do whatever,” he said, flashing a smile.
    I shook my head as I tossed the piece of paper into the trashcan. “I found no humor in that.”
    “What bit you and turned you into a