Confined (A Tethered Novel, Book 3) (5 page)

“Ha! I knew it!” she shouted. “I must say…I am a tad bit
jealous, but only because I saw him first. Come to think of it, I saw Kace
first too. What the hell? Have I lost my mojo?”

I laughed. “I seriously doubt that.”

We talked for a little while longer, and I explained my
dilemma: how I wasn’t sure if I should tell Kace what had happened between Theo
and me, or if I should just attempt to forget it ever happened and never speak,
or think, of it again.

“I think this is one of those
if the shoe was on the
other foot
situations. Meaning, if you would want him to tell you, then you
should have the same respect and tell him,” she said.

“Ugh, I knew you were going to say that,” I grumbled.

Where was my unserious, always a bad influence and loving
every second of it best friend when I needed her?

“Here’s the thing… If you know nothing will
ever
happen
between you and Theo again, then Kace doesn’t have to be completely sober or
wide awake for your confession.”

There she was.

“What?” I asked, unable to believe what I was hearing.

“Tell him when he’s either completely plastered or half
asleep. That way, your conscience is clean because you
did
tell him. He
just might not
remember
being told. Then, you two won’t fight about it.
Problem solved.”

“And I’m guessing you’ve done this before.”

“You’re guessing right. Lots of times, actually.”

“There is something so wrong with you,” I said, shaking my
head.

“I bet you’re contemplating it though, aren’t you?”

She was right. I was. The only way to make me feel better
about what I’d done would be to tell Kace, but doing so would open up a new can
of worms labeled as
tether
that I didn’t think I was ready to release
just yet.

“Yeah,” I admitted reluctantly.

After hanging up with Vera, I instantly got a text from
Kace, which made my heart pound in my chest.

Hey, sexy, can’t wait to see you tonight.

Grimacing, I bit my bottom lip. I had to tell him. There was
no way I could keep what had happened between Theo and me a secret. Kace
deserved to know; he was too good of a guy.

Can’t wait to see you tonight either. Want to go to the
carnival with Adam and Callie?

A few minutes passed before he replied.

Sure, we could do that. I’ll take you on my favorite
ride.

I stood and walked across the kitchen to the cabinet, my
phone still in hand, for a glass. I needed some water. Maybe it would wash away
the guilt rising up my throat. After taking a swig, I replied.

Sounds good.

See you around nine, then.

I didn’t answer him back. After setting my phone on the
counter, I stared at it while I drank sips of my water and wondered how exactly
I should broach the subject with him. I wondered how he would handle it, and my
heart stopped and then kick-started in my chest at the thought.

A knock at my front door pulled me from my thoughts. Dread
coiled around me in a vice-like grip as I considered who it could be. I held my
breath as I opened the door. Callie stood there, her face splotchy from crying,
with a duffle bag thrown over her shoulder.

“Sorry I didn’t call, but do you think I could stay with you
for a little while?” Her voice cracked as she spoke, and my heart ached for
her. “I sort of had it out with my mom and I think I’ve been spending too much
time at the guys’ place as it is.”

“Sure,” I said. I stepped aside so she could come in. “What
happened?”

Why had I even asked? I already knew what they’d been
arguing about. After all, I’d been the one who’d provoked it.

“I confronted my mom about what you told me, and she didn’t
even deny it,” Callie said as she started toward the living room.

“Did she explain to you why?” I asked.

“Yeah, she claimed she was doing what she felt she owed your
birth mother,” she said. She dropped her duffle bag on the floor, and flopped
down on my couch. “I get that, I do…it’s just the principle of the matter that
irks me, I guess.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, sitting beside her and tucking my right
leg beneath me.

Callie’s head fell back against the couch, and she hugged a
throw pillow to her chest. “I mean, she knows what you being here means for us
all. Why would she want to jeopardize that?”

For whatever reason, her words slammed me in the gut. Was
that all I was to her…a way to gain access to magick?

Callie’s blue eyes flickered to mine, almost as though she
knew exactly how what she’d said had made me feel. “She also knows you’re my
friend; that’s what bothers me most. That’s what I don’t understand.”

I relaxed a little. Theo’s words were making me paranoid.

“Thanks.” I tucked a few flyaway hairs back behind my ear
where they belonged. “Have you told Adam yet?”

“Not yet.” She looked down at her fingers as she spoke and
began playing with the fringe on the edge of the pillow she held. “I’m kind of
embarrassed by her behavior to be honest.”

“Everyone will understand. I don’t think anyone would judge
you for her actions.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“It’ll all be okay,” I reassured her with a small smile.

She let out a loud sigh and shook her head. “Kace is going
to be pissed.”

Again, paranoia reared its ugly head in my mind. Would he be
pissed for the right reasons? Damn you, Theo, for your strange bit of advice
that continues to linger in my mind like a disease.

“I can’t believe it was your mom all along!” Kace grumbled.

“I know it, trust me,” Callie muttered. “No one is more
shocked than me.”

“I didn’t think she had it in her to do something like
that,” Adam said as he made a right, turning his Jeep into the public access
parking lot of the beach. “That’s nuts.”

We were headed to the carnival on South Beach. Callie had
broken the news of who my mystery attacker had been to Kace and Adam during the
ride.

“So, needless to say, I’m staying at Addison’s for a little
while,” Callie said.

“Why don’t you want to stay with me?” Adam asked. There was
a level of hurt laced within his words.

“Because I offered first,” I said before Callie could answer
him.

I didn’t know her reasons for not wanting to stay at the
guys’ apartment. All I knew was what she’d said to me about feeling as if she
already spent too much time at their place. There was enough tension in the air
already; no need to add to it by having her list a reason why and have Adam get
pissed about it.

“Oh, all right,” Adam said with a shrug. He pulled into the
first parking space he spotted.

Callie glanced at me from where she sat in the passenger
seat, and flashed me a thank you look. I nodded, but didn’t say anything.

Adam cut the engine and we all climbed out. The sweet scent
of cotton candy mixed with the slightly off-putting stench of corn dogs hung
heavily in the air, even from where we stood. Sounds of laughter and shouts of
surprise flowed to my ears. I loved carnivals. They were alive with excitement
and pulsating with energy.

“I really can’t get over her doing that,” Kace said. “I
mean, I understand what you said her reason was…but still.”

“Let’s forget about that for right now and try to have a
little fun. Please?” I asked Kace. I laced my fingers with his and pulled on his
arm slightly, hoping to erase the brooding gleam from his icy eyes.

He glanced at me. “Oh, I plan on having fun tonight. I’m
just in shock is all.”

“Right?” Adam said. “I mean, someone who makes cookies as
delicious as she does should not be capable of something so vicious and
vindictive.”

I noticed Callie frown from the corner of my eye. It didn’t
appear as though Kace or Adam would let up any time soon.

“I know, but honestly, all I want to focus on right now is
where the nearest funnel cake is,” I said, hoping for a change of subject. I
hated seeing Callie so down.

Kace squeezed my hand. “Done. Let’s go find you one.”

Minutes later, I was using my sense of taste to the extreme,
savoring a funnel cake Kace bought me. Its crispy golden goodness was revitalizing
each of my taste buds individually, and I loved every second of it.

“Can I get another bite of that?” Kace asked. His head
dipped close to mine so he didn’t have to scream to be heard.

I smirked and nodded. “For claiming you don’t care for
funnel cakes, you sure are eating a lot of mine.”

“I never said I didn’t like them; I said they aren’t my
favorite,” he attempted to clarify.

“Same thing.” I smirked.

“No,” he said, popping the large piece he’d torn off into
his mouth. “It’s not.”

“Sure it’s not. Whatever. So…what are we riding first?” I
asked.

Glancing around, I spotted Adam and Callie still standing at
the dart game that had grabbed Adam’s attention during our search for my funnel
cake. Callie was leaning against the table, while Adam seemed to be concentrating
on aiming his dart directly at an orange balloon. He’d told Callie he’d win her
a panda bear. Now, what I was sure was nearly ten bucks later, he still had yet
to.

She would be there for a while. Apparently, Adam’s aim
sucked with darts, which I didn’t understand, considering how awesome he was at
playing beer pong.

“The Ferris wheel,” Kace said, nodding in its direction. He
helped himself to another piece of my funnel cake. “My all-time favorite ride.”

I scrunched up my nose. “Eh, Ferris wheels are so slow. How
about something faster?”

“They’re slow for a reason.”

“And what reason is that?”

He smirked at me as he licked a bit of powdered sugar off
his bottom lip. “Because they’re made for kissing.”

I quirked an eyebrow at him, and tried hard to remain in the
moment and not to think of who the word kissing brought to mind. “Is that so?”

“Public knowledge.” He nodded.

“Hmm…well then, in that case, I guess we’d better take
advantage of that designated kissing zone over there.”

He shook his finger at me and grinned wide, the dimple in
his right cheek deepening. “I like your train of thought.”

“Prove it.” I smirked, tossing the last little bit of my
funnel cake in a trash can nearby.

“After you,” Kace said, motioning for me to go ahead of him
and secure our place in line.

I walked over to the line and stopped behind a couple who
looked to be no older than fourteen. Glancing up at the bucket seats, I
realized Kace had been right. These were the old-fashioned seats, which were
rectangular and only fit two people per bucket, unlike the ones I’d seen at the
last carnival I’d been to a few years back. Those were rounded, and they could
fit about four to five adults.

“Scoping them out, huh?” Kace whispered against my ear.

I shook my head. “Comparing—the last time I rode a Ferris
wheel, the buckets were big and round and fit more than two people at once.
These are the old-fashioned ones.”

“Precisely why
this
Ferris wheel is intended for
making out,” he said. His hand reached for mine, and he laced our fingers together
with a smile.