Death of a Waterfall (The Hayden Falls Saga) by Kara Leigh Miller

thing' excuse."
    "Whatever. That so would've..." Teghan stopped. Her eyes felt like they were going to pop out of her head, and her jaw was stuck open. She looked at Annabelle, who wore a smile the size of Texas. Okay, breathe. Annie sees him too, so I must not be dreaming. What the hell was he doing here? And why was she excited when she should be furious? Because I haven't stopped thinking about him and his rock hard body. Or his brilliant green eyes. Or how soft his lips were every time he kissed me. Shut up! Teghan shook the thoughts from her head. "Donnie?" she said.
    He stood from the step he'd been sitting on. "Hey, Teghan."

Chapter Ten
    Teghan led Donnie to a trail she and Annabelle had discovered during one of their first days on the Hayden Fall University campus. It was a beautiful winding path that ran parallel to the ocean. During the few times she'd walked it, it had never been overly populated, and she'd always wondered why more students didn't use it. Teghan admired the beauty of the ocean, savoring the salty breeze that brushed over her and getting lost in the music of the birds. She inhaled deeply; an aromatic mixture of ocean water, freshly cut grass, and Donnie's cologne swirled in her nostrils. It was heavenly.
    "I'm sure you've been really busy, but I don't buy that you couldn't take a minute to answer my texts," Donnie said.
    "What do you want, Donnie?" She tucked her hands into her back pockets, keeping her eyes down as she walked.
    "For starters, I want to know what I did to upset you."
    Teghan sighed. "Look, you seem like a nice enough guy but--"
    "That's the kiss of death," Donnie said.
    She forced back a smile and met his gaze for the first time since they'd started walking. The green of his eyes danced in the sunlight. He stopped, folded his arms over his chest, and looked at her. She chewed on her bottom lip, stopped beside him, and rocked on her heels. "You don't realize how much is at stake for me. If I get involved with you, I'm going to lose everything again."
    "So this is about Alex," Donnie said.
    "I told you, it's always about Alex."
    "When does it stop being about him and start being about you?" He reached for her and she stepped closer to him.
    "I don't know," she said softly. "I just don't want to go through what I did this past summer. It was pure hell."
    "Tell me about it."
    "What?"
    "Tell me what happened this past summer." He laced his fingers through hers and started to walk again.
    "Well..." She cleared her throat. No one, other than Annabelle, had ever asked her what happened. It was a little unsettling, and she wasn't quite sure where to begin. "I broke up with Alex almost a year after he'd made that deal with my father. My dad was furious with me and did everything he could to convince me to stay with Alex. At first, he tried to bribe me, and when that didn't work, he threatened to cut me off from my trust fund and the family."
    "Your dad threatened you?"
    "Yes. It pissed him off that for the first time in my life, I was disobeying his wishes. But I think he was more pissed that he couldn't buy me." Teghan exhaled loudly. "My family was literally divided. It was me, my sister, and my mom against my dad and Trevor. Of course, Trevor had reason to be angry with me."
    Donnie shook his head. "No, he didn't."
    "If Trevor had done something to cause Annabelle to take off for months on end, I'd be furious. I don't blame him for his reaction to things."
    "You're very forgiving, Teghan."
    She shrugged. "I had to be. I was the cause of everyone's pain."
    "Your family is supposed to support you. Not blame you and make you feel like shit because they don't agree with your decisions."
    Teghan glanced at Donnie. His eyes were dark and his face was tight with anger. Wow! He really cares. "Yes, but the decision I made didn't affect just me and Alex. It affected my entire family, and that wasn't fair."
    "What's not fair is you living in fear." Donnie stopped walking and squeezed Teghan's hand,