Save Me by Natasha Preston

her. She didn’t see much good in the world right now. My dad was ill and had been for a long time but we had hope, she had a huge hole in her life.
    We lay down on the grass and she opened up about a few minor things like pranks she and Sophie had pulled at school. I felt like I’d at least smashed one brick from that wall. But when I attempted to steer the conversation onto the subject of Simon she cut me off and built another layer.
    I felt deflated, like getting close to her was completely impossible and I was fighting a losing battle.
    I pulled my phone out of my pocket to check the time when the sky started getting lighter. That wasn’t a good sign. Shit, it was just after half three in the morning and I had eight missed calls. “Err, Tegan?”
    She turned her head and as soon as our eyes met my heart started beating faster. “Yeah?” she whispered.
    “It’s half three.”
    “Really?” She frowned. “Wow, you’d think I would be more tired.” I shook my head, not knowing what to say to that. Shouldn’t she be worried that we were out all night? Well, she hadn’t been for the last fuck knows how long so why would she now?
    “My parents tried to call but I turned my phone on silent after speaking to Dad.”
    “Why are you so worried , Luke?” she asked.
    “It’s half three and I said I would take care of you. Your mum’s gonna be pissed.” I groaned. This was just great, Alison was never going to trust me with her daughter again.
    “You said you would take care of me, which you have , so where’s the problem?”
    Really? She wasn’t getting this? “It’s half three, Tegan!”
    She laughed. “Say it as many times as you like, it’s not gonna get any earlier.”
    “This isn’ t funny. Come on, we need to go,” I said as I jumped up.
    “I’m tired now,” she moaned, rubbing her eyes as she stood up.
    “You can sleep in the car.”
    “I don’t want to sleep in the car.”
    “Then sleep when we get back to yours.”
    “But I’m tired now.”
    I couldn’t help laughing. “You’re hard work, you know?”
    “Thank you.” She smiled as if I had just given her a complimen t and started walking down the hill.

Chapter Eighteen
     
     
    Lucas
     
     
    We pulled into her driveway thirty minutes later and I was scared to get out of the car. Her mum had every right to be pissed off and I didn’t want her to not trust me with her daughter. 
    “So, are we going or do you stay out here? I wasn’t kidding when I said I can’t sleep in cars.”
    I couldn’t even crack a smile. “Yeah, I guess.”
    “ Oh God, you’re scared, aren’t you?”
    She beamed with amusement. Glad one of us wasn’t panicking.
    “I don’t want to piss your mum off, Tegan, I want to be…” I realised what I was about to say and quickly shut the hell up.
    “You want to be what?”
    “Nothing¸ I just don’t want to piss her off. Let’s get inside.” I turned to open my door but she gripped my arm.
    “ Hold up! That was so a lie. You can’t just say that and not finish. Tell me, Luke.”
    It’s not obvious?
    “Really, it’s not important.”
    “Well , then there’s no reason why you can’t tell me,” she said with a smug grin.
    “You don’t want to know.” I took a deep breath. Fuck it, here goes. “I don’t want your mum to be pissed at me because...” I paused and my heart was going wild. This could potentially end badly for me.
    Raising her eyebrow, she said, “Because...”
    “ Because I want be with you, Tegan.” Jesus, how could she not see it? Although, she clearly blocked out a lot right now. When she didn’t respond and her eyes grew mores distant I knew I shouldn’t have said anything. “Please say something.”
    “I don’ t know what to say,” she whispered. I could tell what she was thinking ‘we’d agreed to be friends and nothing more’.
    “Right. We should go in.”
    “No, wait. Please, Luke, I don’t want things to be weird between us.”
    “It’s fine. It