Just in case Ally came home, I kept an eye on the door as I walked from the kitchen to the living room. If she did, I was going to haul ass back to my bedroom. I wasn’t in the mood to watch TV, so I sat on the couch and stared at the blank screen in front of me. After a few minutes, I heard a noise coming from outside. I walked to my front door and opened it to see what was going on.

As soon as I opened the door, I could hear music coming from a few houses down. I’d forgotten that Sam was having a party this weekend. I didn’t know him that well, but he’d invited the entire street. I wasn’t sure if he’d done that to be nice or to suck up so that none of us called the cops on him.

It was obvious that the party was huge. He lived two houses down from me, and people were standing on my lawn. I shook my head as I listened to the music blaring. The guy apparently knew how to throw a party.

I started to close my door and go back inside, but something stopped me. Why the hell should I lock myself away to mope about all my problems when I could be drinking with a bunch of people who I didn’t know? They didn’t think I’d knocked up my best friend’s sister, and they didn’t expect me to take care of a kid who wasn’t mine.

I closed my door and walked down the sidewalk to Sam’s house. People were everywhere, and I pushed through them as I made my way into the house. It was even worse inside. If he planned to have parties like this, he might want to consider getting a bigger house.

The music was loud enough to make my ears bleed. Jesus, how did anyone expect to have a conversation? Looking around the room, I realized that talking was the last thing on most of these people’s minds. Most were paired off with their lips glued to each other. Those who weren’t attached were dancing in the living room. I didn’t bother to apologize as I bumped into people while trying to get to the table covered in alcohol across the room.

I’d thought a party was just what I needed, but all this place was doing was pissing me off. There were just too many people. I was used to having parties on the beach where there was plenty of room for everyone without being smashed together. Obviously, Sam had a different idea of what a party was.

I stood off to the side, drinking my beer and watching people. I recognized a few faces from some of my smaller classes but not many. I hadn’t made much of an effort to make friends, and it was glaringly obvious that nobody gave a flying fuck about me as they walked past me without a second glance. A group of girls standing across the room seemed to notice me, but I paid them no attention. I had enough problems without one of those girls trying to talk to me.

One of them finally broke away from the group and started to approach me. Before she could even make it halfway across the room, I was gone. There was no point in staying here. I was getting annoyed with everyone. I set my beer down on a table and started walking toward the door.

I noticed Sam standing close to it. He had a strawberry-blonde girl pushed up against the wall, and he was kissing her like he wanted to eat her alive. I walked two more steps before I realized that the girl looked familiar—well, what I could see of her looked familiar. I told myself that I should keep walking, but something stopped me. I came to a standstill a few feet away from them and waited for Sam to move. My blood boiled when he pulled away, and I realized it was Emma.

What the hell is she doing with Sam if she’s dating Andy?

I was torn between getting the hell out of this house and checking on Emma. I knew I needed to talk to her, but now was definitely not the time. My protective side won, and I closed the space between them and me.

I grabbed Sam’s shoulder and pulled him off of Emma.

He spun around. “What the hell?”

“She has a boyfriend.”

“She never mentioned him, so I think you have her confused with someone else. Mind your own business.”

I laughed. “Emma is my business.”

“This is my house. Get the fuck out.”

“I’m not leaving until you let Emma go.”

He lifted his hand so that it was no longer wrapped around Emma’s waist. She stumbled a bit, but she managed to catch herself before she fell. It was obvious that she was drunk.

Where the hell is Andy?

“See, I’m not touching her,” Sam said sarcastically.

“She’s fucking wasted. She’s leaving with me.”

“I don’t think so. Get the fuck out.”

I ground my teeth together, trying to keep my cool. “She’s leaving with me.”

Sam stepped closer until we were inches apart. “I’m going to tell you one more time—get the fuck out of my house.”

I knew I shouldn’t have done it, but I was pissed off. I drew back and hit him as hard as I could. He dropped to the ground. I’d knocked him out cold with one punch.

Emma looked at me with dazed eyes as I stepped over Sam to get to her.

“Emma, you need to come with me.”

She only nodded as I wrapped my arm around her waist and led her to the door. No one got in our way as we walked out the door and back to my house. I was practically carrying Emma as we went.

I kept my arm around her as I unlocked my door and pushed it open. I stood in the doorway, debating on where to put her. The couch was the most obvious choice, but I didn’t want Ally to come home and see her. With the way she’d been tonight, I wasn’t sure what she would do if she saw Emma. I had no idea how long Ally would be gone, and I didn’t want to take a chance. I had only two other options—Ally’s room or mine. Again, things would definitely end badly if Ally came home and Emma was in her bed.

I knew it was stupid, but I carried Emma to my room anyway. I put her down on the bed and placed a trash can beside it in case she needed to puke. Her eyes stayed shut as I covered her up. I sat down beside her and watched as she slept. This was a big mistake, but I couldn’t leave her there with Sam. It was pretty obvious what he’d wanted from her. I wondered again where the hell Andy had been while his girlfriend had been out, getting trashed.

She moaned and opened her eyes. They widened in surprise as she stared up at me.

“Where am I?” she whispered.

“My house. You’re drunk.”

“Am not,” she mumbled as she closed her eyes again.

I couldn’t help but smile. She was always so damn stubborn. I made sure that she was lying on her side in case she got sick. Once I had her situated with a few pillows behind her to keep her from rolling over, I slipped silently from the room to go take a shower. On my way to the bathroom, I grabbed a pair of shorts from the dryer. After stripping down, I turned on the water and stood beneath the spray.

The simple thought of Emma so close and in my bed was enough for me to turn on the cold water.

“Get your head out of your ass. She’s drunk,” I said out loud to myself as the cold water covered me.

I knew I was avoiding the situation as I prolonged my shower, but I couldn’t help it. I loved her, and she was in my fucking bed. Drunk or not, it was enough to drive me nuts.

When the cold shower finally calmed me down, I shut off the water and stepped out. I took my time drying off before finally pulling my shorts on. I took a deep breath as I opened the door and returned to my room. Emma was still in the exact same spot where I’d left her.

I settled down next to her on the bed and moved the pillows so that she could roll over if she wanted to. As soon as they were gone, she rolled until she was facing me. I was silent as I watched her sleep. She looked so damn peaceful as she slept. She looked like the Emma I’d known long ago, not the person she was now. I couldn’t forget the look in her eyes when I stumbled across her on campus. In her sleep, her guard was down.

She mumbled something in her sleep. I leaned forward, trying to hear her better.