Under the Lights Read Online Free PDF Page A

but he was also a spoiled jerk a good portion of the time. His parents sucked, but he did have every materialistic thing he so desired. That got annoying.
    But back then he’d been one of the best friends I’d had, and I hadn’t wanted to lose that. Not even over a girl. Neither had Gunner. We’d been determined to stay close no matter what. Things sure had changed.
    Willa hadn’t been our first big fight. Serena had when we were in the eighth grade. Before we figured out Serena would make her way through the whole football team before sophomore year.
    I wondered how well that would have worked out ifWilla had stayed. Would she have been our first big fight? Would we have lost our friendship over her? Because even though we were kids, we both loved her. That much I knew was true. She wasn’t that girl now though. The darkness in her eyes said things in her life had changed. She was different. And I wanted to know why.
    â€œBrady!” Maggie’s voice carried up the stairs leading to my room. I paused at the top step and turned to look down at her. She’d followed me.
    â€œYeah?”
    Maggie bit her bottom lip nervously, then sighed before speaking again. I waited.
    â€œI see something in her eyes that I recognize. There is hurt there. The deep kind of pain that changes you. The girl you once knew probably isn’t there now. She’s different. Something has happened to her. But she does watch you. She doesn’t watch Gunner that way. She was in three of my classes today, and not one time did she pay attention to anyone the way she did you. Just . . .” She paused and gave me a sad smile. “Be careful with her.”
    I wasn’t sure how I liked my cousin warning me not to hurt someone. I wasn’t that guy. “What do you think I’m going to do to her?” The question came out annoyed because I was.
    Maggie’s frown became pinched. “Ivy Hollis. Last I checked you were dating her.” Then she turned herall-knowing, haughty ass around and walked away.
    Well damn. I guess she was right. I couldn’t get to know Willa and keep my weird relationship with Ivy. But I didn’t want to hurt Ivy, either.
    A car door slammed outside, and I glanced out the window to see West walking up the sidewalk. He didn’t look happy, but then he never was after these counseling visits with his mother. The first thing he always did was run to Maggie. I had worried about him using her in the beginning, but she needed him just as much. They had both lived through pain I’d never known. It bonded them. I loved them both, and I was thankful they had each other.
    I didn’t have that kind of loss in my life. The darkness haunting Willa’s eyes I didn’t recognize. Could I ever be the shoulder she needed to lean on? If I didn’t have my own demons to conquer how could I help her?
    Ivy was easy. We understood each other. We were alike in many ways. A relationship with her was comfortable. She was sweet and dependable, if not also annoying at times. If I even mentioned I wanted something for lunch, the next day she’d bring it. When I complained about my locker being a mess and not being able to find anything, she organized it for me after school as a surprise. She cared about me. A lot. I didn’t have to work to make her happy. Even if I knew I didn’t love her.
    Was that what I wanted? Easy? Or did I want more?

Still One Big Happy Family
CHAPTER 7
    GUNNER
    Family dinner was a fucking joke. If Mom wanted me there, then she was going to be disappointed. Grandmother Lawton could equally kiss my ass. I didn’t give a shit if a woman who I shared no blood with was in town. It was Rhett she always cared about seeing anyway, and he only came home from college during the Christmas holidays. Dinner with people who didn’t care if I was breathing wasn’t on my to-do list. I had other plans. Something I’d been planning