I’m not sure why I offered to apologize to Henley. All I know for sure is that I didn’t like the way Tess was looking at me last night. Like I disappointed her.

In that moment, I was willing to do and say anything to make it stop. Not that surprising. I’m not above making promises I have no intention of keeping if it means getting what I want. That should’ve ended the second she pushed me away. As soon as she told me to leave. I should’ve dropped it and every thought of her, swimming around in my head.

I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

Instead I walked home and slipped in through the back door. Ever since Henley broke up with him, Con’s been one of two places. Hanging out with Tess or holed up in his room. He’s pretty much shut down.

Stopped talking to Mom.

Avoids Dad.

He won’t even look at me.

I stop at the top of the stair. His door is shut but the light is on. I can see the glow of it leaking under the crack of his door. A week ago, I would’ve walked into his room without knocking. Flopped down on his bed because I know how much having his space invaded bothers him. I’d run my mouth. Said a bunch of stupid shit that I didn’t even mean, just to get him riled.

Four days.

That’ how long it took Tess to fuck me up.

Turn me into someone I don’t even recognize.

I leave Conner alone and go to bed.

Ryan made the off-handed comment last night that his sister has been pretending to go to school because she didn’t want to tell her mom that she got suspended for fighting. He acts like he has no idea where’d she go but it seemed pretty obvious to me. I mean, I barely know the girl and I know where she’d go to hide.

I used the side entrance. Kept my Sox cap on, tugged low over my face. Took the stairs. Didn’t touch the railing. Use my hip and shoulder to operate the push bar on the door. It started out as a game—how little of myself can I leave behind—and turned into a habit.

The habit has turned into a profitable work skill.

I didn’t even look for her on the first floor. Henley is hiding. She’ll be somewhere quiet. Secluded. Somewhere she can camp out for twelve hours without drawing any attention.

I find her tucked into a third-floor reading nook, curled up in a chair. Nose stuck in a book. More piled up in a neat stack on the floor. When I sit down in the chair next to her, she doesn’t look up. Even though I’m roughly the size of a Volkswagen, I can go unnoticed if I want to but Henley knows I’m here.

Ten minutes go by and it’s like I’m invisible. Finally, I can’t stand it anymore. “I’m not going to leave, Hen,” I tell her, making a show of stretching my legs out in front of me. “Not until you let me say what I came here to say.”

She flips the page on her book and keeps reading.

“I lied.”

She flips the page on her book and keeps reading.

“To you. About Con and Jessica.”

She flips the page on her book and keeps reading.

“I told you he wanted to hook-up with her at Caleb Emerson’s party, last Friday night.”

She flips the page on her book and keeps reading.

“The truth is, he can’t stand her.”

She sticks her finger in her book to mark her place and looks up at me.

“I’m sorry.”

She glares at me. “Is that it?”

No. That’s not it. Because now that I’ve said it, I realize that I mean it.

I am sorry.

About all of it.

About everything I did.

Everything I said.

I regret it.

What I did to her and Con.

And I hate the way that makes me feel.

“Yeah.” I stand up, glaring down at her. “That’s it.”

She looks down at the book in her lap. Pulls her finger from between the pages and keeps reading.

I’m so pissed about how things went with Henley that I don’t hear them until they’re practically on top of me.

“Hey, D.”

Fuck my life.

I look up and over to find Quinn Murphy walking beside me. Pasty. Thin. Shaved head that shows a rash of bright red stubble. Barely tall enough to stare me in the chin. Despite all that, he has no problem keeping up with me. He’s like a Jack Russel on meth. “Quinn.”

I slide a quick look to my left. Thad Jacobs. Dark head tipped down, chin tucked into his chest. Hands jammed into his pockets. He’s an okay guy. Smart. Loyal. Too bad he’s loyal to the wrong person. Spends most of his time trying to keep Quinn out of handcuffs. “T.”

Thad looks up, giving me a chin jerk in response. Something flashes across his face. He shoots a quick look at Quinn.

He’s warning me. This isn’t a social call.

I don’t even have to look to know Sean Grady is right behind me. I can hear his harsh, uneven breath, trying to keep up with me. He’s as big as I am but softer. Slower. If I try to run, it’ll be his job to stop me and he’s nervous about things will go if I put up a fight.

He can relax. I’m not running.

“Where you been?” Quinn says, his tone easy. Almost friendly. It’s a lie. Quinn would kill me as soon as look at me. I don’t take it personally. He’d kill his own grandmother if she looked at him funny.

“The library.” There’s no use in lying. They’ve been pacing me for a while now. They know where I was. I just pray Henley stays where she is. That she doesn’t come flying out of the building to give me a piece of her mind. It’s bad enough that I’ve got Tess tangled up in this shit. Ryan would kill me if I put his little sister on this psycho’s radar.

Yeah? What about your brother? How would he feel if he knew you splashed his girl with your bullshit?

“Yeah?” Quinn shoots me a grin. “What about last night? Where you at the library then too?”

The question has me stopping in my tracks. Sean bumps into me and mumbles sorry before backing up. Manners aside, he’s just as loyal to this ginger fuckstick as Thad. Quinn snaps his fingers, I’m getting dragged into the nearest alley. “What the fuck are you talking about?” I say it over the sudden drum of my pulse, banging away in my ears. Quinn’s eyes narrow at my tone but I don’t let up. Fuck him. “I went to work, pulled my shift, dropped my time card off to the boss, and went home.”

Work is his Uncle’s body shop in Southie.

My shift consisted of stealing a 2011 from a parking garage in the financial district. Some fat cat banker who stays late at the office so he can bang his secretary.

My time card is the envelope full of cash I took to Mr. C as payment for the car. He works for Quinn’s uncle. Runs a crew for him that works the high-end neighborhoods, stealing luxury cars. Mr. C gets the orders, we fill them and collect his finder’s fee.

“Sure you didn’t stick around after your shift?” Quinn cocks his head at me, his mouth twisted into something nasty. “Collect a bonus.”

I’m not sure what he’s accusing me of. Either he knows about Tess or he thinks I’m skimming. Either way, why he’d give a shit is a mystery. Neither one has anything to do with him or his uncle.

Instead of taking the bait, I ignore it and him. “You really think it’s a good idea to come around here?” I shoot Thad a look because he’s the smart one. “The wrong person sees me talking to you guys and I’m done.” Now I look right at Quinn. Give him the dimples. “Not sure how your uncle would feel about that.” I’m his uncle’s best boost and he knows it. It’s why I’m the one stealing the Ferraris and Lambos that shipped overseas while everyone else is boosting Corollas for spare parts. Quinn is a psychotic dickface but he’s not stupid. He knows I make his uncle money and he’s as afraid of Troy as the rest of us.

And if Quinn burns me, he’s going to be pissed.

“Simmer down, D. No need to get your panties in a wad.” Quinn shrugs. “Just sayin’ hi.”

Bullshit. I have no idea what the past ten minutes have been about but Quinn didn’t crawl out from under his rock to say hi. He showed his ugly mug for a reason.

“Can I go now?” It sticks in my throat, asking this fucker for permission, but the last thing I need right now is a pissed-off Quinn aimed at my back.

“Sure, D.” he takes a step back and makes a sweeping gesture with his arm. “We’ll see you later.”

I don’t say anything else. I just start walking, fighting the urge to look over my shoulder with every step I take.