Glass Heart Hero: A Dark High School Romance by Lindsey Iler (read with me .TXT) 📗

These moments between us have brought me here. They’ve played a part in our downfall.

“Where’d you go, Break?” Dixon taps his nail on the window, dragging me away from my dark thoughts.

“I’m going to kill him,” I announce, pushing Dixon away. I close the door and roll down the window.

“Tell Delaney we said hello.” Marek grins.

“How’d you know?” I call out as he’s about to get into his truck.

“It’s what I’d do.” He shrugs, calling Dixon over to head out.

******

Delaney opens her door.

“What are you doing here?”

The black silky robe, tied tight around her, shows off every perfect curve of her body. Her legs shimmer when the light catches them, and I stop myself from falling to my knees to worship the ground she walks on.

“Can we talk?” I barge inside, forgoing the wait for an invitation. This is a conversation we are going to have.

“Be my guest and come in, Breaker.” She leans against the closed door. “You know you aren’t allowed here, right?”

“When have I ever followed the rules?” I grin, relieved when her lips slowly tip up. “There’s my girl.”

“Not your girl, Barrett.”

“Barrett now, huh?” I move about her room, checking to see if her eyes follow my movements. “Why do you switch between them?”

“I call you Barrett when I want to piss you off. Breaker is when I’m feeling playful.” She shrugs. “Barrett is who the world wants you to be. Breaker is who you are. They’re wildly different.”

“Which one do you prefer?” I crowd her. Her feet stay planted on the floor. Our bodies are in perfect sync, moving in exactly the right way until we are close, but not quite touching.

“Breaker isn’t so bad,” she whispers, glancing away.

“Look at me, gorgeous,” I goad.

“I can’t,” she pleads.

“Why not?”

“Because as soon as I do, I’ll remember why we’re so good together.”

I lift my hand, placing a finger under her chin. As I move her head in my direction, her eyelids clench shut.

“And that’s a bad thing because?”

“You’re a wild river, Breaker Davenport. You have the capacity to drown me, bury me so deep beneath the water, I’ll never reach the surface.”

“I’m also your last chance at a ride worth going on. He isn’t what you want, and he sure as hell will never be what you need, Delaney.”

“That’s for me to decide.” She breaks away from my touch and paces the length of her room.

“You’re right. It’s always been your decision, but don’t think for a single second that I’m going to sit here and not try to win the little bit of your heart that you’re holding outside of my grasp.”

“A boy like you doesn’t need a heart like mine, Breaker.” Her words are full of conviction, but her eyes scream for me not to believe her.

“We’ll see about that.” Without giving her a chance to drive me away, I lean forward and kiss her. It’s the quiet kind of kiss, and as I pull away, her eyes glaze over with unshed tears. Tears she’ll end up fighting until she finally gives in, if I have any say.

Always wanting the last word, I grab the doorknob, but Delaney ducks in front of me. She thrusts her arms around my shoulders, hugging me close to her body.

“Sometimes at night, when I close my eyes, I can see what could’ve happened if you hadn’t shown up.”

“But I did.” I tuck her messy loose hair behind her ear. She leans into my touch, resting her cheek in my hand. Her skin is cool against mine. As she melts into me, her spine straightens, taking her away from me.

“I’ll be forever thankful for your selfishness, Breaker, because you saved me, but on the other side of the coin, things I saw in that room irreparably changed the foundation of who I am. I’m not the Delaney who followed you into the woods anymore, and I know how badly you want me to be that girl, but I’m never going to be her.” Delaney opens the door and pushes me out of her room. Before the door closes, she flashes a sad smile.

I don’t waste any time. I’m not the guy who bangs down a door to prove something. There’s no point. Words mean nothing when actions don’t follow. I’m choosing to walk away, to let her believe what she wants, but like everything else, there comes a point when the world stills for us. Everything shuts up, no sounds exist, and our truth is thrust into our minds.

Delaney’s moment is coming.

No matter what she says between now and then, I’ll be there.

Chapter Four

Delaney

“Where have you been, Palmer?” I yell across the second level of the library, earning glares and curses from the students at the tables.

A sophomore girl calls me a whore as I pass. I circle the table and lean over, placing my face directly in hers.

“Whore,” she repeats, an even bigger attitude in her tone this time.

“That’s what I thought I heard, Trish.” A humorless laugh escapes my mouth. “Now, what should we do about it? Because last time I checked, you don’t know shit about me.” I tap the tip of her nose. “Now, next time you feel compelled to even look in my direction, let’s not forget whose family employs whose, okay?”

“Tripp’s too good for you,” she whispers the second I’m not looking her in the eyes.

Tripp DuPont’s name means something in this town. It doesn’t matter what academy a person attends. If they live in our city, they know the name, and they know the DuPont business.

“Or maybe it’s the other way around, but that doesn’t matter, because whichever is true, there’s one thing I’m certain of.” I glance over my shoulder to see her and her friends giggling triumphantly.

“And what’s that, whore?”

“Oh, there’s that nasty name again, Trish.” I spin and grip her jaw before she can jerk away. “Maybe I am a whore. Maybe Tripp is too good for me. Even if those are true, you’re a washed-up bitch who has to