Chapter 2 - Bonnie Walton

Bonnie POV

I run down the stairs when I see Benny’s car approaching the house. “They’re here,” I shout from the door to my mom and dad that are sitting in the living room. Summer holidays are finally here and I can’t wait to see my brother… and Jude. I haven’t seen my brother since last summer, and I haven’t seen Jude in almost three years. The last time I saw him was before my first date with John. When I got back, he was gone and went back to New York.

I run down the steps as Benny stops his car and gets out. He looks at me and smiles. “Fuck, you’ve grown,” he says and I run to him, wrapping my arms around his neck. Benny and Jude have been really busy with their own businesses. Jude hasn’t been around the last two summers like he used to.

To my surprise, Benny is alone. I help him get his things out of the car and bring them inside the house. Mom is waiting for him near the door. She gives him a tight hug and Dad shakes his hand.

“Did you come alone?” I ask as disappointment takes over. Benny looks back at his car and then at me and raises both his eyebrows.

“Were you hoping to see anyone else? Am I not enough?” He asks and I nod, hugging him one more time. Benny is organizing my eighteenth birthday party this week, and I can’t wait.

“Yes, you are enough. It’s just that usually, Parker comes with you,” I lie, and he laughs loudly as he walks deeper into the house.

“Parker hun? You weren’t hoping to see a guy that looks like a lumberjack, with a beard, and body hair like a bear, with long arms and legs?” He asks and I look at him, shaking my head.

“No, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, and he nods.

“So you don’t care if I tell you that Jude is coming later?” He says, and I feel the butterflies moving in my stomach as I hear his name. I can’t control my smile as Benny shakes his head. I have only seen Jude in photos on the internet. Sometimes he is photographed walking into charity events.

“He is too old for you, besides he is still with Meredith and I think he might propose to her,” Benny says and a flash of disappointment hits me straight in my heart.

“I don’t care,” I say and he looks at me unimpressed as he crosses his arms in front of his chest while he leans against the breakfast bar.

“So you’re going to deny that you have a crush on Jude?” He says and I nod.

“I don’t have a crush on Jude, don’t be ridiculous, he is as old as you are, that’s disgusting, I see him like a big brother,” I tell him and he nods, leaning towards me.

“Good, because my friends are off-limits and they know better than to mess with my little sister, so keep it in your pants and find someone your own age to date,” Benny tells me and I frown, looking at him.

“I have a boyfriend, you psycho,” I say, and when I turn around to walk into my room, I slam against something hard. I feel a pair of muscular hands grab my arms, steadying me, and I almost have a heart attack when I see Jude standing there. My heart starts beating fast and all I want to do is hide.

I storm out of the kitchen and run up the stairs into my room, locking the door. I rest my head against the door and close my eyes as my heart beats fast. How did he know I have a crush on Jude? Was I that obvious? God, I am so embarrassed. And how did he get into the house without making any noise? I thought he was coming later.

My phone rings, and it’s John. We have been together for almost one year and he wants to do something special for our three-year anniversary. You know what? Fuck it, let’s do it. He is trying to get me to sleep with him, but I don’t feel like I am ready for that yet. Maybe I should just get it over with, lose my Vcard, and get it over with.

“Hey babe, can I come over?” He asks in the text.

“I can’t today. My brother just came back from New York and we are having a family day, but why don’t you come tomorrow? I think my brother is having a BBQ with some of his friends,” I message back. His reply is almost instant.

“I am going to miss you,” he texts back and I roll my eyes. Yeah, I am going to miss you, too. I do like John, but sometimes he is too childish and I don’t understand why. He’s always with the boys and I have to be with them. I kind of miss my space. That’s why I lied about today.

A knock on the door brings me back to reality after I have been reading for hours. I stand up and unlock the door to find Parker standing on the other side. “Hey Bonbon,” he says, pulling me into an embrace.

“Hey Parker,” I say, hugging him back. He pulls away with his hands on my arms as he looks at me from head to toe. “Fuck, you’re growing to become a sexy bitch,” he says, and I laugh as he chuckles.

“Don’t let my brother hear you, he made it very clear you're off limits,” I say and he laughs, shaking his head. Parker’s hair is longer, and he is wearing it in a messy bun. He pulls me out of my room and we walk down the stairs. We stop in the middle of the kitchen while he looks at my brother.

“So, I am off-limits?” He says, and my brother looks at me, shaking his head.

“Fuck you, man,” my brother says and my mother looks at him and he raises one hand apologetically. “Sorry Mom,” he says and I laugh as Parker smacks him in the back of the head with one of Mom’s house-decorating magazines.

Jude is quietly watching us. I feel his eyes on me, but I avoid his gaze, trying to distract myself talking to Parker.

“Hey Mrs. Walton, you’re looking good,” Parker says and my mom laughs as my dad walks into the kitchen and looks at Parker, shaking his head.

“Yeah, she is, but she is mine. Stop looking at my wife Parker,” Dad says, and Parker laughs as we walk into the living room. Jude walks next to me and I can’t help but look up at him. He is easily one foot taller than me.

“Have you been reading any good books?” He asks and I feel my cheeks warm up and I nod.

“Yeah, I have been reading some new stuff,” I say, and he nods, going back to ignoring me. I think I prefer when he ignores me than when he actually pays attention to me. I don’t know how to react when he talks to me, and I feel like I am melting and giving away my crush on him.

John arrived the next day, as planned. Benny was with Dad at the BBQ, Jude had his laptop in the shade by the pool, and Parker was talking to Mom.

“Hi John,” my mom says as we walk toward her. John smiles and kisses my mom on the cheek before he shakes Parker’s hand. “Hi man, nice to meet you,” Parker says, and John smiles.

“Nice to meet you too,” he says before I pull him away from everyone and I place our towels on the pool beds. I take my dress off, and John smiles as he looks at me.

“You’re looking good,” he says and I smile as he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. One of his hands resting dangerously low near my ass. I hear Jude clearing his throat behind me, and John looks at him and smiles.

“Aren’t you going to introduce us, Faye?” Jude asks, and I clear my throat and smile.

“Of course, John. This is Jude, my brother’s best friend. Jude, this is John. My boyfriend,” I say, and John smiles as he offers Jude a hand to shake. Jude takes it and I can tell he is using more force than he should. He moves his eyes from John to me before he releases John’s hand.

“What was that all about?” John asks, and I shrug. I really have no clue.

“I think he is just overprotective. He’s like my big brother,” I lie and John nods before I introduce him to Benny that comes to meet him. The afternoon goes by with no incidents, but I have to say my moon changed when Meredith arrived. Her heels clicking near the pool makes my stomach turn.

I can still hear her voice calling me pathetic last year. The way she presses her body against him makes my blood boil, but I try hard to ignore them and focus on my boyfriend next to me. “I’m going in. Are you coming?” I ask, and he nods. He picks me up from the floor and I can’t help but let out a loud squeal before he throws me into the pool and jumps right after. Jude is now standing up with his hands closed into fists next to him while Meredith looks between him and me.

When the food is ready, we all sit around the garden table while Benny smiles. “So, sis, are you excited about your birthday party?” Benny asks, and I nod. Benny invited all of my friends and he hired someone from New York to come and organize it.

“I can feel Meredith’s eyes on me and I ignore her as much as I can. I don’t want to cause anyone any discomfort, but she is starting to annoy me now. She wraps one arm around Jude’s neck while they eat and he moves it away. Her mouth drops and I let out a soft giggle. I close my mouth and try to pretend nothing happened, focusing on the food in front of me.

We’re all back around the swimming pool when John leans closer to me and whispers in my ear. “Why don’t we go upstairs while everyone’s distracted down here?” I shake my head as I look at him.

“No, I can’t do that, that would be incredibly rude,” I tell him and he rolls his eyes, laying back down on his pool bed.

“You always find an excuse to avoid being alone with me. I can never touch you. I miss you,” he says, and I close my eyes.

“I know, but my parents are here, and they would notice us leaving,” I say and John stands, grabbing his towel.

“I am going home then,” he says and I try to walk after him, but Benny grabs my arm, stopping me. “Never run after a guy,” he tells me and I pull my arm away from him and run after John but he is in his car by the time I get to him and he drives off before I even have a chance to say anything.

I am sitting on the couch watching tv when I feel the seat next to me sink and Jude looks at me. “Trouble in paradise?” He asks and I frown, looking at him.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I say, and he leans closer to me. My entire body stiffens when he rubs his thumb near my lips, while his eyes are locked on mine.

“You’ve been eating candy all night,” he says as he shows me the sugar on his finger. I quickly pull my sleeve down and rub it over my mouth, clearing the sugar from it. I can feel my cheeks warming up. “Besides, I saw him leave you,” Jude says and I nod, looking down at my hands. I have to say I am not even upset. It’s like I felt nothing.

“A man that treats you like that doesn’t deserve you,” Jude says before he rubs his thumb over my lips and stands up, leaving me alone in a pool of sweat. What the hell just happened?