Mason (FALLEN CREST SERIES) Read Online Free

little pooch hanging out.”
    I grinned. “As long as my dad’s not holed up with some other woman. I don’t know. That makes me feel better.” I sighed. Not my mom; she would’ve been hurt either way. I stopped thinking about it. That shit didn’t matter. It was done with. We got our lives back. Still, it was a hard fucking pill to swallow.
    Nate must’ve sensed my thoughts. Growing quiet, he asked, “So how’s Logan handling it?”
    I snorted. Finishing my fifth beer, I tossed the bottle in the pool. I shrugged. “He’s been a bigger pain in my ass than normal, so I guess that means he’s not handling it well. I don’t know. He doesn’t talk about it much. We’re just glad it’s over.” It felt as if there was a knot in my gut, and it never went away. I didn’t know how to explain it.
    “You’re staying, right?” He sounded anxious. “With your dad? He told my parents that your mom will probably go back to L.A.”
    “Yeah, she will.”
    “So you’re staying then?”
    I nodded. “Yeah, coach is here.”
    “Did your mom even ask?”
    I shrugged. “Yeah, she said something once. I don’t know if she’ll ask again, but she knows I’m staying. We could go back with her, but this is home. Fucked-up as it is, this is home.” Nate was there. I didn’t have to deal with city driving. Coach was there. I could make sure Logan was fine here. He’d have different friends and a different school if we went to the city. I could watch him better this way.
    “Hey!” A large guy was heading down from the house, squinting at us, with a couple others behind him. “Who’s out there?”
    A smaller guy tugged on his arm. “I told you I heard voices out here. They broke in.”
    Some girls were with them, but it was obvious the bigger guy was the leader. He came to the fence and stuck his hand through it, pointing at us. “This is my house. Get the fuck off our land. PJ, call the cops.”
    “On it.”
    I snorted. PJ. He could’ve been called BJ for the way he was acting, on his knees and at the guy’s beck and call.
    The guy heard me and barked out, “What was that? You’re laughing?”
    “Yeah.” I stood up and grabbed my backpack. The emptied beer bottles stayed where they were and I left the other ones in the pool. Nate stood with me, walking beside me as I walked out of the shadowed area. When he could see me better, I said, “I’m laughing because your friend is a wuss. I saw him earlier.” I was on my second beer when he came out, saw us, and headed back inside. I smirked at him now. “It took two beers to tattle on us.”
    The bigger guy relaxed when he saw me. “Oh. Kade. Why didn’t you just say something?”
    “Hey, Graham.” Going to the fence, I reached through and he slapped my hand. “We weren’t up for being social tonight.”
    “Nah. That’s fine. I heard about your parents. Sorry to hear that.”
    Yeah. Everyone in this town had heard about my parents. Graham was a starting running back for Fallen Crest Academy’s football team. We trained at summer camp together. His friend was looking between us, his eyebrows bunched together, and he frowned. “Kade?”
    “Yeah.” Graham shifted on his feet and gestured to me as he turned to his friend. “Why didn’t you tell me it was him? I wouldn’t have cared. Kade, you can hang out here anytime you want.”
    “Thanks.”
    “I mean that.” He placed his arm around a girl next to him and pulled her into his side. Leaning on her, he turned to his friend. “PJ, this is the guy who’s going to demolish you when we play FCP.”
    PJ swallowed, glaring at me.
    I smirked. “I think he’d like to try and demolish me now.”
    Graham laughed, shaking his head. “No way, PJ. Don’t do it. You’ll lose. This guy’s going pro. All the scouts came early to see him. He’s too young, but the rumors are already spreading.” He sobered. “I am really sorry, man. My parents split last summer too. They got back together, but it sucked.