Rules of a Rebel and a Shy Girl Read Free

up.”
    I waver, not wanting to ask Beck for such a huge favor. But staying in the car doesn’t sound that fantastic, either.
    “Please stop being difficult.” Her bleary eyes plead with me to understand. “Bill already thinks you’re gone, so you need to get out of here before he finds out I lied to him.”
    Tears of mortification sting my eyes as I put the phone to my ear. “Beck?”
    “I heard,” he says tightly. “I’m already heading out to the car with Theo.”
    A shaky breath falters from my lips as I fight back the waterworks. “Your brother got his license?”
    “Technically.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “It means he has his learner’s permit. But don’t worry. He’s a really good driver.”
    “What if your parents find out?” Guilt gnaws at my stomach. “Won’t you guys get into trouble?”
    “They won’t find out,” he promises. “Now chin up, princess. We’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”
    By the time I hang up, tears are slipping down my cheeks. I quickly wipe them away with the back of my hand.
    “All good?” my mom asks as I give her back the phone.
    I nod, though nothing feels good. At all. In fact, the whole situation makes me feel terribly icky inside.
    A droopy smile forms on her lips as she stuffs the phone into the pocket of her pants. “Then you should probably get packed and wait for him on the steps. I don’t want Bill to start yelling at you again. I’m sure that probably scares you.” She wraps her arms around me. “Thank you so much for doing this, sweetie. You’re such a good daughter. How did I get so lucky?”
    I wish I could believe her, but if her words were true, then why is she always kicking me out of the house and leaving me all the time? I don’t ask, though, too afraid of the answer.
    She hugs me before walking out of my room. I hurry and pack, slip on a jacket and sneakers, and wait outside on the porch, but I quickly bail when a couple of kids a few years older than me try to persuade me to get high with them.
    When Beck finally pulls up, I’m standing at the edge of the parking lot in the dark, hiding near the entrance sign to the single-story apartment complex I live in.
    “What’re you doing out here?” Beck asks as he hops out of the fancy sports car that belongs to his older brother Theo.
    I rush toward him, scuffing my sneakers in the dirt. “Some guys were trying to get me to do drugs, so I thought I’d be safer out here.”
    He shakes his head, taking hold of my hand. The second his skin touches mine, a calming warmth spreads through me.
    “Next time, wait inside,” he says, eyeing the guys loitering near the door to my apartment. Their attention is trained on us, smoke is lacing the air, and when one guy whispers something to the other, my legs turn into Jell-O.
    Beck must sense my nervousness because he hauls me closer and steers us toward the car.
    “I would’ve waited in the house, but my mom told me I had to wait on the porch.” I clutch his hand, wishing I never had to let go.
    I can’t see his face, but he tightens his fingers around my hand as he opens the back door and slides into the backseat, pulling me in with him. Once the door is shut, Theo drives out onto the street.
    “Are you okay?” Theo asks, casting a quick glance in the rearview mirror.
    Theo usually teases Beck and me, making kissing faces and cracking jokes about liking each other, so his niceness throws me off.
    “I’m fine.” But I’m shaking, which can’t mean I’m fine, right?
    Beck notices, shucks off his hoodie, and places it over my shoulders. “It’s going to be okay.” He drapes an arm around my shoulder and kisses the side of my head. “I won’t ever let anything happen to you. I promise.”
    I know it’s silly, but a guy has never kissed me before, not even on the cheek. My skin burns from where his lips touched, and all I can think is, I feel so cared for .
    Safe.
    I lean into him, resting my head on his shoulder, believing