The Deal Taker (Book III)

Chapter Eight - Rule Breakers

I rolled down the window and let the cool night air rush in. When was the last time I've been outside for longer than five minutes? A month? I used to spend hours outside running or working on something. I haven't even left the house in definitely over a month, which was when I was bleeding on a motorcycle with my sister dying behind me. For a brief moment, I could feel the motorcycle's vibrations and my sister's limp arms around me. My heart gave a rough squeeze in my chest as the panic I felt from that night began to wash over me once more. I wasn't in the car anymore, I was covered in mud and my sister's blood on my back. No longer did I hear the hum of the Lamborghini; I could hear tires shrieking and men shouting behind me.

My brief lapse into the past caused sweat to dew on my forehead and my body to tense. After everything I've faced in my life, it really is amazing this doesn't happen on a daily basis. Sometimes I'll have a flash of something dark, but it usually lasted only a minute before I'm able to bury it. The nightmares, however, are completely beyond my control and happen every night. A cross between the darkness of night and tonight's horrific party must have brought up something I've been trying not to think about for a while now.

When something touched my cheek, I nearly jumped out of my seat. I tore my eyes from outside and looked over at Matthew, probably looking a little panicked. Although he was driving, he looked at me with his lips pressed into a small line and his brows pushed together. I straightened in my seat, my now-sweaty hand still trapped in his. "What?" I mumbled, unable to fully look him in the eye.

"Are you okay? I've said your name at least five times. You looked like you were about to be sick."

Trying to be discrete about it, I casually wiped my fingers over my damp forehead as if to brush some hair from my face. To say my forehead was just a little wet would be an understatement; my forehead was slick with sweat. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. My blood sugar must be low or something."

He was entirely unconvinced, which showed in his narrowed eyes. "Is it about the surprise? If so, I can ensure you it's nothing to panic over."

The surprise? I almost forgot about it already. "No. I'm fine, Matthew." The way I spoke sounded strange even to my ears. My voice sounded like one of those recordings you get when calling some major company.

Matthew made a sudden right turn without using a turn signal. I didn't ask about the change of direction because I wanted to keep the light off of me for a minute. I expected him to turn around and take us back to the house, to be truthful. I thought I had made him upset enough to no longer want to show me whatever surprise he had. But we didn't make a U-turn or head back towards the direction of his house. No, instead we pulled right beside a brightly lit board.

A drive-thru.

"I'll pretend this meal is healthy as long as you chew with your mouth closed this time," he muttered with a wave at the glowing menu beside him.

My eyes lit up with an excitement like no other. Holy crap, fries cooked in grease and happiness. I never considered myself as really a foodie or a junk food lover, not until now. I nearly crawled over his lap to choose what I wanted to eat. I knew he wasn't doing this because of the blood sugar issue I claimed to have, but I wasn't about to question this decision. I immediately looked at everything sugary, cheesy, and or covered in grease. My eyes landed on a quarter pound burger and the largest milkshake known to man. I only was briefly aware of a guy's voice coming out of the box. "I'll take the quarter pound burger with extra cheese, no lettuce or tomato. I also want a large thing of fries and a large chocolate shake."

"You're killing me," Matthew grumbled quietly to himself.

I leaned back into my seat with a serious expression. "No, I'm pretty sure the grease and calories are killing me. Killing me with happiness."