Hated (Hearts of Stone #3) Read online

  All week I resisted the urge to bang on his front door and ask Austin what was going on, knowing he wasn’t likely to speak to me, or even answer the door.

  On Friday, around noon, Drew sauntered in through the back door to let me know he was heading out to get lunch. He offered to pick up a sandwich for me, too. After he left, I leaned against the kitchen counter and stared through the window at Austin’s house and yard, which was once again pristine. And empty.

  I yanked my phone out of my back pocket and Googled “Dueling Cellos.” The first few years, I obsessively followed the show and the Stone brothers online, Googling their names and feasting on every review and bit of news. But since last fall, I’d been busy with lots of new opportunities in my own life. And then the holidays, my career, and Nana’s health crisis had taken over my life.

  My phone flashed with results, and confusion creased my brows when I found an article from last October and I realized how long it had been since I’d last stalked the Stone brothers.

  =====================================

  October 9, 2016

  VEGAS WILL MISS THE STONES AND THEIR DUELING CELLOS

  By Hot Vegas Nights

  Austin and Dallas Stone, the winners of the seventh season of Rising Stars, have just announced that the last performance of their show, Dueling Cellos, will take place on New Year’s Eve at the Mirage. Rumors have been running rampant that the decision to end this popular, sell-out show is due to Dallas Stone’s health, but no confirmation has been made by the duo themselves.

  “I’m heartbroken,” Cassidy Wells, a cast member, said. “We all love working with Austin and Dallas. It’s the best gig I’ve ever had.

  When asked whether she could confirm that Dallas’s health issue was the cause for the show going on hiatus, Cassidy said, “Dallas is such a sweet guy, but he’s quiet. He doesn’t hang out with the rest of the cast much. In fact, he doesn’t come to rehearsals much at all anymore.

  Austin and Dallas Stone, who are famous in their own right, aren’t the only famous Stones. Their cousin, American snowboarder Trace Stone, was recently in town over the summer for ShredCon. Trace has been known to attend the Dueling Cellos show when in Vegas, and speculation is high that even though his competitive season begins in December, there is a good chance he’ll be in attendance with the rest of the Stone family for the last Dueling Cellos show.

  =====================================

  It was odd that this Cassidy Wells chick said that Dallas was quiet and sweet. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Dallas, but he was anything but quiet and sweet. That had always been Austin. Dallas was the loud smart-ass who craved attention and Austin was the brother in the shadows. I had a feeling Cassidy couldn’t tell the difference between the twins.

  But what surprised me most of all was to find out that the show was on hiatus and that the last performance had been New Year’s Eve. That was over six months ago. What had Austin been doing since then and why had he come back home? And was it true that Dallas had health issues? He’d been sick when he was younger, but everything was fine before they had left for Vegas four years ago. He’d gotten better.

  I made a few other attempts at fishing for information on Google, but came up empty handed. Whatever had happened, the Stone family had kept it off of social media. There was no other mention of Dueling Cellos or the Stones after January.

  I rubbed my forehead with my fingertips as I read the story over again. If Dallas had been sick, Nana would have told me. She came to visit at Thanksgiving and Christmas. I knew that she kept in touch with Austin. If something was wrong, she would have let me know. Right?

  What in the ever-loving hell was going on?

  I wanted to know all the answers even though after everything that had happened I knew I had no right to them.

  That didn’t mean I wasn’t going to ask, though.

  I tucked my phone back into my pocket and was psyching myself up to go over to knock on Austin’s door and demand answers when two cars pulled into his driveway. I stepped closer to the window and pulled back the sheer curtain to get a better look. Four girls and three guys exited the vehicles, laughing and joking as they walked up the pathway and onto the porch. Before I could really get a good look at them Austin came outside to greet them and then led them all inside.

  “Honey, I’m home,” Drew called as he opened the front door and entered the foyer. I let the curtain go as if it had burned my fingertips, and turned to see Drew step into the sitting room, lifting the bags of sandwiches in offering.

  “Right,” I said, retreating from the window. “I’ll just grab us some drinks. We can eat out back.”

  Drew came down the hallway and followed me into the kitchen. He went outside, letting the old screen door slam shut behind him in a familiar snap of wood against wood, and I pulled two bottles of water from the fridge before meeting him out back.

  The wraparound porch had been one of Nana’s favorite parts of the house. There was always shade and a nice breeze, even on the hottest days of summer. I settled into one of the old rocking chairs as Nana’s wind chimes jangled in the breeze. Drew handed me my bag and after unwrapping our food, we ate in silence.

  Neither Drew nor I were prone to small talk, and to be honest, there wasn’t much aside from the house repairs for us to chat about. We’d had a date all those years ago, but we quickly learned that we didn’t have much in common.

  Austin’s back door opened capturing our attention. He and his guests came out wearing swimsuits and had towels slung over their arms. When Austin turned the music on, he glanced over his shoulder and met my gaze with a smirk before turning it up a few notches.

  I lifted my eyebrow in challenge and then glared back.

  “What’s going on with you two?” Drew mumbled through a bite of his food.

  “What?” I tilted my head until I was looking at him. “What do you mean?”

  Drew shrugged and glanced next door. “Weren’t you guys best friends or something? Now you’re both acting like you hate each other.”

  “I don’t hate him,” I answered quickly. Refusing to look where Austin was entertaining his guests, I focused on my lunch. “How long has he been back?”

  Drew shrugged, staring off into the trees. “About a month.”

  I took a bite and toyed with the edge of the paper wrapper. “Did he come alone or have you seen the rest of his family?”

  “I haven’t seen Dallas or Abby. Or his bitch of a mother.” Drew took a swig of water, draining half the bottle in one gulp. I couldn’t argue with him on that. Chantel Stone had a reputation that she’d legitimately earned.

  I chewed in silence, wondering what the deal was. Dallas, Abby, and Austin had always been close. It didn’t seem right for him to come home alone. “Does he throw a lot of parties?”

  Drew chuckled. “Austin? He pretty much keeps to himself, like he always did. He had friends in town last weekend. I think they were part of the cast in his Vegas show. They came into Brews and Cues one night.”

  I made a sound of acknowledgment but didn’t say anything.

  I felt Drew’s gaze burning into me, and I looked up as he grinned. “It was the same night I heard the cops showed up at his house. You know anything about that?”

  Plastering a look of innocence on my face, I pressed my hand against my chest. “Who me?”

  Drew laughed, shaking his head, and I smiled back. We finished eating lunch as Nana’s wind chimes sang, but all I could focus on was the sound of music and merriment coming from next door. When I couldn’t resist any longer, I looked over. Austin was laughing and horsing around with his friends. A girl with auburn hair walked over to him and hugged him, resting her head on his chest.

  It was obvious he was having plenty of fun without me.

  Which meant it was a perfect time for a little payback.

  I stood up and grabbed the remnants of our lunch. “I have to run out for a bit, but I won’t be gone long.”

  Drew brush
ed crumbs off his lap and then took another drink of water as he stood. “Sounds good. I want to finish shingling the roof today. Then I need to order materials to fix the broken decking and railing pieces on the front porch.” He laid his hand on the wood. “And don’t forget,” he said, draining the rest of his water before crushing the plastic in his fist. “You owe me a beer tonight.”

  “Noted. Brews and Cues, right?” I resisted the urge to glance over my shoulder again.

  Drew chuckled. “Is there any other place? It’s the only bar in town.”

  “Good to know some things haven’t changed,” I said wistfully before entering the house and stuffing the trash into the garbage.

  I heard Drew grab his tool belt and make his way up the ladder to the roof. I ran upstairs and snagged two empty duffle bags out of my brothers’ old room. Half of the third floor was the old attic storage space, and the other half was a large room that my brothers used to share. My mother was under the impression that by putting the boys on the third floor, it hampered their ability to sneak out since they’d have to sneak past her room and Nana’s on the second floor. She vastly underestimated their ability to climb trees, scale walls and defy rules. She would have done better to put bars on their windows. Hell, she should have put bars on my window too.

  Grabbing my keys from the entryway table, I ran out the front door and jogged down the steps, avoiding the broken board at the bottom. I tossed the bags onto the passenger seat of my truck and scooted in behind the wheel. With a swift turn of the keys, the engine rolled over a few times until settling into its customary loud growl. I could still hear the music over the rumble of my truck which meant that Austin had probably turned it up even louder.

  Did he honestly think that I was just going to let it go? Or was he provoking me on purpose?

  Glancing into the rearview mirror, I could see Austin watching me with a grin on his face as I drove away. He probably thought he was forcing me out, but he should know me a lot better by now. He was just providing a distraction.

  I drove my truck halfway around the block and then parked it along the sidewalk, out of view from both of our houses. I jumped out of the truck after grabbing the duffle bags and then cut behind Ms. Rose’s house. She was on her knees tending to some of her flowers but looked up when the wiener dogs on the other side of the fence started barking and running around, scaring the chickens and making a racket. I’d almost made it through the yard when Ms. Rose spotted me.

  Her scowl over the noise broke into a happy grin when she saw me. “Frankie? Is that you, dear?”

  I slowed my pace. “Hey, Ms. Rose.” I waved. “Your garden looks as beautiful as ever. I hope you don’t mind. I just needed to…” I hooked my thumb over my shoulder toward my house, unable to come up with a good reason for why I was running through her yard.

  “You’ll come over for tea one afternoon, won’t you?” she asked, unaware that my appearance was anything but innocent. “I sure do miss talking to your grandmother.”

  My heart warmed. Ms. Rose was one of the few people who never looked down her nose at our family. “Sure thing, Ms. Rose.”

  She gave me a quick happy wave and turned back to her flowers. I took off through the yard, ignoring the commotion from the wiener dogs and chickens. I crossed the street running, knowing that anyone who might see me would know I was up to no good. However, by the time they could do anything about it, I’d be long gone.

  The front door to Austin’s house was unlocked. I slipped inside, careful to cast a quick glance around first. I could hear the music and laughter coming from beyond the sliding doors in the back of the house, but it didn’t look as if anyone was inside to catch me sneaking around.

  Austin’s room was on the second floor, and as I hurried up the steps, I was bombarded with memories. The same pictures still lined the walls, and everything was exactly as I’d remembered—right down to the smell of Austin’s room when I crept inside. His room smelled like a mix of his shampoo, the rosin from his bow, and wood polish—like molasses and comfort.

  Shaking my head to dispel the feelings of longing that crept into my heart, I went to his dresser and opened the top drawer. Boxers were folded neatly inside, and I grabbed them by the handful, shoving them in a duffel. I also grabbed all of his swimsuits and anything else that looked like it might pass as underwear. I even grabbed the dirty boxers out of the laundry basket in his closet.

  Once that was done, I gathered the right shoe of every pair of footwear he had and started filling the other duffel. I briefly considered stealing every right male shoe in the entire house, but figured his guests shouldn’t have to pay for his midnight wake-up call.

  I was just about to rush down the stairs and make my escape when I remembered the laundry room. Austin was a guy who kept things neat, and there hadn’t been much to find in his dirty clothes. There was nothing in the washer, so I checked the dryer.

  Jackpot.

  I rooted through the towels and socks, pulling out more boxers and adding them to my collection. I’d just closed the dryer door when I heard voices coming up the stairs. With no other choice, I turned off the light and shut the door, trapping myself in the laundry room.

  “…feel so bad,” the female voice said as it approached my hiding spot. “He’s all alone. At least if he was back west, he’d be with family.”

  “I know, but his mind is made up. This is where he wants to be,” a male voice responded.

  “But he’s running away, Huck. This thing with Dallas—”

  A twinge of guilt filled my chest as I wondered what kind of trouble there was between Austin and his twin. No matter how different they were, they had always gotten along fine. But maybe that was because Austin was so easy going.

  Despite my worry about the brothers, when she said “this thing with Dallas,” it gave me hope. Maybe the article was wrong, and the reason the show had been canceled had nothing to do with Dallas’s health but with a disagreement between the brothers. As much as I didn’t like the idea of Austin and Dallas arguing, that was better than the alternative.

  “It’s his decision, Cat. It’s not up to us to tell him what to do. We’re here to take his mind off things. Help him have a good time.” They’d paused right outside the door, and I held my breath, hoping they wouldn’t come in and find me.

  The unidentified woman huffed out a breath and then laughed as I heard footsteps retreat down the hall. “Well, if anything can take his mind off things, it’s Marlow. That girl puts my wild streak to shame.”

  The guilt in my chest melted to nausea in my belly. As soon as I heard their footsteps fade, I cracked open the door to the laundry and peered out. The hallway was clear, so I clutched my duffels close and made my escape.

  As soon as I was outside and crossing the street, I threw a few glances over my shoulder to be sure I hadn’t been seen, and then the adrenaline finally started to kick in and bubble up through my chest. I wish I’d planted a camera so I could see Austin’s reaction when he realized he not only didn’t have any underwear but didn’t have a complete pair of shoes either.

  “Hey, Ms. Rose,” I called as I scampered past her to my truck. “How about we meet for that tea on Wednesday?”

  She smiled at me and didn’t seem to notice my bags were noticeably fuller. “That would be lovely, dear. I’ll make my coconut cake!”

  “Awesome. See you then!”

  I threw myself and the duffels into the front seat and then took my time driving back home. I parked on the other side of Drew’s truck and on a whim, opened the rear door to his vehicle and shoved the two bags under his back seat.

  Mission accomplished.

  — FRANKIE —

  6. TWO LEFT FEET

  I sidled up to the pool table and handed Drew the beer I owed him. He’d just finished racking the balls and gestured to the row of pool sticks on the wall behind him. “Choose your weapon.”

  I grabbed a pool stick and set my beer on a small table to the side. “Are you su
re you’re ready for this kind of humiliation, Weatherby?” I asked. “I’ve got quite the reputation here.” I made a show of twirling the chalk on top of my cue and then blew the extra dust off.

  Drew grinned. “Are you trying to tell me you’re good with balls?” He chose a stick from the rack and leaned against the table, giving me a lazy grin. His face was ruddy from working outside in the sun all day, but his eyes were bright with humor.

  “I’ve never had any complaints,” I shot back.

  “Neither have I,” he said, winking.

  I rolled my eyes. Yes, Drew Weatherby had kissed me back in ninth grade. That was the first time either of us had ever kissed anyone, and it was the last time that either of us had wanted to do it together. We quickly realized we had one important thing in common. We both liked kissing…guys. At least that’s what we assumed.

  After the most awkward lip lock on the planet, Drew admitted to me that he’d always been attracted to guys, but was too scared to follow through. He figured if he just tried kissing a girl, any girl, he’d find out that all his secret desires were nothing but curiosity, and he’d be like all the other guys his age—girl crazy. He begged me not to tell anyone, and I never did. I knew the kind of damage rumors could do in a small town like ours.

  But it seemed that Drew wasn’t keeping secrets anymore.

  I often wondered why he’d not only chosen me as his experiment but why he’d also admitted the truth to me. Personally, I think he chose me because he thought that since I had three older brothers and only hung out with boys, that I’d be safe to practice on. In most people’s eyes, I had been about as girly as a sack full of blue Legos. I was just another one of the guys. But as soon as the kiss started and clumsy hands began exploring, it didn’t take long for him to discover that under all the dirt and skinned knees I had from riding my dirt bike, I was still very much a girl. And he was still not attracted to me.