Everything She's Ever Wanted by Mary J. Forbes

Author:Mary J. Forbes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Silhouette
Published: 2005-10-14T16:00:00+00:00

Hallie couldn’t believe it. Her mother was so selfish. She didn’t care one rip how her daughter felt about jerko Roy-Dean moving in. All she cared about was herself and her precious image. Yeah, like macho man Roy-Dean cast her mother into a mold of sophistication. Yish!

The guy was a slob. A disgusting, beer-chugging slob whose messes Hallie constantly cleaned. Crummy pizza boxes, empty beer bottles, toothpaste in the sink, wet towels on the floor.

Once she even found a used condom beside the car in the garage. She’d nearly barfed right there.

Tonight he’d brought home three of his disgusting friends—and expected Hallie to cook for them. Even her mother expected it! Hallie hated the way those guys leered at her, hated the comments they made about her “cute little body” and Roy-Dean winking at her as if it were some big joke. Stupid, stupid guy.

Now, it was after midnight and her mother had gone with jerko and his friends to the Blue Roadhouse.

The rain soaking the day pattered the roof above Hallie’s bed. She cuddled Sunny Bear close. She wasn’t afraid of staying alone. Heck, if she had a penny for the number of times Melody had gone off and left Hallie to take care of herself, she’d be able to buy a Kelly Clarkson CD.

She turned on her bedside lamp and stared at her cheap little phone. She should call her dad. Except…she had bothered him so much already this month. Waking him in the middle of the night—-what would he think?

She wondered if Breena had talked to him yet. And if so, why hadn’t he called?

She swung her feet to the cool floor. Maybe a glass of milk would make her sleepy.

In the kitchen, she checked the answering machine. Its red-no-message zero stared up. No one had called while she had readied for bed.

Had she really expected her dad to call? He was busy with his work. But not on a night like this.

If she called him, he’d come. She knew he would.

What would she say? Mom’s out partying with Roy-Dean and I’m lonely? Her dad would think her a wimp. She was fifteen, for crying out loud.

A hard wet wind hissed against the black glass above the sink. Hallie wheeled around and stared at her reflection. Nothing’s out there. Just the weather.

She dug in the cupboard for a big, round mug and hauled milk from the fridge. In the pantry, she found the cocoa. With the microwave, it took less than two minutes to make a mug of steaming hot chocolate. Holding the drink between her cold palms, she returned to her room where she crawled under the blankets.

The rain increased, drumming on the roof, rushing along the eaves. On a similar night a decade ago, her father had left them—after the last horrible argument.

Hallie shut her eyes. She saw her mom screaming, “I wish you’d leave!” and her dad standing silent, face and eyes stone hard. And later, Hallie, in the living room, hands plastered against the big bay window.

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