The girls break out into a wild cackle. I may be slightly obsessed with my new and improved boy toy, but only because there’s so much to obsess over.
Ava taps my sister. “Believe me, we’ve been apprised of her lunacy. They’re practically joined at the hip. It’s really kind of a good thing, though, considering what a rough start she had to the summer.”
Lucky nods. “And he’s very sweet to her. If he wasn’t, he’d have the two of us to contend with.”
“Three.” Henry doesn’t hesitate putting himself in that number.
“All right, everyone, calm down.” I make a face toward the entrance, and just as I’m about to pull my phone out and text him, Gwen pops up with dark circles under her eyes, her hair in a rat’s nest in what amounts to a messy bun on top of her head. She had mentioned a few weeks back that she doesn’t believe in wearing anything on her face in the summer and, apparently, that includes concealer, or brushing her hair. For me to eschew my general beauty routine for an entire summer, there would have to be a serious Birkin bag incentive dangled in front of me—and they’d probably have to toss in a Range Rover too. Because, hey, British engineering never looked so good.
“We need to talk,” Gwen grunts it out as if she’s in the middle of a workout.
“Sure thing!” I turn to my siblings. “This is my house mother. She’s fantastic.” And sort of a granola cruncher, but I leave that out for now. Henry and Harley are smart. They can figure it out. I spin back into the tie-dye princess. “What’s up?”
“You’re up.” Her face screws up into a bright red knot. “Or more to the point, you’re out. Garfield filed a claim stating you accosted her, and she has two eyewitnesses to the event.”
I suck in a quick breath and shoot a look to poor Harley and Henry. God, that lazy orange feline couldn’t have chosen a worse time to rat me out.
“Actually”—I lift a finger in the air as if I have something solid that might save my ass from these allegations—“I, uh…” I glance to Harley’s and Henry’s matching horrified expressions, and suddenly I want to drop in a hole and take Garfield and maybe even Gwen along with me.
Gwen chokes as if I’ve just slapped her. “You’ll have to get your stuff out tonight. The last thing I want is Kappa Gamma Gamma restricted because we’ve let a perpetrator remain in the house.”
“Perpetrator?” My hand clasps over my neck.
Gwen squints out her hatred for me right in front of my siblings. “That’s legalese for the dumbass who started the fight!”
“I so did not start the fight!” I bellow, and Gwen steps into me with the anger exuding off her like lava.
“So, you admit there was a brawl? Hash it out with Greek legal, but I’m afraid until this is all straightened out, you’ve lost your bed.”
“You mean skyscraper,” I say under my breath. “Great. Now what am I supposed to do?” Gwen stalks off without bothering to assist me. “Thanks for the help! Witch.”
“Oh my God!” Ava shoves all her fingernails into her mouth at once. “I’m so sorry!”
Lucky shakes her head frantically as if she’s in denial. “I’ll help you get checked back into Cutler Tower. I swear it’ll be fine. Maybe Trixie can room with you? Isn’t she in Cutler?”
“God.” The thought of Trixie and me rooming together sends visions of waking to a hatchet planted in my forehead. “I’m sure it’ll all work out.”
Poor Henry looks pale and depleted as if the entire episode just wore him out. I know he’s pretty weak in general, and having him here with that oxygen tank strapped to his back like a bomb makes me feel twice as bad. He has a dolly for the thing, but he hates that it draws attention to him—not to mention the fact a dozen people would have tripped over it by now.
“You’ll come home with us,” he offers. “I can beat you at board games, and you and Harley can see who can stay up the latest like the old days.”
A wry smile comes and goes on my lips. I haven’t exactly fessed up to anyone in my family that I’m shacking up with my new boyfriend.
“I’ll probably just sleep on a friend’s couch, but thanks for the offer.”
A familiar, drop-dead gorgeous face shows up at the door, and my entire being explodes into a thousand heart-shaped pieces. He scans the vicinity, and as soon as he spots me, his entire face lights up with a smile.
“Finally, something good—great is coming my way.” I give a spastic wave as he heads on over. Knox is sexy to the bone, so of course, every girl in Kappa G cranes her neck just to get a better look at the star football player they’ll be cheering madly for come fall.
“Hey, hey!” He’s still grinning ear-to-ear as he gives me a quick peck on the lips, so maybe this means he’s finally out of his funk? “Good-looking crowd.” He gives both Harley and Henry a high five before nodding to Ava and Lucky. “Ladies night, I take it?”
Knox holds the scent of a fresh shower, rich cologne with deep notes that hit both me and Sylvia in all the right places. And that T-shirt of his hugs his pecs like nobody’s business. I can’t wait to get this boy home and peel his clothes off, one delicious layer at a time. My heart flutters like a flurry of wild butterflies at the thought of Knox Toberman being mine—all mine.
“They’re on their way,” Ava assures him of Grant and Lawson’s eminent arrival.
A hand waves over to us through the crowd, and not until the bodies thin out do we see the unimaginable—Janelle Jump-Your-Boyfriend’s-Bones Wahlberg is limping this way.
“What in the hell?” I whisper mostly to myself because if I’ve discovered anything about myself these last few stress-filled months is the fact I like to process information out loud.
Knox gives a sorrowful look to both Henry and Harley before dipping his lips to my ear. “Sorry, I’ll be right back.” He heads over to the two-timing twerp and her face lights up. She’s wearing her signature bloody vamp lipstick, but instead of the tight-fitting dresses made of spandex she usually squeezes herself into, she looks rather frumpy, as if she’s seriously considered the pros of the donut diet—not that I haven’t looked into this myself.
Henry steps up and nods over at them. “Who’s that?” He struggles with his breathing a moment, and I feel bad for adding to the stress.
“That”—I give a hard look to Ava and Lucky—“is just an old friend of his.” My face heats with the fire of a thousand hells. Why did Knox have to pick this night to be civil toward her? And why is his hand on her shoulder as he lovingly stoops to speak with her? Oh my God, Justin was right. She wants Knox. Whatever it is she’s trying to pull, it’s apparently working—at least as far as getting his attention goes.
Harley snarls at the two of them. “He looks awful friendly. Is he always so touchy-feely with other girls?”
“You know”—Ava hooks her arm through Henry’s and Harley’s—“Kappa house has some very unique features that only the sorority sisters are privy to, but I’ll be glad to fill you in on all the secret nooks and crannies. How about a little tour?”
Henry preens over at me as if he’s just struck gold. “That’s sounds exactly like the good time I came for.”
“Pervert!” I shout after them as they take off.
“Your brother and sister are delightful.” Lucky’s features harden to flint as we stare at Knox and his blonde ex-beloved. “Unlike your boyfriend at the moment. Did he just rest his hand in the small of her back? That’s a total douche move. Do you need me to kick his ass for you?”
I stare dumbfounded as he assists her to the refreshment table and pulls a water bottle from the cooler before proceeding to open it for her as if she were a child.
“What’s going on?” I can’t believe my eyes as I trek my way over with Lucky staunchly, and rather violently pissed by my side. “Thirsty much?” I wrap my arm around Knox’s waist and fume at how stupid and jealous I just sounded—partially because I happen to be stupidly jealous at the moment.
Jen looks up at Knox with that idiotically helpless look on her face, only
there’s a twinge of frustration in her eyes as if she’s silently bidding him to get rid of me.
“Hey”—Knox glances over at Lucky as if he were equally burdened by our presence—“so, is Lawson here yet?” He scans the crowd just over our shoulder. “I think I see him down near the dining room. Why don’t you guys head over? I’ll be there in a sec.”
My face slaps with heat. “Oh my God,” I trill the words with self-righteous astonishment. “You are trying to get rid of us.” I’m affronted. I’m fuming. I’m hold-my-earrings-get-the-Vaseline livid over the fact he’d stoop to such a low blow move with me.
“No.” He slaps his hands over his eyes as if he’s just stepped into a nightmare—one that I happen to be starring in. Oh my God, what if he wants her back? I glare down at the little petite troll with those quivering red lips. “I just think I need to talk to Jen for a minute, that’s all.”
Lucky takes in a quick breath that sounds as if she inhaled a penny. “Whatever you have to say to this beast, you can say it right here in front of the two of us. This little skank ruined her chance at exclusivity with you!”
“I second that motion,” I say as I try to clasp my arm tighter around his waist, but he retracts a bit. “What’s going on?”
Knox takes a deep breath before gently placing his open palms carefully over my cheeks. “Harper.” His eyes close for what feels like an infinitely long time. “You’re the last person in the world I want to hurt.”
“Oh my God.” I stagger back, unable to catch my breath. “No.” I shake my head. “This isn’t happening.” Knox loves me, and I love him. “Don’t drink the Kool-Aid, Knox. Don’t do it. Whatever BS she’s feeding you, she’s just reeling you in.”
Jen places her hand on his shoulder and practically falls into him. She whispers something into his ear, and his eyes close once again with the look of surrender.
His mouth opens and closes as he looks to me as if he’s afraid to say whatever the hell comes next. “I’m going to give her a ride back to her apartment.”
Now it’s my mouth opening as I take in a never-ending breath.
Lucky huffs with enough irritation for both of us. “Two questions: Why the hell don’t you just tell her to scram? And are you coming back?”
His brows hood over as he chews on his bottom lip, contemplating the question himself, and just like that, my heart snaps in two. In the mother of all ironies, it’s in that moment I realize I never loved Justin. I never felt an ounce of affection for the boy in comparison to what I feel now, because God Almighty, this hurts so very bad. Knox just pulled the floor out from under me like a rug, turning my entire world upside down.
I stagger backward a moment before my hand touches down over the refreshment table and I hurl a bottle at Knox’s head. It smashes against the back wall so hard the glass obliterates on contact and a spray of fizzy liquid rains down over the crowd.
The room quiets to an instant hush as bodies turn their attention in this direction.
“Go ahead!” I shout so loud my voice eats its way through the vacuum of silence. “Lay it out there. The real reason you’re taking her home!” My voice shrills so loud it shreds my throat like razors, but Knox doesn’t say anything. His jaw clenches. His eyes glitter with moisture, but there’s something about that steadfast gaze that won’t let go of me. He’s choosing her over me. His heart has been with her this entire time. They were together for two long years, and maybe deep down they had something real after all. I was just a silly throwaway fling. A rebound rife with bad ideas—revenge he never really wanted a part in. “I hate you,” it comes out low, so soft and resonant it almost sounds romantic. “I hate you for using me at the lowest point in my life.” I turn to head for the exit and spot Henry’s wide eyes. The look of hurt and confusion on his face is all for me, and I burst into tears over the fact I had my greatest meltdown in front of the two people I would have died to protect from this nightmare.
I bolt out the door and into my car, yelling for Harley to take Henry home. Lucky practically pushes me out of the driver’s seat and sits in it herself.
“I’ll take you wherever you want to go.”
Where do I want to go? I’ve lost my right to sleep at Kappa G, I can’t go back to Knox’s place, which I stupidly thought was our place, and dorm admissions are closed for the night.
“Follow Harley.” I point over to the Tahoe leaving the curb. “Take me home, Lucky.” Sometimes a girl just needs her family to make her feel better, even if she doesn’t plan on getting out of bed for the rest of the summer.
A hard knock comes over the passenger’s window, and I look up to see Knox with a frantic expression—his miniature little hussy just three feet behind him.
“Harper, wait. We need to talk!”
“Drive!” I scream at the top of my lungs, and Lucky does just that.
Lucky spends the night with me in my childhood bed while I deflect having a single conversation with my mother, my sister, my sweet overly concerned brother, Lucky, or even Knox himself. I tossed my phone into the deep end of my closet as soon as we got in and haven’t fished it out yet. Suddenly, I’m not so keen on communication.
The next morning, I call student relations and am swiftly informed that the dorms don’t open up officially for another three weeks, so there’s that. It looks as if I’m home for the rest of the summer just like I predicted.
Screw the internship.
Screw Knox Toberman—just the same way he screwed me.
Knox
Harper doesn’t pick up my calls, return my texts, or show up for our internship. I’ve driven out to Hollow Meadows on three separate occasions, and each time that intimidating front gate remains as closed as her heart. I’ve pissed her off. Hell, I’ve more than pissed her off—I’ve hurt her deeply, maybe even wounded her without meaning to. Grant and Lawson have all but shaken me down for answers, but I’m slow to give them. The truth is, I don’t like this new reality that’s been flung my way. I’m petrified, out of my mind afraid, so much so that I keep getting pummeled during practice. One of my teammates clocks me with his helmet right in the gut, and had I been paying attention, I would have zigged when he zagged and not be lying supine staring at the blinding sun that sprays its death rays down over me. It’s blazing fucking hot today. Two hundred degrees at least, and this dogfight on the field is the last place I want to be.
Rex comes up, sweat beading down his temples, his brows, his upper lip, and he kneels beside me, shading me with his body.
“What’s going on? You hung over?” He sticks his fingers over my neck as if to check my pulse.
“I’m alive.” I get up onto my elbows, and the coach calls for a break. “I think I’m done for the day.” I sling my head between my knees, and Rex coaxes me to my feet.
“Let’s get you some water.” Rex leads me off the field and motions to the stands that are miraculously in the shade. It’s hot and humid as hell, but the shade is still a welcome reprieve from the fire raining down from the sky. He sits across from me and kicks my foot out. “What’s going on? Your head hasn’t been in it the last few days. Is football still your thing?”
I jerk back as if he slapped me. “Are you nuts? Hell yes, it’s still my thing. I’ve just got a ton of other things on my mind.”
“Let’s see. Football, food, or girls—the three basic principles of your life right now, and seeing that you’re well fed, it’s not football—that leaves just one thing. Girls. How are things with Harper? You two still playing the part to mess with the masses?”
“Nope.” I wince over at the boys on the field, running around, doing their thing while I sit here with my thumb up my ass feeling sorry for myself. “Harper and I were together. It was real.”
“Was? Is that the operative word?” Rex lets out a heavy sigh. “Crap. What happened?”
“What didn’t happen? Everything was going right until it wasn’t. You know, about six months ago I had a nagging feeling in my gut that Jen and I weren’
t going to work, but I denied it. And you want to know why? Because of Mom and Dad. They ate a shit sandwich and so did we because of it. I wanted them to last. And then when things fell apart, I wanted them to forgive one another so that we could get our family back on track. Look, I don’t have anything against Mom and her new husband. I think they work great, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wish it had worked out for her and Dad in the end. I judged them. I judged our parents. I thought they were quitters for giving up so easily—and believe me, in hindsight I see it wasn’t easy for them. But I thought if that was me—my wife—we would make it work. I would never quit. I would be there no matter what. I wasn’t about to let any of my relationships dissolve to nothing and chalk it all up to lessons learned, wasted time. Nope. I was going to be some hardcore relationship junkie who, come hell or high water, was not going to let life sink us.”
Rex leans back, a pained smile on his face. “And how did that work out for you?”
“Landed me in a pile of shit.” I pause mid-thought. “I take that back. It was the best thing I ever did in my life.”
“Dude”—he winces—“she left you. You were cheated on. I get that you grew from the experience—but around me, you don’t have to embrace the fire. You were burned. I understand that.”
“I’m not embracing the fire. What Jen did sucked. What I am embracing is the fact it’s the road that led me to Harper.” I sink my face in my hand a moment before coming up for air. “Harper is the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time. She’s more or less me in female skin. I never thought it was possible for two people to get along so well—you know, outside of family. And if I’m honest, Harper feels like family. In a lot of ways, I feel closer to Harper than I do Trix. But don’t tell Trix that. I’m not in the mood for another beatdown. This entire summer has been one beatdown after the next.”
“Sounds like it. So, if Harper is great, then what’s the problem? Is it because she’s not at practice watching you from the sidelines?” He gives a faint smile. “You need to let go for a few hours each day to get shit done. She’ll still be waiting for you when the day is over.”