Page 54 of Sweet Anarchy

I nod. "Makes sense. It's a good idea," I say, taking the chain from him and inspecting the pepper spray. "Also good for alone time if needed."

Blake looks at me knowingly, making me laugh. I hold the pepper spray up. "Thank you. I'll attach it to my house keys."

"You should really consider getting another car too," Blake adds. "Just in case one of ours isn't available."

I gaze at him sadly. "I don't have the money for a car, Blake. The only reason I had the Chevy was because of Dad. It wasn't even insured because of how old it was."

"We could all chip in and help get you a car-"

"No," I say, cutting him off. "I'm not accepting a car from any of you. I don't care if we're somewhat related by marriage and it's deemed family money. I'm not doing that."

Blake looks at me with a blank expression, shielding me from his thoughts. He nods. "Fair enough."

I can't help but feel like this isn't the last we'll be speaking of this, but for now, I take it.

"Where's the others?" I ask.

"Downstairs floating around. I'll keep them out of your hair for a while. Zayn's cooking though so he'll want you to eat. You know what he's like."

I laugh, smiling at him. "Yeah, I do. I'll eat soon. I just want to chill for a bit in here and process my thoughts. Is that okay?"

"Of course it is," Blake says. "Like I said, just tell us what you need. We'll be around when you're ready."

I step in, wrapping my arms around him in a hug. "Thanks, Blake."

He leans down, pressing his lips to mine. It's only a short kiss as he pulls back, immediately giving me space again. I watch as he heads out of the room, leaving me with my thoughts.

I climb onto the bed, staring at the Brightmore College letter every now and again. I'm probably going to regret this, but I pull out my phone, scrolling the contacts list to see if I still have her number. I never could bring myself to delete Jenny out of my contacts, and I have no idea if she even still has the same number from years ago. I could ask Asher, but I can't be bothered.

I shoot off a quick text, waiting to see if she responds. When my phone dings a few minutes later, I'm happy to find I didn't text some random individual.

Taking a breath, I calm my nerves before hitting dial, listening as the line starts ringing.

"Hello?"

"Jenny, hey," I say, leaning back against my pillow. "I just thought I'd give you a call. Are you free to chat?"

I hear her hesitate slightly on the other end, probably on edge like me. "Yeah, I guess. What's up, Rylee?"

"I just wanted to talk," I tell her. "It's been awhile since we had a proper chat."

She laughs nervously. "Yeah. A few years. What's new anyways? How's my ex-boyfriend?"

There's no animosity in her voice, just teasing like we used to do.

I snort. "Asher is just Asher. You know how he is."

Jenny snorts. "I think you handle him a lot better than me. I'm happy for you guys. If it makes you feel any better, I'm seeing someone new."

"Oh, really? That's great news."

"Yeah. It's actually Jake."

The name rings a bell, my mind scrambling to remember. "From the cheer squad?"

"That's the one," she says. "We reconnected recently. And girl, you should hear some of the drama from the old team…"

Chapter 17

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