Page 2 of Sweet Surrender

“Don’t worry about it.” I hated the way my voice shook. He wasn’t supposed to find out this way, not until we got to the dance. “So, really, why are you here? I thought you guys were getting ready for the formal at your parents’ place.”

“Yeah, everybody’s on their way to the hotel. I wanted to swing by and see you before I joined them.” Folding his arms, his expression hardened into the same look I had seen so many times before from him, my brother, and their friends. Arrogant. Cocky. His chestnut brown hair gleamed in the light above the front door when he tipped his head to the side. “If I didn’t know better, I would think you were dressed up for the formal too. But that can’t be possible since you’re only a freshman. So where are you going tonight?”

“Maybe I am going to the formal.” Because fuck him and his attitude. I lifted my chin and smiled. “I’m going with Pierce Jameson. Now you know. You were going to find out soon, anyway.”

I figured his mouth would fall open and his dark eyes bulge. I’d already envisioned the whole thing so many times. But never had I imagined him snorting with laughter before asking, “Are you sure about that?”

“Well… yeah?” I replied with a laugh of my own. “He asked me, and I said yes.”

“Why would he do that?”

This was going terribly. He was going to ruin everything if Pierce showed up while he was still standing in the doorway, acting like a dick. My pulse picked up speed at the thought. “Why is it any of your business?” I countered. “Go, have fun. I’ll see you there in a little while.”

“I hate to tell you, but you’ll be waiting a while.” He blurted out a laugh, shaking his head. “Really, my bad. I shouldn’t have let it go this far. It looks like you, like… went all-out with the dress and hair. But maybe now you’ve learned your lesson.”

“I don’t understand.”

Rolling his eyes, he groaned, “Pierce isn’t coming to pick you up. He’s already there with Penny Schwartz.” When he laughed again, all I could do was stare at him and wait for him to tell me he was kidding. “Come on, Sienna. Did you seriously think he was into you? He’s a fucking senior. Early admission to Harvard. Like he would screw around with a little girl like you.”

Bile rushed into my throat once his words sank into my overloaded brain, and I started trembling as the pain set in. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t want to. He was going to take it back any second.

Only he didn’t. He looked as serious as I’d ever seen him, and I had known him my entire life.

Do not cry.

Do not.

“What are you saying?” I whispered, hoping he was kidding because the alternative was unthinkable.

Throwing his hands into the air, he nearly shouted, “I’m saying it was me, dumbass! Jesus Christ, you’re slow on the uptake when you want to be. That’s not even his Snapchat account I was messaging you from. Now, you know better than to mess around with the big boys.”

“That’s not true.” I was shaking all over and barely fighting back tears. It was unbelievable. It couldn’t be true. Weeks of talking, joking, getting to know each other. No way could Noah have fooled me like that. I knew him too well.

He arched an eyebrow. “I promise I’ll be a gentleman, but I can’t promise I won’t want a kiss.”

That was it. The proof I didn’t actually need because deep down, I believed him. Standing in the foyer, dressed up nicer than I had ever been in my whole life, I knew it had all been a fantasy. How could I have been so stupid?

I wanted to die. I wanted to fold up in place and die right here on the floor. Anything would be better than standing there and listening to his laughter. Knowing he made a fool out of me. “Who knows about this?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” He waved a hand like it didn’t mean anything. “We had a couple shots when we were getting ready, and I think I said something to Evan, maybe.”

Evan? The whole damn school would know about it by the end of the weekend. My brother would find out. He’d probably tell our parents. I wouldn’t be able to escape the humiliation no matter where I went. “How could you do this?” My voice was weak, small, and breathless.

“Like I said. You were the one staring at him during freshman orientation, so don’t pretend you weren’t. I saw you sitting in the auditorium, practically drooling while he gave his student council speech.” There was so much contempt in his voice. It was like he hated me. “And as soon as you thought you were talking to him on Snapchat, you got all flirty and shit. It was pretty easy to make you believe you were talking to him.”

“But how…” A sob sliced through me. I couldn’t hide it, no matter how I knew I should. “How? Why would you do that to me?”

“Oh, come on. You learned a lesson. You didn’t get hurt.”

We both looked down at my clutch when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out without thinking, and at first, my hand shook hard enough that I couldn’t read the message. Once I did, though, my stomach dropped further than it already had.

Unknown: This is Penelope Schwartz. Just talked to Evan. Stay away from my man, bitch, or I’ll kick your ass.

I didn’t realize Noah had leaned down to read the message until he grunted. “That girl has claws. She would tear you a new one. Like I said, you learned a lesson.”

The know-it-all way he said it was what finally broke me. “Fuck you.” I snarled before pressing both hands to his chest and shoving hard enough to make him stumble backward. “I didn’t ask you to teach me anything. You did this because you’re mean and nasty, and only a loser with an ugly soul could spend weeks making me… making me think…”

He ignored the tears filling my eyes and how I fought for every breath. “You’re young. You’ll get over it.” He made a big deal of checking his watch while I gasped for air. “I better go. Everybody’s waiting for me.”

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