Page 111 of Dare To Take

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The cheerleaders are clustered just below where we sit on the bleachers. The coach is shouting instructions, and the football team is running around the field, throwing the ball to each other. Four of the team are on the bench, and I toss a stone at the ginger head of Garrett. He twists around, scowling. I smile. His glare falters.

“I hear you touched my little toy after lunch.”

He smiles. “I’ve wanted a taste of her since she came to school.”

Fucking idiot thinks I’m making idle conversation. When I don’t smile back, he swallows.

“What did I say earlier today, Kellan?”

Kellan makes a show of thinking about it. “I believe you said that when you were done with her, there might be something left for the rest of them.”

“And did I say I was done with her?”

He purses his lips. “Not anywhere I could hear you, no? Did you hear him say that, Garret?”

Garret’s face pales, freckles standing out in stark relief against his white skin.

“She’s mine to break. Get me? Touch her again before I say I’m done, and you won’t play football again.”

I shove to my feet and walk away before he can respond and make my way back to our dorm.

“I’m sneaking out to jump Miles once his swim practice is over,” Kellan says once the door is closed, sealing us inside. “He’s angry about lunchtime.”

“What does he have to be angry about?”

“I threatened to out him if he ran to Arabella’s defense.”

“Like he was going to do anything, anyway. He’s too much of a pussy. If he had any fucking backbone at all, he’d own who he is and stand by the girl he claims is his friend.”

Kellan sits on the edge of his bed. “I’ve been thinking.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake. That’s dangerous.”

He mock-growls at me. “I’m serious. Have you contacted her as Sin at all?”

“Why would I?” Everything we had in the dark has been tainted by the leaked video. “The last thing she’d want would be to hear from him … me. Anyway, the school took the cell phone I gave her.”

“Oh … I forgot about that. Don’t you have her other cell number? If you’re set on this war with her, why don’t you go back to your original plan? At least no one was going to end up in the hospital.”

“You really want me to invite her into the woods in the middle of the night, knowing that the only thing I want to do right now is choke the fucking life out of her?”

“Hmmm. Good point. Forget I said anything.” His cell chimes and he jumps to his feet. “That’ll be Miles. Be good. Don’t wait up.” He blows me a kiss and saunters to the door.

After he’s gone, I take a shower, then settle on my bed to watch a movie. But I can’t settle. My eyes keep drifting to the closet, where I know the cell I used to message Arabella from sits at the bottom of a box.

When I have to restart the movie for the third time, I swing my legs off the bed and walk over to the closet and take out the box. Flipping it open, I stare down at the cell.

Maybe Kellan is right. Maybe I should try and contact her?

I reach into the box and take out the cell. My finger hovers over the power button.

What the fuck are you doing?

I toss it back into the box, close it up and shove it back into the closet.

Starting that up again would just add to the problem.

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