Page 97 of The Quarterback Sneak

My lip curls, and I don’t reach out to accept them. Frankly, I don’t want them or anything else he has to offer.

When he sees my reluctance, he nods with a click of his tongue. “Yup, I figured I’d need to do more than show up with roses to get back in your good graces.”

Crossing my arms, I lean against the banister. “You still haven’t apologized for kissing me on New Year’s Eve and then spreading the photo on the school message system.”

The corner of his lip upturns. “That’s because I’m not all that sorry. Like I said before, I want you. It was always supposed to be you and me taking on all of this together, and I’m not about to let that go because of one stupid mistake.”

Clutching the banister, I turn on my toes and float toward the kitchen, fully expecting him to follow me. Knowing my mother, she’s probably got the entryway camera playing on her phoneand is listening to our entire conversation. At least in the kitchen, I can reach the off switch… and a couple of knives.

I feel Jamie’s presence behind me, and his breath skates through my hair when he says, “We won.”

Something about the smug tone in his voice makes me want to point out that our team won, he and I had nothing to do with the outcome of tonight, but I don’t. What’s the point? I’m about to kick him out anyway.

“I know.”

Once in the kitchen, Jamie rounds the island, dragging his hand across the cool marble, and watches as I relax on the other side. “Wasn’t sure if you knew since you left early.” He pauses, and I think he’s waiting for me to say something, but I just brush off some dust on my robe instead. “You left around the time you saw Zach’s family.”

I keep a straight face to his unsubtle probing. “I guess sitting on the bench does have its perks. You can stalk me instead of concentrating on the game.”

Jamie frowns. “You were crying.” It’s a pure and simple statement that hangs in the air, cementing my embarrassment. I thought I’d been inconspicuous by leaving, but apparently, nothing got past my school. My luck, it will be shared across social media again. “What were you upset about?”

He makes his move, dropping the roses onto the marble and curving around the island to stand next to me. His hand falls to the small of my back, and I step out of the touch.

“Why are you here?” I ask the question again.

“I wanted to check on you. I saw that Zach had an audience for the first time. Must have sucked seeing Scholarship’s kid in the flesh.” He went for the jugular, but it doesn’t hurt because it’s all lies, and now I wonder how many lies he’s told me before. “She’s a cute kid, isn’t she?”

I buck my head back, crinkling my nose. “I’m fine.” I won’t elaborate. I want to prove to Zach he can trust me, but Jamie’s arrogance is beyond repulsive. How did I not see this before?

“You sure about that? Because you don’t look fine.”

“Yup.”

“Then why aren’t you celebrating with him right now?” That’s a good question. I got the truth, and we’re still fake dating. Running out of the stadium crying won’t have helped our cause, but that’s not something I can change. “Thought as much.” He smiles smugly, as though my silence answers his question.

Raising the roses, he studies them for a faint second. “Look, I get it. Roses aren’t your thing. They never were.” He chuckles lightly to himself. “I only bought them so your mom would let me in.”

“Glad your relationship with my mom is going well, because your relationship with me is anything but good.”

“Come on, Honey. Don’t be like that.”

I tip my chin, feeling a little feisty. “You’re the one that cheated, not me.”

“I know, and it’s the biggest mistake of my life. Believe me, the repercussions it’s had have been eye opening,” he mumbles, and I stop myself from punching him in the face. Repercussions which I’m sure have something to do with losing out on his trust fund if he doesn’t make it up to me.

“You seriously don’t expect me to feel sorry for you?”

“No, but I’d really like to start making it up to you.”

“Oh, yeah? And how do you plan on doing that?”

He scratches the bottom of his chin, giving me an easy smile. “I was hoping you’d go to the debutante ball with me.”

I choke on a laugh. He can’t be serious. “No.” Short, simple, and to the point.

“Who’s taking you?” He challenges, tipping his head. “Zach?”

“Yes.” I swallow.

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