Page 50 of My Brother's Best Friend

“What time is it?” I mumbled, closing my eyes and laying my head back down on his chest. I didn’t want to wake up yet, didn’t want to go home to more red Solo cups and piss all over our floor.

It was bad enough that Mom and Dad were rarely home to scold Oliver for being such a dick. They left our poor housekeeper to clean it all up. I always felt bad for her, so I offered to help out, but I was just so sick of it all.

One way or another, Oliver needed to learn a lesson.

Not like that would ever happen though.

“Too early,” he said. “Go back to sleep.”

I relaxed on his chest again, my breathing evening out and my mind becoming empty. Since Spencer, my mind had been a complete wreck. I worried constantly, throwing myself into my friends’ love lives just to occupy my brain. I hadn’t felt this calm, this … easy for a while.

“I wish we could live together, like Vera and Blaise do,” I hummed softly.

Spending time in that house with Oliver was taking a damn toll on my mental health. I completely understood why he was so protective—I would be like that with him if a girl treated him the same way that Spencer had treated me—but it was suffocating.

And it wasn’t like Mom and Dad cared. They were on a yacht in the Mediterranean right about now, hadn’t called in almost a month, failed to check in even with our housekeepers to ensure that theirlovelychildren weren’t trashing their billion-dollar house.

“Me too,” Alec said sleepily, gently scratching my head. “You know, we could.”

“Oliver would never let that happen.”

“Fuck him.”

My eyes widened, and I sat up and stared down at him, my brow furrowed as panic ran through my veins. Alec had never once said anything bad about my brother. They had been best friends for years, but …

“Alec,” I whispered, running my fingers through his messy hair.

After slowly blinking his tired eyes open, he clutched my waist and frowned. “He’s rude to you too,” Alec said. “He throws parties while you’re home and trying to study, doesn’t give a fuck what you think or what you say.”

I frowned. “He’s your best friend.”

“Agreatone, huh?” he asked, his voice filled with nothing but distaste.

When I went to respond, I caught sight of Kai Koh from Poison dumping something off the rocks and into the Atlantic Ocean. Alec followed my gaze and froze alongside me.

Kai turned to head back to his bike parked near the bushes and eyed us. “What?”

I rolled down the window. “What are you doing?”

“You didn’t see anything,” Kai said, leaning against the window and looking in at Alec.

Alec sat back and blew out a breath. “I don’t give a fuck what you do, Kai.”

Before Kai could walk away, I snatched his wrist through the open window. “Wait.”

He stiffened, pulled himself out of my grip, and peered over his shoulder at me. “What?”

“When Poison killed Principal Vaughn last m?—”

“We didn’t kill the principal,” Kai said, his face void of any emotion.

But I knew that they had. Hell, the entire school knew it. The Poison boys weren’t to be messed with. They were the only gang in Redwood who cared enough to watch the rich burn in the fire that they had created themselves.

“Well,” I said, clearing my throat, “whoever did do it said that they wanted Redwood to burn.” I lowered my voice so if anyone was in those bushes or behind those rocks or in the nearest houses, they wouldn’t be able to hear. “I want in.”

“Maddie,” Alec said.

“I want in,” I said to Kai again. “I’m sick of this town.”

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