Page 101 of Beautiful Defiance

“I don’t owe him jack shit. He had his hands on my girl. My girl, Leigh.”

Oh, no, he did not. I stand.

“Yours? You dare say I’m yours when you hurt me? Broke my heart when you ditched me and found someone else to take my spot?”

I ball my hands at my sides. He stands and reaches for me. I back up. He advances. The anger and determination on his face . . . I skirt around the table. He stalks after me. I make a mad dash for my bedroom. He chases me, and before I can shut the door on him, he barges his way inside my room.

Grabbing me by the shoulders, he pushes me onto the bed. He climbs on the bed and traps me in place with his thighs straddling my waist.

“Seven.” I growl out a warning. “You have no right. No right to be here. To insert yourself in my life again. I have friends. Guys who are interested in me. All I have to do is give them the word and they are mine.”

“Do it, Leigh. I’ll fuck them up.”

“Seven.”

He stretches out his legs, and sliding his body over mine, he shifts us until I’m looking down into his dark eyes.

“Leigh, I’m sorry. I fucked up. Got scared of what I feel for you.”

He’s sincere. Honest. Broken. But I’m not ready to forgive him. I was sincere and honest too, and he left me broken when he sent me the roses only to slip a note in my locker telling me he’s done with me.

“I hate you.”

“You have every right. Let me tell my side, Leigh. Please.”

Again, more begging.

“Tell.”

As though he thinks I’ll bolt, he swaps our position back to him on top of me. He keeps his weight off me with his arms alongside my head. Pieces of hair brush his forehead. I have this crazy urge to swipe aside the strands. I lock my arms against my sides. There will be no touching the jerk. He hurt me, and I’m not done hurting or hating on him.

“Leigh, it was my idea to get you to tutor me. My grades were in the shitter, like you said. Coach told me he was benching me for the next game. I went to the principal. He suggested a tutor. I gave him your name in the hopes I could mess with you more. Get your ass in the cold and the rain. Break you of your defiance. Get you to fall for me during our time together. Then when I knew you’d fallen for me, I’d drop you and break your heart.”

He doesn’t say any more. Just looks off to the side. He’s ashamed and remorseful for toying with my feelings and messing with my mind. I should hate him more, but the thing is, what he’s telling me isn’t that terrible after hearing of what my mom did to Alistair.

I nudge him back to looking at me again with my knuckle on his chin. “Go on. What else?”

“I fell hard for you, Leigh. You became all I thought about. Filled my world. My life. Saw me for me. Became my sounding board without me feeling like less of a dude for showing you my softer side.”

“I don’t understand, Seven. If you fell hard for me, why ditch me?” Then I give him my truth. “I looked forward to spending time with you. Loved watching you do your thing on the field. Loved that you would rather come in through my window because at first, it started as something to get back at me for. Later, it became a part of us.”

“Kind of like our pinky swears?” Small smile from him, and my breath hitches in my chest. I miss Seven’s smiles.

“Yes.” My arms leave my sides. Wrap around his shoulders. Move down his back and settle on his waist. He is solid. Sexy. Could be mine again. “Why ditch me, Seven?”

He blows out a breath.

“It’s stupid, but being around you distracted me. I couldn’t study worth a damn. Couldn’t play worth a damn either, losing my team games. I thought hanging with Ginger would make me forget you. That not hanging with you would help me play ball at top notch. But keeping away from you has done none of that. It wasn’t you, Leigh. It was me.”

He closes his eyes. Seems to be fighting this inner war with himself. I pull him down to me and rub my nose on his. Implore him to tell me what he means by it wasn’t me but him. That I would never judge him no matter his answer. I care so much for him.

“You do?”

“Since the night you plucked me out of that pool.”

“Aw, Leigh. God, seeing you in the water like that, I freaked out.”

“You were so calm.”

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