Page 66 of Red Zone
I drop the popcorn bowl between us and crack open a soda. “Your majesty.”
She peeks over the blanket. “You may stay.”
I roll my eyes, but I’m smiling. “Movie pick?”
“You mean my rightful turn?”
“You chose last time!”
“That was a joint decision,” she argues, grabbing a fistful of popcorn.
I shoot her a look. “You bullied me into The Notebook and cried harder than Rachel McAdams.”
“Emotional range is not a weakness.” She sniffs. “It’s a superpower.”
We fall into an easy rhythm, the kind we’ve built over years. A little bickering, a lot of snacks, and the quiet comfort of knowing someone sees you—even when you’re not at your best.
But the words keep bouncing around in my skull like a pinball machine, and if I don’t say them soon, they’re going to chew their way out of me.
I exhale. “Okay, I have to tell you something, and you’re not allowed to make it weird.”
Madison freezes mid-chew, then grins way too wide. “Oh my god. Did you finally hook up with Grayson Bennett?”
“What? No!”
“Damn. Okay, wait.” She sits up straighter, interest officially piqued. “Is this about a guy?”
I pause.
She gasps. “Oh my God. It is. You have the secret hookup face. Tell me everything.”
I groan and cover my eyes with one hand. “You’re literally the worst.”
“I’m the best,” she says, practically vibrating now. “Spill. Right now.”
I drop my hand and look at her dead-on. “Fine. It was Carter.”
Her jaw drops open so fast I hear the popcorn hit the floor. “CARTER HAYES?”
“Shhh!” I hiss, even though no one else is here.
She grabs a pillow and smacks me with it. “You two finally put yourselves out of the sexual tension war you were in, and you’re just gonna casually snack next to me like you didn’t rearrange your entire spinal alignment?”
I laugh despite myself. “It wasn’t like that.”
She squints at me. “Lyla.”
“It wasn’t! We didn’t even have sex.”
“Details. Now. Don’t spare me.”
I inhale and let the words fall out without stopping them. “We were at that post-game party a couple weekends ago. I was already tipsy and pissed off, and then Carter showed up all…Carter. He kissed me. I kissed him back. Then, I ran into him at the gym one day, kissed again. And then the other day he, uh…” I pause. “Went downtown, if you catch my drift. Really well, I might add. Sadly, no notes to give. But that wasn’t even the weird part.”
Madison blinks, looking a little stunned. “Continue.”
“He didn’t even let me reciprocate. No…he made me take a bath instead.”
Her eyes literally look like they’re about to bulge out of her head. “Oh my God, Lyla.”
