Page 14 of When Wrecked Meets Ruined
“Um, yeah, maybe.” Her brow furrowed like she was trying to figure out why it should matter to me. Good question. I should have kept walking. “Why? What’s it to you?” She looked me up and down, from my faded black concert tee to my ripped jeans and tattered Chucks, then back to my face. “Oh, wait.” Her mouth formed a comical O. “Are you and Ridge….” She glanced over at his table.
Sometimes Ridge sat with the stoners and juvenile delinquents. Today he was sitting with the jocks and a few girls from the cheering squad.
His eyes narrowed on me. Or on Delaney, I couldn’t be sure.
“So you two are hooking up?” Delaney asked.
This was how rumors started. Luckily, I was here to shut it down. I leaned in close and gave her a saccharine smile, keeping my voice low so she heard the threat in it. “If you ever so much as breathe another bad word about him, if you evenmentionhis name again… I’ll make sure the entire school finds out you bought your Gatsby essay for fifty bucks and passed it off as your own.”
Delaney’s jaw dropped, and all the color drained from her face. She laughed nervously and side-eyed her friends to ensure they hadn’t overheard. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said primly, straightening her spine as if perfect posture would make her less of a cheater.
I smiled. “I bet it got you an A, right? I should have charged a hundred. Lesson learned.” Writing essays during my breaks at the diner was a lucrative side gig, and I was getting close to having enough money for a car. Nothing fancy. But still. I wouldn’t have to bum rides everywhere.
The beauty of my plan was that nobody knew it was me. Until now.
“I never…” Miss Prim and Proper started.
“Had an original thought in your pretty little head? Yeah, I know. Luckily, I had a lot to say aboutThe Great Gatsby.” I had life experiences that she could never in a million years understand, and I hadverystrong opinions about that book and the class system. But that was neither here nor there. “As of now, you’re no longer Ridge’s tutor.”
“But what… you can’t…” she sputtered.
“I can, and I will. In fact, I just did.” I stabbed a finger at her. “Stay away from him. You’ve been warned,” I added in a low, ominous voice.
It was all I could do not to cackle like a lunatic at the expression on her face. I walked away with a smug smile and gave myself a mental pat on the back. Job done.
Who rules the school? Kids like Ridge and me, that’s who.
We knew how to fight dirty.
Wait. What was I doing? I almost stumbled over my own feet. Had I just…defended Ridge McCallister? And threatened Delaney to stay away from him?
Oh my god. I really needed to get my head examined.
* * *
After lunch, I stashed the books I wouldn’t need into my locker and swapped them out for English and Chemistry. Slinging my bag over my shoulder, I turned from my locker and ran into a brick wall. Not really. It was just Ridge McCallister.
“Why are you creeping up on me like that?”
“What did you say to Delaney?”
“Who?”
“So that’s how you want to play it.”
“Is this a game? I wasn’t aware.” I gave him an innocent smile. Or as innocent as a girl like me could look. Which was about as innocent as Maleficent.
His lip ticked up in one corner, and his eyes were hooded as they roamed down my body, slow and leisurely, before returning to my face. Leaning his shoulder against the lockers, he slipped his finger under the strap of my backpack and slid it up and down. “I need to get something from the weight room. Care to join me?”
Luckily, I wasn’t the type to blush. I smacked his hand away. “I’m not a member of the Ridge McCallister Fan Club. So that’s a no.”
“Could have fooled me. I’m starting to think you’re mybiggestfan.”
“The only thing big about you is that gigantic ego of yours. Sorry, but you’ll have to find someone else to stroke it.”
“Interesting choice of words. My ego is not the only thing that’s gigantic. But you already know that don’t you? And you canstrokeit whenever you want.”
“Oh gosh, thanks.” I batted my lashes. “Whenever I want isnever.” On that note, I strolled away, hoping to lose him in the sea of students. No such luck.
