Page 118 of Filthy Little Pretties
“Hey.” Her long blonde ponytail swishes over her shoulder as she looks back at me. “I love you.”
She smiles wide and grabs the handle. “I love you, too.”
The door shuts behind her, and I look down at my semi, shaking my head. Fuck. I just have to make it through the school day and practice, then I’m free to fuck her brains out. I adjust myself and wait a few minutes, pulling out my phone to check the messages she sent me.
Cherry: My house tonight?
Cherry: I thought since you say I remind you of cherries, I could decide what you taste like.
It’s going to be a long day. I pull the door open, checking the hall before walking out into the emptiness toward class. I know she’s already seated, waiting for me. Since it’s our only class together, it’s my favorite.The minute I think it, a little bit of my happiness sours. If she’s in class, then so is Liam. This will be the first test as to whether I can really do this. Let him be in her life, the way he’s always been. I told her I wouldn’t make her choose, and I won’t, but that doesn’t mean this shit will be easy. Especially since I haven’t spoken to him since Monday. Now it’s Wednesday, and all my texts and messages have gone unanswered.
My hand reaches for the handle to pull the door open, immediately seeing her face through the window set into the wood. She’s laughing at something Liam’s saying to her from behind. He reaches over her, trying to steal her pencil, but she pushes his hand away as he puts her in a mock headlock, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
It’s friendly, easy, not romantic, and I hate every fucking piece of it. I twist the handle, opening the door, and breeze in, her eyes meeting mine as Liam’s head snaps up to look at me too.
He’s still pissed at me, or maybe he’s mirroring what I have no right to feel right now.
“Thank you for joining us,” the teacher remarks.
I grin. “You’re welcome,” I say, trying to keep the mask of nonchalance in place, even if I’m not remotely feeling that way.
Fuck. This is hard.
I walk to my seat across from Donovan’s, not missing how hard Liam’s holding his pencil, and lower down. My finger taps the desk, and I feel Donovan’s eyes on me. So I glance at her expecting her to be angry at me for my tension, but that’s not what I get. She’s amused. Goddamn her. I narrow my eyes at her, and she blows me a little kiss, before turning to face front.
I can do this. Or I can fake it ’til I make it. He’s being Liam with her, like a brother, but we need to squash our beef and then I’ll feel better. I was an asshole to him, and I need to apologize so everything can find a new normal. I turn over my shoulder, locking my eyes to his, and say quietly, “We should talk.”
“Nah, I’m good,” he cuts, chewing on that stupid toothpick.
Great. He’s going to be a dick.
Donovan’s eyes grow wide, but she stares forward. We both knew he wasn’t going to make it easy to apologize. But I’m running out of patience already. I rock my head to the side to crack my neck and clench my teeth together before I try again.
“Can you not be a dick? I know I fucked up, but let me make it right.”
His book slams shut as he stares at me, rage crossing his features. What the fuck?
“I’m a dick?” he huffs, swiping all the shit on his desk into his book bag and standing.
You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.
“Liam,” Donovan whispers, but he ignores her, opting to rub her back reassuringly, before walking right past her frown as the whole class watches in silence.
The surprised teacher calls his name, urging him to retake his seat, but he says nothing as he flings the door open and leaves, letting it slam behind him. Donovan’s head swings to my face, and I want to kill him. He’s not doing this. Motherfucker.
“Grey?”
She doesn’t even know what to say because she’s never seen this version of him, but I’m familiar with it. This is Liam being the one person to hold me accountable. What I did…all of it—he’s going to make sure I pay until I prove I’m worthy of my privilege. Donovan being the privilege.
“Grey,” she says more insistently.
I smile reassuringly. “It’s okay, Cherry. He just needs to cool down. It’ll be fine.”
But I’m not so sure that’s the truth. How do I explain to her that he may never forgive me for what I did to her—even if she could? Because what she doesn’t understand is that Liam and I both know that I’m not the one who deserves her.
My eyes search the grassy area, past the tree company that’s digging and removing the remnants of my lack of reason, looking for Liam. Practice started a half hour ago. We’ve already run and stretched, and he’s nowhere to be seen. Fuck. Missing practice isn’t something we do. Ever. This is where we table all of our shit. Crew is a brotherhood. Not showing is a clear message to me.
“Dude. Where the fuck is he?” Kai whispers, following my eye line. “I figured skipping out on lunch would be as far as he took it. I didn’t see him all day, though, after first period.”
