Page 165 of Secrets That We Keep (Forbidden Descendants 2)

I sent her a scowl. “I told you, I had a paper to write.”

She sat down beside me. “I don’t know what’s going on this time between you two, but you better get it sorted out because you can’t just avoid him forever.”

“Yes,” I snarled. “I can.” And I would.

“Bentley—”

“And how could you say you don’t know what it’s about? He threw dog poop on me and Ridgely. Dog poop, Mother.”

She winced. “Yeah. That was pretty bad.”

I rolled my eyes. “You think?”

“Did you like him that much?” she asked sadly.

My gaze zipped up, heart pounding in anxiety, eyes widening to double their usual size. “What?”

There’s no way she could possibly know I secretly had daydreams about Beau Gamble. I’d always made sure to keep that humiliating little detail completely hidden from everyone.

But I couldn’t help them. He noticed things about me. More than anyone else ever seemed to notice me. He typically used his acute powers of observation to somehow irritate me, sure, but it was kind of flattering to get that kind of unwavering attention, anyway.

If he ever decided to be polite with his notice instead of tease, I’d probably be a complete goner for him.

But Mom clearly wasn’t referring to Beau because she said, “Ridgely? Did you like him that much?”

Oh.

Ridgely.

My shoulders sagged. I hadn’t even thought of Ridgely since that night. He hadn’t talked to me in school, texted me, or contacted me in any way, asking me for another date or even to tell me never again. And honestly, I’d been too concerned with trying to dodge Beau to even consider Ridgely in return.

“Uh, well, not really,” I admitted with a wrinkle of my nose. Ridgely had kind of given off a slimy, creepy vibe whenever we’d been alone. I wouldn’t have had any interest in seeing him again, even if we hadn’t been slathered in dog feces together.

“So you’re just not going to forgive Beau, then?”

I sliced my mother with a scowl. “He doesn’t deserve to be forgiven.”

“Oh come on, honey. He’s sorry—”

“Sorry?” I cried incredulously. “Well, maybe he should’ve been sorry a long time ago because I’ve had enough. He’s one date too late. And now I just don’t care. He could live or die, and it wouldn’t matter to me. I’m done with Beau Gamble forever.”

“That can’t be true. You’ve known the boy since birth. He—”

“I hate him, Mom. I. Hate. Him.”

“That’s ridiculous. He’s a sweet—”

“Sweet?” I cried incredulously. “Yeah, to you maybe. But he’s never been sweet to me.”

Sadly, I doubt he could be. There just seemed to be something about me he despised.

“Will you just go over there and talk to him!” she muttered, growing irritable. “You do not hate him. And he’s going to be in your life for a long time to come, so the only person you’re hurting with this behavior is yourself.”

And Beau, I wanted to snarl. The one person I was trying to hurt. Because that’s exactly what he deserved for always hurting me.

I shook my head stubbornly. “I’m not going over there.”

“Go over there, or you’re grounded. I’m not even saying you have to fo

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