Page 14 of The Love of My Next Life
“Don’t worry about me, okay? I got me, and I won’t let you down.”
She squeezes me tighter, then lets me go. “I sure hope so, Macon.”
She tells us to have a good day at school, then takes her coffee and goes into the living room. Immediately, Claire turns on me.
“What the hell is wrong with you, Macon?” she seethes. I don’t answer because I know it’s a rhetorical question. Claire thinks she knows exactly what’s wrong with me. She whips around and marches out the door.
Some siblings, who have been through what our family has been through, are close; they bond over the shared loss and become best friends despite their differences.
Not me and Claire.
She hates me. Sheblamesme.
And honestly, I agree with her.
I throw myself into the back seat of Claire’s car and toss my jacket over my face. She turns up her shitty music because she knows it irritates me. Fuck, I miss my car. Monday cannot come soon enough, for multiple reasons.
When I feel the car turn and move into park, I hold my breath. The drive was too quick for us to be at school already, which can only mean...
I pull my jacket off my face and sit up.
Sure as shit, here comes fucking Lennon bouncing down the path from her house to our car. Gray skirt and a baby-pink button down. And that damn braid.
Un-fucking-believable.
When she climbs in, I fling myself back down and groan.
“Figured you’d want to drive yourself instead of ride with me, Leonard,” I hiss, and watch her shoulders stiffen.
“She tried,” Claire speaks up in her place, “but she can’t say no to me.”
I can hear the smug smile in Claire’s voice, and I scoff. Of course. Because Lennon doesn’t say no to anyone. Lennon is toonice. Lennon bends over backward for everyone.
Everyone except me.
I smirk to hide my disgust and take note of the silk scarf tied around her neck. I remember my lips on her, my teeth. I must have marked her good if she’s got to wear something other than makeup to hide it. It makes me hard.
I jab my knee into the back of her headrest, making sure to hit it right in the middle, so it knocks into that schoolgirl braid of hers. I hate that fucking braid.
“Nice scarf,Astraea.”Her delicate jaw tightens, and I can see the muscles twitch like she’s grinding her teeth. Good. My smile grows. “Why you wearing that, huh?”
“Shutup, Macon.” Claire groans. “Jesus, why can’t you just leave her alone.”
“It’s fine,” Lennon says. “I can ignore him for the next ten minutes. He’snothing.”
Her words are like a punch to the gut, so I jab my knee into her headrest again, and she lets out a little growl. I smirk. There she is. I pull my jacket back over my head.
“Why did he call youAstraea?”I hear Claire ask Lennon quietly. Then I hear the tiniest amused laugh. Lennon’s.
“She’s the Greek goddess of purity and innocence,” Lennon says. “Celestial virgin.”
Claire snorts. “Innocent, maybe,” she jokes, “but virginal and pure? Definitely not.”
My fists clench at my sides and my heart kicks hard into my rib cage. I barely register Lennon telling Claire to shush through the sound of blood rushing in my ears. What the fuck does she mean,definitely not? I pull my coat off my face and glare at Lennon, the embarrassed shade of pink on her cheeks—the same one that usually amuses me—makes my vision blur with fury. When Claire parks in the senior lot, I’m out the door before the girls can even unbuckle their seat belts.
It's only Tuesday, and I’m already sick of this week.
I head straight for Sam. She’s standing with our friends, Julian and Casper, but I ignore them and grab on to her waist, pulling her body hard against mine and taking her mouth in a kiss. My anger pours into this kiss, battling with her tongue and biting hard on her lip. Her taste is familiar, cigarettes and cinnamon gum, and I try to force myself to focus on just that. On her body, and her tongue licking at the inside of my mouth.
