Page 96 of In the Dark

I guess it is.

Wes sees us first.We enter on the opposite end of the gym from where the cheerleaders practice, and Rhys and Wes are doing some sort of warm-up drill at the other end.

All I can do is stand there, because Denielle does her usual thing. She commands the attention of the entire room, and I pray the ground opens up and swallows me on the spot. I have no clue how she manages that, but everything stops. The chatter coming from the girls dies down, and out of the corner of my eye, I’m aware of almost all of them staring at us.

Wes nudges Rhys, who’s facing away, whispering something to him, and his head whips around. He blinks once, twice as if to make sure I’m really here and then flicks his gaze to Denielle. They exchange some sort of unspoken message, and Rhys’s entire demeanor turns menacing, yet his eyes shine with worry. I know this boy’s face like my own, and he’s putting up a front for everyone in this room but asks me at the same time what’s wrong.

Both Rhys and Wes say something to their coach, grab their things, and march over, ignoring the gawking cheerleaders. No one speaks. Den turns on her heel and leads me out of there, away from the building and possible prying eyes. Rhys and Wes are close on our heels. I feel the heat radiating off Rhys’s body, but he doesn’t touch me.

We don’t stop until we’re back in the parking lot. Denielle hands over my phone to Rhys, who immediately starts scrolling.

Which one of them unlocked my phone? I seriously have no privacy in my life.

Wes is peeking over Rhys’s shoulder, his eyes threatening to pop out of their sockets. He glances over to Denielle and me and then mumbles, "The last one is from today."

That gets Rhys’s attention, who has moved back to the picture of Nate and me. He zeros in on Denielle, then me, then the picture.

"Fuck."

Is that the only word they have in their vocabulary?

"Uh,dude, your sister just walked in."

Huh? My sis— Oh. I peer over my shoulder and instantly know something is wrong. Apart from the fact that neither Denielle nor Lillyevershow up during practice, Denielle has her guard-dog face on full display. Her hand is protectively around Lilly’s upper arm, anchoring her to the spot, and Lilly is pale as a ghost.

My gaze flickers over to the left, and not surprisingly, Kat has noticed them as well. Everyone has. At that moment, Kat’s eyes meet mine, and she raises one perfectly plucked eyebrow, her mouth set in a devious smile:See, I told you she doesn’t do a good job.

Skipping through the message,my mind is stuck on the second picture. Lilly is talking to the tall blond from the gym, and he’s grinning down at her like...I don’t even know. When did that happen? And why hasn’t she told me about it? A growl echoes in my mind.

"Down boy," penetrates the red haze. I recognize Denielle’s voice.

Did I growl out loud?

"—from today." Today? What? Moving to the last picture and taking a better look at Lilly and her best friend beside me, I only come up with one word. "Fuck."

"We should get out of here," Wes speaks up, and I couldn’t agree more.

"Let’s go to my place," Denielle offers. Her parents are still gone, so we won’t risk being interrupted.

I try to catch Lilly’s eyes, but she focuses on everything but me.

Wanting to get her alone, I say, "Okay. Lilly and I will meet—"

"No." Her voice is low but stern. She finally turns to me, and her expression sends chills down my spine.

"Babe?" I whisper, not wanting anyone to overhear but also unable to keep my emotions in check any longer.

"Wes can drive me in my car. You can take him to get his later." Turning to her best friend, she adds, "We’ll meet you at your house." And with that, she plucks her keys from Denielle’s fingers, hands them to Wes, and marches off. My mouth hangs open, and so does Denielle’s.

What just happened?

"Uh..." Wes is as stunned as I am, but I shrug, and he jogs aftermygirl.

I beateveryone to Denielle’s house and am waiting impatiently in the driveway when first Lilly’s Jeep and then Denielle’s Audi pull in. Watching my best friend behind the wheel of my girlfriend’s car with her seated next to him makes me ball my hands into fists. There is nothing going on that would justify the black spots appearing in my vision, but deep down, I know that something has shifted, and it’s easier to blame Wes than myself.

We follow Denielle into the kitchen, who then disappears down the back hallway, coming back with a bottle of Macallan 30 and four glasses. As Wes and I eye the bottle, she smirks. "From my dad’s collection. He won’t notice; he has like eight of them."

"Uh. O-kay then."

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