Page 56 of Faking It With the Small-Town Bad Boy

with red heels—a look that screams and whispers at the same time. “I

was trying to look like I know anything about punk rock.”

“You obviously nailed it.”

“You’re too kind,” I breathe. “I hope I’m not taking away from your

time with your band, though.”

“Nonsense. I told all the guys about us.”

I give him a narrow look. “How much do you tell them?”

“Just what everyone else knows, of course,” he adds with a quick

wink. “It’s nothing, though. They are cool with whatever I do. You

should go get a drink, Leah. You’ve been working all day on that car,

right?”

I smile at the car we’ve been fixing together for a while now. “Yeah,

it’s almost ready to run, too.”

His genuine happiness is enough to make me relax. “Good job, car

chick.”

My smile falters. “Why do you have to call me that? Can’t we come up

with something cute and simple?”

His eyes flicker over my shoulder before returning with a new,

unhappy tint to their once hazel hues. “How about, ladybug?”

My heart sinks. “What?”

He nods his head towards the front doors to the bar, Farrah and

Ryan walking in together hand-in-hand. Everyone turns to see them

as well, before the focus shifts back to Percy and me. I feel like we’re

in a tennis match, everyone shaking their heads back and forth while

they wait for the first serve to take place.

The drama is thick.

The tension is thicker.

“Oh, fuck,” I mutter. “I should go, Percy.”

He pulls my face to his, his hand resting warmly and gently on my

chin. He narrows his amber irises into my frame, and I nearly melt.

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