Page 27 of Scoreless Nights

“You’re not my father, either,” she sighed.

“Lil, just… be good,” I repeated.

“And you’re not my brother,” she tsked.

Holding my hands up, I surrendered, knowing I overstepped. She may have been from a small town, and a little naive, but she wasn’t a child. Just like Dad and Gloria, I had to back off.

“I gotta go,” I bit out, holding back the urge to drag her with me and throw her in the suite seats next to the bench. “Have fun tonight. Extra condoms are in my side drawer if you need them.”

Lily just shook her head at me, not even giving my offer the hell it deserved. But I was going to do a quick inventory, and if I was missing one later, then… then nothing. She could do whatever she wanted.

She pulled her book back up and smiled, quietly saying, “Later.”

I stared down at her, watching her read for a minute. She had the upper hand without even knowing it, and I was buzzing with anxiety. Then I realized she must have not been as cool as she was letting on, either. Because she had her head in her book for way too long, and never flipped the page. She was fake reading while I stood there like an idiot.

“Okay,” I finally took a step, trying to think of one more thing to say that could explain why I hadn’t left yet. “Um…”

Her eyes came back up, and through her dark lenses, her stare made me shake a little. She had no idea she was affecting me the way she was, but it wouldn’t be long before she realized she had so much power, and I couldn’t let her figure that out.

“You have to turn the pages to read,” I mumbled, then headed inside. I walked across the apartment and out the door, finally feeling like a badass, and like I turned the tables.

Psh, I told her.

But as I climbed in my car and started driving toward the stadium, I realized that all I did was show her my hand. I was paying more attention than I should have been, and I just tattled on myself.

ChapterFifteen

Lily

“Look at your tan!” Angel squealed when she saw me. “I see you love Miami as much as it loves you.”

“The balcony and the beach have been my friends.” I lifted my sunglasses and waggled my eyes at her, making her laugh.

I had once again avoided her coming to Cruz’s apartment by telling her, when she called, that I was taking a casual stroll down the oceanfront in South Beach. She told me she would pick me up and then we could grab Jackie from work.

We were driving through traffic listening to Camila Cabello, and singing along, as if she was giving us a private concert in the car. Never in my life had I had a friend that I could hang out with like that. Someone willing to sing at the top of their lungs to old songs, laughing and carefree. If I had given myself a second to think too hard, I would have been annoyingly emotional.

“Jackie’s so excited to finally meet you,” Angel yelled over the music.

I clapped my hands, unable to voice how excited I was to finally meet Jackie. Angel and I had always been closer, and kept in touch more, but Jackie had been a vital part of our girls’ Facetime nights. Plus, Angel said she was the one that created this night for us. She wanted to show me what summers in Miami were all about.

We drove up to an old restaurant whose name I could barely read because the sign was so weathered. There were a lot of cars in the parking lot, so the locals knew where they were, and that was all that mattered. Angel sent Jackie a text that we had arrived and within minutes, she was bouncing out of the door.

I climbed out of the passenger seat and ran to her, hugging her like I did Angel when we first met. Jackie was receptive, and hugged me back, but I definitely got a different vibe from her than I did Angel.

“Geez,” Jackie laughed, making me spin around. “The flowery top is very Smalltown, Carolina of you.”

It felt like a backhanded insult, but I didn’t let it bother me too long. She and I were going to be good friends, and I was going to have to learn that not everyone expressed themselves the same way I did.

“You look gorgeous,” I said to Jackie, motioning toward her tight, shredded jeans, and the strappy top she wore that barely covered her boobs. She wore high heels, and had on a face full of makeup that I wouldn’t have been able to duplicate to save my life. Her hair hung down her back, and her nails were long, painted bright pink.

Thankfully, Angel merged my plain flowery top and jean shorts with Jackie’s sexy look by falling somewhere in between. Angel wore less makeup and a less revealing top, but had tight jeans. Her nails were done to perfection, and I thought that maybe after some time, I would learn how to be sexy and hot the way they were.

We all climbed in the car and I took the backseat. Jackie spoke to Angel about her day at work, mostly complaining because she wasn’t supposed to work at all. She mentioned people I didn’t know, but it sounded like a mess I was thankful not to be in. I did feel a tad left out, but it was stupid of me to feel anything but thankful to have them, so I sat in the backseat with a smile and enjoyed the scenery.

“Almost there,” Jackie clapped, looking back, and finally speaking to me.

“Where?” I laughed, holding my hands open. All I knew was that we had left the city and driven fifteen minutes north. But nothing looked special, or abnormal, and I had to assume our hot Miami summer was going to start at the strip mall next to us. “Shopping?”

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