Page 10 of Fighting Fate

“How?” I raise an eyebrow.

“Just that you’re this beautiful girl. I fully expect you to act like all the other girls in my school that are beautiful, rich, and snobby.” He shrugs. “But you’re so different.”

I chew on the side of my lip anxiously. “Is different good?”

“Different is wonderful,” he says.

My heart skips a beat.

Griffin isn’t like I expected either—but I don’t want to tell himthat. I guess part of me expected that Griffin brought me here to kill me, but not everybody is like Preston Lomax.

“Have you ever had a boyfriend?” Griffin asks.

Is it that obvious that I’ve never had a boyfriend?

I shake my head. “No.”

My stomach tightens at the thought of Griffin asking me—but it’s not with excitement. It’s with fear. I don’t want Griffin to ask me to be his girlfriend, not yet anyway. I barely even know him.

But thankfully he doesn’t do that. Instead, he nods his head toward the party and suggests that we go back. On the walk back, Griffin holds my hand. And while part of me is on cloud nine because I have a date to homecoming, the other part of me is disappointed.

Does going with Griffin mean that I won’t get to dance with Hunter?

Saturday, October 10

Flat like a shaken soda.

I dread today, which probably makes me a bad best friend. Harper is so looking forward to shopping, but all I can think is that I’d rather be at the cabin watching reruns of a show that would inevitably make Hunter roll his eyes at me and constantly remind me that I have horrible taste.

Maybe today will be good. I need to spend less time with Hunter alone. This stupid crush that I’m developing on my bodyguard is not good. Not at all. Griffin is who I should focus my attention on. He’s a good guy. He’s my age. And, most importantly, he’s interested in me. Hunter isn’t. Hunter just sees me as his job. And sure, he calls me his friend. Maybe he evenlikesme. But he doesn’t like me the same way I like him. So these strong feelings that I have for him? Completely one sided.

I put on a sundress, thinking it will be easier to take on and off while we’re trying on homecoming dresses. I do wear a cardigan with it because it’s a little cold this morning. I’m sure by noon I’ll be ditching the cardigan. It’s the time of year when the weather is bipolar—cold in the morning, sweltering by midday. Still, it’s my favorite time of the year.

When I walk into the living room, I’m surprised to find Hunter isn’t standing there alone. There is a boy with blond hair standing next to him.

I don’t know the boy, but I do know he doesn’t go to school at West Raven. If he did, I would recognize him.

The guy is very attractive—not as smoldering as Hunter, but gorgeous nonetheless. They both turn to look at me as I enter the room.

“Are you ready?” Hunter asks, not bothering with introductions.

I walk up to the two, ignoring Hunter. “Hey, I’m Cove.”

The other boy nods. “Hey, Cove. I’m Sander.”

Realization dawns. “Ah, the hot dude from East Raven. I’ve heard a lot about you from Harper. She has a huge crush on you.” I reach over and pat his shoulder. “Good luck today. You’re going to need it.”

Sander grins. “I like you already. But your friend knows I have a girlfriend, right?”

“I don’t think she cares.” I turn to Hunter, narrowing my eyes. “Thanks for introducing me to your friend.”

Hunter rolls his eyes. “I was getting to that part. You beat me to it. Now we should go. Your friend is waiting. She’s sent about ten texts in the last three minutes.” His phone chimes. “Make that eleven.”

I pull my phone out of my pocket, seeing the messages.

“Dude, you get her text messages?” Sander asks.

Hunter doesn’t say a word.

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