Total pages in book: 140
Estimated words: 137433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 687(@200wpm)___ 550(@250wpm)___ 458(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 687(@200wpm)___ 550(@250wpm)___ 458(@300wpm)
Lev: Okay.
Thalia: Love you.
My eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets.
Thalia: KIDDING.
Thalia: Omg look at your face.
Lev: You can’t see my face.
Thalia: But I can sit on it l8r today😊.
Thalia: Meet me in the locker room after practice.
Lev: Busy day.
But I really should get my rocks off. My nuts are about to explode from the sexual tension with Bailey earlier this week.
Thalia:
The attachment is a naked selfie. I delete it before anyone can see it. Or at least, I think I do.
“Ask her for anal, dude. And to gag her. Her voice is awful.” Grim makes a face, his head inches from my phone.
I punch his arm, growling. “Kwon, I say this as a friend—you’re a fucking menace.”
“Aww.” Grim parks his head on my shoulder, staring up at me. “I love you too.”
“Cole!” Coach barks, tromping toward me, his legion of assistants scurrying behind him. Gotta hate SoCal and its super-competitive high school football mentality. “Find anything amusing?”
“No, Coach.”
“You sure? Because the shape of our team looks like a real joke to me. St. John Bosco will annihilate us if you don’t take this seriously.”
“Yes, Coach.”
He is in my face now, all six-foot-five former NFL player of him. What’s with people pissing all over my personal space? I’ve never been closer to punching someone to a pulp than I am right now.
Happy for me, my ass. Bailey has to be jealous. She has to be.
Coach Taylor’s nose touches mine. “You missed practice yesterday.”
I shrug indifferently. “Had the shits.”
“There’s a lot more shit in your future when I throw you off the team.” He steps back when he realizes I don’t flinch. “Clear head makes for steadier legs. Ditch the phone, or I’m ditching you from my squad.”
Blow me, asshat. I’m the best you’ve got and we both know it.
The worst part is that I wish he’d kick me off of the squad. Then I’d have the perfect excuse to apply to the Air Force. Alas, I’m too chickenshit to disappoint Dad and Knight.
“Yes, Coach.”
Coach starts breaking us into groups for agility drills. Before I toss my phone into my duffel bag, I text Bailey, Fine. You win. Lunch?
I’m not doing this whole silent-treatment bullshit with my former best friend. Even after the clusterfuck that was our reunion.
I turn to join the team Coach assigned me to. My head’s such a mess, I fall flat on my face, stumbling over my own legs. I recover quickly, back up on my feet, but people aren’t blind.
“Oh, shit!” Austin booms. “Is the ground okay?” Laughter rings across the field.
“Do you want us to be the butt of every joke south of Huntington Beach?” Coach roars, stomping in my direction. “I miss your brother. He was a fuckup, high as a kite half the time, but at least he liked to play ball.”
“Yeah, well, feel free to play with my balls if you’re so inclined,” I mutter, jumping up quickly and joining his group.
“I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that, boy,” Coach Taylor says.
By the time the school day ends, Bailey still hasn’t replied.
Chapter
Lev
At first, I accommodate Bailey’s brazen ghosting. I get it. Everyone deserves a free pass. And technically speaking, she has every right to give me shit. Not about the drug inquisition. That, I would do all over again. The Thalia thing, however…that must’ve stung.
We never really dated anyone seriously when we were good friends. I once beat a guy to a pulp for asking her out. He was a senior while I was a freshman. So I’m feeling pretty fucking two-faced right now.
After school, I head over to the Followhills’ and let myself in. Bailey is probably waiting for me to pick her up to grab a bite like we used to.
Her lack of response was general fuck-you-ness for telling her she’s a junkie. Only, when I walk in, Mel announces Bailey went with her dad to Costco. She chose Costco over me. Costco. Bailey doesn’t even eat the free samples. She likes bulk electronics as much as I like jerking off using hot cooking oil as a lubricant.
“That’s fine,” I bite out. “I was gonna work on the Chiron outside anyway. I’ll just catch her when she comes back,” I hear myself tell Mel. I tromp outside and pull the navy chrome Bugatti outside of our garage, pretending to change the oil.
I’m swallowing every piece of the humble pie she’s serving me, crumbs included.
Happy now, Bails?
Finally, Jaime’s Rover pulls into their garage across the street and I wipe my hands with a dirty cloth, sauntering their way. Bailey slides out of the passenger’s seat.
She’s wearing a plaid green skirt, knee-high white socks, Mary Janes, and a cropped top. I shove the oiled cloth to my back pocket and give her a look as I stop in front of her in their garage. “Lookie here, now. You’re alive after all.”