Total pages in book: 150
Estimated words: 136791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
As usual, I'm not here for them anyway. I'm here for my girl. My classes let out yesterday for the Thanksgiving break, and I'm dying to see her. Now that she's working at a local coffee shop after school and on weekends, we don't get nearly enough time together. We barely see each other. I miss her like crazy. It's making me grumpy.
Or maybe I'm in a foul mood because the anniversary of my mom's death is tomorrow. This is the first year I've had to face it without Ma Lucia. The thought of going to the cemetery without her is fucking me up a little. I just want to wrap my arms around my girl and get lost for a while.
"What the fuck?" I mumble, pulling my sunglasses off my face when she strolls through the double doors of the school and steps out into the sunshine. She's dressed in a little pink skirt and a white top with a tiny bow that gathers the material right below her breasts. It's modest but sexy. With her long blonde hair piled up on top of her head and a happy smile dancing on her lips, she's beautiful.
Some asshole has his arm flung over her shoulder, talking to her. She steps away, making him drop his arm from around her, but she tilts her head back to peek up at him and then laughs. He tips his down toward her, his smile growing. They look real fucking cozy.
My blood boils when he reaches out and tugs on her ponytail. That's our thing. I've been tugging on her hair since we were little kids. No way does some other son of a bitch get to do it too. I growl and stomp in their direction, my heart pounding hard against my ribcage.
"You'll do great, Tony," January tells the guy as I approach. She still hasn't even noticed me. "I know you will."
"You gonna come cheer me on, Sunshine?" he asks, clearly flirting with her.
January laughs and shakes her head before hoisting her bag up her shoulder. "I actually have plans, but text me and let me know how it goes, okay?"
"What the fuck?" I bark.
January spins to face me. A big smile spreads across her face when she sees me. Uncertainty filters through her eyes, her smile slipping when she notices my thunderous expression.
I step up beside her and flick my gaze over the douche still standing there in his Affliction shirt and faded jeans. He looks like a jackass with his blond hair in a fauxhawk and a thick gold chain around his neck.
"You need something?" I snap at him.
"Nah, man. I'm good." He shakes his head and dismisses me, leering at my girl. His gaze flicks up and down her body, desire evident in the way he licks his lips. "See you later, Sunshine."
"Bye, Tony."
Tony winks at her before jogging away.
"Sunshine?" I ask, not even looking at her. The way I'm feeling right now, I'm liable to pin her to the wall and show Tony and every other little bastard at this school that she's mine. Possessive jealousy courses through me with each beat of my heart. "Why the fuck is he calling you sunshine, baby girl?"
"He just calls me that." She says it like it's no big deal that some other dude has a pet name for her.
"Does he just touch you like that, too?" I demand, watching as he disappears into the crowd headed toward the buses.
"Touch me?" She sounds confused.
"Yeah, touch you," I mutter. "I saw him with his arm around you."
"Oh, that."
"Yeah, that." I turn to face her, only to see her frowning at me like she doesn't see a problem here.
"I moved away from him," she says, her emerald eyes flickering across my face.
"Not the point, January. He shouldn't be fucking touching you at all."
Hurt trickles into her expression. "He's just a friend, Cade," she says, pitching her voice low so it doesn't carry to her classmates who are still flowing out the doors and down the sidewalk around us. "He flirts with everyone, even our teachers. He doesn't mean anything by it."
"Does he know about me?" I demand, not mollified by her explanation or assurance that he's just a friend. He wants her. That much was obvious by the way he smiled at her like she hung the moon.
"Of course he does." Her eyes narrow, irritation flashing through them. "You don't trust me?"
"I don't trust him," I correct. "You need to tell him to back off before I do it."
"Don't tell me what to do, Cade," she snaps at me.
A group of her classmates slow down, casting furtive glances in our direction.
"Keep fucking walking," I snarl at them.
A couple of sets of eyes go wide. They all hurry away, whispering back and forth to one another.