Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 93312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93312 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Taylor steps toward me, getting in my space. “If you think you’re going to take my place as team captain just because you decided to come back, you’ve got another thing coming.”
“I wasn’t aware the team captain had been chosen for this year yet,” I shoot back. The thought didn’t even occur to me, but she doesn’t have to know that.
“All right, ladies,” Coach’s voice echoes through the gym before Taylor can respond, clapping his hands to get everyone’s attention. “First, it’s nice to see both new and familiar faces. We’re going to start out with a group warm-up, run some laps, then we’ll partner up for some passing. We’ll finish by seeing where you’re at with your spiking, serving, digging, and setting skills. In the coming days, we’ll move on to scrimmages to evaluate footwork and how you work as a team. Sound good?”
I nod my understanding and a couple overzealous girls cheer.
“Taylor, lead the warm-up?”
“My pleasure,” Taylor says, sending me a smirk before she skips away.
The next hour and a half flies by surprisingly fast, and before I know it, Coach is blowing the whistle and telling us all he’ll see us tomorrow. I grab my backpack from the bleachers and manage to make it out to the parking lot before Taylor can come back for another round. I’m sweaty and tired and apparently out of shape, and there’s nothing I want more than to go home and shower.
By the time I make it home, it’s dark, and the empty driveway tells me my mom’s gone. Again. Unlocking the door, I walk in and flip on the light switch. I go straight to my room, tossing my bag onto my bed before toeing off my shoes. Pulling my shirt over my head, I turn to throw it into my laundry basket, but I freeze when I see Thayer standing in my room on the other side of my bed, my shirt landing nowhere near its intended target.
“What the hell?” I screech, bringing my arms up to cover my chest. “What are you doing?” I slap a hand behind me, hitting the light switch. Thayer stands there, arms crossed, blank expression on his stupid, perfect face.
“Hand it over.” His voice is flat and to the point.
“Hand what over?” I feel my eyebrows tug together in confusion.
He rounds the bed, holding out a palm. “The key to the barn.”
My heartbeat kicks up a notch.
“I know you were there.” He moves closer, and I kick myself for taking a small step backwards.
“My mom will be here soon.”
He snorts, not hesitating for even a second. “You think I give a fuck?”
“What happened to you?” I can’t help but ask. His dark eyes narrow, a storm clouding his perfect features.
“Don’t play dumb, Shayne. It doesn’t suit you.”
I frown, looking into those sad eyes, and my heart breaks just a little. “I wish I could change what happened—”
Thayer’s in my face in an instant, his arms caging me in against the back of my bedroom door. “Don’t,” he warns, his voice full of venom. “You shouldn’t even fucking be here.”
“Where else would I be?” I whisper, my chest heaving, both thrilled and terrified to be this close to him again. He’s different now. Unpredictable. But physically, he still feels like Thayer. Still looks like him. And my body isn’t communicating with my brain because it still reacts to his nearness. His eyes slide down, hesitating on my sports bra.
“What do we have here?” He brushes the tip of his thumb across the thin material, directly over my nipple. I shudder, flinching away. “You actually did it.”
“They can’t be touched yet.”
He lifts his eyebrow at the word yet, and I’m quick to correct myself.
“You can’t touch them at all.”
“Relax,” he says before I can correct myself again. He pushes off the wall, putting space between us. “You’re the last person I want to touch.”
I force my face not to crumble at his words. The old Thayer wasn’t exactly a boy scout, but this version? This version is cold and cruel and not the boy I fell for in that barn.
“Get out,” I say, steeling my tone. “Now.”
“Give me the key and I’m gone.”
I consider giving it to him, if only to make him leave, but the thought of not having access to the one place that feels like home…
“I dropped it.”
“Bullshit.”
“It’s your fault,” I snap back. “Maybe if I wasn’t being chased, I wouldn’t have dropped it.”
He works his jaw before responding. “Stay away, Shayne. From the barn, from Holden, and from me.”
I want to ask him again why he’s doing this. Why he’s acting like I did anything other than try to be there for him, but my pride won’t let me. I won’t beg for an explanation. I won’t beg him to care about me.