by Janie Marie
Lorelei’s happiness with the turn of events could only be registered by Kylie’s terrified eyes. She wanted to say more, but she knew nothing would help. Maura was pissed and hurt. She wasn’t going to let her get away without suffering.
“Calm down, Maura,” said Kevin softly. “Clearly, this Trevor boy lacks common decency. If his father was around, I’d talk to him myself, but I very well can’t go disciplining a boy who is not my son.”
“I’m sorry, Maura,” Kylie whispered as a tear fell from her stepsister’s eye.
“Just hurry up,” Maura spat, slamming down her fork and standing. “I’ll be in the car.”
Everyone watched Maura flee the room with her shoulders shaking. Kylie would have felt bad if she didn’t hate Maura’s guts. As far as Kylie was concerned, Maura deserved every bit of sadness she was experiencing, and she silently thanked Trevor for showing her she wasn’t as important as she thought she was.
“Oh, dear,” said Lorelei as Maura disappeared. “I think she must’ve really liked that boy.”
“It’s probably a good thing I don’t know where to find this Trevor,” Kevin muttered, taking another sip of his coffee. “Goodness, Kylie!”
She jumped at his sudden exclamation.
“What happened to your face?” he asked.
Instinctively, her hand went to her cheek. “Nothing. I just fell when I was walking home.”
“It looks like someone hit you.” He leaned forward, trying to inspect her puffy cheek.
“You know she’s just clumsy, Kevin,” Lorelei said, standing to clear off the table. “The girl is always banging into walls and tripping over air.”
Kylie looked down, trying to avoid his stare as she let her hood fall over more of her face.
Kevin narrowed his eyes at his wife before looking back at her. “Sweetheart, is there anything you need to tell us? Did this Trevor boy hurt you?”
“Of course he didn’t,” Lorelei yelled, slamming a plate down. It was unlike her to lose her cool. But everything was a little odd this morning.
“Lor, this boy might have hurt her,” Kevin said, his voice still raised with concern.
“She fell.” Lorelei huffed angrily before she pinched the bridge of her nose. “Kylie, darling, get your things and don’t keep Maura waiting.”
“Okay,” she whispered, putting her fork down as Kevin continued to stare at his wife. Kylie knew Lorelei was going to have to fix her slip in composure. She rarely lost it in front of others, but when she did, she used her looks to cover up any suspicion. “Bye.”
“Goodbye, sweetheart,” Kevin said, smiling at her before looking back at Lorelei.
Kylie didn’t wait to see Lorelei fix this. She bolted from the room as fast as she could, wincing when each step set off a twinge of pain in her chest.
After stumbling back downstairs with her backpack, she darted past the breakfast nook, barely catching a side-eyed glimpse of Lorelei kissing Kevin.
Kylie shook her head and ran out to the car. Lorelei sure worked fast. She just hoped Maura’s heartache would be debilitating rather than further fueling her urge to inflict pain.
Pulling open the car door, Kylie carefully took her seat. She didn’t dare meet Maura’s angry gaze and kept quiet as they began heading to school.
Her body was coiled tightly, clutching her bag to her chest as they sped down the streets to Blackwoods High School. She knew something was coming, and the silence was filling her with dread.
The throbbing in her head returned, but she ignored it as a sudden urge to console Maura rose in her. “Maura?” Her voice shook, and she tried to subtly move farther away. She chanced peeking over to see her stepsister gripping the steering wheel tightly, but the pain in Maura’s normally vindictive eyes was what tugged at something inside Kylie. “I’m really sorry, Maura. I don’t know where he went.”
“Just drop it, Kylie!”
Kylie flinched from the high pitch of her voice and turned her head to look out the window, knowing without a doubt what Maura Payne was going to deliver tonight.
Pain.
Logan rubbed his tired eyes as he stumbled toward the kitchen. His head was killing him. “Shit,” he muttered, shielding his eyes from the refrigerator light.
Growling in frustration, he grabbed eggs, cheese, and bacon before shutting the refrigerator and dropping his ingredients on the counter, cracking a few of the eggs. “Goddammit!” he yelled, picking up the broken eggs and hurling them at the sink. He breathed heavily, bracing himself against the counter as his mind went to a girl he shouldn’t have been thinking about.
“Do you need help?”
Logan slowly turned his head and peered over his shoulder, narrowing his dark eyes at the pretty brunette wearing only a large T-shirt.
She toyed with the hem of her shirt. “Maybe I can make you breakfast, or get you some aspirin?”
Logan didn’t respond right away. His grip tightened on the edge of the counter when she tried to step closer. “Who the fuck said you could still be here in the morning?” He glared at her as he stood to his full height.
“I-I—“ she stuttered and stepped back. “I didn’t know I couldn’t stay.”
“Get out of my fucking apartment,” he shouted, slapping the counter. The loud sound echoed and the girl shrieked, running from the kitchen. Logan grabbed his pounding head as he listened to her crying until the front door slammed shut.
“Dumb bitch.” He shook his head and put the still usable breakfast items back in the refrigerator, grabbing a water bottle in the process and retrieving a bottle of aspirin. He poured out two pills and took them quickly before returning to his room.
As he picked up his jeans from the floor, he dug out his mobile. Not stopping to read his messages, he searched through his contacts and pressed call when he found the one he wanted.
His muscles flexed as he paced his room, snatching up a towel and fresh clothes. “Chris,” he said, stopping in his path.
“Logan, listen, I’m sorry. I—”
He growled, tightening his hold on the phone. “Save it, or I’ll break your other arm.” He studied his bloody jeans before marching toward his bathroom. “Just tell me what you told Kylie last night.”
“I only told her you had a thing for brunettes.” Chris stayed quiet for a few seconds. “I was keeping your head straight, brother. You know how you get.”
He squeezed his phone to the point he heard it crack. “You’re lucky I didn’t know this before I put you in the hospital. You’re fired.”
Five
LIKE A MOVIE
The five-minute chaos between classes was probably the most annoying part of Kylie’s school day. If she looked to her left, a dumb jock had his tongue down some cheerleader’s throat, and to her right, a bad boy wearing a black leather jacket was glaring at the world as a mass of students parted for him.
Kylie rolled her eyes as Ryder Godson, Blackwoods High’s notorious bad boy, pushed some unsuspecting jock into a locker, causing an all-out melee between Ryder and his three brothers—who always came out of nowhere—and jock-boy’s teammates.
“Idiots,” she muttered, stumbling a bit after being shoved by eager teens all rushing to see the fight. She had to admit that Ryder Godson was practically a god—and not the kind of Greek god Trevor was. No, he was the complete opposite of Trevor. Like the god of darkness . . . and sex.
He wasn’t her favorite daydream, but it was nice to watch him do just about anything. If only he wasn’t a heartless asshole.
She sighed, pushing her way through the crowd to get to class. That’s when she realized the jerks Ryder and his brothers were pummeling were the same jerks who often threw wads of paper at her and stuck gum on her chair.
On second thought . . . class can wait.
Kylie turned to enjoy the sight of Ryder in all his hunky glory as he pinned Philip Miller down and punched him over and over. She cringed as she watched Philip’s face swelling, and the little spray of blood that shot o
ut of his mouth.
Violence wasn’t something she condoned, obviously, but she found herself enjoying the sadistic smirk on Ryder’s face after he’d knocked Philip out cold. Her lips twitched with a smile, and she didn’t really care that it had to do with someone else being hurt.
Philip had repeatedly embarrassed her in the past, and for a tiny moment, she fantasized that Ryder and his brothers were doing this for her.
Her smile disappeared when Janie Mortaime, Ryder’s girlfriend, pushed her way through the crowd. The girl was waving her hands about, shouting nonsense, as Ryder wiped his bloody hands on Philip’s shirt.
Kylie sighed when Ryder ignored Janie’s glare and kissed his girlfriend senseless as he lifted her up, wrapping her legs around him, and marched down the hall.
There goes today’s Ryder fantasy. It would’ve been more appealing if Ryder really was just a heartless asshole, but he did care about one person. His girlfriend.
It wasn’t fair to watch everyone else matter but her.
Kylie’s thoughts drifted to Trevor. His face morphed into Logan’s, and before she knew what she was doing, she imagined it was Logan carrying her off as she watched Ryder and Janie get farther away.
It was stupid to think about him. Logan didn’t want a girlfriend—he’d told her what he wanted from her. She shouldn’t even care about him; he was a player. But…
“Ow!” Her books spilled to the floor when someone knocked her from behind. She turned to see who pushed her, but they had already continued running down the hall.
Turning back to gather her things, she grimaced from the old pain in her side. “Stupid fuckhole,” she muttered, adding extra insults in her head as she tried to arrange her books.
“Did you just say fuckhole?”
Kylie whipped her head around to see none other than Trevor Grimm kneeling beside her.
Opening and closing her mouth a few times, she finally responded to his smiling face. “Yes,” she whispered as he handed her one of her folders. “Someone made me drop my books. I was just angry.”
He chuckled, handing her the final piece of paper she had dropped. “I wouldn’t have guessed you had that kind of mouth.”
Kylie frowned as he looked her over. She had a feeling he meant something other than her use of language. Yesterday, she would have turned into a blushing mess because of the smile he was giving her, but today, all she could think about was Logan’s words: A girl to use for the moment.
Pushing away her thoughts, she spoke. “Well, my mom always told me that people who didn’t cuss were less trustworthy than those who did.” That was a lie. She really didn’t remember much about her mom. She’d just seen a quote about it.
Trevor laughed as he stood up, offering her his hand. “Well, I was about to say that I don’t like to cuss, but I guess that would make me untrustworthy, wouldn’t it?”
She hesitated but took his hand. “Thanks,” she said, letting go. “I’m sure you’re trustworthy, Trevor.”
He grinned, making her stomach flip. Even though he had done her wrong, he was still her dream guy. It was pathetic, but that’s what dream guys were for.
“Well, thank you. I hope to keep your trust,” he said, watching her tug her hood into place.
“Yeah.” She took a step back. “I, uh, should get to class. I think I’m late now. Thanks for helping me.”
He nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Sure. I was hoping I’d see you. I wanted to thank you for your help. Mrs. Lewis was impressed with all the drawings. I think I’m going to get an A.”
She smiled, but only because she remembered Logan’s project was the one he turned in. He’d dug around for hours looking for it. For her. “I’m glad you’re going to pass.” Again, she prepared to leave; this whole conversation was nothing but awkward. She couldn’t even look at Trevor like she used to without thinking of Logan, but she suddenly couldn’t stop herself from speaking again. “Can I ask you something, Trevor?”
He was taking a step away. “Yeah.”
“What did you have to do last night that was so important you couldn’t stay to help me?”
Trevor looked a little surprised, but he answered, “I told you—I had a thing.”
“Yeah, I remember what you said. But I’m curious as to why you never showed up to take her out if you abandoned me.” She had to stop her eyes from showing shock as she waited for him to respond. It was so unlike her to confront someone. Especially the boy who’d had her heart for so long.
“Her?” He scratched his head. “I don’t know who you’re talking about. I had to go see a coach from one of the universities I applied to.”
A bit of her adrenalin faded. “A coach? But what about Maura?”
His face scrunched up in confusion. “Your sister?”
Kylie stood still as he appeared to remember his date.
“Oh, shit. I completely forgot about her. The coach thing has been scheduled for months.” He rubbed his face. “It was your mom who suggested I take her out—I don’t even like Maura. She’s hot, but, you know—I date nice girls.” He gestured to her somewhat, making her heart speed up. “Maura ran into me the next day. I guess your mom let it slip about me taking her out. I was on the spot . . . I asked, and she said she was free. I wasn’t even paying attention to the dates.”
“Oh,” she whispered. It all made sense. Lorelei did often suggest boys take Maura out—not that she needed advertisement. All the boys knew Maura.
“Is she mad? Was she crying or something?” He was so stressed.
He looked more like the Trevor she’d always imagined him to be. A good guy. Her dream guy. Only, he was worried about Maura, not her.
She nodded. “Yeah, she thought I had something to do with you not coming.”
“Damn.” He grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eye. “I’m sorry, Kylie. I really didn’t mean to forget. And I felt like a total dick for leaving you. That’s not like me at all. Honest.”
“I believe you,” she said, her voice way too breathless, but she couldn’t fix that. He was so close.
“I’ll talk to her, explain it all, okay? I’ll make sure she knows you knew nothing. I’ll make it up to both of you.”
“Okay,” she whispered, staring into his big blue eyes.
Trevor smiled brightly, looking a lot like Logan for a second, then moved her hood back and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. “Thanks, Kylie. I promise to fix this.”
The whole time he spoke, he left his lips on her skin. Her body and mind went to mush. Every fantasy she’d ever had of this boy came forward, and she was frozen.
“And, Kylie”—he moved back to look at her, still wearing that big smile—“I meant what I said. I’m not interested in Maura.”
With those final words, he winked and dropped his hands, leaving her standing dumbstruck in the middle of the hall.
“What the hell just happened?” She looked around when he turned down the next hall and realized she was ten minutes late for class. “Shit!”
Kylie tugged her hood tighter to her head as her gaze drifted to the side of the room where Ryder Godson sat. He’d been moved to her English class today. Girls were dying to get a class with him or one of the brothers, and somehow, Kylie managed to get all four Godsons in her class.
Yep, all four of them were now in her class. All sitting just feet away. From her understanding, they were quadruplets—not identical—but she’d heard the boys often refer to Ryder as the ‘big brother.’ Maybe he was the first born. Either way, they were the gods of Blackwoods.
First, there was Archer. He was hot in a unique way. He had hair so blond, it looked white, like really white, and he had the palest blue-gray eyes, almost matching his light skin. He was the funny one of the group, always cracking jokes or pulling pranks to amuse himself.
Next, there was Savaş. No one could miss him. He was huge, bigger than Ryder in height and bulk—and his golden skin and bright red hair made him stand out even more. He got i
n more fights than Ryder, but he was polite whenever he spoke to people whereas Ryder made you feel like you didn’t matter at all.
Then there was Tercero Godson—the calm brother. He looked almost identical to Ryder, except he had more of an emo look about him. Where Ryder was bigger, tanned, and just oozing sex and danger, Tercero was lean with a very pale complexion, and he had a quiet, intelligent aura. He reminded her of the anime characters that girls always had secret crushes on. He even had long, straight black hair. Normally that was a negative thing for her, but he pulled it off, especially with the way he dressed. He always wore all black, and it made his light skin stand out even more against his black eyes.
This was the first time Kylie had ever had a class with any of them. She was certain it was only because Janie Mortaime had this class. Normally, Kylie ignored anything to do with the girl. Every time Janie opened her mouth to argue with the teacher, Kylie blocked out her voice and focused on her work. Today, Janie wasn’t in class, and kids were whispering she’d been kicked out of school. With Janie gone, and the Godsons showing up with slips confirming their change in class period, Kylie was fully absorbed in the buzz.
It was especially wonderful because the boys they fought earlier were nursing their wounds on the opposite side of the classroom. Maybe now Kylie wouldn’t have to put up with those guys anymore.
Tercero muttered something to Ryder, and she hid her smile when Ryder grinned. God, he’s gorgeous.
She sighed, trying to focus again. It was becoming more frustrating by the second that she was looking at every bad boy now. She knew why bad boys were on her brain. Logan Grimm.
“Ryder Godson?” called Mrs. Demoness.
Ryder didn’t look up or reply.
The teacher sighed. “Your assignment, Mr. Godson—where is it? Just because you switched periods when you have me does not change the fact that your work is still due during class.”
Finally, Ryder looked up. “My girlfriend has it, and you already know she’s at the principal’s office. I’ll turn it in later.”