“Shay,” I say, cutting her off. “It’s okay. You don’t need my permission to see your husband. This is your home and I’ve been so blessed that you were willing to take us in. Seriously, I don’t know where Blake and I would be if we never found you. Ben is a part of who you are, and yeah, I’m probably going to be really pissed and hurt by what he did for a long time to come, but he’s your other half and if you want to try again with him then I think you should go for it.”
I glance at Slade, feeling his gaze already on me, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to live without him. Letting out a heavy sigh, I look back to Shay. “I don’t know how I would cope had that been me and Slade, but I think when it’s the man you love, you have to fight for all it’s worth because, at the end of the day, he’s your everything and the man who’ll stand by your side through thick and thin.”
Shaylee nods. “He is.”
I give her a warm smile. “Then if that’s what he means to you, I’ll find it in myself to try.”
Shay pulls me in and wraps me in her warm arms. “That’s so much more than I could ever ask for. Thank you, my sweet girl. I know we’re going to be okay.”
Chapter 22
My bedroom door swings open and I find Nessa staring at me from the open doorway, her mouth dropped open and her pretty head shaking. “Ummm…no,” she says, taking one look at me still curled up in bed. “I don’t think so.”
I reach over to my phone and light up the screen. 10 am. Ugh. It’s way too early for a Nessa invasion. I grab the TV remote and launch it across the room, missing her by miles. “Get lost,” I grumble, dropping my head back to my pillow and pulling the blanket high over my face.
“Do you realize what time it is? Are you seriously planning on wasting the day in bed?” she asks, walking deeper into my room. “I get that you weren’t going to go to school today, but I figured you’d at least…I don’t know, do something.”
“I am doing something.”
“Lying in bed till midday and then binging on Netflix until you pass out doesn’t count.”
“Bullshit, of course it counts.”
Nessa squeezes herself into my bed and wraps me in her arms. “It doesn’t and you know it,” she murmurs, putting her cold legs against mine. “I missed you.”
“I know you did,” I grin, hoping she’s getting a face full of morning breath. “What’s not to miss? I’m pretty fucking awesome.”
“You’re such a turd, but you’re a turd who has her whole day planned out.”
I groan, not liking the sound of that, but she continues anyway. “Damian kind of filled me in on everything that has gone down over the past few weeks. I hope that’s okay, but I thought maybe you could use a girls’ day today, so I booked us a hair appointment, nails, massage, all of that. I wanted you to feel normal again.”
I scrunch up my face, unable to crush her spirits by telling her what a shitty idea it would be. I guess shitty is taking it a bit too far. It’s just not my idea of fun. I’d prefer to sit by the basketball court with a joint and my sketchpad but because she’s put in so much effort making appointments and she looks so damn excited, I cave like a little bitch.
“Fine, but I’m not coloring my hair. Just a trim…maybe.”
“Yeah, just a little trim, some layers, and a few highlights. It’ll be perfect.”
I groan and throw the blanket back, knowing I’m going to come out of today looking like one of those little show poodles that rich ladies like to show off. “Fine,” I tell her, hating the feel of the chilly morning air against my skin. “You can put highlights in my hair but I’m drawing the line at a cut. Slade likes to curl his hands around it.”
Nessa gets up and makes her way over to my closet. “I really didn’t need to know the dirty little ins and outs of your fuck-fests with Slade,” she says, beginning to rummage through my closet.
“Yeah, you’re right. A horny bitch like you would get jealous. I’m sure you’re getting below satisfactory from Damian, but on the other hand, maybe I should be telling you all about it. You know, give you something to live for.”
A pair of ripped jeans fly across the room and smacks me in the face. “I’ll have you know that Damian and I have absolutely zero complaints when it comes to our compatibility in the bedroom. In fact, to me, he’s better than Slade. He reads me like a fucking book. You’re the one missing out sweetcheeks.”
I shake my head, slipping off my pajama shorts and replacing them with my jeans. “Yeah…I really doubt that.”
A shirt is tossed at me and before I know it, I’m allowing Nessa to drag me out of the house, claiming we’re going to miss our nail appointment.
She drives like a maniac and fifteen minutes later, I’m sitting in front of some woman with my hands on the table, feeling all sorts of refreshed. I have to admit, at first, I wasn’t ready to face the crowds but seeing as though the crowds in which I don’t want to face are currently in school, it’s not as bad as I thought. I’d even go that extra step and admit that sitting here getting my nails done is kind of relaxing and has me feeling somewhat normal.
I don’t have the heart to tell Nessa that Maria had me get my hair and nails done only three days ago but considering the fresh hell I’ve put myself through since the wedding, I’m sure I’ve probably chipped away all the nail polish and my hair is screaming for attention.
That massage though…I’m not going to lie, I’m looking forward to that.
Five hours later, my nails are perfect, my hair looks like sunshine, and I’m only seconds away from asking the masseur to give me a happy ending. I don’t know what it is about massages, but they get me hot every single time.
I wonder where Slade is. He could surely help a girl out right now.
Nessa confiscated my phone this morning, claiming I’m not able to completely relax if I’m worried about the boys and Blake in the hospital. While she’s partially correct, after having that access to them stolen from me, not having my phone has been giving me a little anxiety.
Our massages finish and as we stand in the luxurious bathroom, getting redressed, I can’t help but look up at the time. A smile rips across my face and quickly turns into a cringe as I look back at Nessa. “As much as I’m loving our girls’ day, would it be completely awful if we stopped by the school to catch the boys game? We can totally ditch them again after, but I haven’t seen them play in so long…”
Relief has her shoulders sagging. “Oh, thank God,” she says. “I thought you’d never ask. I love you, girl, but I was really hoping you cut this girl bullshit early so we could see the game.”
“What the hell?” I laugh, gawking at her. “This whole girls’ day was your idea.”
“I know. I just wanted you to feel like a normal human again. I figured you’d let me take you to get your nails done and maybe endure watching me get my hair done, but you’ve played along like a good little girl all day so I didn’t say anything and just enjoyed it. I figured you would have bailed ages ago.”
“What?” I choke on a laugh. “I did want to bail ages ago but I didn’t want to hurt your feelings. You put so much effort into this.”
She cringes as she pulls her shirt over her head. “Yeah…so, I didn’t put all that much effort into it. I hijacked all my mom’s appointments for the day. This was supposed to be her girls’ day. It was all set up so I figured, why the hell not?”
My mouth drops as I fasten the button of my jeans and reach for my bag. “Your poor mom,” I gasp. “I feel bad now. We’ll have to make it up to her. If I knew they were her appointments, I never would have allowed you to drag me along to them.”
Nessa scoffs. “Don’t feel sorry for her. She took advantage of the missed appointments and took her girls out to a Botox party instead. Trust me, she’s in her element, sipping on cocktails through straws because she can’t move her face.”
I shake my head, hating how much that reminds me of Maria. Rolling my eyes, I scoop my bag up from the bench and throw it over my shoulder, trying to cove
r up the fact that her comments made me flash into the past. “Come on. We should go otherwise we’ll miss the start.”
Nessa’s eyes bug out of her head. “Shit. If Damian caught me walking in late to one of his games, he’d probably call a time-out just so he could demand answers while the whole crowd watched on.”
“You’re probably right,” I laugh. “But you knew that when you agreed to be his girlfriend.”
“Damn it,” she groans, grabbing her things and following me out the door.
We get out to her car and as she drops down beside me and hits the gas, I start rifling through her bag until I have my phone tucked safely in my hands. Her bag is tossed into the backseat while I check over my messages.
Slade – You doing okay?
Slade – Yo, Virago? You alive?
Slade – Fuck, babe. Don’t make me come over there.
Damian – Dude! Just send the guy a fucking message before I have to sedate his stupid ass.
Well…shit.
I get busy hashing out a text.
Skylah – Chill out, bruhhh! Nessa hijacked my Netflix and chill day. I’ve suffered through a girls’ day instead. We’re on our way to your game. Love you…Oh, Nessa stole my phone by the way so you can blame her for my radio silence. Not me.
Slade – For fuck’s sake! About time! See you soon.
Slade – Oh, um… FYI, your bedroom window might be a little broken but for the record, it was Damian who put the idea in my head. I’ll get that fixed after the game!
Damian – I had nothing to do with your fucking bedroom window!
I laugh and read the texts out to Nessa, realizing the boys must be fucking around in the locker room together. I start hashing out a reply to both of them.
Skylah – You’re both morons! We’ll be there in ten with the foam fingers, air horns, and smoke bombs. I’ve always wanted to do a nudie run at a game as well…I’m thinking tonight is my night!
Damian – Fuck yeah! I’ll have my camera waiting.
Slade – If you take your fucking clothes off for the whole school to see I’m going to spank your ass right there on the court.
Skylah – Promise you’ll make it sting?
Slade – Fuck me!
Slade – See you soon, babe. Love you too.
I smile down at my phone. No matter what the circumstances, he always has a way of making my world so much brighter.
By the time I slip my phone back into my bag, Nessa is pulling into the student parking lot of Aston Creek High. I look up at the school before me. It all seems so trivial. Going to school and sitting in the classroom day in and day out when there’s so much going on in the world.
While my life has always been dictated by someone else, I never quite understood just how bad it could be until the past two weeks happened. Hell, if the faculty of this school knew that over the past two days I had killed a man in cold blood, burned down a multi-million dollar mansion, and watched a woman shoot down her husband only to stand above him and watch the fucker die, they’d march me straight back out and make sure I never returned.
Nessa and I clamber out of her car and make our way up to the busy gymnasium. People are piling in. There are only a few more games left of the season and the crowds are anxious to see how it’s all going to play out.
I usually like to arrive at a game a little earlier to get good seats and as I walk through the door and see the packed stands, I’m reminded of that. There are people everywhere. It’s crazy. Random girls wear my man’s jersey with his number on the back. There are even a few girls wearing my brother’s number, which is honestly kind of weird. I guess if he’s going to make it to the top that's probably something I should start getting used to now.
I’m sure the masses have all heard about Slade’s acceptance into Lakeside and I’m sure a shitload of the guys on his team are stinging with jealousy.
Slade deserves it and watching him run up and down the court is proof of that.
As we walk deeper into the gymnasium I notice something; for the first time in my life, there are no eyes on me. There are no whispers or snide comments, and no bitches trying to bring me down. There are no questions about where I’ve been for the past two weeks or someone calling me a slut. I have no doubt my wedding photo would have been blasted on every television across the globe, and Maria would have been the one to leak it. Marcus Mahony was one of the world’s most eligible bachelors, yet no one here seems to be even the slightest bit curious.
My gut tells me Slade and Damian had something to do with that yet something has me turning to Nessa with my brows drawn. “Why the hell aren’t they all bugging me about it?”
She raises a cocky brow and gives me a smug grin. “Because you, my skank ass friend, have finally earned their respect. They all know where you were and that somehow, you got yourself out of an impossible situation. From now on, they’re going to leave you the hell alone. Before, you fought to have that respect, but now you don’t need to. Every last person in the gymnasium knows who you are and what you’re capable of and they’ve finally learned that you’re not someone to be fucked with.”
Nessa glances up and nods across the gymnasium at Kathleen who now stands tall before the rest of the cheerleaders as their new captain. “Their arch-nemesis has just walked through the door and not even they are going to say anything. There are only a few weeks left of school and you’ve finally conquered as queen.”
My lips press into a tight line. “I was queen the second I walked in here.”
“True,” she says. “But a lot of people only saw you in that position because of your fucked-up relationship with Slade and then you got together so they just kept you on the pedestal, but now they see it as your rightful throne.”
I shake my head. “Why is it that you always want what you can’t have but when you get it, it’s never what you think it’s going to be?”
“That’s just the way the world works,” she tells me. “Now, sit your ass down. We have a game to watch.”
We find some seats and within thirty seconds of getting comfortable, the boys come running out onto the court.
Slade stops in the middle, the ball in his hand bouncing up and down and it’s as if he doesn’t even know he’s doing it.
I can’t believe this is going to be one of his last high school games. I’m really going to miss this uniform and the way his shorts hang dangerously low on his hips, threatening to fall down the second he launches himself up into the sky.
I wonder if he’ll let me keep his jersey. That shit would be comfortable as hell to sleep in and I bet he’d get a kick out of seeing me in it. Actually, I wonder if he’ll bring it home tonight…a clean version though. I’m sure he has a spare. I’m so down for putting it on and doing whatever the fuck he wants to do in it, but not if it’s dripping with sweat and smells like a dirty asshole.
I’ve never understood those women who are attracted to sweaty men. Don’t get me wrong, I love the way it looks….but the smell? Fuck, I just can’t handle it. Blake would purposefully come and smother me after one of his games growing up just so he could wipe his sweat and smell off on me and watch me squirm as I screamed for freedom. Growing up with Blake certainly had its good times.
Slade’s eyes come to mine from the court and within the blink of an eye, he abandons the ball, leaving it slowly bouncing in the center of the court. He races toward me.
My lips pull up into a wide grin as his coach hollers out his name. Slade takes the stairs of the bleachers two at a time before squishing past all the people in my row.
“Dramatic much?” Nessa grumbles beside me, watching his performance with a shake of her head as though it’s embarrassing just to be associated with the guy.
I laugh and not a second later, he’s here, wrapping me in his warm arms. “You had me worried, Virago.’
“Did you really destroy my bedroom window?”
“Destroy is a strong word. I’d say temporarily out of action.” He leans into my nec
k and brushes his lips over my skin. His voice lowers, for only me to hear. “I’ll destroy that sweet pussy though.”
My knees go weak and for a slight moment, Slade has to hold me up.
I’m about to give him specific instructions on how I’d like my pussy destroyed when a commotion down on the court has my attention pulling away from Slade. I glance down past Slade’s shoulder to see Damian pushing his way up through the bleachers on his way to Nessa, but he’s not taking the stairs like Slade had, he’s going straight through the crowd and being as irritatingly obnoxious and infuriatingly painful as possible.
Nessa groans and sinks down into her seat, ducking her head in embarrassment. “Please tell me he tripped and fell?”
I shake my head, watching Damian get closer and closer. “Nope. He’s still coming.”
“Shit. Sometimes I really hate that guy.”
“Yeah, but you can’t help but love him.”
“Shut up. He doesn’t need to know that.”
Damian drops down from the seat in front of us, landing right in front of Nessa. “Too fucking bad, Hera,” he grins wide, reaching down and scooping her into his arms. “I’ve known since day one that you were in love with me.”
Nessa’s eyes bug out of her head. “You did not.”
“Are you denying it?” he grins, way too smug for his own good.
Her eyes drop away. “I mean…no…”
“Good, because I fucking love you too, now hurry up and kiss me so I can remind all these fuckers that you’re mine.”
Nessa rolls her eyes. “You’re such an arrogant assho-”
Damian’s lips crush down on hers and I laugh watching them together. They only got together the night Lucien showed up and watching them as a couple is something I’ve been craving since I first wanted them to get together. They’re the sweetest but absolutely lethal. One of their fights would have the world burning to ashes around them.
Damian pulls back from her with wide eyes. “I almost forgot,” he says, digging into his pocket with an excited grin. “I got you something.”
Real Girl: Aston Creek High (Book 4) Page 17