“Could she be any more plain-jane and meek? You idiots want meek in your bed?”
Collin, a wide receiver on the football team, called him on his BS. “Come on Dawson she is smoldering underneath that innocence. You can’t tell me you haven’t daydreamed about corrupting that goodness?”
He may have had a brief wet dream about corrupting her, but that wasn’t the plan. He wanted her so miserable she would go crying to mommy and hopefully the gold-digging, Smith women would be gone. In the meantime, he didn’t want anyone befriending her and making her life easier.
Fucking around with Jenn should put a crack in Greer’s veneer. He watched Jenn leave the counter and tried not to cringe when she turned back to him and giggled. Yep, she giggled just like all of the annoying girls of the world.
A few minutes later, when she came back, her steps were a little more unsure and her face was clouded. The bitch was actually feeling a little guilty, but he wouldn’t let her back out.
He sauntered over to Jenn and put his hand on the small of her back. Slowly, his hand inched toward her ass and at the same time, he bent his head to her ear.
“Ready to party?” He deepened his voice and with each word made sure his lips swept her ear.
“Yes,” was her breathy response and her body swayed closer to his. This was so fucking easy.
He straightened up and maintained eye contact. “I’ll follow you home, so we can arrive together in my ride.”
“Okay. Should we get our numbers in case we lose each other?”
He smoothed his hand over her ass. “I won’t lose you doll. I have a monster of a truck, people get out of my way.”
He followed her rusting, Chevy Cavalier for a few blocks and then purposely peeled away, making sure his tires were squealing. The confused look on her face was priceless. There was never a chance in hell the backstabbing bitch was going to the party with him. What kind of friend would do that to another? The way he saw it, he had done Greer a favor.
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Chapter 6
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Greer hid in her room all day on Saturday, and she was still a bag of mixed emotions. Every time she thought about what happened tears sprang up. She would cry at her lost friendship then she would be mad at Jenn and then frustrated that she still didn’t understand why Beckett treated her like he did.
About a half-hour after she left with Beckett, Jenn called. Greer had looked at the screen, snorted, and dismissed the call. When the voicemail notification popped up Greer ignored it for about ten minutes and then curiosity got the best of her.
Apparently, the jackass had ditched her before they had even gotten to the party. The distress in Jenn’s voice did nothing to stop the satisfaction Greer felt at that moment. Then the texts started.
‘I just thought if I could get an in it would make your life easier. I’m sorry.’
‘I’m sorry you were right. Beckett is an asshole.’
‘PLEASE talk to me.’
Her heart was heavy, but Jenn was not her friend. She had poured out her frustration all night, about Beckett. Jenn had been sympathetic and supportive until Beckett had walked into the kitchen. It had taken all of five minutes for Beckett to convince Jenn to leave.
What Beckett did was definitely an asshole move, even for him. Mi casa was definitely not es su casa. Lesson learned. No more friends would be invited over.
Friday night she had seen an easy-going, charming Beckett. He had gone out of his way to show her he could be nice if he wanted. It was more than apparent he didn’t want her around, but she couldn’t figure out why.
She re-played every encounter she’d had with him, starting with the supper she’d fumbled through. Every time they were together, she hardly said a word. There was no way she could have offended him. But he was embarrassed to be seen with her. He had dropped her off blocks from school just so they wouldn’t be seen together.
Obviously, he was against her going to the same school. Her stomach twisted as she conjured up all of the put-together socialites at Oak High and her dowdy appearance in comparison. Greer wasn’t stupid. She knew she was still talked about. Of course, Beckett had heard the gossip as well. She definitely stood out in school, and not in a good way.
Beckett was the king of the school. After the first week, Greer understood that. Guys were in awe of his football skills. And girls were in awe of him. If he was in the room, everyone looked to him for cues on how to act or react. It was rather annoying how no one had an opinion until they heard Beckett’s. And it irritated her that her body became a tuning fork whenever he was in the vicinity.
Maybe it was because she felt like prey every time he was in the vicinity. He would narrow his eyes and track her every movement. And her heart would start pounding out of her chest warming her body in places she couldn’t admit to.
Her vibrating phone brought her back to the present and she greedily picked it up when she saw Lexi’s picture pop up.
“I missed you! Are you back from orchestra camp?” A longing to feel the love only her best friend could give swept through her.
“Greer!” She grinned at the excitement in Lexi’s voice. “I’m back. Sorry I missed spending the night at your swanky new house,” Lexi teased.
“I wish you had been here.” The heartfelt declaration came out gruffer than Greer had intended.
“What’s wrong, Greer?”
Greer swallowed the lump in her throat and huskily told her friend what had happened Friday night.
“What?! Jenn left with Beckett?” Lexi screeched through the phone and her friend’s indignation on her behalf made her feel better.
“Yep. And then Beckett ditched her. Apparently, the plan was for Beckett to follow Jenn to her house so they could arrive at the party together. He followed her for a couple of blocks and then took off.”
“Good. She deserved it.” Lexi snorted.
Greer smile, and for the first time since Friday night, felt her mood lifting. “Yeah, I thought the same thing.”
“Are we bitches?” Lexi teased.
They laughed and it felt so good to be herself and let go with someone who knew her and understood her. An hour into the call they decided to hang out the next day, and Greer hung up and climbed into bed.
Greer was just starting to drift off when she heard the unmistakable growl of Beckett’s truck breaking the night’s stillness. And just like that, her body started buzzing and her incoming sleep was put on hold.
With the blankets snug around her, Greer stretched her ears to track Beckett. She heard his door slam shut and then nothing until she detected his steady pace up the stairs. Her hands clenched the blanket and she stared wide-eyed at her door as he got closer. There was no pause in his steps as he walked by and Greer relaxed into her mattress and let out her breath. To her horror, she recognized the pang in her chest as disappointment instead of relief.
««« »»»
As soon as Lexi opened the door to her apartment the ever-present knot in her chest eased. Greer hugged her extra tight vowing to never take her for granted. After she yelled hello to Lexi’s mom, they made a beeline for Lexi’s room.
“Spill.”
Lexi demanded as soon as they were sitting on the twin bed in Lexi’s 8x10 room. Greer purged all of her feelings—secret thoughts, her awkwardness at Oak High, the mean-girl vibe she got from school, her thankfulness for Pepper, and Beckett’s hate for her.
The one thing she held back was her unwanted attraction to Beckett. She was ashamed to have these feelings for someone who obviously hated her. It was one-sided and something she needed to get over, so she didn’t see any reason to bring it up.
After Greer finished up the current events of her life there was an easy silence between them as Lexi absorbed everything she said. After a few moments, Lexi cautiously said.
“The solution seems obvious to me, Greer. Why don’t I ask my mom if you can stay he
re with us, and you can come back to Public?”
“Really? You think it would be okay?” Excitement started threading through her.
Lexi shrugged. “I don’t know why not. When you lived in the building we were always at each other’s apartment. It’s not like it would be a weird thing.”
Her excitement deflated at the thought of asking Vivian. “I can’t Lexi.”
“Why not?”
“Mom.” She took a second to decide the best way to explain. “You should see her, Lexi. It’s like there is a light inside her. She is so happy, and David is a great guy. If I told her I wanted to move, she would insist on moving with me. I want this for her. I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize it.”
“What are you going to do about Beckett?” Lexi asked gently.
Knots started forming in her stomach just thinking about it. “Just stay out of the way. At least I have Pepper. I only have a few months left. I can deal.”
“Remember I’m here. You can come any time.”
Greer squeezed out a “thank you” and hugged her best friend.
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Chapter 7
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For the past week and a half, Greer started her two-mile walk to the bus stop at 6:30 am. Every morning her body protested the early wake-up time, but when she remembered the tension-riddled ride with Beckett, she dragged herself out of bed.
There was a nip in the air this Monday morning and she huddled deeper in her coat. It was October in New Hampshire, which meant the sun had not reached the horizon this early in the morning and every morning it got a little chillier. She was definitely going to have to invest in some hardier winter gear. Her body shivered just thinking about how miserable these early mornings in January would be.
When she got to the bus bench, she took the hand towel attached to her backpack and wiped the seat of the morning dew. There had been several golf bags in the six-car stall garage, and she found the golf towels on a shelf above them. The built-in clip was handy for her backpack. Greer slipped her earbuds in and waited for the bus.
A few minutes later a honk startled her out of her book induced coma. She raised her head and the granola bar she had eaten on her walk felt like a boulder in her stomach. David Dawson was getting out of his silver Mercedes walking toward her. She plastered a smile on her face.
“Morning, David!” She winced at her forced cheerfulness.
He stood with his feet apart, one hand in his coat pocket, and a what looked like a tick in his jaw. With a carefully moderated voice, he asked, “Care to tell me what you are doing here, Greer?”
She couldn’t get her brain kicked in gear to come up with a plausible lie, so she mumbled. “I’m waiting for the bus.”
A sharp inhale. “Why?”
His intense focus was on her and she felt like one of the witnesses he was famed for intimidating on the stand. “Well, I just um thought that um since Beckett couldn’t take me today, I could take the bus.”
More silent probing from him and more squirming from her. Now she knew where Beckett got the intimidating stare from. “Mm-hmm.” Was David’s response. “How did you get here?”
“I walked.”
David looked up at the sky and fisted the hand that wasn’t in his pocket. He took a visible deep breath and lowered his head back down. “Get in the car, Greer.”
She peered down the street, hoping she could see the bus. No such luck. “I’m fine, David. The bus should be here any minute. You are on your way to the office and I don’t want to make you late.”
He shook his head and mumbled. “Could you be any more like your mother?” With a stressed voice, he said, “Greer, please get in the car.”
She hefted up her backpack and walked around to the passenger side. After a couple of minutes of silence, she softly pleaded, “Please don’t tell Mom. I don’t want her to worry.”
David glanced at her. “Greer, if Beckett can’t take you, come talk to me. I have three cars. You can take one of them.”
“No!” Just thinking of the price tags of those cars made her cringe, especially if she got a scratch on them. “Thank you, but I’m not comfortable driving a car that’s not mine.”
Greer looked at her surroundings and breathed a sigh of relief that they were close to school. “You can just drop me off up ahead, David.”
David pulled over but put a light hand on her arm to stop her movement out the door. “Greer, I know we don’t know each other very well, but please believe I want you to succeed. If you are having problems here, then I want to know. Is school going okay?”
David’s sincere eyes studied her. “School is going as expected.”
It wasn’t a lie. She knew she wouldn’t fit in and she was right. She hadn’t expected Beckett to be such an asshole, but she just avoided him. As long as she stayed under the radar, she would be fine.
Instead of her comment reassuring David it seemed to concern him. His brows came together and before he could say anything else, Greer spoke up, “David, my mom has always done whatever it took to make my life as easy as possible. I’m not blind to the fact that it often meant her working two jobs or having a car that is fifteen years old.” She looked at him intently.
“If anyone deserves someone to take care of her, it is her. Thank you for putting her first.”
David’s neck looked pink and he smiled ruefully. “I try and spoil her, but she doesn’t make it easy.”
Greer laughed. “I know! You have to understand that all you have is a different, unbelievable world, and it is scary to her. What if she became reliant on you and then the fairy tale disappeared?”
David looked stunned and was suddenly deep in thought. Greer took the opportunity to slip away. “Thanks for the ride.” And she hopped out of the car and walked toward the school.
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It was 10:00 pm and Beckett wanted a shower and then bed. Practice lasted until 6:30 and his body was protesting how hard the coach had worked them. After practice, he went with some of the guys for a burger. When he finally got home, he shut himself away in his room and did homework and then hopped online to do some gaming. He had successfully avoided another cozy family supper.
There was a perfunctory knock on his door before David swung it open. “Beckett, I want to speak with you in my office.”
His dad left the open doorway before he could answer. Beckett dutifully followed while his mind raced through recent events. Talking in his dad’s office meant there was something serious to talk about or he was in trouble.
As soon as he shut the office door David started. “I thought I told you to take Greer to school.”
Shit, this wasn’t going to be good. His dad was extra prickly with anything that had to do with Vivian or Greer.
He took a seat in front of the desk, sprawled his feet in front of him, put his hands on his stomach, and shrugged. “I did. And then she told me she didn’t need a ride anymore.”
“When did that happen?”
David narrowed his eyes and his lips got thinner. Beckett tensed up, but maintained his nonchalance, even if it was the last thing he was feeling. He had a sneaking suspicion these questions were somehow incriminating him.
He knew better than to lie, but he also knew to say as little as possible. “After the first day.”
“Did you ask how she was going to get to school?”
“No.” And he didn’t care. He was just happy he didn’t have to do it.
David leaned forward and stapled his hands on the desk. “How did you think she was going to get there?”
Had something happened to Greer? He forced the panic down and didn’t let it show. His dad was too good at picking up on body language. He quickly thought back and remembered seeing her at lunch and a few other times during the day. He seemed to have a radar on Greer. As soon as she was in the vicinity, he found her. He quickly got back on track with a sharp,
“Beckett!”
“I assumed a friend.”
“So, after one day, at a new high school, where most everyone has known each other since elementary school, Greer made a friend who was willing to take her to school?”
Well when he put it that way, no. “Probably a friend from her old school.”
“Her old school and her new school are a half-hour apart. Do you really think a friend would leave an hour before they had to, just to take Greer to school?”
Beckett pulled his feet back, so his right ankle rested on his left knee. He obviously needed to be a little more alert for this conversation. He answered the question with a question. Something his dad had taught him.
“Where is this going, Dad? Are you made because I didn’t quiz Greer about this? She is almost 18, I’m pretty sure she is more than capable of handling herself.”
His stomach sank when David shook his head in disappointment and his voice lost its edge. Now it was weary.
“I found Greer at the bus stop at 7:00 this morning, Beckett.”
“There’s a bus stop by us?”
“No, son, there’s not. She walked two miles to get there.”
His heart stopped and then started running through his chest. Shit, that wasn’t safe.
“It’s still dark at 7:00, Beckett.”
The concern was evident in David’s voice and Beckett was an asshole, but he didn’t want Greer hurt.
“I didn’t know, Dad.”
“She told me you have been taking her but couldn’t today.”
Well, shit, no wonder he felt like David had been setting him up. Why hadn’t Greer thrown him under the bus? Maybe she was waiting until she wanted something and then planned on blackmailing him.
His dad’s ragged breath drew him back into the room. The sharp edge was back in David’s voice, but Beckett also heard the disappointment. And that more than anything made him squirm in his seat.
“I haven’t told you a lot about my relationship with Vivian because, frankly, I didn’t think it was any of your business. I thought you would support me and trust me, but I can see we will have to talk about it.”
Battling Beckett Page 4