by L A Cotton
And until recently, I’d been doing just that.
Laurie and football.
I didn’t want or need anything else. As far as I was concerned, that was it for me.
“Yo, Stone, you going to eat those fries?” Darius reached over to my plate and I smacked his hand away, pulling the tray closer to my chest.
“Never come between a guy and his fries, dude.”
He smirked at me and held up his hands. “It’s all good.”
I cocked my brow and sent him a smirk of my own. “It is now your hands are on their own side of the table.”
“I wonder where Meiter and his crew are at,” someone said, and my head snapped up.
“Don’t know, don’t care.”
“He’ll be gunning for you tomorrow, you know that, right?”
“He can bring it,” I said with a dismissive shrug. “I don’t need to prove myself to anyone except Coach.”
“Damn right.” Darius agreed, and I tipped my head in appreciation.
“What’s your story anyway, Stone? You got a girl back in Wicked Bay?”
A bolt of pain shot through my chest and I blanched. “Y- yeah.”
“You don’t sound so sure.” He gave me a pointed look.
“Laurie, her name’s Laurie. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me.” I don’t know why I said it, but I did. Maybe it was to reassure myself or convince Darius that things were fine, but the words sounded all wrong rolling off my tongue.
It wasn’t that she wasn’t the best thing that ever happened to me, because she was. But it was the fact I needed to say it at all.
“You won’t be saying that when you get to college, man,” one of the guys piped up. “My brother is a sophomore at UCLA and I went to stay with him a couple of times. College girls are something else, you know what I’m saying.” His brows danced. “And they love jocks. Eat that shit right up.”
“If that’s what floats your boat,” I said stuffing a cold fry in my mouth.
“The whole world is at our feet, man, and I for one, intend to enjoy every fucking second of it.”
“You think you’ll survive the long-distance thing?” Darius drew my attention away from the schmuck who wouldn’t stop talking.
“She’s applying to USC.”
“Shit man, that is serious. I mean what if it doesn’t work out and you have to see each other, and she gets a new guy? Yeah, I’m not sure I could handle that.”
My fries threatened to make a reappearance. Why were we even talking about this? We were here to play football, not dissect each other’s personal lives.
“Nice, D, real nice,” I choked out, trying to school my features. But his jaw clenched.
“Sorry, man, that was a shitty thing to say. I just mean, well, we’re still young. College is still a year away. Things change. People change.”
I pushed my tray forward and shoved my chair back, shooting upright. “I’m going to head back to the dorm, I’ll catch you guys tomorrow.”
“Kyle, come on, I didn’t mean—” But his words rolled off my retreating form as I cut across the half-empty cafeteria and made my way back to the dorm.
I didn’t blame Darius, he was a good guy. He’d had my back with Aaron Meiter, but I didn’t want to sit around and be reminded of all the obstacles that lay ahead for me and Laurie... if we made it as far as college, that was. Because right now, with things the way they were, I didn’t even know if we’d last the year.
Digging in my pocket, I pulled out my cell and lingered over Laurie’s number. The urge to call her burned through me. I just wanted to hear her voice, for her to give me a sign things were going to be okay, but in the end, I chickened out and called Lo.
“What happened?” she rushed out.
“Why do you automatically assume something happened? Can’t I call to say hi?”
“No, not lately.” I heard the smile in her voice. “My default reaction is set to ‘what the hell did he do now?’”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Cous. It means a lot.”
“What can I say? I try.”
“Well you’ll be relieved to know, this is just a courtesy call.”
“Okay, I think.” There was shuffling and then her voice got distant, but I heard her say, “It’s Kyle.”
“Rick’s there?” Of course he was there. The two of them barely spent a night apart.
“He says hi.”
“You’re not naked in bed, are you?” I shuddered at that visual.
“Kyle! Do you have to do that?”
“Do what?” I feigned surprise, shouldering the door to the dormitory we’d been assigned for the duration of camp.
“You know exactly what.” She chided. “Listen, did you want something? I’m kind of in the middle—”
“La la la la,” I sang as I made my way to my room.
“Homework, Kyle. I’m in the middle of homework. God, is your mind permanently in the gutter?”
“Pretty much.”
“Well, this has been enlightening. I have things to do so unless you have something important to tell me...”
Inside the room, I hit the light and pinched the bridge of my nose. “Have you spoken to her?”
Silence met me, and my heart started pounded against my ribcage. Why wasn’t she replying? Why wasn’t Lo reassuring me that Laurie was fine... Why wasn’t she—
“She’s... okay.”
“She is?”
“What do you want me to say? She’s locked herself away, crying all day over you?”
“That would be a start.”
“Kyle, seriously?”
“Shit, no. I didn’t mean that. I just...” I couldn’t find the right words to begin to describe how hard this was.
“I know,” Lo said. “Listen, Laurie is holding it together. She won’t tell me anything, like a certain someone else I know, but I respect your right to privacy. If either of you need me, you know where I am. Okay?”
I clammed up at that. Lo wasn’t stupid, she knew there was more to things than either of us were telling her. And I hated keeping her out of the loop. Rick too. But it was the only way.
“I’ll let you get back to your homework.”
“Oh yeah, me and algebra have a date for two lined up. Things are going to get really, really hot—”
“Ew, you freak! I’ll text you tomorrow, Cous.”
“I can hardly wait,” she sighed down the line. “And Kyle, do me a favor? Hurry up and fix whatever it is that needs fixing, ‘kay?”
The lump in my throat doubled in size and I swallowed hard. When I didn’t reply, Lo said bye and hung up. And I loved her for it. She didn’t push or demand answers. She didn’t threaten to go to my dad or tell her dad. She just accepted that it was something I needed to figure out. But that was the problem.
I didn’t know how to fix it.
Chapter 16
LAURIE
“I’m so glad you came.” Autumn beamed at me and I couldn’t help but return it. Despite my earlier misgivings, so far, tonight had been just what I needed. A group of kids from our class were here, toasting marshmallows and hanging out. Someone had brought a case of beer, but after the party at the Stone-Prince’s last weekend, I was happy to stay sober.
“So, you and Jared looked pretty cozy earlier.”
“Autumn,” I groaned glancing over to where Liam, Devon, and Jared were goofing around in the sand. “We’re just friends.” At least that’s what we’d agreed earlier. Besides, he’d been there twice now when I needed a friend and I still felt bad about what Kyle did. Like I owed him somehow.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I just... well, I miss you. Things haven’t been the same since—”
“Yeah, I know.” My voice trailed off as I drew patterns in the sand with a stick.
“He hasn’t stopped talking about you.”
“I’m still with Kyle, Autumn.”
“But if you weren’t?” Hope glittered in her eyes and I rolled mine
.
“But I am. Things aren’t great right now, but I still love him. I want us to work through this.”
Didn’t I?
“Okay, okay, I’m shutting up.” She held up her hands. “You’ll figure it out, I know you will. Kyle adores you, he always has.”
That was the problem though, wasn’t it?
He loved me. He adored me. But it wasn’t enough.
He couldn’t let me in.
“Ladies.” Liam dropped down onto the overturned trunk beside Autumn and cuddled her close. “What’s happening?”
“Not much.” She pressed a kiss to his jaw and my chest ached. “Just having girl time.”
“It’s nice to see the two of you together again.” He mused, and I searched the beach for his two partners in crime.
“They went to The Shack to get fries.” His arm curled around Autumn and then they were lip-locked forgetting all about me.
“I’m going to pee. I’ll be back.”
“Want me to come?” Autumn half-broke off the kiss and her eyes slid to mine but I said, “No, it’s fine. I’ll be okay.”
She settled back into Liam’s side and I left them, taking the boardwalk up to The Shack. It was dark, only the moonlight and the lamps hanging outside the diner lighting the way. I pushed my hands further into my lightweight jacket and picked up the pace. I’d almost reached the decking when something caught my eye.
The girl held my narrowed gaze and then spun around and hurried across the parking lot, but I went after her, breaking into a jog. “Hey, you, wait,” I called, pushing my legs harder. She wasn’t running, but she was walking really fast and I had to sprint to reach her.
“Wait, please.” It came out breathless as I ground to a halt, dropping my hands onto my thighs. We were on the edge of the parking lot now. Shadows dancing around us.
“You’re looking for Kyle? Kyle Stone?”
Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t reply.
“He isn’t here, he’s away at football camp.”
“Figures.”
“Excuse me?”
“Nothing,” she said. “You’re the girlfriend, right?” Her voice dripped with contempt. But I was more stuck on the part where she knew who I was, and dread pooled in my stomach.
“How do you—”
“I saw you. And I know you saw me, so let’s not pretend.” She was young but her words, her voice, had a maturity to them that caught me off guard.
“How do you know Kyle?” My voice quivered and suddenly I regretted coming after her. But I had to know.
Something flashed in her dark gaze. Surprise. Anger. It was hard to tell in the inky night. But then she muttered, “Of course he didn’t tell you,” to herself.
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand...” I offered her a meek smile, but she didn’t return it. If anything, she looked even more pissed now than she had when I first caught up to her.
“It makes sense he wouldn’t tell anyone about me, about us. I mean, we probably don’t fit into his perfect life with his perfect girlfriend and perfect friends. He’s such a—”
“What do you mean, you don’t fit into his life?”
“I’m his sister Kiera.” She laughed, but it was all twisted and wrong. “Half-sister, although I’m beginning to wish I’d never laid eyes on him.”
Sister.
She was... How was this possible? He already had a half-sister, Summer.
“But how?” I croaked out, trying to make sense of what she was saying. Because if what she said was true, it meant Gentry had another child with someone other than Rebecca. Was that why Kyle was keeping her a secret? Because he’d just found out about her? Because of the damage it could cause for their family?
It made sense and yet, there was something about the girl in front of me...
“Does Gentry know?”
“Gentry?” she frowned, pushing long jet-black hair from her face and I saw a glimpse of Kyle in her features. I hadn’t seen it before, but I did now.
“Yeah, your dad?”
“My dad was a man called Joe, and he’s been dead almost six years.”
“But how is that possible?” If Gentry wasn’t her Dad, they couldn’t possibly be half-siblings. Unless...
No.
No.
It made no sense.
“Are you saying you and Kyle have the same mom?”
“And she strikes gold.” Her voice oozed sarcasm.
“But it’s not possible.”
“Why?” she spat. “Because I’m from the wrong side of the tracks? Because I don’t wear Hollister and paint my nails and talk like this.” Her saccharine sweet tone made me shudder.
“No,” I said. “Because Kyle’s mom is...” The word lodged in my throat, but she was staring at me, waiting. “Dead.” It punctuated the silence.
“Is that what he told you?” she hissed, hatred simmering in her eyes, matching the anger vibrating from her.
“You mean, she isn’t dead?” He’d looked me in the eye and told me she'd died when he was just a baby. I’d comforted him, stroked his hair as he told me the story. I’d always wondered why no one talked about her—his real mom—so one day, I’d asked him.
“Do you ever think about her?”
“Who?” Kyle said, tracing lazy circles on my arm.
“Your real mom. Do you ever think about her?”
“Not really.” He shrugged beside me, and I turned into him.
“But like, what happened to her, Kyle? You never talk about her, no one ever talks about her.”
“Babe, where is all this coming from?”
“I’m just thinking.” I pressed a kiss to his cheek, waiting, hoping he would finally open up about her.
“She’s dead, Laurie.”
He just said it—like it was nothing. Like he’d just told me the sky was blue and the grass was green.
“W- what?” I choked out.
Kyle rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. “She died not long after her and my dad separated.”
“Oh my God, why didn’t you say something?”
“I was just a baby, Laurie. And she and Dad had already gone their separate ways. It’s not like I can remember anything about her. She’s always been no one to me.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t even get to meet your mom. Not properly. You don’t have any memories, anything to remember her by.”
“She gave me up, babe. She walked away. I have everything I need. I don’t know, it’s just never been an issue for me. You can’t want something you never had. Besides, I have a mom. Rebecca has been there since I can remember.”
I didn’t know which was worse: that he’d lied, or that he felt so detached from his real mom to consider her dead.
And then another thought occurred to me. What if he really did believe she was dead... what if that’s what Gentry had told him? Come to think about it, I’d never heard anyone talk about her. It really was as if she didn’t exist.
God, I felt sick.
“How old are you?” I rushed out, my mind working overtime to do the math.
“Fifteen. Mom fell pregnant with me a few months after she left.”
“You’re lying.” This was a lie. A sick joke.
“Fuck you,” the girl bared her teeth, and I eased back, trying to stay away from the anger rippling off her. “You think you’re all so fucking important with your designer clothes and cars and fat wallets. You make me sick. All of you.”
“I—” I don’t know why but there was something so raw in her voice that tears collected in the corners of my eyes.
“Please tell me you’re not crying.” She strained to see my eyes, and I rubbed at them with my sleeve.
“No, I’m not.”
“What could you possibly have to cry about?”
“I’m sorry,” I choked out. I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t get my thoughts straight. And she was looking at me with so much venom. So much pain.
“Please.” She scoffed. “Yo
u don’t care about me. Just like Kyle doesn’t care about me. I told her this was a bad idea. I told her he wouldn’t want us messing up his perfect life. We’re nobody to him, we’ve always been nobody.” She started to retreat, but I lurched forward, snagging her wrist. “Don’t go, please. Stay and—”
“Get your hands off me.” Her voice was cold, and my blood turned to ice.
“Laurie? What’s going on?” Jared appeared out of nowhere and Kiera’s eyes darted around like a wild animal.
“Jared, go back inside and wait for me.” I didn’t want her to feel threatened. And there was so much I wanted to ask her.
“Laurie, I’m not sure, she looks—”
Kiera slammed against me and ripped from my hold. I staggered back in shock.
“What the hell?”
“Leave her,” I breathed out just as the first tear fell, and I watched as Kiera disappeared into the night.
“Are you okay?” Jared searched me for any signs of injury, but he wouldn’t find anything physical. No, my injuries were all of the internal variety. He stared at me, waiting, and my shoulders sagged as I choked out, “No, I’m not, I’m really not.”
“Come on.” He slung his arm over my shoulder and started guiding me back to The Shack and although his touch felt all wrong, I let him. Because I was only human. And right now, I needed to lean on someone.
The diner was almost empty when we got inside. Jared led me to a booth and went to order shakes.
“She’s going to bring them right over.” He slid in opposite me and I peeked up at him through tear-stained lashes.
“How much did you hear?”
“Enough. But you don’t need to worry, I would never tell anyone.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that.”
“Do you think she’ll be okay? It’s dark out and she was all alone.”
“Something tells me she can handle herself.” But he was right, it didn’t change the fact she’d run off into the night.
Silence followed, neither of us knowing what to say.
“So, Stone has a sister?” Jared broke the tension, but it was the worst thing he could have said.