“He’s not going to win this weekend,” River said.
I laughed under my breath. “No. He’s definitely not.”
River grinned at my cocky response. “And if he thought you were sitting at home tonight crying over his sorry butt…” He glanced meaningfully behind me. “He’s not anymore.”
I glanced over to Caleb’s house and saw Caleb standing in the window glaring at us.
“He hates me,” River said easily.
“Yeah.” I tore my eyes away from the cold, unpleasant look we were getting from Caleb. “Why is that, exactly?”
River shrugged, his expression bored. “Because I’m a better soccer player, naturally.”
I laughed. “Naturally.”
His gaze darted toward the neighboring house again. “It must be killing him that you’re playing for me.”
I shoved his shoulder. “Playing with you, you mean. I’m not playing for you.”
He smirked. “Fine. That you’re playing with me. On my team.”
I rolled my eyes at his phrasing but was stifling a laugh. The more I got to know River, the more I realized that his cockiness was for show. Sure, he was confident, but there was a difference between him knowing he was good and Caleb’s super inflated ego. I gave my head a little shake as another ripple of anger coursed through me at the memory of his words in the car. The feel of his eyes on me and River only made it worse.
He was watching over us from his bedroom window like he was some sort of avenging angel. Like it was his right to look out for me.
River was watching me closely. “You did tell him, right?”
I nodded. I had…sort of.
“And?”
“And…” I never gave him a chance to respond. Everything Caleb had said was still gnawing at me, and I found myself blurting out the one thing that made me want to scream. “He thinks I’m not over him.”
River stared at me unblinking, that gaze so freaking intense I felt like he was trying to read my mind. “And?” he said again.
I crossed my arms. “And what?”
“Is he right?”
I opened my mouth to say of course I’m over him, but I paused and something flickered in his eyes at my silence. I swallowed thickly as I tried to analyze my feelings. Was I over him if he could still make me this upset? I resisted the urge to look back over my shoulder at the silhouette of my ex in the window. I could feel him watching me, but I didn’t want to see him. I didn’t want to talk to him.
I didn’t want to be with him.
“No,” I said finally, feeling the rightness of the word. “I’m not still hung up on Caleb.”
Once again, something flickered in River’s eyes, but it was there and gone so fast I couldn’t read it. “You were together for a long time.”
“Yeah, but today I realized…” I trailed off as I tried to put it into words. “I realized that we didn’t have what I thought we had.” Man, that hurt to admit. But it was the truth. The things he’d said, the way he saw me, what he thought of me…it had made me see our whole relationship with new eyes. “Maybe we’d been growing apart for a while, or maybe we never were the kind of couple I thought we were.” I shrugged, my throat growing tight with emotion.
I wasn’t still hung up on him, but we had been together for a long time, and those feelings wouldn’t just fade away overnight. The fact that he’d hurt me still stung, and the fact that I’d lost one of my closest friends still made my chest ache.
But my heart…my heart wasn’t broken.
I supposed that said more about the state of our relationship than anything.
River reached out a hand and brushed his fingers over my cheek, his fingers trailing over my jaw. His gaze was dark and heavy. “He’s an idiot for letting you go. You know that, right?”
My eyes widened in surprise, and my heart…my heart was stuttering in my chest like it forgot how to keep time. “I…” I had to lick my lips so I could speak. “I was actually just thinking that I was sort of grateful that he did.”
This time I caught the emotion racing through his eyes, and it was startlingly close to triumph. “Yeah?”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
And it was true. Breaking up sucked, but it would have sucked so much more to be stuck in a relationship where I wasn’t respected or loved or…wanted. The way Caleb had looked at his new girlfriend?
I deserved that. I wanted to feel that. And truth be told, I’d never looked at him like that either. I’d never felt like that…
Like this. I struggled to breathe through the thick tension in the air. The way River was watching me, it was like I was the only person in the world. Like I was fascinating and…maybe even beautiful.
“He’s still watching.”
I blinked. It took me a full second to remember who ‘he’ was. Caleb. For a second there I’d forgotten that we even had an audience. River moved closer until we were nearly touching.
“Maybe we should give him something to watch.” The weight of his stare fell to my lips, which parted as if he’d touched them. My heart was racing in my chest and I wanted it…
I wanted to kiss him.
He was waiting, pausing, giving me the space to decide.
I knew what he meant, what he was doing. This wasn’t real, it was only for Caleb’s benefit. A stab of anger shot through me all over again that Caleb was lording over us. That he thought this was about him.
Isn’t it?
I didn’t know anymore. I was staring at River’s mouth, a challenge in the air between us. He didn’t think I’d do it. Caleb would never believe I could do it. He didn’t think I was that kind of girl…the kind who could make a guy fall head over heels.
And maybe I wasn’t.
The thought stung. But I wasn’t the kind of girl to back down from a challenge.
I did it. I closed the distance between us, and I pressed my lips to River’s in a kiss that was brief but electric. The feel of his warm, firm lips against mine seared through me, erasing every other kiss from existence.
When I leaned back, I was blinking in shock at what I’d just done.
River’s low laughter felt like liquid heat in my veins. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s get you out of here.”
I took the spare helmet from his hands and this time didn’t hesitate to clamber up behind him. “Where are we going?”
He shrugged like it didn’t matter.
Maybe it didn’t.
He half turned his head as he revved the engine. “Don’t look now, but Caleb’s head is about to explode.”
I laughed along with him, but my spine stiffened in surprise.
I’d totally forgotten Caleb was even watching.
Chapter Twelve
River
I drove us to the lake that gave Lakeview its name.
Not surprisingly, we were the only ones there at this hour, and the moon shimmered on the surface of the still lake.
“I’ve never come here at night,” Hannah said as I helped her off the bike.
“I’ve never been here, period.”
She stopped and stared. “Never?”
I shrugged. “What would I be doing over here?”
She groaned. “Oh please, not this again.”
From any other Lakeview girl, those flippant words would have filled me with bitterness and resentment. But Hannah honestly didn’t seem to see the difference between my world and hers. It wasn’t that she didn’t care about the inequality between our worlds, she just didn’t seem to notice.
It could have been apathetic or insensitive, but with her it wasn’t that. It was just…innocence. There was this part of her that seemed untouched. It was the same part of her that made her seem so genuine. So natural.
Her ability to not care about the way the world saw her, her lack of masks and fakeness…it was what made her Hannah. I didn’t want to see that change.
I wanted to protect it. Just like I’d wanted to see her get back at Caleb and make him pay.
Right. Like that’s the only reason you wanted to kiss her.
I shoved the thought to the side as I followed her down to the lake’s edge and sat beside her. She didn’t seem to notice or care that we were sitting in dirt, and the thought made me grin.
“What’s so funny?”
“You,” I said.
She narrowed her eyes at me, as if trying to decide how serious I was or whether she should be offended. “Yeah, well, thanks for playing along back there.”
Now it was my turn to study her. “Playing along, huh? Is that what we’re calling kissing these days?”
Even in the darkness, I could see her flush as she ducked her heads. “Yeah, about that…”
I had this feeling she was about to give me a speech. Make sure I knew it didn’t mean anything.
Of course, it didn’t. I knew it didn’t.
But I didn’t feel like hearing her spell it out. “Don’t worry, Hannah, I’m not going to get the wrong idea.”
It felt like a lie. Maybe that was why my tone had turned a little more caustic than I’d intended.
She glanced over at me quickly and then away, staring at the surface of the lake. “No, of course not.” She gave her head a shake. “Of course, you don’t see me that way.”
I stared at her profile, which was stoic and strong and…oh crap, she was hurting. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
She blinked but didn’t face me as she shrugged. “Just that I get it. That kiss was all for Caleb’s benefit.” She flashed me a forced smile. “Seems we have something in common other than soccer after all, huh? A mutual dislike of Caleb Everette.”
I didn’t respond because I didn’t want to be talking about Caleb Everette.
More than that, I hated the fact that I didn’t want to be talking about Caleb Everette. That was all this should be about between me and Hannah. A mutual dislike of her ex. That was why I’d wanted her on the team, right? To drive my rival nuts?
Well, that and because we needed a female player.
So why did I hate it so much that she kept mentioning Caleb? Or that she made it sound like there was no way on earth that kiss could have been real.
I ran a hand through my hair and looked away. This was getting complicated, and I didn’t do complicated. Not with girls, and definitely not with teammates.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.
“For what?”
She turned to me with arched brows.
“The kiss?”
She pressed her lips together in embarrassment. “I shouldn’t have done that. Trying to get back at Caleb like that…” She shook her head. “It was petty and immature.”
“Yeah, well. You’re what? Sixteen? I don’t think anyone expects you to be mature.”
She laughed. “Maybe I expect it of myself.”
I nodded. “Fair enough. But there’s a difference between getting even and getting closure.”
She arched her brows. “And you think me kissing you brought me closure?”
I leaned over to nudge her shoulder with mine. “Come on. Don’t tell me it didn’t rock your world.”
She let out a shocked laugh that made my chest tighten. The girl had a great laugh. “Don’t worry,” she said, lowering her voice and mimicking my words. “I’m not going to get the wrong idea.”
I smiled at her terrible impersonation, but something nagged at me. “You know you’re hot, right?”
Her eyes opened so wide it would have been comical if I hadn’t been so pissed—I’d guessed right.
She blinked rapidly, her cheeks darkening. “What?” She looked away flustered, but not before I’d seen the truth. That jerk of an ex of hers had damaged her ego. Maybe it was just the effect of the breakup, but I’d have bet money that having a long-term boyfriend who didn’t recognize how amazing she was had done more damage than she knew to her self-image.
“Don’t be mean,” she said in a tight voice.
“I’m not being mean, I’m telling you the truth.”
She gave me a sidelong look, clearly unsure what to believe.
I held back a groan as I touched her chin and turned her to face me. “You are beautiful.”
She blinked again, and this time I was horrified to see that her eyes were growing damp. “You don’t have to say that.”
“I never have to do anything,” I said, so angry at Caleb and his casual dismissal of this amazing girl I couldn’t keep quiet. “You’re hot and you’re funny and you’re amazing on the soccer field. Any guy would be lucky to have you in his life.”
Her lips parted and I realized I’d say too much.
Like, way way too much.
I dropped my hand. “But you know…we’re teammates, so that’s a no-go.”
“Right,” she said quickly. “Teammates dating teammates, that’s—”
“Trouble,” I finished.
Her lips quirked up.
“What?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. That’s trouble, all right.”
“Am I missing something?”
She glanced over at me and some of the awkward tension seemed to have dissipated now that I wasn’t touching her. “Just an inside joke with me and my camp friends.”
“Ah,” I said. “These would be the friends who thought you were crazy for dating Caleb in the first place?”
She nodded. “Because he was my teammate, but yeah.”
I looked out toward the lake. “I think I like them.”
She leaned over and nudged me in a decidedly friendly manner. “I know they’d like you,” she said.
“Because of my wicked good looks and keen intellect?” I teased.
She grinned when she looked over at me. “Because you’re amazing to watch on the field.”
I narrowed my eyes as though considering that. “I am pretty amazing, aren’t I?”
She laughed.
“Well, I’d better be,” I said, trying not to focus on the sweet sound of her laughter. “It’s the only thing I’m good at.”
“That’s not true.” She said it so quickly and sounded so defensive on my behalf, it took me by surprise.
“Oh yeah? You know me that well, huh? Tell me, Hannah. What else am I good at?”
“Kissing,” she said. Her cheeks darkened again, but her smile was adorable and teasing.
A laugh was shocked out of me, and I leaned toward her with my most flirtatious smile. “Honey, you ain’t seen nothing, yet.”
Her breath hitched, and my eyes dropped to her lips. That kiss had been way to quick. Amazing, intense, and possibly life-changing, but way too quick. If I had the chance to kiss her properly…
“And that’s not all,” Hannah said.
I stared at her trying to remember what we were talking about.
She lifted her hand and started ticking off points. “Yes, you’re a good kisser, and obviously you’re a great soccer player, but you’re also a natural-born leader.”
I arched my brows as her words registered. No one had ever called me a leader before. “A natural-born leader, huh?” I know I sounded sarcastic, but I couldn’t help it—I wasn’t sure how to take that particular compliment.
She nodded, not seeming to notice that I was joking. “I’d imagine being a natural leader would make you good at anything you put your mind to.”
I stared at her. And then I stared some more. She just gazed back at me, all earnest sincerity in the face of my disbelief.
“What?” she finally said when I still gawked.
I gave my head a shake. “That was just…” The nicest thing anyone had ever said to me. I swallowed. “You should have a chat with my dad. He’d laugh his head off.”
I’d meant it to be a self-deprecating joke, something to lighten the weirdly intense moment, but she frowned. “Why would he laugh?”
I didn’t know whether to laugh or groan. This girl. This girl with her dad who called her Bubby and her big house and her plans for the future…
She wouldn’t un
derstand.
And yet…I found myself talking. “My dad thinks I’m crazy for pursuing soccer. He thinks it’s a kids’ game with no future.”
“Some people make a career out of it,” she said. “Why shouldn’t you? You’re more than good enough to play at the college level, that’s for sure.”
I grinned. “Again, you should have a talk with my dad.”
She tilted her chin up. “Maybe I will.”
For a second there, I actually wondered if she would. She looked so determined, so stubborn, so…angry on my behalf. My chest grew uncomfortably tight. “Yeah, well, I don’t think anything you could say will help the situation.”
“Why not?”
“Because he thinks I’m a screw-up. He thinks the only way I could learn how to be a man, how to stay out of trouble and have any sort of success in this world is if I do what he did.”
“What did he do?” She looked so curious, so serious. Next thing I knew I was telling her all about my family—about my father’s temper, about his desire for me and Paxton to go straight into the military. I even told her about Paxton overseas, and about my fears for him and his safety that kept me up some nights.
Fears I hadn’t mentioned to a single soul until tonight.
After that, I made her tell me about her family and yeah…they were just as functional as I’d imagined. A little brother she adored, parents who supported her. Honestly, her life sounded perfect.
Well, almost perfect.
But at least she knew it. She must have said ten times how lucky she was. Good family, good friends, good home.
“Sounds like your life would be idyllic if you still had the perfect boyfriend.” I was teasing, but she still arched her brows in annoyance.
“I don’t need a boyfriend to have a great, fulfilling life.”
“Agreed,” I said.
“But…” she started.
“What?”
“It would be nice to move on from Caleb. I mean…” She shot me a funny look. “I’m over him. I am. But it would be nice if he knew that. If everyone did.” She stubbed the toe of her Converse into the dirt. “I hate being pitied. I hate even more that people think I’m wallowing over the loss of that guy.”
Playing the Enemy: The Trouble With Tomboys #1 Page 10