Frayed: A Small Town Sports Romance (Willow Springs Series Book 1)

by Laura Pavlov

  “She’s got a point,” I said.

  “Clem, someday you will understand how important this is. Your sister is out there supporting our boys and the game is tied.”

  Clem rubbed her temples. “Mother, please. She’s out there dancing in a skirt, shaking her tail. Why is it Addy’s job to support the boys? They should be cheering for her.”

  My mother stilled and turned to face my sister. “I cannot do your whole feminist thing right now with a tie game. Go up and sit with Daddy and stop with this nonsense.”

  Clem went to open her mouth and my mother held her hand up. If Mama were a superhero, she would be The Great Silencer. If she didn’t like what you were saying, she ended the conversation. She shut it down. It was a brilliant strategy, actually. This is why she always got her way. But I had a feeling Clem was going to challenge her for years to come. My sister stormed off and my mother shook her head.

  “I swear that girl will be the death of me. Now go out there and smile pretty, sweetheart.”

  I nodded, and as soon as I turned around, I rolled my eyes. I was starting to think Clem might be on to something.

  We performed our cheer and my stomach dipped as I sailed through the air, circling around in the night sky, before landing in the arms of my teammates. I’d never found it fun to be a flyer, but my mother said it was the best position to be on the cheer team. The wind whistled, and the crowd screamed as I was tossed up one more time. Coco, Ivy, Gigi, and Maura shouted for me on the sidelines and I hurried over as the team came back out on the field. They would be announcing homecoming court before the second half of the game started again and I searched the field for Alec.

  “I can’t believe we have to go out there for this ridiculous ritual. If I wasn’t walking with Shaw, I’d refuse to do it. But he’s so hot, that I’m willing to go against my moral code and play along with society’s ridiculous traditions,” Coco said.

  Maura came over and fixed my hair, adjusting the oversized bow on top of my head. Gigi made Coco, Ivy, and I all get together and she took a picture for our book. Maura and Gigi were relieved they didn’t have to partake, but they were excited that the three of us were on court this year.

  “You never know, Co, you just might be the queen of East Texas,” Gigi said with a laugh. Coco hated this stuff, most especially because her mother was ridiculously happy about Coco being nominated for homecoming queen. She was as excited as my mom, and that made Coco all the more disgusted.

  “I’d rather swim in a bath of horse shit than wear a ridiculous crown on my head and watch my mother gush with joy,” she hissed.

  “Well, I feel confident that Addy and Alec have got this in the bag,” Ivy said as she winked at me. “So, no need to swim in horse shit.”

  Tonight, we’d just be walking out on the field to be announced, and we wouldn’t have to deal with who won until tomorrow. Alec jogged over and reached for my hand.

  “Good job out there. You got your touchdown,” I said, pushing up to kiss his soft lips.

  “I did. And now I get to walk with the prettiest girl out onto the field.” He turned, facing the girls and shrugged. “No offense. You’re all obviously gorgeous.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sell it to someone who’s buying your crap, Taulson.” Coco chuckled before jogging over to meet Shaw.

  We lined up behind Jett and Jessica, and I studied the little bit of ink poking out of his uniform sleeve on his upper arm. It looked like some sort of Roman numerals. That boy and numbers sure were one. He was tall and lean and towered over Jessica, and she leaned into him and giggled. A tinge of something ran through me. Jealousy, maybe? Envy? I didn’t know, but my blood ran hot. What the hell was that about? I glanced up at Alec who was shooting daggers into Jett’s back and I tugged at his hand to get his attention. He smiled and shook off whatever demons he’d just been battling. They called each couple one at a time and read a few facts about each one. The other girls all wore pretty dresses, and I wore my cheer outfit. Mama wanted me to try to change into a dress and then change back, but I’d insisted Coach Hansen wouldn’t allow it. The truth was, I was fine staying in uniform. Tomorrow night would be all about the dresses and the hair and the makeup. Tonight, I just wanted to focus on the game and cheer on my boyfriend and his team.

  Jett and Jessica walked out to the middle of the field to deafening cheers.

  “We’re next,” I said, my fingers interlaced with Alec’s. Both of our mothers were screaming over the crowd in the background and we both laughed.

  “There’s no one else I’d rather be here with, Addy. I love you.”

  I smiled, just as our names were called through the speakers. “Love you too. Let’s do this.”

  We walked forward as Jett and Jessica made their way back. Jett’s gaze locked with mine for just a few brief seconds and my stomach flipped. It had to be nerves being out here in front of everyone. At least that’s what I was telling myself.

  Coco and Ivy and I all high-fived as we passed, and Maura and Gigi shouted from the sidelines. Before I knew it, the ball was back in play and Karina was glaring at me as I called the next cheer. The score was tied, and our team charged down the field. Jett threw a Hail Mary in the end zone to Shaw, who caught the ball with ease. The crowd was on their feet. I was cannonballed up in the air for a scissor kick as the band played our fight song.

  The energy on the field was at an all-time high as our defense held them from coming into field goal range and Jett had the ball again. I studied his arm as he spiraled the ball down the field to Ty, who ran it in the end zone and scored the final touchdown. I looked over to Ivy who was standing with the girls and they were all going wild with excitement.

  The game came to an end with East Texas High winning by fourteen points. Alec wanted to go out and celebrate, but that wasn’t even an option for me with my SATs tomorrow. He made a few jokes about me being silly to worry about my score when I could bomb the test and still get into State, and it rubbed me wrong. I wondered why I’d worked so hard all these years only to attend a school that I could get into with no effort at all.

  I kissed him goodbye and slipped into the back seat of Ivy’s car. Coco stood near the rear of the pearl white Audi talking to Shaw.

  “I have never seen her so into someone before,” Gigi said as she scooched over and made room for me. She was sandwiched between me and Maura.

  “I know.” I chuckled. “She really likes him.”

  “Well, she’s got about two minutes to get this goodbye out of the way, because I need to get home and get my beauty sleep for the dance tomorrow.”

  “And we need to survive SAT tests first. Whose horrible idea was it to have homecoming and SAT testing on the same day?” Maura asked with a chuckle.

  The car door whipped open and Coco hopped into the front seat. “Man, that boy is so freaking hot, isn’t he?”

  “No question about it,” Gigi said. “And you get to go to homecoming with him, while I go on a pity date with Hayden who’s upset that he isn’t going with you.”

  Coco whipped around to face us in the back seat. “Gigi Jacobs, you zip it right now. That boy is lucky to be going with your fine ass. He’s only interested in me because I’m not interested in him. And maybe you and Hayden will have a little spark? Crazier things have happened.”

  “I don’t think so. We’re just friends. But I’m glad to be going with him because at least there’s no pressure and we can just have fun. Remember prom last year?” Gigi groaned. “Patrick was literally hanging on me. I thought the dude would suffocate me. I think he licked my cheek. It was the most miserable night of my life, and then he got super drunk.”

  “And didn’t he end up crying to you?” Maura said as she started laughing hard.

  “Yep. Because he tried to kiss me, and I said no. He said I ruined his prom experience, and that he could have gone with so many other girls and would prob
ably have gotten laid. He then told me he’d never have asked me if he’d known I was a prude. And then he burst into tears and said he would never forgive me.”

  “That douche canoe is such a jackass,” Coco hissed. “I saw him a few times this summer and gave him my best death glare.”

  “So, he’s probably lying in a puddle of mush right now. I’m totally fine with that,” Gigi said and everyone laughed.

  “We’re all meeting at Addy’s tomorrow afternoon, right? We’ll take our test, grab some lunch, and then head over to her house to get ready.” Ivy pulled up in front of my house.

  It was a ritual. We’d been getting ready for dances together since our freshman year of high school. The girls always slept over after. The thought that this was our last year of making these memories made my chest ache.

  “Yes,” everyone said in unison, and I hopped out of the car.

  “Okay, see you in the morning. Get some rest. Love you,” I said.

  “Get ready to have some fun tomorrow night.” Coco wriggled her brow. “Love you, bitch.”

  “Love you,” they all called out as I shut the door.

  When I stepped inside, my dad and Clem were sitting at the table with large bowls of vanilla ice cream covered in chocolate sauce.

  “Hey, what’s going on here?” I said, grabbing a spoon and pulling out my chair to join them. I dipped it in my father’s bowl and closed my eyes as the chocolate melted on my tongue.

  “Just talking about Clem’s big win today,” Daddy said, his handsome face beaming with pride.

  “Do you want to hear the best part?” My sister could barely contain her excitement. Clem’s auburn hair bounced on her shoulders, and the cutest spray of freckles peppered her cheeks, standing out against her fair skin. We always joked about the fact that we didn’t know if I had freckles because my tanned skin may have hidden them. I had Mama’s complexion, and Clem was all Daddy. Our dark brown eyes were the only physical characteristic that we shared. And there was nothing that I didn’t love about my baby sister.

  “What?” I asked, my gaze ping-ponging between them.

  “My winning time was faster than the boys’ winning time,” she said, covering her mouth with her hands to hide her giggle.

  “She beat all the boys.” Daddy ruffled her hair.

  “Damn straight. Why they make us race by sex is beyond me. Put me up against any of those clowns. This is the twenty-first century. Women are tired of being held back. It’s our year, Addy.” My sister fist-bumped the sky.

  Daddy and I cheered along with her.

  “Not this again,” Mama said as she entered the kitchen, shaking her head with disapproval. “Women are doing just fine, Clem.”

  “Well, I’m proud of you, girl.” I smiled at my sister. “I wish I could have been there.”

  “You should have seen Coach’s face when he realized my time was faster than the kid from South High that won the boys’ race. Serves him right for telling me not to have such high expectations this season. ‘It’s a marathon, not a sprint, Clem.’” She imitated him and used two fingers on each hand to make quotation marks. “This one is for all the women who have been told to set their expectations low.”

  Daddy high-fived each of us and Mama rolled her eyes, hands planted on each hip as she stared at my sister. “You’re awfully young to be a feminist.”

  I gawked at my mother’s words. That’s all she had to say about Clem’s accomplishments?

  “I was born a feminist, Mama. May I remind you that you should realize how powerful you are, especially after pushing two humans out of your vagina.”

  Mama gasped. She didn’t talk about such things, and my father and I shared a glance, and covered our smiles with a hand.

  “Go to bed, Clementine. Addy, you have a test in the morning and then I have Celeste and her team coming over to do hair and makeup for you girls. Let’s go to bed, dear.” Mama held her hand out for my father. This chat had clearly pushed her over the edge.

  “Good job, Clem. Love you both,” Daddy said, pausing to kiss the tops of our heads.

  “Love you, Daddy-kins, love you Mama,” my baby sister said as I called out the sentiment with her.

  I paused to look at the pretty pink dress hanging on my bathroom door that Mama and I had found at Lulu’s Boutique in town. I ran my hand down the satin fabric, before getting ready for bed. I climbed under the covers and wished for a restful night of sleep.

  Tomorrow was a big day.

  For whatever reason, scoring well on my SATs was important to me.

  Chapter Six

  Jett

  We took photos out at the old apple orchard near school. The tall cypress trees were covered in colorful leaves and a light breeze moved around us. Half the senior class was here, as Shaw and Coco deciding to go to a dance together had forced the two groups that normally wouldn’t mix—together. I didn’t care. I was ready for this night to be over and it had barely started. Jessica was acting like we were a couple, and I’d need to put some distance between us after this dance.

  Ma and Gram drove out to take pictures and see everyone all dressed up. I posed for enough photos to last me a lifetime and forced a smile. Jessica wore a tight, short lavender gown, and her blonde hair fell around her shoulders. She was sexy, no question. There just wasn’t a spark there, and I certainly wasn’t looking to ignite anything.

  “Addy?” my mother called out and my gaze followed. “Wow. You look gorgeous, honey.”

  Ma always talked about Adelaide, because she’d been going to the diner every weekend with her friends for years. My mom thought she was sweet and kind, unlike Adelaide’s mother, who’d treated her as if she no longer existed after she got knocked up with me.

  “Hi Mae. Thank you so much.” I watched as they embraced, and my eyes scanned Adelaide’s body from head to toe. She wore a pink dress, hugging her slight curves and showing off her toned legs. Her dress ended mid-thigh and her tanned skin shimmered in the last of the sunlight remaining overhead. Her dress was longer than the other girls’ dresses were, yet she managed to be the sexiest girl here. She didn’t have to try. She always stood out. Her dark hair was pulled back in a long ponytail falling down her back and I had a hard time looking away.

  “Hellooooo. Earth to Jett,” Jessica whined.

  I pulled my gaze away and looked down at my date. “Sorry. What’s up?”

  “Let’s take a kissing picture,” she said, gripping my jacket and yanking me closer.

  Her mother was standing there and the whole scene was awkward. My mom was busy chatting with Adelaide—even she thought we’d taken enough pictures, which was saying something.

  “No,” I said near her ear so only she would hear. I wasn’t looking to humiliate the girl, but I wasn’t about to kiss her for an audience. “Let’s head out.”

  “We’re on court, Jett. We might just win this whole king and queen gig. You’re the only one who doesn’t seem to know how good we are together.” She pouted and her mother finally put her camera away.

  “Come on, Jess. Let’s just have fun tonight. Stop forcing it.” My words came out harsher than I’d meant them to, but this was exactly why I didn’t like going to dances.

  Shaw and Coco made their way over to us, and thankfully Jessica was easily distracted.

  “You guys about ready to go?” Shaw asked.

  “Yes, he’s definitely done taking pictures.” Jessica thrust her thumb at me and rolled her eyes.

  “I feel his pain.” Shaw shrugged.

  Coco laughed, and I followed her gaze over to Adelaide and Alec. He stood behind her now, arms wrapped around her middle, and he buried his face in her neck as they talked to her parents. The dude was a possessive little fucker, no doubt about it.

  “What’s so funny?” Jessica asked, looking from Coco to Adelaide.

  “I can’t stop p
icturing Addy when she first got her hair done today. Her mom hired a team of people to come over. I never let anyone touch my hair or makeup, because I prefer to do it myself. Well, Addy’s hair was shellacked into a low chignon and she looked like a forty-year-old Stepford wife. No way was I letting my girl rock that look.”

  Shaw’s head tipped back, and Jess and I laughed. “How’d she fix it?”

  “As soon as the hairdresser left, I worked my magic.” She smirked. “Fixed my girl right up.”

  I think Adelaide would probably look good just about any way she wore her hair, but I wasn’t about to say that.

  “You’re a woman of many trades, huh, Radcliff?” Shaw asked.

  “You have no idea.” She winked at my best friend.

  Jax and Sierra sauntered over. “Can we please get the hell out of here? All these parents are giving me hives,” Jax said.

  We laughed.

  “Yeah. Let me go say goodbye to my mom.” I left Jessica to go speak to her parents and made my way to Ma and Gram.

  “You guys getting ready to leave?” my mother asked.

  “Yep. Thanks for coming.” I leaned over and hugged them both. Gram was a fragile little thing.

  “Have fun tonight,” Ma called out and I gave her a salute. She knew I hated this shit. But at least my SATs were behind me, and I felt good about them. Next up was the state meet next week, and then I could focus on where I’d sign to play in college. So, to say I had a lot weighing on my mind was an understatement. I’d go through the motions tonight. Try to have some fun with my friends and let Jessica down easy. I didn’t like feeling smothered, and she was definitely coming on too strong. A hookup at a party was a different story—I’d definitely made a mistake agreeing to come with her.

  The dance was more fun than I’d expected. Coco and Shaw brought everyone together, and we ended up at one table with a bunch of her friends as well as our friends. Turned out we all got along well. Adelaide and I made small talk about calculus, and Sherman came over to say hello. He did not hide his awe of Adelaide, his jaw dropping open as he took her in. The only one that had an attitude tonight was Alec. He didn’t like his girl talking to any of us, and Coco had snarled at him a few times for being rude. I didn’t give a shit. The dude was a dick. Always had been.