And it would make things easier. Life on Danny’s arm had been blissfully easy. I’d been invited to every party, welcomed into every group, accepted as quiet because Danny said I was cool. Not only that, but life at home had been easier. My dad had loved Danny and my mom acted like I’d achieved some major accomplishment in life by landing a guy like him. The fact that I was being invited to sleepovers and parties finally made them stop fretting about my lack of social skills. My mom even stopped making me see a therapist about the whole not speaking thing. Life had been good.
Honestly, weeks like this one, it was tempting to take the easy way out and go back to being Danny’s girlfriend…but not that tempting. “I’m never going back to him, Erika. I can’t trust him.”
I can’t trust anyone.
Sure, maybe that seemed melodramatic but right about now? I honestly didn’t know who to trust. I mean, if my own father couldn’t be trusted to do what was right, who could?
Allie interrupted the tense moment with a light, teasing tone. “So, does that mean you’re going to date the new hottie?”
“Ugh, stop calling him that,” Erika said. “He’s a cocky, entitled jerk—”
“Have you ever talked to him?” I interrupted. I honestly wasn’t trying to pick a fight…I was curious. More curious than I’d care to admit.
“No,” Erika said with a huff. “But he acts like he owns this school.” She made a look of disgust. “I mean, who does he think he is?”
My guess? He seemed to think he was funny. And charming. He definitely thought he was hot…
And he’s not wrong.
His real problem was that he’d come into this school not knowing the rules of Talmore High. He’d barreled into this place like a bull in a china shop, and hadn’t learned to play the game. In a way, I almost felt sorry for the guy.
“Yeah, well, doesn’t matter because I’m not interested in dating…anyone.”
Allie arched her brows in disbelief. “Maybe you should tell Conner that so he stops sniffing around you.”
Erika nodded. “Cut him loose before Danny and his friends start to notice.”
“I won’t have to,” I said. “He’ll lose interest eventually.”
They always do.
Conner wasn’t the first guy to hit on me since the breakup, although most of the guys in this school didn’t dare do it so blatantly. In fact, most of the come-ons I’d heard had been from guys who’d had too much to drink. One went so far as to tell me he’d take Danny down a peg by dating me. So…that was romantic.
It didn’t take a genius to see that I’d become a challenge for any guy who had the nerve to defy Danny.
This guy was no different. I’d given him no encouragement and there were plenty of girls who’d be happy to bask in his attention, whether he was an outcast or not. But he had his sights set on me, which made me think he had an agenda. Maybe it wasn’t about Danny, but he was out to prove something, and I wanted no part of it.
“He thinks I’m a challenge, that’s all,” I said, heading toward the locker room door. “He’ll give up eventually.”
6
Conner
Day four at Talmore High and I was still in the loser zone, along with Lars and…not Harley.
I spotted her at her locker between classes and she was surrounded by a group of popular girls whose names I hadn’t yet learned. For a split second I wondered if I’d have to intervene, but as I got closer I heard them talking, and they weren’t mocking, they weren’t ganging up, they were…befriending.
These A-list, popular girls with tight jeans, brand-name tops, and cute shoes were voluntarily talking to my nerdy, freakish stepsister. I wasn’t saying that to be mean—she literally referred to herself as a freak at dinner last night. Our parents had gone out for a business dinner with my mom’s new boss and her husband and I’d ended up cooking for both me and Harley.
The fact that I was feeding her seemed to be the secret to smoothing some of her ruffled feathers when it came to me because for the first time in the weeks we’d been cohabitating as siblings, she was actually almost pleasant. She managed to make it through the whole evening without a snarky comment about my lack of intelligence or rubbing it in that I’d been openly cough-mocked when I’d walked into the cafeteria earlier that day.
You know, when a group of guys pretend to cough while calling you a loser?
Yeah, classic D-bag behavior, which meant I’d totally seen it coming from the alphaholes who ruled over Talmore High.
I walked closer, curious to see what on earth Harley could be discussing with these girls. It had to be about a class project or something, there was no other option.
“You should come,” the girl with dirty blonde curls was saying. “Everyone will be there.”
“Be where?” I asked.
I got a blank look from goldilocks in return. One of her friends blushed and fluttered her lashes at me. “The diner,” she said. “We’re all going to be there tomorrow night after the game.” Goldilocks flashed the other girl a look, but she didn’t seem to notice. Apparently she hadn’t received word that I was not eligible crush material for a girl like her—one who wanted to fit in with the jocks and the cheerleaders who seemed to have this mini-civilization under its thumbs.
I’d seriously thought this sort of mentality was from another age—like, whenever Grease was set.
Yes, I’d seen Grease, and no I wasn’t embarrassed to admit it.
“I’ll, uh…” Harley hugged her books to her chest like a shield. “I’ll think about it.”
The girls gave me one last wary look before following their leader down the hallway.
“What was that about?” I asked. Okay fine, I demanded. But honestly, what was happening here? We’d left California and ended up in some backwards upside-down land where preppy jocks were considered cool and nerdy, artsy loners were invited to hang with the popular crowd.
Harley arched a brow. “Jealous?”
I scoffed.
“Don’t be,” she continued, letting out a weary sigh as she slammed her locker shut. “It’s not like I’ll go.”
“Why not?”
She looked up at me like I’d just asked her why she didn’t shave her eyebrows.
“Seriously,” I said. “It might be nice—”
“For whom?”
“For you.” Man, this girl could be frustrating sometimes.
She tilted her head to the side and frowned up at me. “You just want me to help you get in with these girls.”
“No!” Honestly, that thought hadn’t even occurred to me. “First of all, I don’t need any help, especially not from you.”
She rolled her eyes.
“And second, I was being serious.” I turned to face her head on. “You have a chance to start over here, Harley. Would it be so bad to have friends at this school? Maybe even have a little—dare I say it—fun?”
She stared at me for a second as if to see if I was serious. Then she relaxed a bit with a loud exhale. “Do you honestly think hanging out with a bunch of jocks is my idea of fun?”
I shrugged. Honesty, it didn’t sound all that great to me, either. “Maybe it’s not about the act of going to the diner, it’s just…making the effort.”
Her gaze turned thoughtful but before I could get all proudly big brother about this little moment, she arched a brow in that look I knew well. “How about you and your efforts?”
I narrowed my eyes. I knew exactly what she was talking about, and she knew very well that I’d made zero headway with the ice queen. Not that I hadn’t tried. I had. Numerous time over the past few days. “My opportunities are limited.”
“Uh huh.”
“But I did sit next to her in World History—”
“How scandalous!”
I ignored her mockery. “And I struck up multiple conversations.”
We’d started walking again and she looked over at me, her expression filled with disbelief. “About what? World history?”
“About…” I trailed off as I realized that every conversation starter had been lamer than the last. Can I borrow a pen? Any chance I could borrow your notes to catch up? Is Mr. Herzog always this boring?
Not exactly my finest material. I wasn’t about to replace Casanova in the history books anytime soon.
Harley’s expression was thoroughly unimpressed. “You know, you can just admit defeat now, if that’s what you want to hear.”
I glared down at her. “I’m not admitting defeat. But you try striking up a flirtatious conversation with a brick wall. It’s not exactly pleasant.”
And it sure took a toll on the ego. I’d never had a girl look at me the way Rosalie did every time I opened my mouth. Not like she hated me or anything—that I’ve definitely seen in the face of my exes—no, it was complete and total disinterest. Cold, unfeeling apathy.
But I knew it was an act. I just knew it. Because that first day when I’d teased her in the hallway, I’d seen it. Life. Emotions. Something more than this hard shell she showed to the rest of the world.
And I would see it again.
Harley shocked me out of my thoughts when she gripped my arms and gave me a small smile, her tone dripping with condescension. “Maybe it’s not about the act of flirting. It’s about…making the effort,” she said, echoing my tone and my voice in a way that was almost comical. Almost.
“You’re hilarious.”
She grinned. “I think so.”
I started to back away. “And you’re also wrong.”
“How so?”
I raised my voice to be heard over the crowd. “I’m not even close to admitting defeat!”
Here’s the thing. I hadn’t been lying about my need for Rosalie’s help in World History. I’d never been very good at school, but transferring in the middle of a semester was killer. I was used to feeling lost in class. I’d come to recognize the feeling and just be chill about it because I’d never actually failed.
I’d been pulling solid Cs and Ds for most of my life, but I’d never actually failed out or had to repeat a grade. I’d taken it for granted that I could always skate by in school, coming close but never quite failing.
This year I was starting to wonder. The teachers didn’t know me here, so while some seemed willing to go easy on me while I caught up, others—like Mr. Herzog—expected me to dive in and play catch up on my own time.
When I spotted Rosalie miraculously alone toward the end of the day at her locker, I leapt on the chance to talk to her without a glowering teacher giving me the stink-eye for talking during his monotone lecture and without her ever-present friends hovering at her side.
Her blonde hair was partially obscuring her face and she didn’t seem to notice me until I was at her side. “Excuse me,” I said politely.
Her eyes widened slightly when she looked over at me, but that was the only indicator that my presence at her side was unexpected.
I shoved my hands into my pockets and leaned against the locker beside hers. “Any idea on where I could find a hair dryer around here?”
She blinked. “A…a what?”
“A hair dryer,” I repeat. “I heard there’s this ice queen roaming the halls of this school so I thought maybe a little hot air would help.” I waved a hand from her head to her toes as she gaped at me openmouthed.
It wasn’t exactly a come-hither smile, but it was something, and at this point something was better than nothing.
I’d take it.
I felt an unexpected thrill when her lips twitched ever so slightly at the corners. Was that… No, it couldn’t be. The great untouchable ice queen of Talmore High couldn’t possibly be trying not to laugh at my stupid joke.
She shut her locker. “I don’t think you’d need a hair dryer for that.”
My brows shot up. Now we were getting somewhere. There was a tiny note of teasing in her voice—maybe even flirtation. “Oh no?” I was about to add that I too could think of some better ways to make her hot, but then—
“You’re spewing plenty of hot air as it is.”
I choked on a shocked laugh.
She turned to walk away, but not before I caught another flicker—a tease of a smile lighting up those pretty blue eyes and hinting at a dimple. And then she was gone, heading away from me in a pale pink cardigan and skinny jeans.
“A burn from the ice queen,” I called after her, a grin spreading across my face. “Now that’s cold.”
Her head dropped down and her shoulders hitched a bit and…
I’d made the ice queen laugh.
Triumph, pure and simple shot through me. And something more. Satisfaction, maybe. A kind I wasn’t very familiar with. There was something crazy awesome about making this girl smile, even a little bit. And to make her laugh? It felt like I’d accomplished something important.
Because the thing was, despite her efforts to convince everyone around her that she was some sort of untouchable, unfeeling goddess…she was human. She had depths and layers, and call me crazy but I wanted to see them. I wanted to be the one who cracked that shell.
I started after her, ignoring the looks from passersby as I broke into a run to catch her. For the first time this week I’d actually been glad to be here, at this school, and it was all because of that girl’s cryptic smile.
Oh yeah. It was on.
There was no way I was giving up now.
7
Rosalie
I couldn’t believe I’d just said that. That was so…not like me. I was more the freeze in the moment and think of a comeback later type. Usually when I was in bed and obsessing over events of the day.
For once I’d actually said what I’d wanted to say when I wanted to say it. Despite the awful week I was having family-wise, that felt like a win.
I couldn’t stop my grin as I heard him chase after me.
“The ice queen speaks,” he said as he reached my side, falling into stride beside me and seemingly not noticing the attention we were getting. I did what I always did and pretended not to notice, but I actually felt like Conner didn’t see them.
He only seemed to see me.
His gaze was fixed on the side of my face, so intense I could have sworn I felt it burning my cheek.
“Of course I speak,” I said. “I’ve already spoken to you several times.”
“That’s right.” He cleared his voice and started speaking in a high-pitched yet robotic voice. “No. No way. Not interested.” His grin softened his teasing. “You are quite the conversationalist.”
I arched my brows. “Did you expect me to answer your request to borrow a pen with a soliloquy about the merits of Bic versus Pilot?”
He laughed, and the sound was amazing. Low and rumbly, it somehow rivaled that sexy lopsided grin for sexiness. Between the two he was larger than life—charismatic and alluring and…
I snapped my head forward. Oh man, I’d totally been staring.
I’d also been talking…more than I had to anyone outside of my family or close friends in I didn’t know how long. Not that this was some big conversation, but it was something even better than that. My heart was racing with excitement and I felt a rush of adrenaline as I realized that I was doing this. I was actually talking to this guy.
It was banter. It was small-talk. It was…easy.
I was talking without freezing up, talking without overthinking and overanalyzing and worrying about how he would see me. It was kind of a miracle, to be honest. I risked another peek in his direction, wondering why on earth I could talk to him. What made him different? Why did he rattle me one minute but then put me at ease the next?
Maybe it was because he was straightforward. I mean, no one had ever called me ice queen to my face before. Or maybe it was because he was so confident.
Maybe his confidence was infectious.
“So,” he said in a casual tone. “Now that we’re friends—”
“We’re not friends.” It came out colder and harsher than I intended. I hadn’t e
ven meant to say it at all, but it was the truth, and sometimes the truth had a way of coming out when I least expected it.
I peeked over and noticed that he didn’t look offended, not in the least.
“Not yet,” he said. “But we’re talking and that’s a start.”
“How do you figure?”
“We’re getting to know each other,” he said.
“That doesn’t automatically mean we’ll be friends.”
He leaned over and down so he was close to my ear, close enough that I could feel his breath on my ear and smell the clean, masculine scent of his soap. “Trust me, once you get to know me, you’re gonna love me.”
“You sound awfully sure of yourself,” I said, torn between laughter and irritation at his over-the-top cocky behavior.
His answer was a shrug. “Just you wait, you and me will be besties in no time.”
I swallowed down a laugh. “You sound awfully sure about me.”
He shot me a sidelong look with a hint of confusion. “I told you, once you get to know me—”
“No, I meant, you seem awfully sure you’ll like me.”
He stopped walking and I was forced to do the same or not hear his response. He didn’t seem to notice the gawking students who filed past us in the busy hallway. He was regarding me with a funny look, like he was amused but still a little confused. “Of course I’ll like you. I already do.”
All the weird giddy laughter I’d been feeling faded so quickly it left me hollow and drained. “You don’t know me.”
His eyes widened slightly at the admittedly cold tone. “I beg to differ.”
Wrong answer. I started to turn away, this stupid, irrational disappointment threatening to swallow me whole.
Why should I have expected anything different from this guy? He was just like Danny, just like the others—he saw a pretty face and a short skirt, and that was all he needed to know.
I headed toward my next class but was cut short when Conner stepped directly into my path, facing me. I could’ve either stopped or run into him, the halls were too busy to navigate around this tall, cocky jerk who’d made himself a human boulder in the flow of student traffic.
Charming the Cheerleader (The Bet Duet Book 1) Page 5