Ruby emerges a few minutes later, looking a lot more put together than I feel.
“Your car will be here in a few.”
“Walk me out?”
Thankfully, we don’t see Harley, the last thing I need with the reminder of last night’s alcohol running around my system is to try to convince her that nothing happened with Ruby.
“Thank you,” I say, trying to sound as sincere as possible as she makes her way down to the waiting car.
“You too, you probably stopped me from making a huge mistake last night too.”
A warning to take care of herself is on the tip of my tongue, but I swallow it down. She’s already got a dad to give her those kinds of warnings, I need to butt out.
I wave her off as her car speeds down the street before walking to the kitchen.
“Really?” Mom asks, looking over my shoulder to where Ruby just disappeared.
“Nothing like that. Promise.”
“I should hope not.” She narrows her eyes at me, and I immediately feel like a kid again.
I make myself a coffee and sit up on the stool next to her.
“You heard about Poppy?” Mom asks. She stares at me as if she’s trying to read my reaction for some reason.
“Yeah, sounds awful.”
She continues to study me.
“What?”
“Harley asked me to get involved to see if I can help, maybe see if there’s a way for her to come back to Rosewood to finish school here.”
“Right,” I say, letting her words settle as I sip at my too hot coffee.
“How would you feel about that?” She pins me with another look that has me wondering if she’s not really asking the question she’s making out to be.
“Um…” Something flutters in my belly at the thought of her being about to get Poppy back to finish school. I have no idea if that’s what she’d want. But I can’t imagine she’d be too thrilled at having to start over. I know I’m not happy about it, but it’s not my life that’s just been thrown into a tailspin. “I guess that’s up to Poppy. No harm in asking though, staying at Rosewood High would make life easier for her, I’m sure.”
Her eyes bounce between mine. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
She nods and looks back to her tablet that she was reading before I joined her.
“Zayn,” she calls out when I’m at the door. “I left something on your dresser while you were out last night that I found in my laundry. I know it doesn’t belong to me or your sisters.” She quirks a brow, a small smile playing on her lips.
“Uh… okay, thanks.”
I walk away wondering what the hell she’s playing at, I’m even more confused when I walk into my room and discover what I missed last night—not hard with how drunk I was—and this morning. Reaching out, I run my finger over the lace of Poppy’s bra.
Looking back over my shoulder at my door, I wonder how much Mom knows. Is that why she was being weird asking me about Poppy downstairs.
I place her bra in my drawer and fall back down in the bed as both Ruby’s and Mom’s words from this morning swirl around my head.
27
Poppy
For some stupid reason, the first thing I did this morning was reach for my cell. Huge fucking mistake.
I’d hoped to find a message from Jake, Harley, Ruby, even another from Zayn so I knew they hadn’t forgotten me already despite the fact I haven’t replied to any of the previous ones yet.
The last thing I expected to find when I opened Instagram was my feed full of images of last night’s party, with close-up photographs of Zayn with Laurie pressed against him.
Because looking at one image wasn’t enough. I click on her profile and open each one. They’re all selfies of them dancing, of their bodies pressed up against each other’s, her lips pressed to his neck, his cheek, the corner of his mouth.
My stomach still turns over now as I think about it, my fists curling in the sheets beneath me. I was barely gone a few hours and he’s already going after a cheer slut.
I don’t know why I’m surprised. He’s got a reputation after all.
I just thought, stupidly, that things were different. That he—we—were different.
Stupid, stupid, Poppy.
“Poppy, you’ve got a visitor,” Auntie Trish calls down to my bedroom where I’m lying on the bed staring at the ceiling. I’ve got a million and one things I probably should be doing, but I can’t focus on anything.
“Okay.”
I swing my legs off the bed and pull my hair back into a messy bun. I washed it earlier and then had an afternoon nap with it wet, who knows what kind of mess it’s in now.
I glance down at myself. Black sweats and an oversized gray hoodie. Yeah, I’ve never looked better. I roll my eyes at myself and head out assuming it’s Bea or the police and I really don’t give a crap how they think I look.
Auntie Trish’s voice fills the air around me as I make my way toward the front door, but I don’t hear another voice. So when I round the corner the last person I expect to find standing on the porch is the person who’s been tormenting me all morning.
“What are you doing here?” I snap, marching over to where Zayn’s standing.
“Uh… I think I’ll leave you two to it,” Auntie Trish announces, before spinning on her heels and walking toward me. “He’s cute,” she whispers in my ear as she passes.
“Hmm… shame he’s a dick.”
She gasps as Zayn’s eyes narrow on me in confusion.
Nice fucking try, Hunter. I’m not falling for these games. I might not be in town right now but I see you and your manwhore ways.
“Pops,” he whispers, the frown lines on his forehead deepening the closer I get.
“Don’t. Don’t Pops me. Not after what you’ve done.”
“Me?” he asks, innocently pointing at himself.
“Do yourself a favor and knock off the act. It’s not going to work on me, Hunter.” I practically spit his last name.
“Oh, on last name terms are we now, Poore? And here I was coming to see how you were doing because I was concerned.”
“Concerned? Oh yeah, you looked so concerned last night. Fun party, was it?”
“No, not really.”
“You’re such a fucking liar. I don’t know what I was even thinking these past few weeks. It was a game, wasn’t it? Some stupid pact with the team, see how far you can take things before you drop me from a great height.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” He takes a step forward as if he’s about to invite himself in.
Reaching out, I grab the door and close it slightly, shuffling forward so he has no choice but to stay out on the porch.
“I can’t believe how easily I fell for it. I’m so fucking stupid. Was it his idea? Was that his way of ruining my life? He discovered my weakness and somehow convinced you to join in his sick and twisted games.”
“Well?” I ask, throwing my arms up when he just stands gaping at me. “You win, okay. You fucking win,” I scream as if the motherfucker is out there listening to this. “You ruined my life, well done. Everything’s fucked. Congratulations.”