“Prick,” Alex hisses under his breath.
“When was the last time you got laid, Deimos?”
Alex’s teeth grind, giving us both the answer. “Fuck knows, but I do know the next time I’m getting my dick wet,” he announces with a grin.
“Why? You already booked her?”
“Fuck you. I don’t need to pay. That’s Nico’s thing.”
“So…” I prompt.
“This weekend,” he says, his brows wiggling as if I should know what the fuck is happening. “Oxford?” he adds, glaring at me and waiting for the penny to drop.
“Fuck,” I hiss. “That’s this weekend.”
“Bro, where is your fucking head right now? This is the weekend we’ve been fucking waiting for. We’re gonna obliterate those All Hallows fucks and reign supreme over their pussy.”
His face drops when I don't immediately start jumping up and down with excitement.
“Oh no,” he warns. “Don’t even think about coming up with some dumb-arse excuse to get out of this. We’ve been waiting for this for fucking years. It’s our weekend, man.”
I stare at him. One of my two best friends. One of only a handful of people I would pretty much do anything for, and I can literally feel myself being ripped in two, right down the fucking middle.
“Come on, we’ve dreamed about this since the day Coach gave us our places on the fucking team. This is what this year is all about.”
Shoving down my uncertainty, I plaster a smile on my face and give him the words he’s desperate for.
“Mate, I’m not going to fucking bail on Oxford. We’re going to go and smash those stuck-up motherfuckers.”
“But?” he pushes.
“Fuck.” I slump back on the sofa. “What about Emmie? We can’t all just leave town with all this shit going on.”
“She can come.”
“Yes,” Seb hisses, his eyes lighting up in a way I’ve become all too used to since living with him and his walking sex doll. “Pack those Johnnys, boys.”
“U-uh,” Alex stutters. “Fucking hell. We were meant to embark on this weekend single and ready to take on the world.”
“Don’t you worry, my girl is more than prepared for world domination. Pretty sure his shorty will be right there beside her too.”
“She won’t come,” I say confidently. “Emmie doesn’t want to be anywhere near me.” She won’t even read my goddamn message right now.
“Pfft. Give Stella some credit. Emmie will be there. And if you’re really lucky, then you’ll get an up close and personal experience instead of creeping on her through a screen,” Seb teases, making me groan.
“Uh… what have I missed?”
“Nothing new. Just Theo being a twisted, voyeuristic fuck.”
“Oh yeah, that’s old news. You creeping on Em now?”
“You fucking know he is.”
“Bet she looks banging, fucking herself silly every night while calling out my name.”
“You motherfucking—” Seb grabs both my upper arms before I make contact with the smarmy cunt.
Alex stares at me with a victorious smile splitting his face in two.
“I hope the skank you pick up at the weekend has herpes,” I hiss, much to Alex’s amusement.
“You two are so fucking whipped. Thank fuck I’ll have Nico and Toby as wingmen.”
“Oh wait, now God’s gift to women needs the support of wingmen?” Seb asks, dragging me back to the sofa before shoving me down into the cushions none too gently.
“Fucking dicks. All this pussy is going to your heads.”
Alex gets up and storms across the room, flipping us off over his shoulder.
“Jealousy isn’t a good look on you, bro,” Seb shouts after him.
11
EMMIE
The second a female voice floats down from the front door Dad just got up to open, excited tingles erupt in my belly.
I love both my dad and uncle dearly, but if I have to endure one more programme watching a couple of greasy dudes restoring old cars, I’m legit going to scream.
“How’s our girl doing?” Stella asks, getting closer with every word.
“Pain in the arse, like usual,” he mutters lightly.
“Same can be said for you, old man,” I shout back, making Cruz laugh.
I stand the moment Stella emerges around the corner, followed by Calli and then my dad.
They both say hi to Cruz before focusing on me.
“We brought coffee and doughnuts.”
“Hell, yes,” Cruz barks out.
“For Emmie,” Stella quips. “Sorry, VP.” She winks cheekily.
“Go hang out with your friends, Em,” Dad says, dropping down on the other end of the sofa again and hitting play on his boring-arse TV show.
“I don’t need telling twice. Laters, losers,” I shoot over my shoulder as I head for the stairs.
Footsteps behind me confirm they’re both following instead of continuing to stand and drool over my dad and Cruz.
Ew.
“So they seem to be getting on better,” Stella says as she closes my bedroom door behind them both.
“Yeah, they seem to be bonding nicely over my disastrous life.”
“They just needed a common cause to fight for,” Calli suggests.
“Maybe.” Although I can’t deny that whatever Cruz put in that letter he asked me to deliver to Dad before his wedding seemed to have some impact.
I didn’t ask about it. I figured it was none of my business, but I did see Cruz’s name light up Dad’s phone while we were in that cabin, so I could only assume the letter had broken the ice. I was glad. From the stories I’ve heard from both sides, they were close growing up despite the years and differences between them. It was only after Piper turned Dad’s life upside down and he walked away from the club, leaving Cruz next in line to take over, something he’s always been bitter about.
“Whatever it is, it’s nice to see them getting on.”
“You think it’ll last?” Stella asks, opening the box of doughnuts and filling my room with the mouthwatering scent of sweet goodness.
“I hope so,” I say, practically diving for the box and grabbing what I hope is the salted caramel one from the selection.
Stella’s frustrated groan tells me that I’m right.
“You snooze you lose, Princess,” I mumble around a mouthful of soft fluffy dough. “Oh my God, this is so fucking good.” My cheeks heat at just how desperate my voice sounds.
“Jesus, Em. Should we leave you alone with that thing?” Calli jokes.
Laughter sounds out around my room and I can’t help but smile. I always wondered what it would be like to have friends like these two.
The reality is way better than I could ever have imagined.
Or it was until Stella opens her mouth again.
“You heard from Theo?”
I swallow my mouthful with a groan as the memories from our late-night conversation come back to me.
“She has,” Calli announces. “Look at her cheeks. She’s blushing.”