My eyes widened, and relief flooded through me as I watched him take a step back and then another.
“I’m sorry,” was all he said before he fled.
I wasn’t.
It had been three days since I’d seen or talked to Ever, three days since he practically ran away from me, my parents, and this screwed-up arrangement. I knew it was over.
Ever had broken off our fake engagement.
Relief and doom blended together. I didn’t know what to feel. My parents had been alarmed by his abrupt departure—my mother, most of all. My father had only stared me down with his cold, blue eyes before ordering me to fix it. Whatever the hell that meant. I wouldn’t be fixing shit. Four and Ever were meant to be, and I refused to get in the way of that anymore.
My hand shook as I applied black liquid eyeliner, so it took me three attempts before I drew a line straight enough to pass inspection. I’d caked on more makeup than usual, hoping it would bring me confidence to face the day—or at the very least a sturdy shield.
My foundation and concealer were blended perfectly. My features contoured and highlighted to the gods. I’d even spent extra time on my eyebrows, which I hated doing. When I was done, I signed the look with a matte black lipstick that made me look cold and cruel. Mother wouldn’t approve, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. She wasn’t the one being led into a den of wolves today.
After making sure my hair and makeup were perfect, I sighed, no longer able to stall. I put on my uniform and grabbed my school bag before tiptoeing downstairs. I wasn’t allowed to leave home without presenting myself to my parents first, but since their wrath wouldn’t be the worst thing I’d face today, I slipped from the house undetected and quickly hopped inside the waiting Escalade.
“Morning, Joe.”
“Good morning, miss.” He didn’t waste time driving away, and even though my heart was beating pretty hard for what was to come, I exhaled as I settled against the seat. On autopilot, I pulled my phone from my bag, and my racing heart skipped a beat seeing the message waiting me. The daily texts that started a mere week after our fates collided once more had become a ritual, and even though I never responded, I looked forward to them each morning. Today, despite all that could go wrong was no different.
Jamie: What do Jameson Buchanan and Barbette Montgomery have in common?
I frowned as not for the first time my fingers had itched to respond. Having learned my lesson the last time, I decided to toy with him, I tossed my phone in my bag and forced Jamie out of my mind. I didn’t have time for riddles.
It was possible that I was being paranoid. Maybe nothing at all would happen today. And maybe my entire world would come crashing down.
The ride to Brynwood was short, and as I made my way to my locker, I tried to ignore the fact that everyone was reading the newspaper. The front page, to be exact. I gritted my teeth. Despite how wrong that interview had gone, Grace held no reservations about publishing the story anyway.
A few girls had even stopped me with hearts and stars in their eyes to tell me how lucky I was and that I should never let my Prince Charming go.
Too late.
Maybe I was a damn fool, but I wasn’t about to spend the rest of my life hoping to turn back time. Jamie wasn’t the same anymore, and neither was I. We might have been right for each other then, but now we were poisonous to mix.
After getting what I needed from my locker, I kept my gaze straight ahead and ignored the ones following me. Seriously, what was the big deal? It wasn’t as if Ever and I were celebrities. People married every day. My irritation mounted, reaching its peak when I reached a crowd forming near the entrance.
“Extra! Extra! Read all about it!”
Someone shifted just in time for me to see the douchebag, who was yelling and handing out newspapers, shove one in Tyra’s hands.
Suddenly, I was choking on a huge ball of regret.
If Four read that paper, I knew what she would think, but I didn’t know how she would react. The picture was bad enough, but the story I’d spun behind it would only make it worse. She’d think we’d deceived her. That there was more to us than we’d let on. I started forward, wanting to get to her, to explain, but I stopped short seeing a tall, familiar figure push through the crowd. The anguish on Ever’s face as he tried to reach her nearly sent me collapsing to the floor. What had I done?
The second Ever reached Four, he snatched the paper from her hand and brought her to his chest. Jaws dropped, and the gasps and whispers drowned out what he said to her. It didn’t matter. I’d seen enough, and so had everyone else. I inched closer, wanting to help but knowing that my presence would only make things worse.
Four shoved Ever away before turning to say something to Tyra, who nodded and started for the door. Whatever the truth, Four wasn’t sticking around to hear it. Ever grabbed her hand when she started after Tyra.
“Four, please listen. It’s not what—”
“No!” The look she gave him, full of disdain and not the love I’d seen pass between them before, confirmed it. I’d ruined everything. “I’m done listening.”
Shock made Ever release Four’s hand, and she bolted out the door, leaving him behind. If he noticed the whispers and the stares, he didn’t care. He watched her go for a few seconds before turning. The moment his red-rimmed eyes fell on me, he stopped—his jaw clenching.
“I’m sorry.” And I was. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen, but it didn’t mean shit because it did happen.
Ever’s nostrils flared as he looked away. I held my breath, waiting for him to rip me a new one, but he didn’t. He stormed away, and even though I wanted to follow, like Ever, I was forced to watch him go.
The hall was silent, and for a moment, I thought I was alone until someone began clapping slow. Spinning around, I found the crowd watching me, some with sympathetic gazes and others with mocking sneers. I hated them both. Searching the sea of faces, I found Jamie at the edge, leaning against the trophy case. Clapping.
“Congratulations,” he said the moment our gazes met. “That’s two more people you ruined.” He stood up to his full height before swaggering over. I felt about an inch high by the time he reached me. “Nothing to say?”
I hung my head even as my fists balled. I was at war with myself. All my fault. Slowly, my fingers uncurled. I had no right to be angry.
I felt Jamie’s lips at my ear in an instant. “You see love, you break love. That’s what you do.”
My head felt heavy when I finally lifted it, but I pushed past my sorrow. “We weren’t in love, Jamie. It was summer, and you were fun. Get over yourself.”
I tried to walk around him, but he pulled me back with a hand on my arm.
Tilting my chin, he held my gaze. “I still am,” he whispered. “A hell of a lot more than when we were kids.”
The hand holding my chin slid down my side slowly. As if I hadn’t been humiliated enough, the asshole began groping me in front of the entire school.
“We both love unrequited,” he continued while caressing my ass, “that’s the answer to the riddle. My cousin clearly just made his choice. Have some fun with me.”
“If I’m ever in the market for an STD, I’ll let you know.” Jamie didn’t stop me this time when I pushed him away, but I should have known he’d never let me leave with my head held high.