I had snatched up the paper she presented to him and made up a love note instead of the essay assignment with his name typed at the top. He got her to do his homework somehow, but he also wasn’t taking it, declaring that he wasn’t accepting proclamations of love and calling what she wrote sweet.
Now, I don’t know what sort of kinky game he’s playing with her, but whatever it is, it’s brought a light to his eyes I haven’t seen since his cousin Lucas left for college. Davis brought his wrath on herself by picking Trent’s pockets right in front of us.
The laughter of our crew fills the room as other students filter in for class. Sean leans on Trent, howling with amused tears clinging to the corners of his eyes. Two of our friends from the dance team, Nina and Bailey, coo cruelly at Blair Davis while Devlin and I tag team her.
Fire flashes in her gaze. Yeah, she’s a total fighter, even if she stays silent the majority of the time we’re messing with her. “Listen—”
Devlin’s voice is cutting as he interrupts, wagging a finger at her. “I don’t like the way you look at my dick. It’s not sexy to think you might bite it off because you mistook it for a hotdog.”
“Oh damn!” I choke into my fist at the brutal burn. “Bro. That mental image. My eyes!”
Davis growls—actually growls like the trailer trash animal we call her—ready to fight Devlin. I’m kind of hoping she tackles him to the ground. He can take her, but it would be fun as hell to watch them wrestle. But our Devil Boy has her halting, balling her fists at her side.
“Whatever,” she spits. “You’re disgusting.”
“Oh, come on, sticky fingers.” Devlin props his chin in his hand, smirking because he knows he’s won, kicking the trash in the mud once again. These two are out for blood this year. “I’ve heard you get up to way worse for anyone willing to pay. But not me. I don’t pay for it, and I sure as fuck am not touching you with a ten-foot pole.”
He goes on. The man loves a savage diatribe, but I miss the rest of it because Thea walks in. Today her auburn curls are braided, a few strands escaping. She hugs her books to her chest as she pauses in the doorway to say bye to Landry’s sister. The school blazer is so big on her short frame, the cuffs of her sleeves become like sweater paws.
I want to unwrap her to get to the delectable body underneath. This lie of hers pisses me off, digging beneath the threshold of my patience.
Thea glances at me as she finds her seat at the desk in front of mine. Even more irritating than her fake frumpy armor is that the only recognition for me is indifference. Maybe a hint of judgement because she’s caught some of how we’re treating Davis.
She doesn’t know I’m the one who gets her to come at least twice a day since she accidentally texted me.
Grunting under my breath, I turn my back on Thea to face Devlin at his seat behind me.
Davis sits stiffly in her chair in the next row over, sleek dark hair hiding most of her face as Devlin finishes eviscerating her by saying, “I don’t want this. It’s pathetic.”
Everyone watches as he rips the essay to pieces and flings the torn shreds in the air. They float to the ground by Blair’s feet. Our whole crew and the people that cling to us from the outer rings explode in laughter and coyote howls—the student body’s way of honoring our school mascot when something goes down.
Devlin takes out his finished essay and sets it on his desk. Damn, he’s an evil bastard. I snicker, sticking the tip of my tongue out of the side of my mouth.
Davis stares at the remains of the destroyed essay, her plump lips pinched at the corners as she fights not to react. The only reason we go at her as hard as we do is because she never does what we expect—doesn’t cry at the nasty names, refuses to fight back unless it’s Devlin, has never broken down, even after Devlin threw her lunch on the floor last year. She’s ice through and through, but ice has to melt sometime.
With a restrained bite in her tone, Davis asks, “Are you still going to—”
“You shouldn’t treat people like that.” A familiar soft but determined voice speaks up.
My mouth curves into a dangerous smile as Devlin, Davis, and I turn our attention to Thea.
She’s twisted around in her seat, cheeks tinged pink as she grips the back of her chair with white knuckles, practically touching my desk.
This is how I know she’s hiding the same tendencies as her mom. I open my mouth to bite back at my little mouse for intervening where she doesn’t belong.
“It’s not right.” Thea beats me by doubling down before I can snipe at her. She licks her lips, darting her gaze to me. I’m reminded of the encounter in front of our houses, when she told me off. It was cute then, but it’s not now, here at school where she can publicly defy us. Her focus shifts back to Devlin and the rest of our crew hovering behind us. “So please stop.”
Releasing a ruthless laugh, I lean close to her, clamping a hand over her wrist so she can’t escape. Her sugary scent is intoxicating and I shift closer, whispering in her ear. “What’s wrong, neighbor? Were you jealous we weren’t paying you any attention? Your secret is how badly you want someone to pay attention to you, isn’t it?”
She sucks in a breath, pinning me with her big doe eyes, stretched wide with embarrassed horror.
That’s right, sweetness. I know everything. I’ve got your fucking number.
Literally. I smother a snort.
“You want attention?” I mutter. “I’ll give you what you want.”
Thea drags the cuffs of her blazer over her hands. Her face is flaming red. I lean back in my chair, smirking. Pulling out my phone, I kick my feet up on the bar on the back of her seat.
Our teacher bustles in, always with that grating go-getter vibe.
Coleman is in his late twenties, with clean-cut thick brown hair, a strong chin, and matching dimples when he turns a proud smile on the girls he calls on the most in class. He’s playing at perfect all-American dreamboat, but I’m not buying his act. He’s a try-hard phony if I’ve ever seen one. He turned up out of nowhere in the middle of the year in tenth grade and had the girls panting after him right away. It’s always irritated me that Coleman doesn’t take my rep seriously, but I haven’t found anything on the guy to show him what I’m capable of, like the man is a ghost.
Or he’s great at covering his tracks. Whatever the case is, I’ll uncover it.
There has to be something serious for all the falsehoods he protects himself with.
“Let’s get started,” Coleman says.
Instead of paying attention to him, I pull up my messages.
Thea acts all perfect and innocent, when really she’s as much of a corrupt deviant as any of us, and I’ve got the proof right on my phone from this morning when I got her worked up before school, and again before first period because I wanted to know how far I could push her.
If Wyatt can text Thea before first period and she sneaks off to a secluded spot to respond, what will she do if her secret sext buddy messages her in the middle of class? Time to find out. I click into our message thread, the corner of my mouth hitching up at the last message from her saying she was late for class and had to go.
Connor: Can’t stop thinking about the sounds you made this morning. Your sweet little moans get me so hard, baby. I need to hear you all breathy and on the edge of falling apart again. Want to play a game?