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Even in the dark, I could see her knuckles turn white as she clenched her fists.
“She’d have to care to know. Were you looking for me, big boy?”
If anyone else called me that, I would tear off their heads and stick it up their ass, but for some crazy reason, I liked the ways she teased me.
“I figured it would circulate around school if there was a new girl. We don’t get many newcomers here.”
“Is it because this town sucks and the only thing it has going for it is the ocean?” She wasn’t even out of breath as she increased her pace and kept talking. “Please tell me there’s something to do?”
“Besides run until you pass out?” I rolled my eyes even though she couldn’t see them. “During the week, I usually hang with friends after practice or working out. There’s a party every weekend.” I lifted one shoulder. “You might even be invited to one if you ever showed up at school.”
Her cheek caved in for a moment before it popped back out. “Is it even worth it? Once I’m eighteen, I’m out of here.”
“So, you’d rather be alone with no friends until that day?”
“Two months is all I have, and then I can go back home.” She sighed wistfully.
“Where’s home?” It was out before I could stop myself from asking. Harley was obviously a private person. I barely got any answers out of her. I wasn’t sure why I tried or cared.
“Scottsdale. Have you always lived here?” She stopped running the second her feet hit the sand and slowly walked until the tips of her tennis shoes hit the edge of the water.
I stayed a few feet behind, not wanting to get my shoes wet. They’d finally dried out after pulling her ass out of the water few days ago.
“Are you going to live with your dad once you turn eighteen?” Why didn’t she live with him now if that was the case?
She took a few steps back and sat down in the sand where I was standing. “I wish. I don’t know where I’ll live. You’re probably right, though. I should go to school so I’ll graduate. I’m not sure how I’m going to afford a place to live if I don’t.”
“Where’s your dad?”
She jumped to her feet and started to jog back to the road. With her mouth turned down, she called out over her shoulder, “You don’t have to keep following me. I’ll stay out of the water.”
It didn’t matter what she said; I would still follow her.
Keeping my distance, I followed her home.
I barely slept that night, wondering what had her wanting to leave if she wasn’t going back to live with her dad. Maybe she had a boyfriend.
Not that it mattered. I wasn’t in the market for a girlfriend. Girls were trouble no matter how they came.
CHAPTER FOUR
HARLEY
It was my first day at a new school. My senior year. All because Slade, my annoying neighbor, talked me into it. Well, maybe not so much, but he made me realize I was being stupid when I spelled out how I wanted to get out of here. How was I going to do that if I didn’t have at least a high school diploma? What I really needed to make it in the world would be a college degree, but I wasn’t holding out hope of getting a scholarship that would pay for everything because I knew there was no way in hell that my mom would pay for my college. She was too selfish. Why pay for my education when she could use that money to go on trips or buy a new wardrobe?
Whatever.
Starting at a new school was bad enough, but starting when the year had already begun was the worst. No one wanted to talk to me. Everyone looked at me like I was a disgusting piece of shit on the bottom of their shoes.
“You finally came,” a familiar voice said from behind me.
I turned from my locker and found Slade standing there with a smile on his face. Damn, did he look different in the light of day. So far, I’d only seen him in the shadows of the night. While I had felt he had a muscular body, I was in no way prepared for the man who stood in front of me. He was tall, and that was saying something since I was tall for a girl. While I stood at five foot, eleven inches, Slade had a good six inches on me. That wasn’t the only impressive thing about him. My eyes tracked down his long, lean golden-skinned body that looked like it had been chiseled out of stone. Each line of him was perfection. Hell, I could see every ridge of his abs through his t-shirt, and it wasn’t even plastered to his body. He was just that well-defined. While his body was heavenly, it was his captivating eyes that had me staring at him long after I should have looked away. They were this strange shade of light brown that was almost a little yellow in color, with a mix of mossy green in them. I’d never seen anything like it.
“Looks like it. Although I’m not sure why I thought that was a good idea. These people don’t seem to like newcomers.”
“Yeah, I can’t remember the last time someone new infiltrated our system.”
I scoffed. Infiltrated? Like I was the enemy.
