“Did they ditch you?” Tanner asks, startling me. I almost forgot he was here.
“Apparently.” Shrugging, I smile bitterly. “I’m not surprised I couldn’t hold their attention.”
“They do like to strike fast and then bail.” He shakes his head and then looks up at me from under his blond hair. “Did they get what they wanted from you?”
I laugh at that. “No, not at all.” Somehow, this victory feels bittersweet. They got some of my firsts but not the most important one, and there are a lot still left. “How’s your sister? You said she transferred?” I eat a chip, needing my mind off the horsemen before I do something stupid and cry again.
“Mia. She loves her new school. So much less drama.” He quirks a smile.
“Why didn’t you transfer with her? You could have maybe been on their football team?” I forgot to ask Kenz about Tanner, but today has been such a shitshow. I’ll try to remember to ask her later.
“It’s a special high school. They don’t really do sports.” He shrugs as he eats his sandwich. “I wasn’t going to play in college anyway, so it’s not a big deal. I figure I can at least stay here as a reminder of what they did to her.”
My phone vibrates, and I lift it. Kenz sent me a pic of the guys with those girls. The girls are all sitting at the table, but the horsemen aren’t touching the girls.
Me:
Take a pic if any of the guys touch the girls
Kenz:
Okay
“Getting the scoop on the horsemen from friends?” Tanner leans in and sees the picture. “Didn’t take them long to move on.”
“No, it didn’t.” But something settles in me at seeing them not actually touching the girls. How often did I actually sit in a seat at that table?
An idea pops into my head. What if they’re just punishing me the way I punished them?
What assholes.
“What about you?” Tanner asks. “What are you going to do now that you’re free again?”
I grin as I look up at the endless blue sky. “I’m not going to go back to hiding, that’s for sure.”
He gives me a flirty smile. “You know, if you still need a boyfriend…”
“Oh.” I blush. “I think I’ll need more than a day to figure out what I want.”
He nods. “The offer stands. If you want to take me up on it, just let me know. I’m all about getting under the horsemen’s skin.”
That rubs me the wrong way. Even though yesterday he said I’m hot, it feels like I might just be a game to him. A way to get back at the horsemen. And while I understand wanting to get revenge, I don’t know if I would go so far as to be with a guy just to hurt them.
One, I don’t think I have the ability to hurt them. Two, their pride might get a little bruised, but they have more than enough to keep them going. So in the end, it would still only be myself I was hurting.
“Thanks. I’ll see how the week goes. You never know, I might need a hero tomorrow.”
He chuckles and nods to my phone. “You have my number, right?”
I swallow. “Yes, I do.”
“Text me so I have yours.” He smiles like we’re going to be great friends.
Fuck it. I pick up my phone and text him my name.
His easy smile is almost a relief after working hard to get one from the horsemen. “If you ever need me, you call and I’ll come save you.”
CHAPTER 33
