Page 104 of His Reckless Freshman

I try to be logical and justify all the reasons why I shouldn’t be feeling anything, but my heart and brain are not aligning today. And I’ve got a sinking feeling that it’s going to take more than another restless sleep to get over her.

33

JOLIE

I can’t believe Caroline and Ben slept together.

I need to get over it, but it’s eating me alive.

Ever since I stormed away from my cousin, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.

Ben really liked her. One hookup and he searched the school to find her. That’s so sweet. That’s so Ben.

I wish he’d scoured the school looking for me.

But he didn’t have to do that.

I plopped myself into his life, kept getting in his way, and then asked this massive favor of him. I practically had to coerce him into the bedroom, and all Caroline had to do was bat her pretty little eyelashes.

She’s been texting me ever since Casey dropped me home, and I haven’t found the guts to reply to her. I don’t even know what to say.

She’s probably relieved that Ben doesn’t want me. It’s probably way too awkward for her, but…

Gah! I want Ben!

And I thought he was into me too. We had fun together. And that last time we were in his bedroom, he seemed really into it.

But then he told me it was over and…

My heart pulses with a painful beat.

It hurts!

It hurts that I’m pining for him and he’s probably happily going about his day without me. Heck, he’s probably relieved to be free of me!

That hurts even more. I rest a fist between my breasts and feel the pain like an axe blade.

“And she was full-on yelling at him,” the girl behind me says, her voice all perky with the juicy gossip.

The girl beside her gasps. “What was she saying to him?”

“I was too far away to hear, but I wonder if it had to do with their big fallout last year. I mean, you know what happened, right?”

“Remind me?”

“Well, they hooked up at this party, and then he hunted the school for her. Don’t you remember him asking everyone if they knew a Caroline with beautiful red hair? The guy was obsessed.”

My stomach hitches, my chest squeezing as I resist every urge in my body to spin around and make my eavesdropping completely obvious.

I slow my pace just a little, straining to listen in.

“But then she ended up with that hockey player, and it turned out she was pregnant, but she didn’t know who the father was.”

What?

“Oh my gosh, was she the girl who miscarried? She, like, fainted in the bathroom or something, right?”

“Yes.”