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“Nope.”
“Good,” I answer and leave immediately.
There's nothing worse than the times I'm forced to deal with his ass, but if it means keeping my best friend sober, I'll do it.
THE PARTY WHIRLS AROUND me, with a bunch of bright-eyed freshmen looking around like they've never seen anything like it. I don't know where they went to high school, but this shit is nothing new for me. Throwing parties every weekend was our thing.
I keep a safe distance from anyone who looks like they've never done the stuff, and deal some of the disgusting product to people I know are going to find it somewhere else anyway. Once you know what you're looking for, it's not hard to figure out who’s an addict and who isn't. I also have to be discreet so Easton doesn't notice. From what he knows, I bribed Blade with money and connections to leave him alone. If he knew the truth, he'd try to change my mind.
“Hey, Z.”
Speak of the devil.
I take a sip of my beer and play it cool. “What's up?”
“I have to grab another keg from the garage, but Amelia is on her way here. Can you just keep an eye out for her?”
Fuck. “Sure, no problem.”
With everything Blade decided to throw at me today, the fact that she's coming must have slipped my mind—which is weird, since she's taken up permanent residence there lately.
After E brought her to the club last weekend, I haven't been able to stop thinking about her. How she looked while dancing with Tess. Her smile practically lighting up the damn room. The way her cheeks pinked after catching me looking at her. Fuck, she's so damn perfect, and she doesn't even realize it.
“What's up, bitches?” a familiar and unwanted voice calls.
I turn around and want to shoot myself when I find none other than Carter Trayland coming toward me. He's always been an arrogant little shit, having known him as the football captain from the prep school across from North Haven High, but I never expected to see him here. His blond hair is brushed out of his face, and some of the girls gawk as he walks by. Unsurprisingly, his sidekick Jace is right behind him.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
He puts a hand to his chest and mocks offense. “You mean I can't come see my good friends Zayn and Eli?”
I roll my eyes. “It's Easton, douchebag, and I mean here, at NHU. I thought you two were supposed to be at Florida State.”
“What? You're not happy to see me?” He sticks his bottom lip out. “That hurts, man. That really hurts.”
“Cut the shit, Trayland. We're not friends.”
He chuckles, running his fingers through his hair and winking at some chick nearby who doesn't seem to realize it's rude to stare. “Okay, maybe you're right, but I figured we could forget about the past and start fresh. Water under the bridge and all that.”
I raise a single brow. “Dude, you jumped my best friend. That's hardly water under the bridge kind of shit.”
His head tilts from side to side. “Fair enough, but in my defense, he stole my woman.”
Oh, here we go with this again. Our senior year of high school, Knox started dating Delaney. Apparently, Carter had a thing for her, but he failed to seal the deal. Laney ended up with Knox, and Carter was butthurt about it. Instead of being a man and accepting the rejection, he and his friends tricked Knox to get him alone and overpowered him.
I can still remember that night like it was yesterday. Knox was ready to slaughter them all one by one, and then Delaney came in and calmed him down like nothing I've ever seen before. The rest of the guys made comments about him being whipped, but I was just thankful that someone had that effect on him. Without her, he's reckless.
“Delaney was never yours, and you know it.”
He waves me off dismissively. “Okay, then. I'll play the “I helped keep him out of prison'' card.”
That excuse actually reaches its target, and I groan. “Fine, you can stay, but if you two start any shit, I'm kicking your asses out.”
Carter puts up three fingers like a fucking boy scout and smiles. “You've got it, friend.”
Just as I'm telling them where they can find the beer, the door opens and Amelia walks in with her roommate. It takes everything in me to remember how to breathe as I watch her from across the room. Her hair is loosely curled, and her makeup is done. The white shirt she has on clings to her body, and her hot pink bra is just barely visible through it. She hasn't even been here two minutes and already she's testing my restraints.
“Well, damn,” Carter breathes. “I might end up leaving soon after all.”
