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"Where are you going?" Maverick asked when I pushed off the couch.
"Lincoln can play for me." I tossed the controller to him.
"No, Link sucks," Maverick whined, throwing his arms in the air.
The guys went back to yelling at the game and throwing back shots before I stepped out of the house.
Christian sat on the pool's edge, legs hanging over the side in the water, lost in thought.
"Want some company?" I asked before sitting beside him. He nodded without looking up from the water. "Everything ok?"
"I don't get it," he said. "Why would you have said no?"
It took me a minute to realize what he was talking about. He didn't understand why I would say no to living here when my life was so horrible at home.
"I learned a long time ago; I can't count on anyone but myself. I can't trust anyone but myself."
"You can trust me," he said sincerely. "You can trust us." He gestured towards the pool house, and I assumed he meant all the guys. Deep down, I knew I could, but I also knew that this good thing happening right now was temporary, and I knew that someday when Christian moved on or tired of me, I would be fending for myself again.
"You're 18, why haven't you left?"
"And go where, Christian?" I sighed. "I have no money, no education, no car, and I can't get a job because no one in this small town will hire me because of who I'm associated with." I absentmindedly kick the water. "I don't have any options."
"You should have told me."
"Told you what, Christian? Should I have told you that I never miss a day of school because it's my only opportunity for a meal and that I'm starving by Monday? Or should I have told you that my first kiss was with one of my mom's drunk boyfriends who couldn't tell the difference between my mom and me? Should I have told you I go to school early because it's the only place I can shower? Do you really want to know everything you have no control over in my life?"
"Yes." A sound of irritation escaped him. "I do, but I most definitely want to know if my or my friend's actions are causing you to take a beating."
"If it wasn't you, it would be something else. Noah is an angry person. Plus, I hate telling people anything because I hate that look."
"What look?"
"The 'I feel sorry for her' look. The one you're giving me now." He shook his head as if to shake the look off his face. "I've had to take care of myself since I was five. I've learned to live with the cards I was dealt." He nodded, like he understood. "But I didn't want anyone's pity." That was one of the reasons I loved Ryder and Chloe so much. They never made me feel like I was less than them. They never made me feel like I owed them because of their help.
Lincoln and Maverick stumbled out of the house, tripping over each other, drunk.
"I should take them home," Christian said. "You should get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."
I guessed that answered my question about whether he would stay with me tonight.
Chapter 21
Harper
Jerking the front door open, my smile faded at the sight of Aiden dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt filling my doorway. It was six in the morning, and I was expecting Christian because we rode to school together in the mornings.
"You ready?" Aiden handed me a to-go cup of coffee and reached for my bag. Aiden was a morning person—the annoying kind. No matter how late he stayed up the night before, he was ready to go bright and early the following day with a smile. I, on the other hand, was only a morning person if I got a full ten hours of uninterrupted sleep.
"Where's Christian?" I mumbled, taking the coffee and relinquishing my bag to him. He tossed the bag over his shoulder.
"Not sure," he said, flashing an all-white smile. Aiden was hot. On top of being hot, he was also charming. He could make your panties melt off with a wink of his deep brown eyes. He was taller and leaner than Christian, but they shared similar facial features. His torso and arms were covered in colorful ink, his lip, tongue, and eyebrow were pierced, and I was sure there was more I hadn't seen. "He left early this morning and told me to make sure I got you to school." Christian didn't need to clear his schedule with me, but I wondered where he was. "Are you ready?" I nodded and followed him out to his truck.
Fifteen minutes later, we were parked and walking through the school doors, where Christian was leaning, his arms crossed over his chest against my locker. My breath caught in my throat when his dark brown eyes locked with mine, and his lips curved into a seductive smile. He made my heart flip, and my stomach fluttered with the curl of his lips.
"Where were you this morning?"
"I needed to take care of something." He pushed off the locker. "Ms. Cruz is waiting to talk to you in her office."
