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I wanted to see if he was as mouth-watering from the front as he was at that angle. Then he did, and I choked as I tried to swallow. Turning my mouth into my elbow, I coughed before clearing my throat. Eyes watering, I lifted them, and they collided with his stormy-blue ones.
Piper had gone silent, but I wouldn’t have heard her while caught in his sight. The room shrank, and I could only focus on his chiseled, model-worthy face. Some familiarity in his features tickled the back of my mind, but I couldn’t place him. He was athletic, gorgeous, and with a commanding air that screamed unforgettable.
“You need to stay away from that guy.”
Piper’s sharp voice cut through the fantasy I had going with the mystery man, and I shifted in my seat. Released from the most intense eye contact I’d ever experience, I watched the room flood back into my vision, as did the low hum of conversation around me. Piper’s lips pressed together, and she looked uncomfortable as she stood beside our table.
When did she get up?“Are you leaving?”
With her coffee and keys in hand, she nodded. “I have class in about fifteen minutes. The bookstore is on the way. If you want to leave with me, we can walk there together.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
Her gaze narrowed as she probably noted that I hadn’t successfully been warned off that guy.
“I mean it. Stay away from him. I heard his last fight didn’t end favorably for his opponent.”
I swung my gaze back to the tall, good-looking guy. I couldn’t get him out of my mind if I tried. He didn’t look dangerous. Maybe it was the masochist in me, but I could see myself liking him. And by how he’d made me feel with one look, staying away wasn’t an option, regardless of Piper’s warning.
He stood to the side of the counter where orders were placed, chatting with another athletic-looking guy whose face was turned from me. Ideas sifted through my mind. Maybe I could run into my mystery man by accident a few times until he got the idea that those run-ins weren’t coincidence. A slow smile curved my lips. I bet I could convince him that there were better things to do with his hands than fight. Things had just gotten interesting. With a visual of that guy, I had plenty of material to sustain me through the night.
And on that delicious thought, I picked up my coffee and joined Piper as we pushed through the door, heading toward the campus bookstore.
“If he’s so dangerous, why is he walking free and not behind bars?”
“I don’t know what to tell you, but Luke Green is dead because of that man.”
CHAPTER FOUR
SHANE
It was the worst week of my life. And if Phoenix hadn’t dragged me to the Spot for coffee, I would’ve stayed in my room and done homework. That was all I could manage lately—football, class, homework. Rinse and repeat. The whispers as I walked by were more annoying than anything.But why deal with them if I don’t have to?
My brother stood to the side, as he’d already placed his order. And when I turned, I froze at the sight of the willowy strawberry blonde staring right at me.
Winter Patten.
I couldn’t fucking believe it was her. The girl who had made my entire fifth grade miserable in ways I couldn’t believe I’d survived. She’d made me question my existence, and I would never forgive her.
She’d treated me like shit, had hated me, and I’d had the biggest crush on her. She made school so terrible that I’d faked countless illnesses. The names she’d called me back then rang in my ears, and I clenched my jaw against the memories.
It got so bad that my mom had called hers after she’d managed to pry some of what was happening out of me. Of course, our moms talking backfired. When Winter had told me she was sorry and to meet her behind the dugout on the baseball field, that we could kiss and make up, I’d believed her. I’d even been stupid enough to let her blindfold me. When I’d puckered my lips, someone had snapped a picture. The laughter had alerted me to the problem. She’d shared that damn picture everywhere.
I had thought I’d left all that angst and anxiety behind, but two seconds after seeing her, I struggled to speak normally. The sense of losing control, the tightness around my mouth, and the spike in my distress were acute.
I squared my shoulders and held her gaze. I wasn’t the same person as that insecure kid. A football star, I kicked ass with my eyes fucking closed. I did not cower. I did not hide. And I damn well would not revert to childhood stuttering.
Phoenix smacked my shoulder, making my head swivel back to face him and away from the redheaded devil.
“How long do you have to work with Grandad to compensate for the lawyer’s fees?”
I took a deep breath and forced the muscles around my mouth to relax. “I don’t know. He said it wasn’t about the money but the lesson. He’ll cut me loose when he thinks I’ve sufficiently paid my dues.”
I wanted to say it was bullshit, especially when I’d told him how hard I had to work to make ends meet and maintain all my respective responsibilities. But I couldn’t. He wanted me to learn that if I wanted something, I had to work for it. My punishment might have held another meaning, but that was the one I took from it.
“I can’t believe that happened.” Phoenix sipped his coffee as the barista finally called my name.
I retrieved my drink from the counter then joined my brother at the table he managed to grab while I got my drink. “I’m just glad the charges were dropped after the security video backed me up on what I’d told them.”But if the Greens get wind of the underground fights, could they use that to reopen the case against me?I didn’t know. To be safe, I’d told Snake I couldn’t revisit any locations Luke had known about. The risk was too significant.
