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And,yes, his gaze finally veered back to me. “Seriously?” he asked, lighting up. “God, you’re a lifesaver, Chlo. Pipsqueak here’s been wearing me out.” He set his hand on my waist, his fingers curling almost possessively around my hip before he insistently guided me forward, toward the game. “She could use new blood to compete with. Thanks.”
And then he walked off, leaving me to play basketball with Teagan.
Teagan.
My mouth fell open as I watched him go. And I felt like a complete idiot. But honestly, why would he have assumed I’d meant that I wantedhimwhen I’d asked to play. Ugh.
Now I was stuck playing with Teagan.
I wasn’t lying about her savage, competitive streak either. She annihilated me for three games straight until I gave up and snagged Gracen’s arm as he passed by, making him play with her instead.
It was harder for me to locate Luke after that. I think the number of people had doubled in the past ten minutes, and besides, he was no longer anywhere along the game wall, where I would’ve guessed he’d be.
As my gaze darted impatiently toward the food next, Trick appeared at my side, eating a snow cone.
“So, okay, I was obviously wrong about Beau,” he told me before lapping up a mouthful of red-and-blue-streaked ice. “You haven’t looked at him once since we got here.”
I rolled my eyes. “Gee, you think?” I mused distractedly, frowning when I still couldn’t spot Luke.
“But I was right too,” Trick spoke up, sounding smug. “Because you definitely have a new crush. And wowza, sis. You’ve got your work cut out with this one. He’s over there, by the way.”
Bumping his elbow into mine, Trick hitched his head to the left as soon as he got my attention, getting me to look that way.
And what do you know; there was Luke.
Talking to some girl I’d never seen before.
Not just talking though.
He was freakingflirting. I could tell he was trying to impress her, too, from the way he turned all his attention toward her and talked adamantly as if desperate to seek her approval.
And why wouldn’t he? She was goddess-status beautiful.
My stomach hitched painfully as I watched him work.
“I’ll give you one thing, Chlo,” Trick murmured from next to me. “You definitely have weird and unexpected taste in boys.”
Shit. I’d forgotten about Trick. Closing my eyes briefly because I already knew I couldn’t convince him he was wrong, I finally turned and reopened my eyes to glare threateningly. “Tell anyone, and you are dead. Got me?”
“Hey…” He laughed and lifted his hands, making his snow cone drip in the process. “Why would I give up such juicy leverage against you that easily?” Smile turning calculating, he wagged his brows. “I own you now. You’re going to do whatever I want from here on out, or your secret, embarrassing crush is going family-wide.”
I sighed and deflated in utter loss. “Of course it is,” I muttered, depressed, only to grow even more maudlin when I glanced over to watch Luke with the goddess.
Swallowing hard, I studied them together for a moment before asking, “Who is she, anyway?”
“Reeza,” Trick answered immediately. “No last name. She’s a singer. Uncle Ash and Aunt Remy are trying to land her a record label. And…” Trick waited until I glanced his way before he lifted his brows and dropped the last bomb. “She’s nineteen.”
An older girl.
Yeah.ThatI could not compete with.
“Sorry, Chlo,” my brother told me apologetically as he patted my back in sympathy. “But if you want to get intoherleague and gain his attention, you’re going to have to age about five years and lose the pom-pom earrings.”
Gasping, I reached up and protectively squeezed the colorful, fuzzy balls hanging from my ears. Then I scowled at my brother and grumbled, “Whatever. My pom-poms are cute.”
“Yeah.” Trick cringed. “Except Luke doesn’t want cute. He wants sexy.”
5CHLOE
