“Remind me again why I’m in school holding this fucking clipboard when I should be at home enjoying my last week of freedom before the new school year kicks in,” I asked Jake as I examined the list in front of me.

“Already told you, kid. Builders? Refurbishment? Do you ever listen to me?” he said, shaking his head in amusement.

“I listen. When you have something important to say.”

“You only listen when the subject involves chicks or getting completely wasted.” Jake rolled his eyes and continued to check off the names on his list.

“True, but you can’t blame me,” I replied honestly, dipping my head to check out the new piece of arse walking past me.

“You know, if you concentrated more on getting the job done rather than checking out every bit of skirt that walks through those doors, we’d probably be done already.”

“Dude, this is my job,” I said, shooting him a wink.

I was pretty sure I’d fucked the list up already, but I wouldn’t tell Jake that. He wanted out of here as much as I did. Besides, I’d only likely missed a few off and chances were they would find their own way around. It wasn’t like it was rocket science. Every block was labelled and signposts were scattered everywhere clearly stating where everything was. I wasn’t even sure why Coach had me doing this if I was being perfectly honest. I had a joint in my pocket with my name written all over it.

Speaking of Coach… I watched him heading straight for us. Jake nudged me as if I hadn’t noticed and I glanced down at the list again, pretending to be busy.

“Jake, Taylor,” Coach said in greeting as a he planted both feet in front of me and stopped dead.

“What’s up, Coach?” I asked.

“Taylor, I don’t have to remind you about your actions last year. We gave you a fair warning, but if I so much as catch a whiff of alcohol or any of that other stuff you kids do these days, I will make sure that Stokes kicks your sorry arse out of here. And you can kiss goodbye to your budding football career.”

“I hear ya, Coach. Best behaviour. Got it.”

“Good. And no leading these young women astray. I don’t want anyone dropping out because you couldn’t keep it in your pants.”

“Also understood,” I said, lifting my hand in a salute.

“Good, because when you’re done here there’s a group of first year students I want you to show around. I want them to get a feel for the place. Classrooms, study hall, the library, you know, the ins and outs of this place. Show them the gym. And you might want to check it out for yourself, too,” he added.

What the fuck did that mean?

“Are you sure you want me in charge of that, Coach. Jake has a much better sense of direction than I do.”

“Yeah, and not just off the field,” Jake said, coughing to hide his amusement.

“You’ll do it, and if I find out you’ve paid someone to do it for you again, I’ll have you benched until I say otherwise, got it?”

I nodded. “Got it, Coach.”

“Good, I’m glad we’re both on the same page. Now, about last year…”

“Don’t worry, Coach. I’ll be on my best behaviour.”

Coach narrowed his eyes at me and walked off without another word.

“He’s never gonna let me live it down.” I sighed, shaking my head.

“Can you blame him? You poisoned a bunch of students with that dodgy beer of yours. You’re lucky you’re still here and not serving time.” Jake snapped his mouth shut and shot me an apologetic look. I wasn’t made of glass. I wouldn’t break at the mention of prison. Not anymore, anyway.

“Mate, I’m telling you, there was nothing wrong with that beer. I had it and I was fine.” I shrugged.

“You never did tell me where it came from.”

I grinned and tapped his shoulder with the clipboard. “I brewed it myself.”

Jake opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, I chucked my clipboard on top of his and tapped his shoulder. “Be back in a bit. If Coach asks, tell him I’ve gone for a piss.”

I quickly left before Jake could say anything or ask any more questions. He’d kill me if he knew I had set up a plant in his basement to brew that shit. He’d probably tell his dad, too, and I needed the roof over my head now that the house had gone. He’d also have a lot to say about where I was headed to right now. Jake wasn’t a do-gooder, but drugs? Not even he would be that fucking stupid. I, however, had come to rely on the stuff. Weed made everything better. For those few short moments I was able to forget how messed up my life was. My only regret was that the buzz it brought me didn’t last long enough.

I’d checked every one in—at least, I hoped I had—and made my way to the student union. A group of mismatched kids were huddled around in the centre, forming a semi-circle, and I stalked up to them with a bunch of campus maps in my hand.

“Right, grab your shit and let’s go.” They all gaped open-mouthed at me. I shook my head and made a beeline for the quad.

Twenty minutes later and I was ready to give up. I’d answered so many damn questions I’d almost fallen asleep standing up. Boredom did that to me. My brain needed constant change and a joint. Those idiots were too damn predictable.

I pushed through the double doors to reception and pointed at the huge map that was framed on the wall. “You’ve got the single maps already, but they only show you certain points. This one here maps out the whole school, grounds and all. See, you’ve got your book shops, places to eat out and here,” I said, pointing to row of buildings, “are your go to places to drink. They rarely check for ID and they’re cheap as chips. Feel free to make a note but I’d be more inclined to take a picture. Saves all the repetitive questions later on.”

I stood back as they huddled towards the wall, and folded my arms across my chest. After this, I was done, and I pulled my phone out to tell Jake just that when my eyes landed on the hottest pair of legs I had ever seen. So damn long they went on for miles. The legs led to a pert little arse in a pair of cut off shorts and I was sure I groaned as I struggled to tear my eyes away from it.

“See something you like,” a deep voice said beside me, and I shook my head.

“Fuck, yeah. Have you seen the tight little arse on that one,” I said, nudging my head in the girl’s direction. I really did bite back a moan when she bent over slightly to take a shot of the map on her phone.

“She’s pretty perfect, right?” the lad replied, and I turned to face him. He looked about my age—maybe younger—and he was tall. It was obvious he worked out a lot. That, or his t-shirt was three sizes too small for him. I made a mental note to speak to Coach about putting him in the junior league. The guy looked like he could play a pretty decent defender.

I gazed back at the girl and bit my lip as her long, dark ponytail swayed to the side. “You ain’t lying there,” I finally replied and continued to give the girl the once over. Or twice over, as it actually went.

Fuck. She was hot.

The guy next to me stepped in front of me and narrowed his eyes. “She’s also off limits, got it?”

Whoa. Where did that come from?

“You’re kidding, right?” I scoffed and stood taller. Who the fuck did this punk think he was? Kid hadn’t even started yet and he was already claiming the new girls as his own.

“Do I look like I’m fucking kidding, mate? You’ll do well to find some other girl to sink your dick into. She’s taken.”

This time I did laugh. “She’s with you?”

“Damn right she is,” he said and shot the girl a wink. She was staring nervously between us and I almost choked when I actually took her in. Properly. Not just a glance, but really properly. She was fucking beautiful. I was pretty certain I had never seen anything like her in my life, and I’d seen most of them. And what was with those eyes?

Christ.

She dipped her head and her cheeks reddened as I continued to stare.

“Maybe I didn’t make myself clear the first time. She’s off fucking limits, dick. Now fuck off,” he spat and I pushed off the wall, fucking pissed.

“Do us a favour, kid. How about you take your whiney arse out of here. Winslow ain’t like back home, mate. Come back when you’re out of nappies and ready to take me on because I can guarantee you ain’t that ready yet.”

“Did you seriously just say that? C’mon, Lo, we’re getting out of here,” he called out and the brunette came up behind him and placed a hand on his back.

“Austin, I still have a lot of stuff to do. If you don’t want to wait around I can call my mum and catch a lift back.” Her voice was soft and shaky. I felt like the biggest dick ever, but I wasn’t prepared to be spoken to the way the kid had tried to. To be honest, I was fucking surprised he had the balls for it.

“Fine. Do whatever you want. I’m out of here.”

“Austin, wait,” the girl called out.

“Just call your mum, Lo.”

“But… Fuck,” she cursed under her breath as she dropped her head into her hands.

“You alright there, sweetheart?” I asked her, and when she didn’t reply, I tipped her chin up and forced her eyes on me.

“Umm… I’m fine. It’s just… Well, he has my bag,” she said, gesturing to the door.

“You’ve got your phone, right? Call someone else and have them come get you. For what it’s worth, that guy’s a dick for leaving you.”

“Yeah, umm… My battery sorta died on me.” She cringed and held the phone up to show me. The blank screen stared back at me and I cursed on her behalf.

“Look,” I said, dropping my hand. “Use mine. Call your mum or whoever. Anything else you need, just ask. I’m sure I can assist you with your needs.” I passed her my phone and she looked at it for the longest moment before she began tapping away at the screen, eventually pressing the handset to her ear.

“Hey, it’s me. I need you to come get me,” she said, and paused as she listened to the other end. “He had to leave, Mum. I’m fine. No, I’m okay. I just need you or Dad to come get me. No, don’t call me. My battery died so I’ll just wait out front for you. Yeah, I will. Love you, too. Bye.”

Her shoulders sagged and she let out a sigh before handing me the phone back. “Thank you. My dad is just leaving to come get me.”

“Cool. No worries,” I said, stuffing it in my back pocket.

She turned on her heels and started to walk away, but something made her stop and turn back. “I’m sorry about before. He’s not usually like that. I think he’s stressed out about me coming here. I’m sure he didn’t mean to take it out on you. And, yeah, you really didn’t need to know all that.” She rolled her eyes and shook her head as if she was being silly.

I chuckled at her awkwardness that, oddly, I found cute, and shrugged my shoulders. “Forget it. It wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened.”

“So you’re a pro then?” she said in amusement.

“Sort of,” I replied honestly and scratched the back of my neck for something to do.

“Well, thanks for lending me your phone. And for the thorough tour,” she added with a wink before turning back and heading straight for the door.”

“No worries,” I said, and quickly called out, “Hey, I didn’t catch your name.”

“Lola. It’s Lola.”

“Well, Lola,” I said, drawing her name out. “I’m Taylor.”

“Well, Taylor,” she said, mimicking me. “I guess I’ll be seeing you around.”

Man, I hope so. I said to myself.

A genuine smile lit her face up and as soon as it came, it went, and so did she.

Damn. Who was that girl?