Maddie storms away from Vincent Mancini and the knot in my stomach instantly unfurls.

When I turned the corner and saw him towering over her like that, I wanted to sprint forward and smash my fist into his mouth.

But she walked away before I could get to them.

It’s probably a good thing.

Fighting with any Mancini is a bad idea. I’m guessing that family looks after their own, and retribution would be an ugly bitch coming from them.

Dad tells me to never trust a Mancini, and I can’t imagine I ever will.

Vincent slams his locker and spins. Our eyes connect for a brief second and I narrow my gaze at him. His eyebrows dip together in a look of warning before he stalks off in the opposite direction.

I refuse to be intimidated by the guy, no matter what his last name is.

My mind skitters to Maddie and her expression when Vincent got up in her space like that. I’ve seen the guy make people yelp and scatter.

But not Maddie.

She stood her ground, said something in that strong way of hers, and then walked off.

I can’t imagine that girl being afraid of anyone.

It intrigues me.

In spite of the fact that I think she’s bossy and opinionated, I want to get to know her. I must be a sucker for punishment.

The bell rings right above my head and I wince, stepping away from the loud blast.

I’m just turning to head for Stats when Chloe stops me. Her smile is bright and almost dreamy.

Shit, I wish she wouldn’t look at me like that.

“Hey, Chloe.” I smile at her, keeping up the charade.

“Hey.” She tucks her hair behind her ear, looking nervous and kind of adorable. “So, I don’t want you to be late to class, but I just wanted to quickly ask what you’re wearing to the homecoming dance. I thought it’d be fun if we matched, just a little. You know, like my dress could be the same color as your tie or something.”

“Oh.” My eyebrows rise while my insides shrivel.

I should tell her now that I don’t want to be seen as some kind of couple at this dance. Let her down easy.

But the look on her face right now…and just before she heads off to class…

I can’t do it.

“Um…” Scratching the back of my neck, I blow out some air between my lips and shrug. “I’m happy to wear whatever, so why don’t you choose your dress and then just tell me what color it is.”

“Okay.” She bobs her head, letting out a breathy giggle. “I’ll, um…I’ll let you know.”

“Yeah, cool.” I force a smile and throw in a wink for good measure.

She blushes, her blue-green eyes bright with excitement.

“Well, I don’t want you to be late to class.” I point down the hallway.

“Yeah, of course. You too.” She starts walking backward, giving me another crushed-up smile before twirling and racing down the corridor.

As far as Barlow sisters go, she’s the girly one.

She’s the one I thought I’d be into.

But she’s not.

Nope. Stupid me can’t stop thinking about the sharp-tongued sister. The one who has no problem putting me in my place.

Why the hell does someone so annoying entice me so much?

“Because she’s different than all the other girls,” I murmur.

I can’t win her over with my usual charm and charisma. She sees straight through it.

The only way to get to her is to show her the truth.

My stomach bunches with the idea.

It’s stupid.

Why should I care what some new girl thinks? Why should I even like her?

Chloe Barlow is basically in the bag. We’re going to homecoming together. She could be my girlfriend in a heartbeat.

But I don’t want a girlfriend.

At least I don’t think I do.

As I step into Stats, I immediately find Maddie in the front row. I can tell she’s seen me out of the corner of her eye because she tenses, a tendon in her neck straining as she refuses to look my way.

Blinking, I walk to the back of the class, slumping into the seat beside Luke.

“Hey, man,” he murmurs. “Where the hell have you been?”

I open my mouth to tell him, but decide not to. He’ll hassle the hell out of me if Chloe and I go matching to homecoming. Why the hell did I go along with it?

Because I didn’t want to hurt her feelings?

Because I hate the idea of someone thinking less of me?

Gritting my teeth, I stare at the front of class as Mr. Hope starts talking. I usually like Stats. My brain’s good with numbers and the work is pretty easy. It’s nice to be able to help Luke, even though I think the poor guy will never wrap his brain around this stuff. I sometimes wonder if he just chose Stats because I was doing it. Like basically everyone at this school, he looks up to me.

But not everyone.

Not Maddie Barlow.

And that’s why I’m tormented.

That’s it.

She thinks I’m a dick, and I can’t stand that.

There’s only one thing to do.

I’ve got to show her.

I’ve got to prove to her that there’s more to Holden Carter than meets the eye. That’s the only way I’m going to win her over.

And I need to win her over.

Because I am not spending the rest of my senior year being thought of as an asshole.

All I need to do now is figure out how to make my case without letting the rest of the school in on my business.