Maddie’s body pressed against mine is perfection.

My tongue skims hers, continuing the dance she started.

She started.

I was after a little peck and she turned it into more.

She did.

Which means she wants me.

That thought alone is enough to send me flying.

I gently suck her bottom lip, smiling as I slowly pull out of the kiss. She seems kind of dazed and I softly chuckle at her dreamy expression.

Resting my hand on the back of her neck, I thread my fingers into her hair and am just thinking about diving in for a second round when I notice something out of the corner of my eye.

Glancing down the corridor, I flinch and go still, guilt ripping through me as I recognize the girl standing there in her sports gear, a mitt secured to her left hand.

Shit.

Chloe.

Tears start to build on her lashes and I wince.

Maddie notices my expression and whips around, a soft gasp leaving her mouth.

“Chloe, I…” Maddie’s voice gets sucked into a vortex as she wiggles out of my grasp.

Her little sister stands there staring at us. Her eyes have never been so green. So narrowed.

The tears perched on her lashes begin to fall.

“Chloe.” Emotion is making Maddie’s voice shake as she steps towards her little sister.

“Don’t,” she whispers before spinning on her heel and bolting back outside.

“Chloe!”

Maddie goes to run after her, but I quickly snatch her wrist before she can. “Maddie, wait.”

“No!” She wrenches her wrist free. “Don’t touch me.”

It’s like a sledgehammer to the chest, the way her wide eyes are bright with anguish.

She knows she’s screwed up.

Part of me wonders if she’s going to blame me, but she just shakes her head and delivers her killer blow in a soft whisper. “That can never happen again.”

And then she runs away.

I want to chase her, to somehow fix this, but I can’t.

The damage has been done.

Our perfect moment has been shredded by a reality that burns.

“Shit.” I run a hand through my hair and squeeze the back of my neck.

“Okay, what the hell just happened?” Luke appears in the corridor, pointing over his shoulder as he walks towards me. “I just saw one sister crying and the other chasing after her. Is there some soap opera I’m missing here?”

I let out a heavy sigh before stupidly admitting, “Chloe just saw Maddie and me kissing.”

“What?” Luke’s voice pitches high. “What the hell are you kissing her for?”

I don’t have time to explain before his speculations kick in.

“Oh, wait. You’re still doing that thing. Where you’re trying to break them apart from the inside. That’s brilliant! But hey, leave Max out of it. As much as I hate to admit it, she’s an asset to the team.”

“Would you shut up?” I snap. “I kissed her because I like her.”

“Why?” Luke’s confusion is kind of insulting. It’s like he’s decided to hate Maddie from the outset. He only sees her as a threat.

I want him to understand how amazing she is, but he’ll never get it.

Instead, I shake my head and look away from him. “I guess I just got caught up in a moment. She’s hot, you know? Great body. Nice lips.”

Luke grins and rolls his eyes. “You’re such a stud, Carter.”

“Shut up.” I swing a fake punch at him and then laugh when he launches into a play fight.

I let the tussle go on for a couple of minutes, hoping he’ll forget about the Barlow sisters. I don’t want him starting up a gossip chain that will just lead to more trouble.

“Come on, man.” I push him off me. “Let’s go get that new gear.”

“Sounds good to me.” He grabs his bag and hitches it onto his shoulder before we walk through the workout room and into Coach Keenan’s office. I scan his desk, looking for the inventory he promised to print out. He wants us to check it off at the store when we’re buying the gear.

“It’s not here.” I purse my lips.

Luke steps into the tiny space and starts pulling open desk drawers.

“What are you doing?” I frown.

He stops and looks up at me like I’m stupid. “Looking for the inventory.”

“We can’t just go through his desk.”

“Dude, he doesn’t care. He’s always sending us down here to get stuff for him.”

I go still. “Really? I thought with all the stealing going on that he’d be a little more paranoid. Every other teacher seems to be.”

“He probably doesn’t keep anything worth stealing in his desk.” Luke starts yanking on different drawers until he reaches one in the center that won’t budge. “Huh? Maybe he does. I bet his wallet and keys are safely locked up in here now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t you know?” Luke glances at me. “The spare key to Coach’s truck is missing. The police think that’s how it was taken so quietly in the night.”

“Where’d you hear that?”

Luke shrugs and looks just a little shame-faced as he mutters, “I eavesdropped on a phone call Coach was having after practice yesterday. He admitted that he keeps a spare set of keys in his office and that he can’t find them.”

I frown at Luke and he just snickers. “I was curious, okay? I was waiting for him to mention Vincent’s name, but it never came up. I can’t believe the school is stupid enough to think it’s not him. He probably snuck down here after school while we were all practicing.”

I reach down and run my finger over the lock, feeling for signs of forced entry. It feels fine to me.

“You know Coach is a pretty laid-back guy.” Luke scratches his curls. “Maybe it didn’t occur to him that Vincent would be ballsy enough to just walk in here.”

“You honestly think the guy would just stroll in during practice?” My shoulders hitch. “Wouldn’t someone have seen him? He’d stand out in this part of the school. He’s not sporty, so he’d never venture down here.”

“I don’t know, man. When we’re all focused on training, it’d be pretty easy to sneak down here.”

My eyebrows pinch together in thought.

“What does that look on your face mean?” Luke slaps me on the shoulder.

“I’m just thinking…what if Coach is a little too casual sending us down here to get stuff out of his office?”

Luke tips his head like he’s trying to figure out what I’m saying. “We’re his team. He trusts us.”

“Maybe he shouldn’t,” I murmur.

Luke’s head jolts back, his surprise morphing into a frown. “What are you saying?”

“Maybe Vincent didn’t steal Coach’s truck. Maybe it was some other student who came down here on an errand or something, saw the keys and a great opportunity.”

Luke’s eyes bulge as he runs a hand over his head. “You think it was one of the team?”

I clench my jaw. Is that what I’m implying right now? That I think one of my teammates is guiltier than Vincent?

There’s no way I’m saying that shit.

I shake my head—firm and adamant. “One of our guys wouldn’t do this.”

“You’re right.” Luke bobs his head, but then he winces and gives me a pained smile. “But what about one of our girls?”

It’s my turn to do a little eye bulging.

“Are you out of your mind?” I whack his shoulder. “The homecoming money was taken before they even got here.”

“Why are we assuming it’s the same person?”

I give Luke an incredulous look.

“I’m just saying.” He raises his hands. “Maybe Vincent took homecoming and someone else took this.”

I cross my arms and glare at him. “And which Barlow sister are you accusing?”

Looking to the floor, he scratches the back of his neck. “I don’t know. Chloe’s too sweet and innocent, and Maddie’s too self-righteous. As much as I hate to say this…Max is the only one with the balls to do it.”

“Max.” I frown at him.

Luke shrugs. “Look, it’s only a theory. She’s often late to practice and turns up looking kind of distracted and twitchy, don’t you think? Plus, I saw her talking to Roman Sanchez the other day. They were whispering about something. And then when you just said that about this desk and it could be a team member and I… It just got me thinking.”

What the hell is Max doing talking to Roman? Shit, if he’s trying to offer her drugs I’m going to pound him.

She’s smarter than that. She wouldn’t get pulled into his shit, would she?

“She’s not like that,” I murmur. “It’s not her.”

He snickers and shakes his head. “Let’s hope so, ’cause I don’t want her getting kicked off the team. Let’s just both keep our mouths shut and pretend we didn’t have this conversation. I’m happy to be wrong.” He winks and points at the desk. “Check that bottom drawer and I’ll do this side.”

The thought sits like a rock in my stomach, heavy and uncomfortable. It can’t be Max, but…it’s not like I know her well enough to say that with total conviction.

Maybe I should have a chat with Maddie.

Although, after what just went down, I doubt she’ll let me anywhere near her right now.

Shit, this is so messed up.

I reluctantly hunch over and pull open the bottom right drawer. The inventory is sitting on top of a pile of sports manuals. I snatch it out and quickly shut the drawer with my foot.

“Okay.” Scanning the page, I run my finger down the list and start making a mental note of what we need to replace.

Luke rubs his hands together with a gleeful smile. “Let’s go shopping.” He spins and walks out.

I follow him. When we reach the corridor, my eyes skim the spot where Maddie and I kissed.

I can still feel her tongue on mine—that smooth game of give and take, her sweet flavor.

And then the tragedy of being discovered by Chloe.

The ashy aftermath of this messed-up reality.

It’s gonna suck on so many levels.

The students will have a field day with this one.

Dammit, they cannot find out.

“Hey, Luke.” I stop him before he gets too far ahead. “Can you keep your mouth shut about…?” I point over my shoulder.

“Oh, the whole kissing a Barlow thing?”

I grimace and nod.

“My lips are sealed, stud muffin. All Barlow secrets are on lockdown.” He winks at me, then cracks up laughing when I flip him off. “Come on, douche bag. Let’s go spend your dad’s money.”

I slap my back pocket, making sure the Visa card is still in there before reluctantly following my friend out to his Jeep.

I don’t see two of the Barlow sisters as we walk past the field towards the parking lot, and I can’t help wondering about the shit that must be going down between them right now. I want to find Maddie and back her up, but I can’t help feeling like that’ll do more damage than good.

As much as I hate it, I have to let the sisters battle this one out on their own.