"It worked on your father."

"My dad has a weakness for weak women."

Again, there was no judgment. It was a fact and he said it as such. The truth of it held more power because of the lack of emotion with him.

My throat had gone dry. "You called my mother weak."

"Isn't she?"

His gaze was searing into mine.

My chest tightened. My throat clamped up. "I—uh—"

He snorted in disgust. "You think so too, but you can't say the words, not to me. That's alright. I understand. She's your blood."

Then he looked away and again, my whole body almost fell from the chair. It was as if he had pinned me in place and I was free from the hold.

My hands curled in on themselves and I couldn't stop my fingers from trembling. I tucked them between my legs and took a breath. I needed to gain control of myself again.

In that moment, I realized that he always had that affect on me. The ice façade I reined over myself was plucked away whenever his attention was on me. He reached over and took it away like I was a baby with candy.

"Does my mom know you don't like her?" It was a weird question, but I wanted to know how he thought. I wanted to understand him.

He grinned at me. The power of that look with his piercing eyes, perfect teeth, and square jaw had me pinned against my chair again. I couldn't breathe for a moment.

Then I heard him laugh. "Your mom doesn't care. She cares if we're going to make a stink or not."

I snorted. That sounded just like her. "And are you?"

He shrugged and went back to the television. "As long as she doesn't screw with me and Logan or with our mom then I don't care who my dad pounds."

"And if they get married? My mom's not stupid."

"Your mom's a shark."

"Your father is wealthy."

Then he laughed again and the genuineness of it struck me. "My dad has money, but my mom is wealthy."

My eyes widened a fraction. I would put money down my mom had no idea about that tidbit. It made things a lot clearer, why the boys didn't seem to care too much about the marriage.

"Do you care?"

I was struck by how he seemed to really want to know. I shook my head. "Why would I?"

"Because your mom's going to look a fool when she learns how rich my mom is."

I hadn't considered it, but he was right. Analise was ambitious and she'd grown more ambitious since leaving my—David. It would burn her ego, in some way, and then I realized why he was telling me this. I was the one who'd pay for it. Analise would take her anger out on me and I sucked in my breath. I was grateful for his slight warning, because it was one that I'd need to keep tucked in the back of my mind.

We heard a door open upstairs and Logan's near-hysterical laughter followed a second later.

Mason grinned to himself before he stood up and left with his beer in hand.

"Mason! Dude, there was a girl with boobs out to here. I couldn't believe it." Logan's voice carried down the stairs. His laughter wouldn't stop. "Nate bagged her."

Mason's and Nate's voice joined in at a low murmur.

I tuned them out and turned the television to a different channel. When a bunch of rich women came on the screen, I settled back. My mom would've loved that show; she would've loved to have been on that show. When they started fighting with each other, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Becky gushed about her ride with Adam the next morning when she found me at my locker. She gushed about the charity football game at lunch. The next day was a similar chain of events except Adam sat with us at our table. It didn't faze Becky from raving about Saturday's game. On Thursday a few of his friends joined him at our table and one seemed amused by Becky's passionate monologue about the Kade brothers, who was better, who was better looking, etc. He teased and prodded her along until Becky seemed like she was going to shout from the rooftop how hot Mason and Logan Kade were. At one point I thought she'd been about to proclaim they could beat our entire football team, only the two of them.

She caught herself, blushed, and her head went down.

The guys didn't hold back their laughter and she turned to me. I patted her arm when she sighed, "I sounded like an idiot, didn't I?"

Even Adam couldn't hold back his grin.

And then things turned awkward when Jeff stopped at the end of our table. He had a tray of food in one hand and his backpack over the other shoulder. He hitched it higher and gave me a small wave. "Heya, Sam."

I leaned back.

Adam leaned forward. "What are you doing, Sallaway?"

Jeff looked around the guys and ended on Becky. "Hey, cuz. How's your mom doing?"

She glared. "She's fine."

"That's cool." He bobbed his head up and down.

"Jeff!"

Jill strode towards us with stiff legs. Her chin was clenched and her eyes glittered in anger.

One of the guys whistled under his breath. "Catfight."

Jeff shot him a look, but turned towards his girlfriend with a wide smile.

I saw it slip a little.

"Hey, babe. What's up?"

She latched onto his arm and her smile froze in place. "Nothing. What are you doing over here?"

He jerked his arm towards me. "I wanted to say hi."

"Why?" Her eyes seared at me.

Becky's hand rested on my arm under the table. I suppose she wanted to support me, but I was entertained. I grinned back at Jill and her mouth twitched a bit.

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