THE HURRICANES ANNIHILATED the Eagles 31-3. Seeing Zach in those tight-ass pants, doing his thing on the football field, does crazy things to my insides.
Evan sent a text to Lexi telling her to skip Mac’s and go straight to Carter’s house. Mom was surprisingly okay with me going to a high school party as long as I keep my phone on me and don’t drink.
Cars are already lined down Carter’s street when I pull the Range Rover up to the curb. Music and laughter drifts from the pool area as we make our way into Carter’s backyard.
“There’s Evan.” Lexi points to a group of guys surrounding the keg.
Yeah, but where’s Zach?
Lexi moves to Evan’s side as Carter passes him a red Solo cup and I wave to Olivia. I don’t see Cherry anywhere, so I guess she decided not to come.
Carter holds out a cup to me and I shake my head. “No, thanks. I’m driving.”
Carter shrugs and throws his arm around Olivia. Well, that was fast. But good for them.
A few minutes later, there’s some commotion before the crowd parts for the rest of the football team. I spot Brad, Cole, and Justin climbing on top of some patio chairs, pumping their fists in the air and chanting “Hur-ri-canes,” and the crowd joins in. Hopping down from the chairs, the guys split up and go in different directions. Random people pat them on the back, raising a hand for high five or a fist bump as they shoulder their way through the crowd.
Zach works his way through the crowd, stopping to talk to a few people along the way, smiling and nodding politely while looking around. I wonder if he’s looking for me. I wait beside Lexi and Evan for him to finish and make his way over to us.
But he doesn’t.
A female voice calls his name and his head turns just as a blonde girl slams into his chest, making him stumble back a few steps.
I don’t understand where this jealousy is coming from, but I really hate it. I’ve never been jealous of anyone before. I guess I never had a reason to be. Until Zach.
“Personally, I think green looks good on you,” a male voice whispers in my ear. I look over my shoulder to see Grayson standing behind me, looking amused.
“What?”
Grayson jerks his chin, gesturing to Zach. “You’re way hotter.”
I don’t have issues with my looks, but Grayson seems to think I need some reassurance. I snort and turn around to face him. “Thanks. What makes you think I’m jealous? Maybe I’m just curious. I’ve never seen her at school before.” This is the third blonde I’ve seen Zach with. It makes me wonder if he just prefers blondes.
“Her name is Chelsea. She graduated with me last year. She and Zach are old friends.” His gaze moves past me. I look over my shoulder to see that Zach has moved over to the outdoor sofa. Chelsea is squeezed between Justin and the arm of the sofa. Zach is perched on the arm while Chelsea chats animatedly with Justin.
But Zach’s eyes are on me.
“What’s the deal with you two?” Grayson asks.
I lift a shoulder. “Why?”
“Because he’s looking at me like I stole his favorite toy. Just like he did at the party last week.”
I breathe out a laugh. “While he was on a day date with your ex?”
Grayson smiles. “Yeah, that was awkward. So, is he trying to make you jealous or is he just being a dick?”
“Well, since he’s the one who invited me, I’d say he’s just being a dick.” I pull out my phone and text my mom. Heading home.
She replies, Come to Mac’s and hang out with us. Alex and Dylan are playing tonight.
It’s still early, and I could go for a burger and fries. I text back, On my way. Will u order me a burger and fries? Pls.
Got it.
“I think I’m gonna go,” I say, shoving my phone in the back pocket of my denim shorts. I look around to see that Lexi and Evan have disappeared before moving through the crowd and heading for my car.
“You going home?” Grayson asks, following after me.
“Actually, I’m going to Mac’s. There’s a burger and fries waiting for me.”
“Can I come?”
I pause and turn back around. “What about the party?”
“It’s a high school party.” He laughs, stepping forward and hooking his arm around my neck. “Besides, you seem like you’re a lot more fun to hang out with.”
“I’m not hooking up with you, Grayson.”
Grayson smirks. “If I wanted to hook up with you, Jay, it would’ve happened already.”
My eyebrows shoot up. “O-kay,” I drawl heading for my car.
Grayson laughs and tightens his arm, pulling me closer to his side. “It was meant as a compliment. I don’t usually make friends with girls unless they come with benefits.”
I scoff and push his arm away. “Your compliments suck, friend.”
I find Lexi and Evan standing beside my car. “Hey, I was just grabbing my phone,” Lexi says, holding up her cell phone.
“I’m taking off,” I tell her, pulling my key from my pocket.
“Are you okay?” she asks, her eyes flicking between me and Grayson.
“Yeah. We’re going to Mac’s. You guys wanna come?” I ask.
“Don’t worry, Lexi,” Grayson says, tossing his keys to Evan. “I’ll take good care of her.”
I roll my eyes as I open the door and slide behind the wheel.
“What about Zach?” Lexi calls.
“Zach’s got his hands full with Chelsea,” Grayson tells her.
I watch out the window as Lexi’s face twists in confusion. “Bro, what are you doing? Zach’s gonna lose his fucking mind,” I hear Evan say. “This one is different.”
This one? What is he talking about?
“I know, Evan, and it’s not even like that. We’re just going to get something to eat. And if he’s so into her, then he should be the one leaving with her right now, not playing catch-up with Chelsea. Even I’m not that much of a dick.”
I’M STILL FLYING high from our win as my teammates and I walk into Carter’s backyard. Brad, Cole, and Justin hop up on the patio chairs and do their usual chant after a win. I push through the crowd, looking for Jay, when a few classmates stop to congratulate me on our win.
“Zach,” a familiar voice calls out and I look up to see Chelsea just before she slams into me. If I wasn’t so pissed off at her, I’d be happy to see her. I forgot how much I liked having the pain in the ass around.
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to watch my best friend play his first game of the season.” She smiles. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
“Chelsea.” Justin pats the empty spot next to him on the sofa and waves us over.
Chelsea squeezes beside Justin and I perch on the arm. I’m not planning on sticking around for long, as Chelsea babbles on about college and the sorority she’s pledging.
My gaze shifts to the covered pool deck where I find Jay standing near the keg, talking to Grayson. I stiffen. What the hell?
Jay looks at me over her shoulder. It’s not jealousy I see, but disappointment. I can’t ever seem to get my head out of my ass. I should go to her, but I know if I do, Chelsea will follow and most likely confront Jay. I don’t trust her not to make a scene, especially after everything I told her about Jay.
Cole walks up. “You guys seen Jay?”
I look back across the patio, but both she and Grayson are gone.
“Jay?” Chelsea looks from Cole to me and back to Cole. “Your cousin?” Then she looks back at me. “She’s here?”
I nod.
“She left,” Lexi announces as she and Evan walk up.
“She left?” Cole pulls out his phone. “I can’t believe she just left without telling me,” he says, typing out a text. “Are you sure she left?”
“Zach, why didn’t you tell me she was here?” Chelsea asks.
“Why, so you could act like a bitch to her?” Justin says, calling her out.
My thoughts exactly.
“Shut up, Justin.”
“Yo, Mackenzie, if you’re looking for Jayla, she just took off with Grayson,” someone calls out in passing.
Evan smirks at me.
Dick.
Cole narrows his eyes at Evan. “Your brother better keep his fucking hands to himself.”
Evan laughs. “Bro, it’s not his hands you should be worried about.”
“HEY,” I SAY, standing up from the bench outside Mac’s.
“Hi,” Jay replies, stopping in front of me and crossing her arms over her chest. She looks over her shoulder and I follow her line of sight, expecting to see Grayson trailing behind her. Instead, I see a huge wall of a man at least two inches taller than me with a shaved head. Bodyguard? He narrows his eyes with a look that says “Give me a reason, motherfucker” as he moves to stand at her side. I’d say he’s more like her guard dog by the way he looks ready to maul my face off.
“Bass, this is Zach. Zach, this is Bass.”
Bass grins. “The quarterback.” Okay. Maybe his bark is worse than his bite. He holds out his hand. “Good to meet you.”
Taking his hand, I wince when he squeezes a little too hard and narrows his eyes again, silently asking me if I want to keep it.
Okay, maybe not.
“Be nice, B,” Jay warns.
“Princess, I’m always nice.” Jay rolls her eyes as Bass claps me on the back. “I’m just giving you a hard time, Romeo. You played a good game tonight. Impressive.”
Romeo?
His compliment has me puffing out my chest a little bit. “Thanks. You played?”
“Defensive lineman. Good to meet you. I’ll leave you to it.” He nods at me and turns to Jay. “I’ll be inside. Come and get me when you’re ready to go.”
“Okay.”
As soon as Bass disappears through the doors she looks over at me and uncrosses her arms to tuck her hands into her back pockets. “What do you want, Zach?”
I shove my hands in my front pockets to keep from reaching for her. “I want to talk.”
“Yeah,” she scoffs. “You keep saying that, but it always ends up with you blowing me off for one of your blondes.” She shakes her head. I open my mouth to defend myself, but she keeps going. “You’re not the same boy I knew from summer vacations. You used to be shy and sweet. Now you’re the popular football player with a harem of blondes and a cocky attitude. I don’t know what kind of games you’re playing, but I’m done.”
“So, did you leave the party with Grayson because you were jealous, or were trying to get back at me for talking to Chelsea?” I smirk. “Who’s the one playing games?”
“No, I left because I didn’t feel like standing around watching a bunch of high school kids get drunk and act stupid.” She takes a step forward and leans in. “I kissed Grayson to get back at you.”
Oh, this little….
I take a step back, feeling as though I’ve been punched in the chest. “You kissed that fucker?”
“No.” She lifts a shoulder nonchalantly. “But how did that feel? The next time you want to play head games and flaunt one of your blondes in my face, remember how it feels.” She turns her head, clenching her jaw, nostrils flared.
“That’s not what I was doing. Chelsea used to be my best friend….” Clasping my hands behind my neck, I tip my head back and sigh heavily. “It’s a long story. I don’t want to fight with you, Jay.”
“Then what do you want, Zach?”
Suddenly, everything comes rushing to a head. Dropping my arms, my hands ball into fists. “I want to know why you broke my fuckin’ heart!” I yell, leaning into her personal space. Jay’s head snaps back as if I just slapped her. When she opens her mouth, I cut her off. It’s my turn to talk now and I have plenty of shit to say.
A year’s worth.
“The second you left St. Thomas, all I could think about was being with you, and that Labor Day couldn’t get here soon enough. I told you I loved you and you just… I don’t even know what happened. You just blew me off.” I throw my hands up in the air. “No calls and no texts. Not even a ‘fuck you, Zach’. Nothing. You blocked my number.” I shove my hands in my hair. “Why?”
Something flashes in her eyes, but it’s gone before I can determine whether it’s anger or hurt. Could be either. However, based on the slight flare of her nostrils and the way her eyes turn to slits as she pins me with a glare, I’m gonna say anger.
Jay crosses her arms and clenches her jaw.
Here it comes.
“Were you thinking about how much you loved me when you were hooking up with another girl that night? Were you thinking about me when you told her you didn’t have a condom?”
“Wha—” My eyes go wide and my heart free falls into my stomach. How? “Jay… I….” I’ve got nothing. “It wasn’t like that.”
Shaking her head, she holds up her hand and pulls her phone from her back pocket. “That’s exactly how it was. You pocket-dialed me and my voicemail recorded the whole thing.” She holds out her phone to show me that she saved the message. “I thought it was some kind of joke, so I called you back and your girlfriend answered—”
“Girlfriend?”
She nods. “She called me a skank. She told me you two broke up over the summer, but you were back together—”
“That’s bullshit!” Reagan Fucking Vaughn. “She lied to you.”
“I didn’t want to believe her because my Zach would never do that to me.”
“Because that’s not what happened. Jesus Christ, I can’t believe this whole time…” I shove my hands in my hair and let the words hang between us.
“But I had to let it go because my father was dying,” she chokes out through a sob. “I had to let you go, Zach. Girlfriend or not, it never would’ve worked out between us being three thousand miles away. I’d always wonder what you were doing or who you were with. I’m sorry, but what did you want me to do? I needed to be there for my dad, not chase after someone who didn’t give me a second thought before he moved on to the next girl.”
“Come here.” I reach out and pull her to my chest. “I’m sorry, Jay. God, I’m so sorry.”
“Me, too.” She sniffs into my shirt.
“I know it sounds cliché, but it’s not what you think. Let me drive you home and I’ll explain everything.”
She nods against my chest. “Okay, but I need to let Bass know.” She turns and hurries back inside while I wait.
“I CAN’T BELIEVE we lost a whole year because of that bitch,” I say in disbelief.
“My mom always told me never to make assumptions, no matter what it looks like. That’s why I called you. I wanted to give you a chance to explain.”
“We kissed. That’s all. The only reason I told her I didn’t have a condom was—”
She reaches over and covers my mouth. “No. Don’t tell me.”
Grabbing her by the wrist, I pull her hand from my mouth and press a kiss to her palm. “Just listen. I told her I didn’t have a condom because I didn’t want to tell her about you and risk her telling Cole.” I shake my head. “I already felt so guilty for even kissing her. I called you the next day to come clean about everything, but you never answered.”
“It’s bad enough I have to look at Reagan every day knowing you were with her. But knowing it was her who did this to us…” She shakes her head.
“Reagan was a mistake. I liked her in tenth grade, but she never gave me the time of day. Last year, after Labor Day weekend, we started hooking up.” Jay winces and I give her hand a gentle squeeze. “Sorry, but you need to know everything so she can’t come between us anymore. She wanted to be my girlfriend, but I didn’t trust her.” I should’ve trusted my gut back then. “And three months after we officially became a couple, she cheated on me.”
“Sounds like it still bothers you.”
“She bothers me.” I turn in my seat. “I don’t believe in cheating, Jay. It’s a coward’s way out of a relationship. If anyone is guilty of head games, it’s Reagan Vaughn. Do you want to know what her excuse was for cheating?”
“What?”
“Because I only wanted to be with her after the girl I was in love with dropped me. Those were her words. I’m gonna get her lying ass at school on Monday,” I assure Jay.
“No, Zach. Don’t say anything to her and stir up more drama. Just let it go for now. I’m pissed that she did this to us, but we can’t change it. From now on, we just need to be honest with each other.” She blows out a breath. “I’m gonna go ahead and put this out there so we’re clear. I love you, Zach. I never stopped loving you. Even when I didn’t want to love you anymore, I still loved you. Maybe I’m too young and inexperienced to know about love, but I know what I feel. And maybe it’s crazy, but I know in my heart that you could be my forever. If that freaks you out, I’m sorry, but life is too short for regrets. My dad used to say, ‘If you want it, then go after it.’ So, this is me, going after what I want. I love you.”
Fuck, I love this girl. “Don’t move.” Shoving the driver’s door open, I hop out and jog over to the passenger side. Jay turns in her seat just as I jerk open the door. Reaching in, I grab the back of her neck, pulling her to me so that our foreheads are touching and my lips are hovering over hers. “The only thing that freaks me out is not being with you. I love you, Jay. You’re still my girl.”
Jay sighs against my lips and I’m done. My lips are on hers, claiming her with a deep, demanding kiss. She instantly moves her arms to wrap around my neck and when our tongues meet, her body melts against mine.
I slide my hand up her bare thigh and she parts her legs, allowing me to move closer. Her hands are everywhere, running up my back under my T-shirt before dipping into my back pockets, squeezing my ass. Breaking the kiss, I continue trailing small kisses across her jaw and down her neck to that spot behind her ear she loves so much, even though it tickles. She giggles and I groan. I want her so badly.
I place another soft kiss against her lips before I drop my forehead to hers. “I’ve missed you, Z,” she whispers against my lips. She called me Z. And all is right again in my world.
“I’ve missed the shit out of you too, Jay. Tell me we’re okay and I’m still your guy.”
“We’re okay.” She smiles. “I’m still your girl and you’re still my guy.”
I chuckle and press a kiss to her forehead before hesitantly pulling away. “I should head home. It’s getting late and your mom and the big guy will probably be home any minute.”
“You’re not exactly small, Z.” She laughs. “Don’t worry about Bass. He’s a giant teddy bear.”
“More like a grizzly bear.” I smack another kiss to her lips before helping her out of the Jeep and walking her to the side door of the garage. “The adrenaline from the game has worn off and I’m exhausted.”
“Oh, yeah. Duh.” She crosses her eyes and wraps her arms around my waist. Silly girl. “Congratulations on your win tonight. I’m glad I was there.”
I grin. “The team won, not just me.”
“Oh, there’s a team?” she teases. She’s cute.
“Spend the day with me tomorrow. We can do whatever you want. Go to the beach, the mall, get pedicures. I don’t care. I just want spend the day with you.”
“Okay, but I’ll let you pick since you asked.”
“Yeah?” I grin. “Will the big guy let me take you out alone, or will I have to take the top off the Jeep to make room for him.”
She laughs, smacking my chest.
“Will you be okay by yourself or do you want me to wait with you?”
“No, I’m fine. Grace is here.”
“Who’s Grace?”
“She’s my….” Her mouth twists to the side as she mulls it over. “Grace was my dad’s housekeeper for years before he met my mom. She’s family. Mom refuses to let her clean up after us, but Grace takes care of us. She cooks and sometimes she does my laundry.”
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
“Oh, believe me, she can’t wait to meet you either.”
I kiss her once more and wait for her to disappear inside before I get back in my Jeep and head home.