Broken Hill High (Broken Hill High #1)(10)

The next few classes drag by, but I’m lucky to have Courtney in a few of them.

By lunch, I meet the girls right where we had planned and walk up to the cafeteria for something to eat. I pick out something small, knowing that I probably won’t eat it anyway and turn to head back to my table when the head of the cheer skanks stops me in my tracks.

“Tora,” she says while crossing her arms over her fake chest.

“Is there something you need, Elle?” I question, knowing exactly what she’s here for.

“As a matter of fact,” she says. “There is. You need to back off Josh. He’s not interested in you, and from one girl to another, I’m just trying to look out for you. I don’t want your little heart to get broken.”

“Awww,” I smile, reading through her bullshit. “That’s awfully sweet of you, but you know what? I think I’ll try my luck. He’s just too cute.”

Her expression hardens as she takes in my sarcastic tone. “You know what, Tora? I was just trying to be nice, but you don’t deserve it. Josh is our guy and you need to take your claws out of him, maybe find someone a little more your speed, say, like the janitor.”

I grin down at the little shrimp. “Like I said,” I tell her with a wink, not able to handle some skank telling me who I can and cannot get busy with. “I’ll take my chances.”

Elle’s eyes narrow on me. “You’ve been warned, Tora.”

“Consider this my official ‘I don’t give a shit’,” I tell her before walking back to my table.

I slide my tray down and fall into my spot beside Brooke. “What the hell was that?” Brooke questions as she shoves a bread roll into her mouth.

“That was the new cheer captain trying to assert her dominance over us mere mortals,” I explain.

“Ahhh,” Brooke nods. “She wants you to back off Josh.”

“You got it,” I laugh before I look down at my food and push it around a little. I sit with the girls, not actually eating when I notice every single eye of the cheerleaders on me. I turn and give them a little wave before getting up and emptying my tray in the bin.

While I’m up, I smirk to myself as I cross the room to the football table. I find Josh sitting between a group of his friends and I lean down over him while the cheerleaders narrow their eyes on me. “Hey, Josh,” I smile as I squeeze my hands into his big shoulders.

“Hey, Tora,” he grins as his arm snakes out around my waist. He pulls me down on his lap between a wall of muscle and my arms naturally fall around his neck. I can’t help but smirk at Elle before I seal my lips on his.

I know it’s not the greatest kiss and it’s probably never going to go anywhere with him, but knowing that I can piss off Elle in the process is too good of an opportunity to pass up.

As he pulls his lips away from mine, I grin up at him. “I’ll see you later,” I tell him before gently pressing my lips to his once more and scooting off his lap.

He slaps my ass as I walk away and I look across at Elle while I make a show of fixing up my lip gloss. Her face is practically glowing from anger and I realize without a seed of doubt in my mind that after going against Elle’s warning, I’ve just declared war on the cheerleaders, though, I don’t really care. I’ll make out with whoever the hell I want to make out with, school politics be damned.

Tora Roberts does not bend to the will of cheerleaders.

As I fall back down into my seat, Brooke nudges me in the ribs. “That was a dangerous move,” she warns me.

“I know,” I laugh. “But it was so worth it to see her face.”

I reach for my drink bottle and tip my head back to take a drink which is when I feel it. The familiar stare of Nate Ryder. I let out a breath and turn around, and right there, making his way out of the cafeteria with his group of followers is Nate with his dark eyes piercing into mine. Knowing that he’s just watched my little performance pulls something within me, though I don’t know why and that fact alone pisses me off.

I shake the thought from my head and pay attention to my girls. Before I know it, the end of lunch bell is ringing and we’re piling out of the cafeteria to head to our afternoon classes.

Two hours later, I meet Brooke by her car and we get out asses out of there. It’s been a long day and I am so not in the mood to deal with any more cheerleaders, jocks, or bad boys.

We get home and as usual, Brooke makes herself welcome as we flick on the music in my room and spend our afternoon immersed in our own world. Brooke with her phone and me with my Kindle.





Chapter 4


I sit back on my couch with my feet up and flick through the movie channels. It’s Thursday night and Brooke has just disappeared for the night after her mother called a billion times, requesting that she get her ass home for dinner.

With no movies that I’m in the mood for, I find the latest ‘Game of Thrones’ episode and flick it on before grabbing the blanket over the back of the couch and pulling it down over me.

I completely stretch out.

This is the life. No parents. No one telling me what I should be doing. Everything is on my own schedule. Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents, but having this little slice of freedom has been great.

A noise at the front door has me flying to my feet. What the hell was that? More importantly, who the hell was that? I flick the TV off as I hear someone walking through my house and find myself cowering in the corner of the room and sticking my head out to see.