Tell Me Pretty Lies(21)

My face burns with a mixture of anger and embarrassment, his meaning not lost on me, and he smirks, knowing exactly what memory is playing in my mind.

“I thought you were at Amherst.” It sounds like an accusation.

“He was just leaving.” I slip between them before he can answer her. The room suddenly feels way too crowded. They follow me down the hall and through the house, not bothering to make small talk. Mom waits behind in the kitchen while I walk him out. I jerk the door open, waving him through with my other hand. His eyes flash toward the kitchen, knowing she’s still within earshot.

“See you soon.”

I’m under no illusion that it’s a simple, friendly goodbye.

It’s a threat.




The next week flies by blissfully uneventful…when it comes to the Ames brothers, anyway. Taylor still got her digs in—pun intended—at tryouts, but where Thayer and Holden are more like hungry wolves, Taylor and Alexis are gnats. Annoying, but harmless. The last day of tryouts was Friday, and the results are to be posted this afternoon in the gym.

“Why do you seem nervous?” Valen asks around a mouthful of yogurt. “You know you’re going to make it.”

“I’m not nervous.”

She pins me with a look, and I roll my eyes, giving up the charade.

“It’s been a while and I’m rusty. What if they throw my ass on JV?”

“The horror!” she mock gasps, her eyes widening comically.

“Shut up.” The truth is, I’m not nervous about making the team. I’m nervous about playing again, period.

“Come on.” She throws her yogurt into the nearest trash can, then pulls me up by my elbow.

“What are you doing?”

“We’re going to confirm that you made the team.”

“We don’t even know if the roster’s up yet.”

Valen flicks her chin toward the hall where I spot Taylor, Alexis, and their friend Addison strutting through the double doors that lead to the lobby connecting the cafeteria and the gym. “I’m betting they do.”

“Fine.”

When we push through the double doors to the gym, a class who doesn’t have first lunch is playing basketball on the court and a group of volleyball girls is huddled around the list in the far corner. As I’m walking, the basketball somehow ends up rolling out of bounds, stopping right before it hits my feet. Aiden spots us, jogging over. We’ve seen each other in passing, but we haven’t said more than a few words together since he brought me home that night. I figured it was a one-time thing.

“Hey,” he says, coming to a stop in front of us. I bend over to pick up the ball, handing it to him. “Let’s hang out again.”

I arch a brow. “Does Holden know you’re talking to me?”

He bends down a little so that he’s closer to my height, as if he’s letting me in on a secret. “Contrary to what you seem to believe, I do think for myself from time to time.”

I chew on my lip, unsure. He’s one of them. And if I’m being honest, there’s still a part of me that feels some misguided sense of loyalty toward Thayer, even though he’s made it crystal clear that he wants nothing to do with me. But it wouldn’t suck to have another friend.

“Fine. I could use a friend,” I say, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. Apparently, I wasn’t as smooth as I thought I was, because his eyebrows shoot up, and he rubs a hand over his smile.

“Damn, Shayne, you’re just gonna friendzone me off the jump like that?”

I laugh, not knowing what to say.

“Relax, I’m fucking with you. Scout’s honor,” he swears, holding a palm to his chest. “Friends it is.” He holds his phone out with his other hand, and I take it, adding myself as a contact.

Before I can respond, Taylor, Alexis, and Addison march up to us.

“Good news, Shayne. You made the team,” Taylor says in her brattiest voice. “Now you can work off that fat ass you acquired over the past year.” I bite my tongue, eyes rolling skyward and patience wearing thin as she slaps my butt and skips off.

“I happen to think your ass is fucking phenomenal.” Aiden smirks, his eyes scanning my body. I try to smile back, but it feels fake on my lips. She’s such an asshole.

“It’s true,” Valen agrees, nodding. “People pay money for asses like yours.”

“Aiden!” someone shouts, throwing their arms up impatiently. I hand his phone back, and as he takes it, his fingers brush mine.

“I’ll text you later.” Then he’s jogging back to his game.

I guess Holden doesn’t have as much influence as I thought.

“You do realize Taylor’s just jealous because you’re getting attention, right?”

“I don’t really care what her deal is.” I don’t let Taylor’s words get to me. At this point, she’ll say anything to make me doubt myself.

We come to a stop at the two pieces of white printer paper taped to the wall. Worming my way through the cluster of girls gathered around, I go straight for the varsity list and run my index finger down the names, stopping when I find mine.

I close my eyes, the tension leaving my shoulders. Yes.

“Weird,” Valen says, looking entirely unsurprised. “Never would’ve guessed that the former captain would’ve made the cut.”