Unknown (The Secret Life of Cassie Martin #1)(19)

The boys stop and stare at me.

I put my hand over my mouth to suppress the giggles. “What? I’m just trying to think of a name. Did you guys decide on something?”

Noah narrows his eyes at me. “No, everyone has to contribute, and you haven’t said anything yet. What has you giggling over there, missy?”

My jaw hurts from the grin covering my face. I press my lips together to seal in the name. Before I know it, Parker lays down the pen and paper he held and strides toward me.

“I will tickle this information out of you. You don’t want that, do you?” He tries to sound evil, but he says it more like a joke.

I put my hands up to stop his advance as I back away from him and shake my head. “I haven’t thought of a good name yet. Give me a couple more minutes.”

Parker peers down on me. “I don’t want the good name. I want the name that has you in fits.” He grabs my arms, spins me around, puts his hands on my sides, and digs his fingers into them. I squeal and dash away, managing to put a desk between us, but Lucca sneaks up on my left.

“Lucca, don’t let your leader bring you down.” I position the desk between the two of them at a slight angle. While I focus on them, I miss Noah coming up behind me.

He grabs under my armpits and won’t let go. It’s all I can do to stand up because I’m laughing so hard. “Okay, okay, Uncle. The name was Cassie’s Harem.”

Jay, who must have picked up the pen and paper at some point, writes the name down.

“Wait! No! What are you doing?” I yell at him.

Jay finishes writing and formally announces, “All those in favor, please say aye.”

All the boys’ hands reach for the sky, and they say aye in unison.

Jay glances around, his expression mock serious. “Opposed, please say nay.”

I yell, “Nay!” but it’s too late.

Jay’s proclaims, “The ayes have it.”

I run at Jay and tackle him. He’s not expecting it, but catches me anyway. We go to the ground as I scramble for the paper. We wrestle to determine who wins the prize. If I place it down my shirt, I’ll be safe. Before I grab the paper, three short knocks reverberate from the door. We both scramble to our feet.

Jay hands the paper to Parker as Lucca goes to unlock the door. I remember I’m in a sundress and work to smooth out my skirt and straighten my bun. Sparks fly from Jay’s eyes. The tension in the room was gone for a few minutes, but with the click of the lock, the air shifts from light to suppressive.

The door swings open, and Mr. Smyth, Ms. Carlton, Kelly, and Mr. Baker enter.

Ms. Carlton addresses us. “Please shut the door.” She waves her hand at Lucca and waits until the door clicks closed before continuing. “The four of us have discussed your team situation. Even though it’s against the rules, we will allow Cassie to switch teams if she’s uncomfortable here.”

In the back, Mr. Smyth scowls before he contains his features. He doesn’t want me to change teams.

Do I want to change teams? They’ve been nothing but nice and supportive. We get along well together, especially if I take the last ten minutes into account. “I’m happy where I am.”

Sighs of relief escape from the boys. Good, they agree with my decision.

Kelly clicks her tongue. “This is a one-time opportunity. After today, you cannot change your mind. These tasks require you to be in some pretty tight places with your team. Are you worried they’ll take advantage of you?”

The boys, irate over her statement, yell protests at the same time.

“Gentleman, no one says you’ll do anything.” Ms. Carlton clarifies to help settle the room. “Kelly is just trying to make sure Cassie understands her options. You’ve all been through this before. She has not.”

“There’s no one I would rather be with. There have been girls here that have tried to kill me, even if on accident, but these four have been supportive, kind, and considerate. They’ve never assumed my place on the team. I don’t know what the future will hold, but this is where I want to be.” I stand as tall as I can to deliver my speech. Hopefully, they won’t question me again.

“Very well.” Small lines crease around Mr. Smyth eyes.

Did he place me on this team? I’ll have to talk to Noah about it.

The four adults walk to the door, but at the last second, Mr. Smyth turns around. “Right before we knocked, we heard a crash. Is everything okay in here?”

I turn and widen my eyes at the boys. They hold back their laughter and smirk at me. My lips purse. I decline to answer the question.

When I assume they’re about to take our silence as our answer, Parker speaks up, “We were discussing our team name. Everything’s fine.” He emphasizes the word discussing.

Hopefully, the adults accept his response and leave.

No such luck. Mr. Baker raises an eyebrow at us. “What was the name you were debating?”

“There’s no debate. We voted on the name. We’re now Cassie’s Harem,” Parker announces with pride.

My mouth hangs open, and my brow furrows. How could he do that? We can’t change names now.

The adults chuckle to themselves, and Ms. Carlton finally shoos everyone out the door. As she goes to shut it, she turns to me and winks.