Until Friday Night (The Field Party #1)(25)

But I could be one hell of a friend.

Glancing back at the locker and seeing there was still no Maggie, I shook Serena loose. “I gotta go. I need to do something. I won’t be in next period,” I said distractedly as I kept searching the halls. Then I moved toward Brady’s next class, because he’d know where I could find her. It wasn’t like Maggie not to go to her locker. What was she doing? Just carrying all her books around today?

As soon as I turned the corner, my eyes locked on her. She was bent over by the far wall, pulling books out of her overstuffed book bag. My relief at just seeing her should worry me. I’d started needing her too much.

For the first time all day a smile pulled at my lips.

She was biting her bottom lip, and a frustrated frown was wrinkling her brow. She let out a huff and stood up to tuck the hair that had fallen in her face behind her ear. Just as she slipped the strands back and sighed, her eyes found mine.

Her eyes briefly flashed with happiness and only made my smile bigger. But then she shut it down fast and gave me a tight smile before bending back over her book bag and quickly jamming all the books she’d just taken out back in. What was the girl doing?

I made my way over to her and dropped to my haunches until we were at eye level. I watched her study my feet for a moment before she slowly lifted her gaze to meet mine. Her cheeks turned pink.

“They have these things called lockers. It keeps us from having to carry around a shit ton of books all day. You should check yours out,” I teased, wanting that tight fake smile to become a real one.

Was she feeling weird about us talking until we’d fallen asleep last night? I couldn’t figure out how the girl I’d gone to sleep talking to was now avoiding me. Because now that I’d found her and saw the way she was trying not to look at me, I knew she hadn’t come to her locker because of me.

“Seriously, Maggie, let me take this bag to your locker and unload this stuff. It’s too heavy for you to be carrying around. I’m gonna have to take you to my chiropractor if you do this all day.”

She zipped up her bag and then stood up. I did the same. But before she could pick up her bag, I grabbed it. “Come on,” I said, putting my hand on her lower back and moving her through the crowd toward our lockers.

She let me guide her, and I liked the way it felt to put my hand on her this way. I’d put my hand there on other girls before, but it had never felt like this. Almost as if I were making sure everyone knew Maggie was mine. Which was ridiculous, because she wasn’t mine; she was my friend. She didn’t belong to me.

Though, the idea of her being mine apparently appealed to me enough to make my heart speed up thinking about it. But no. I had to shut this down. I was emotional and messed up. Maggie was my peace in the storm. I couldn’t confuse that with something else and ruin everything.

I had her combination memorized from helping her last week. I’d committed it to memory without even realizing it. I got her locker open quickly, then started filling it with the books from her bag. “Which ones do you need to keep out?” I asked, glancing back at her.

She stepped closer to me, and the scent of vanilla came with her. I didn’t move. I stayed where I was and inhaled. There was no perfume smell. Just . . . Maggie.

Maggie took a textbook from her locker and reached into the book bag I was holding. She took out a notebook then stepped back. Her smell lingered, and I finished putting her book bag away while telling myself I had to draw a line with her. Wanting to take a sniff every time I was near her was not going to be cool.

Once I had her books in there, I closed her locker and turned back to her. “You gonna tell me why you didn’t come to your locker this morning?” Still not sure if she’d talk to me here. Where people could see.

She ducked her head and reached for her book bag. When she finally looked back up at me, she shrugged.

She wasn’t talking.

That was okay. If she just wanted to talk to me when we were alone, I could deal with that. I’d just need to be alone with her more. Which, given how much it appealed to me, might prove difficult. Knowing how her lips felt and trying to get close enough to inhale her scent were two reasons that being alone with Maggie wasn’t going to be easy.

Shit. I had to get a grip. Maybe Serena was a good thing. She knew the score. She wasn’t in it for anything more than sex and bragging rights.

I reached over and tucked the lock of hair that had gotten loose back behind her ear. It only teased me. When I looked at her or touched her, it was hard to want someone else.

“I missed you this morning. I look forward to seeing you at the lockers. When you didn’t come, it messed with my head,” I explained.

A new softness in her expression transformed her face back to the Maggie from last night. The one who trusted me. I liked that look.

She took a step toward me, and her hand gently brushed mine, not once but twice, before she smiled up at me. My chest tightened. Then she turned and walked away.

West Was Showing Me I Wasn’t Broken

CHAPTER 17

MAGGIE

I was sunk. This thing I felt for West had vaulted right over the crush I was afraid of and gone straight to full-blown feelings for him. He was being too sweet. How was I supposed to deal with not getting attached to West Ashby when he was being so dang nice?

He hadn’t been at our lockers after second period, but he rarely ever was. His classes were on the other side of the building, and coming back in between would make him late for class. I didn’t go to my own locker between third and fourth periods for the very same reason.