of habit than actual annoyance.
“Doesn’t that girl have any shame?” she muttered.
I ignored her. Despite her attitude, I’d noticed that Lila had been acting nicer to Amber lately. She’d never admit it, but I’d bet money that Lila was just a smidge grateful to have someone like Amber at school—someone friendly when everyone else treated her like a well-dressed leper.
“Amber’s straightforward,” I said in her defense.
“She’s obvious,” Lila said, arching one brow. “Someone should teach her the art of subtlety.”
I grinned. “Are you offering? You’re not exactly the queen of subtle yourself, you know that, right?”
Her smile was sudden and sweet, and for a second there, she looked like a teenage girl and not the manipulative mastermind I’d come to think of her as.
“Maybe not,” she said. “But at least I still have some pride.”
I let out a little huff of laughter but kept my mouth shut. To say anything would be to throw one of my best friends under the bus. Amber might not have been subtle about her romantic interest in me since she’d returned to Pinedale, but she was a sweet girl and a good friend. She’d figure out eventually that we were never meant to be.
Lila’s gaze turned sharp like she was seeing straight through me. “Are you ever going to tell her?”
I blinked, my heart picking up its pace as adrenaline rushed through me. It was an overreaction. She wasn’t saying what I thought she was saying. I forced a blank expression. “Tell her what?”
“That you’re gay.”
I stared at her in shock as my heart threatened to pound its way out of my chest. I tried to swallow but my throat was dry. Her expression never altered. Like she was talking about the weather or the stupid dance tonight and not revealing my deepest secret—one that would make my conservative mother’s head spin and have this entire town talking about me like they had when I was eight years old.
Lila’s brows came together in a frown. “Relax, Brandon. I’m not going to be the one to tell your secrets.”
I drew in a quick breath as relief flooded through me. I believed her. I didn’t know why, but I did. Just like I believed her when she’d told me my mother’s secret. I ran a hand through my hair and tried to recover some semblance of calm. “How’d you know?”
She gave a derisive snort. “Please. I have a ton of gay friends. My gaydar is through the roof.”
I stared at her for a second before letting out a shocked little laugh. After so many years of keeping this part of me secret, it felt insane to be talking about it out in the open like this. Like it was totally normal.
For Lila it was, I guessed. But then, she didn’t live in a tiny town full of macho guys and conservative, right-wing zealots.
“Besides,” Lila added, a mischievous smirk making her pretty features light up with amusement. “I was all over you at that bonfire with this…” She gave a sexy little Jessica Rabbit wiggle that made me laugh. “And nothing.” She eyed my pants meaningfully. “Nada.”
I dropped my head back as another laugh escaped, this one filled with relief.
“If I’d thought for a second that you might be swayed by seduction, you’d better believe I’d have found a way to sneak into your room,” she teased.
When I looked at her again, she was giving me a tolerant smile, like she got it. She understood that I was relieved, and she wasn’t going to use this against me.
Holy hell, I liked this girl. I mean, I’d liked her the first time I met her, but right now I felt like she might be the best friend I’d ever had. Second to Jack, of course. He’d always be like a brother to me, but this girl here was the kind of friend I’d never known I’d needed. One who understood me, one who saw that I didn’t fit in at this school or in this town, and maybe I never would.
“I can’t believe you knew and didn’t use it to try and persuade me,” I said. The words came tripping off my tongue. Like, now that my big secret was out in the open, I was free to speak the truth.
She shrugged. “My father might be into the blackmail thing, but that’s not really my style.”
“Oh yeah? So, then, what’s your style?”
She grinned. “I prefer to appeal to common sense.”
“And you think me heading to Hollywood with you