I were forced to leave the cafeteria; we ended up having to eat lunch under a staircase. I hated hiding, I hated the attention, and Riley… she was about to blow up.
Maddox was waiting for a reaction, he was egging me on… pushing and pushing, waiting for me to snap, like I did in the coffee shop. But I vowed I wouldn’t play his stupid games.
He would eventually stop, I convinced myself. He’d grow bored of me soon enough, I told myself. I was wrong again.
On Thursday, a week after handling his nonsense, Maddox still hadn’t given up.
“Uh-oh. He’s here. Maybe we should make a run for it now.” Riley went to stand up, taking her lunch tray with her.
“Sit down,” I hissed. “We’re not running away. We’re going to eat lunch, and we’re going to ignore him.”
“He’s coming our way,” she reported, shaking her head. “Oh shit, here we go again.”
My back straightened, and I prepared myself for what was coming. I nodded at Riley, letting her know it was okay. Her eyebrows pulled together with a frown before she leveled a hard glare at whoever was standing behind me.
I felt Maddox before I saw him. His presence surrounded me, and I locked my jaw, gritting my teeth together. He grabbed the chair beside me and turned it around before sitting down, straddling it. Maddox leaned forward, using the back of the chair as an armrest. His friends settled around our table, grabbing their own chairs and joining us. Riley released a long, exasperated sigh.
Without speaking to me, he reached for my tray and grabbed my apple. With great annoyance, I forced myself to look at his face. His long dirty blond hair was pulled back into a small, messy man-bun. The rest of him was immaculate. The small diamond stud in his ear glinted in the light, briefly catching my attention. Maddox locked eyes with me, before taking a bite of my red apple. “Hmm juicy.”
“That’s my apple.”
“It was lonely. I’m giving it some attention,” he said, taking another huge bite.
I dropped my fork with a loud clank. “Put. The. Apple. Down.”
Maddox was unfazed. “Or what?”
“You’ll regret it, Coulter.”
He let out a deep chuckle, as if my threat meant nothing to him. “You’re all bark and no bite, Sweet Cheeks.”
Sweet Cheeks? Excuse me…?
“You know what you remind me of? A little chihuahua trying to fight a bigger and stronger dog when she knows she can’t win. Careful or you’ll end up with a nasty bite, Garcia.”
I snatched my apple from his hand and leaned forward, bringing our faces closer. “Did you know that chihuahuas are known as an aggressive breed when they’re moody, and when they do bite, they bite hard. Careful, or you’ll end up with a nasty bite, Coulter.”
I brought the apple to my mouth and took a bite before I realized what I was doing. Maddox’s eyes flared before his lips quirked up. “I think we just shared our first indirect kiss.”
Oh, for God’s sake!
Colton snickered before stealing a brownie from Riley’s tray. She hissed, and her eyes hardened with a glare. The girl before Jasper would have exploded. The new Riley? She stayed quiet.
“That was a lousy kiss. You can do better than that, man,” Colton said, his six-foot-something frame shaking with mirth.
Maddox grabbed my chair and pulled me closer to him, the four legs making a loud screeching sound. The whole cafeteria was watching now. I could feel their stares burning into me.
“What do you say, Garcia? Shall we put on a show for these asswipes?” His voice lowered, holding a suggestive tone.
“Not interested. Your lips probably hold more disease than a pig’s asshole.” I handed him back the apple, giving him my best smile. “Consider this charity. Next time, I won’t be so gracious.”
The boys hollered at my response.
Maddox stared, his blue eyes pointedly holding mine. He was still grinning. I didn’t know why he kept doing that – smiling like he was having the best time of his life verbally sparring with me.
I found it neither entertaining nor funny.
Pushing away from the table, I stood up and grabbed my empty tray. Riley followed suit, and we left the cafeteria.
Maddox and his buddies didn’t follow.
Mrs. Levi gave me a nod of approval, and I let out a relieved sigh. “That was a fabulous explanation, Lila.”
“Thank you.” I started to take my seat, feeling quite pleased with myself. I had spent two hours last night writing my essay, rereading all my notes and