Anyone But Nick (Anyone But... #3) - Penelope Bloom Page 0,2

face, but she wound up laughing. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m picturing you stomping the nachos. What was going through your head, exactly?”

I put my hands on my hips. I wanted to be mad at her for laughing, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling too.

“But really. Why did you stomp them?” she asked.

“Because I was pissed? Can we talk about something else?”

“Iris,” Cade called. “Your turn.” I didn’t fail to notice the wink he gave me. Helpful bastard.

“Are you winning yet?” I asked Iris.

Iris turned and squinted at the scoreboard, where the names of our little group were on display. If there was any doubt of my fifth-wheel status, all I needed to do was check out the scoreboard. Cade and Iris had entered themselves as a team named “Snakes on a Lane.” They had even come up with a cringeworthy handshake where it looked like they were trying to pretend their arms were snakes in some sort of fight, complete with hissing sound effects. At least it would’ve been cringeworthy if Cade wasn’t so obnoxiously confident. He probably could’ve pretended to be a chicken in the middle of a crowded room, and women still would’ve swooned.

In typical Richard King fashion, he and Kira had gone with a more down-to-earth team name: “Rich and Kira.”

Then there was me. I’d tried to enter my name without a team designation, but Cade had gone to the liberty of editing it while I was making a food run. I was apparently now a member of the “Rolling Solo” team. Great.

“Yessss,” Iris said in a poor impression of a snake. “Sssseems we’re going to win.”

“You are such a dork,” I said. I was too annoyed to want to laugh, but I couldn’t help at least smiling a little. No matter how lost I felt at the moment, the one thing that had always been an anchor in my life was my friendship with Kira and Iris.

“Then you’re going to lose to a dork,” Iris said. “What does that make you?”

“Bad at bowling?” I guessed.

Iris took a fry from Rich and Kira’s tray, burned her mouth, and strung together a creative line of swear words. “Thanks for warning me they were hotter than Satan’s asshole.”

“Maybe you should stop trying to steal other people’s food. It’s karma,” I said. “I’d also be curious to know how you have experience with the temperature of Satan’s rectum.”

“Rectum,” she said, laughing. “You’re such a proper dork.” Iris reached for another fry. I swatted at her wrist, and she pulled her hand back, then shot me a dirty look. “You can’t control me.”

I rolled my eyes. I found a spot on the cracked-leather bench behind our alley and sat down. I set Rich and Kira’s food to the side and watched as Iris joined into an argument Cade and Kira were in. They were debating if it was against the rules for Cade to lie on his belly and push the ball instead of doing it like a normal human being. He was getting way too far into character as a snake.

“You good?” Rich asked.

“I’m fine,” I said. I still wasn’t used to talking to any of the King brothers. Seven years ago, I’d sworn an oath with Kira and Iris. We said we’d never date them again, no matter what. Even if they came back on their knees and begged us to forgive them for what they put us through—even if they wound up famous and dripping with cash. Apparently, my friends had decided solemn oaths sworn on hilltops in the dead of night were negotiable. I guessed I’d missed that particular memo. Now the oath that held the three of us together felt more like an anchor tied around my neck.

“I’ve just been thinking about everything lately,” I said.

It was almost silly for me to even care anymore. It would be different if Nick King had shown any interest in me since coming back to West Valley, but he seemed content to take over his brother Cade’s role of the town playboy. It still turned my stomach to think about. The Nick I’d known seven years ago was thoughtful and intelligent. He didn’t jump from woman to woman for a quick thrill. I knew people changed, but looking at who he was becoming felt more like admitting the boy I’d known back then was dead. The only glimmer of solace I could take was the rumor about how he was becoming notorious for never sleeping with