Burnout - Coralee June Page 0,54

connection as it was a decision. My resistance was taking that decision away from Lance. My insecurities were affecting the possibilities of a relationship with my brother. “I promise to give you a chance. A real chance. Not one littered with fake truths about our egg donor. And if you decide this isn’t working, I just want you to be honest with me. I didn’t feel like I could be honest with her. The guilt from her cancer ate me up inside. How can you hate a dying woman?”

“Stop beating yourself up,” Lance offered with a shrug before eating a bite of food, wincing when it scalded his mouth. I watched in amusement as he grabbed his glass of iced water and guzzled it down. “Shit, how can you eat that?”

“I’m starving,” I answered with a wave of my hand. Lance’s eyes flickered to the bandage wrapped around my palm.

“What happened to your hand?”

I glanced at it. “Oh, this? Nothing. Rose decided she wanted to do a blood ritual, so I let her cut me.”

Lance blinked once. Twice. Three times. “Yeah, your boss is insane.”

“You know? I actually am starting to like her. Don’t tell Decker that.”

Lance laughed with an eye roll. “He does always have to be right, yeah? Drives me crazy.”

“It’s worse at school,” I gritted.

Lance took another bite of food, making sure to blow on his fork for a good minute before plopping it into his mouth. And then he spoke with his mouth open, breathing out steam like a fiery dragon. “Guess you weren’t planning on having two brothers when you moved here, huh?” he joked before swallowing his food with a gulp.

My stomach twisted. I did not view Decker as a brother. I saw him like this unattainable force that drew me in. Something I knew was terrible for me but couldn’t avoid all the same. But if Lance wanted to establish the boundary and make it clear that the only affection between us should be brotherly, then I’d roll with the punches. “Yeah. I went from having no one to two overprotective brothers. I can’t wait to bring a guy home. He’s going to shit his pants.”

Lance had a twinkle in his eyes like I’d said exactly what he wanted to hear. “Did you meet anyone at school?” he asked.

“I met someone named Maximillian. He’s cute and sweet. He asked for my number,” I offered with a shrug, forgoing the fact that I only viewed him as a friend. He was too sweet. Too nice. Too easygoing. I was attracted, sure. Good looking people were just that—good looking. Maybe it was Mama’s influence that attracted me to the things I shouldn’t want or the things I couldn’t have. I loved a bit of danger. I liked my relationships toxic and out of reach.

“You should bring him over sometime. We can invite your dad, too, just to really terrify him,” Lance offered, making me snort.

“Sounds like a plan.”

And then we ate our food. We joked. We bonded.

And I decided that Lance Trask was an exceptional person to share blood with.

14

Blakely

Memphis Academy for Math and Science had a large, sprawling cafeteria. You would think that the heart of the campus would be the library, considering the caliber of its students. But like every other typical high school in the country, the cafeteria was where you could find the pulse.

My first day, I spent most of lunch hiding in the library, sulking over the fact that I kept getting looks of pity from my teachers and some of the students. However, Maximillian didn’t let me escape today. He’s been following me around, and the moment the bell rang for lunch, he grabbed my wrist and practically dragged me into the social circle of hell.

We sat at a table in the far corner near a large window that gave us the vantage of the entire cafeteria. I observed natural selection in its prime. Students segregated themselves based on interests, looks, and intelligence. I couldn’t help but wonder where I fit in.

Shifting in my seat, I let Max plop a straw in my Coke as he mentioned it was better for my teeth. A few students that I recognized from my classes sat with us, as well as a couple of guys I’d never seen before. It seemed I’d made a lot of friends fairly quickly, which was shocking considering I hadn’t really spoken to anyone. At my old school, I kept to myself and struggled to make meaningful