of money, distance, or education would change that.
So I have no choice. After class, I show up at Hunter’s place and tell him we need to talk.
Demi’s on the couch beside him, shooting me laser eyes. I’ve interrupted them watching some crime documentary on TV, but I know that’s not why she’s glowering at me.
“Don’t tell Taylor I’m here,” I ask her, my voice rough. “Please.”
She inhales and rolls her eyes. “I’m not going to tell you what to do—”
“Good,” I say, then turn on my heel and duck into the kitchen, where I grab a beer from the fridge.
“But you shouldn’t string her along,” Demi finishes the second I return to the living room.
I swallow the lump in my throat. “I’m not.”
“Does she know that?”
I assume it’s a rhetorical question, and if it’s not, doesn’t matter. I didn’t come here to talk to Demi about Taylor.
I take a long swig of the beer and nod at an uncomfortable-looking Hunter. “Can we talk in your room?”
“Sure.”
“I like Taylor!” Demi calls after me as I follow Hunter to the doorway. “Put on your big-boy pants and make things right with her, Conor Edwards.”
“Sorry,” a rueful Hunter says as his girl continues to chastise me when I’m not even in the room.
In Hunter’s bedroom, he takes a seat at his desk while I lean against the door, picking at the label on my bottle. He knows me well enough to get something’s up. Hunter’s my best friend on the team. Hell, probably my best friend anywhere. A week ago, Taylor was right there next to him.
“What’s going on?” he asks, watching me for clues. “This about you and Taylor?”
“Not exactly.”
“What’s the deal there? Demi keeps asking if you two broke up, and I don’t know what to tell her other than to mind her business, but you know Demi. She’ll bite my nuts off before she lets me tell her what to do.”
“No, haven’t broken up.” Though it’s getting harder to see much difference. “It’s nothing to do with Taylor. It’s, uhh…” I trail off, suddenly feeling foolish.
This is harder than I thought it’d be. Hunter is my only out. His family’s loaded—the kind of loaded that makes Max’s mansion look like the servant’s quarters—and he’s got access to money.
The whole way over here, I thought I could be cool about it, casual. Hey man, spot me a few Gs. No biggie. But this hurts. I don’t think I’ve been so humiliated in my life, so completely demoralized. Still, I’ve got no choice. It’s this, or let Kai tell Max what I did.
And I can’t do that to my mom.
“Con. You’re freaking me out a little. What’s going on?”
I push away from the door, needing to keep my feet moving, like they’re powering my brain. “Look, I’m gonna be straight with you. I need ten grand and I can’t tell you why. I promise I’m not into it with a loan shark or moving drugs or anything. There’s just this thing I gotta take care of and I can’t go to my family. I wouldn’t come to you if I had any other choice.” I drop to the edge of his bed and sit, dragging my hands through my hair. “I promise I’ll pay you back. To be honest it probably won’t be quickly, but I’ll get you every dime if it takes me the rest of my life.”
“Okay.” Hunter looks at the floor. He’s sort of nodding, like there’s a time delay between the words leaving my mouth and him. “And you didn’t kill anybody.”
He’s taking this better than I expected.
“I swear.”
“You’re not skipping the country,” he says. “Right?”
I won’t lie—the thought has crossed my mind. But no. “Staying put.”
He shrugs. “Cool.”
Before I can blink, Hunter digs around in one of his desk drawers for a checkbook. I sit there, stunned, as he fills one out to Cash. “Here you go.”
Just like that, he hands it to me. Ten grand. Four zeros.
I’m such an ass.
“I can’t tell you how much you’ve saved me.” The sense of relief is instant, the remorse even quicker. I hate myself for this. But not enough to not fold the check up and stick it in my wallet. “I’m sorry about this. You—”
“Con, it’s all good. We’re teammates. I’ve always got your back.”
Emotion tightens my throat. Man, I don’t deserve this. It’s a complete accident I even ended up here. At Briar, on this team. I got it in my head I had to get the