Fake Love - Jaxson Kidman Page 0,25

and took off his first shirt. He opened the locker he stood at and balled up the shirt and threw it in. Then he took off his second shirt, which left him shirtless at his locker.

I noticed a tattoo in his right shoulder, but my eyes moved along the skin and muscle he was showing off…

He tried to kill you, Winter.

I swallowed hard as Noah reached into the locker to get fresh clothes.

I slowly backed away.

“Just wanted you to get your hoodie back, Xavier,” I said.

Xavier tossed the hoodie back to me, hitting me in the face with it.

“I said I’ll get it from you when I’m ready,” he growled.

“See you around, Winter,” Easton said with a wink.

Noah put on a polo shirt, slammed his locker shut, and didn’t say a word to me.

I felt like I had just lost a battle.

Chapter 9

the metal bar

“Want to hang out later?”

I sat in the passenger seat of Gia’s car and stared at the empty parking spot where Noah’s car had once been.

The rest of the day was the same old shit. I just had to play it off that I knew nothing and nobody. Some people danced around me like I had worms jumping from my skin. Or they talked to me like I was hard of hearing and had to get close to my face.

One thing I knew for sure… with the exception of Gia, everyone inside that damn building could kiss my ass. It was all about being rich and powerful. And to make that work, it required a lot of lying.

Which just proved to myself who I really was.

I was good at this.

I was good at faking.

I was good at being someone else.

And I wasn’t sure how much of that I got from my mother or Dad.

Come on, Winter, you know it’s all your mother…

But was it?

I shook my head and looked at Gia.

“I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“Never mind,” she said. “You look wiped out. You need to go home and sleep until tomorrow.”

“Yeah. I agree.”

Gia touched my hand. “This place is a shit hole with marble floors and a clean smell. Don’t let it get to you. Everyone hates each other and hates themselves.”

“Do you hate yourself?”

Gia nodded. “Oh, yeah, for sure.”

“Why?”

“I hate myself because I let what they say get to me. And then I let myself spiral with my anxiety. Then I end up running so much that I forget to enjoy the run and I either feel sick or I feel hurt. And I just keep going.”

My heart broke for Gia.

I was once part of making her feel this way…

Not that I was any better now as I lied to her with each breath I took.

“I’m sorry you feel that way, Gia,” I said.

“Don’t be. It’s my fault. Change is hard, Winter. Nobody wants to change. I guess in a way you’re kind of lucky.”

“Lucky?”

“You were forced into change. Boom. One hit to the head and you don’t remember a thing. You get to start all over. You get to see what Evie and Darcy really are. You have no fear when walking up to Noah, Easton, and Xavier. You talk to me like I’m human.”

Again… my heart broke for Gia.

“Look, Gia…” Careful, Winter. “I don’t know.” I laughed. “I’m so fucking exhausted right now.”

“How do you feel about tacos?”

“Tacos? I love them.”

“Do you remember that?”

“No… but who doesn’t love tacos?”

Gia laughed. “We’re going for a little ride.”

After stopping at Krazee Taco - a food truck that moved around town - we went back to my mother’s place.

I told Gia they were the best tacos ever.

Which they were.

But I already knew that.

I got out of the car after Gia and I exchanged numbers and I went to face whatever was waiting for me inside the beach house.

When I opened the door, the last thing I expected to see was a dude in nothing but jean shorts.

And I’m talking really short jean shorts.

I stopped and let out a sigh.

“Oh, hey,” he said.

I squinted my eyes. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-five.”

“And you like this kind of thing?” I asked.

“Hey, I was just leaving,” he said. “My job here’s done.”

“How did you get here? There’s no car…”

“My skateboard,” he said.

I laughed. “Your skateboard. You’re twenty-five and you ride a skateboard to get around?”

The guy scratched his head. “Uh, well, I had some legal troubles with my license…”

“Of course you did,” I said. I sighed. “You also have some Mommy issues, huh?”

He let out a pffft sound and walked