Never Have You Ever (The Love Game #1)- Elizabeth Hayley Page 0,41

said again, because even though I’d had my reasons, hurting her hadn’t been one of them.

“Yes, well, what’s done is done. And it does sound as if Aamee is…ill-suited for the position. You’re a much better choice, and I’m proud of you for stepping up.”

I was silent for a second as my throat got tight, and a tear slipped down my cheek. My mom had said similar things before, but more like I owed it to her to follow in her footsteps than I actually deserved the honor. It was nice to have her support, not just because it was what she wanted but because she thought I’d be good at it. It was a boost to my confidence that I was in desperate need of.

“Hey, Soph. You in there?”

My eyes widened as I heard Drew’s voice bellow through the door.

“Oh, is that Brody?” my mom asked. “Put him on. He hasn’t been answering my calls recently. I was about to send out a search party.”

Shit, shit, shit. I was going to kill my brother. What if Mom had shown up here because he couldn’t answer his damn phone? He really was a fucking moron.

“Oh, no. It’s my…study partner.”

“The one who got you kicked out of your house?” she asked, clearly unimpressed with Carter’s role in getting me evicted. “Is there more going on there that I should know about?”

“No,” I replied on a laugh. Carter and me? Hilarious. The guy was definitely growing on me, but more like a happy-go-lucky weed than a romantic vine.

“All right.” She sounded like she didn’t necessarily believe it was all right, but she was willing to drop it in light of all the other fires threatening to burn down my life. “Can you tell Brody to call me when you see him, please? I would like to hear how he’s doing every now and then.”

“I will. And thanks, Mom. I feel better about everything after talking to you.” The truth of the words was more than a little shocking. Probably to both of us.

“Maybe you can remember that for next time, hmm?”

I smiled, and I hoped she could hear it in my voice. “Definitely.”

Chapter Sixteen

D R E W

Fridays were by far the most tiring day of the week. I had class from eight until around eleven in the morning, a “break” until noon, which was barely enough time to walk back home, grab some lunch, and get back to my afternoon class, which didn’t end until almost three since it was only one day a week.

If Brody wanted me to go to his classes second semester, he’d have to let me choose the times. And since I didn’t get home from work until almost two in the morning, my Fridays never ended. They just rolled into Saturday without my noticing most of the time. Whoever came up with the phrase TGIF clearly hadn’t ever gone to college full-time while bartending.

I was looking for a black button-down—a requirement at Rafferty’s—that wasn’t wrinkled, when I heard a knock at the door.

I wasn’t expecting anyone, and since Sophia still wasn’t home yet, I had no idea who it could be. I ignored it and hoped they went away so I wouldn’t be late for work, but when the knocking continued after a few minutes, I figured I’d better answer it.

I was still working on buttoning my shirt when I pulled the door open to find a very tall blond-haired girl standing on the other side. I found her slightly intimidating, and it had nothing to do with her height.

“Hi, is Sophia here?” She looked a little confused as she peered around me and into the apartment.

“No, but she should be home any minute. Can I help you?”

There was no way I was letting this random in, especially when I was about to leave. For all I knew, she could be a spy sent by Aamee to scope out her competition. Or worse, to sabotage it. I wasn’t about to let that happen, even if it meant boxing out this Jolly Blond Giant so she couldn’t infiltrate enemy territory.

“Oh, okay, how about Brody? Is he here?”

“I’m Brody,” I said. And if you think you’re getting into this apartment and going through my pretend sister’s stuff, you’d better think again!

The girl laughed, but when I didn’t join her, she stopped.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“You’re not Brody.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

How had I not anticipated this? I’d underestimated Aamee. We both had. She’d figured out who I really was, and now