The Peer and the Puppet (When Rivals Play #1) - B.B. Reid Page 0,101
twenty people and all of them guys. Some of them played pool or darts while the rest sat around drinking beer. Among them were Max, Daniel, and Adam: the Franco clone, the mohawk, and the bruiser. Daniel’s eyes lingered on me when I entered the room. I probably would have hauled ass if I didn’t think Ever would make a scene hauling me back.
“Where are the girls?”
“Jamie invited them, and I sent them home.”
A cloud of smoke suddenly engulfed us, and I choked on the heavy stench of weed. My head whipped toward the source and found Drake and Ben standing in an intimate circle of five as they passed a joint around. I dropped Ever’s hand and darted across the room.
“Drake!”
He was slow to recognize me, but when he did, he yanked me off my feet and enveloped me in gangly arms. “Goddamn,” he whooped as he swung me around before setting me on my feet again. “You know how to keep people in suspense. Did you just get back?”
I couldn’t help giggling. His happiness was infectious. “Drake, you saw me at the homecoming game four days ago. Leave the weed alone.”
“Can’t. She was my first love.” He was momentarily distracted when Ben offered the joint, but to my surprise, he shook his head and faced me again. “So—”
“Any particular reason you need your arms to hold a conversation?”
I squeezed my eyes closed. Ever getting possessive in front of twenty witnesses wasn’t exactly keeping whatever we were doing on the low.
“Believe it or not, this is his good side,” Drake mumbled before letting go and stepping back. To Ever, he said, “You made your claim, and I’m a stand-up guy.” He threw up his hands in surrender while the guys around us snickered and eyed me knowingly. The more daring ones allowed me to see their newborn interest.
Ever had just made me the hottest girl at school.
“There’s no claim. McNamara’s overinflated ego is tampering with reality.”
“Careful,” Ever whispered in my ear. “I promised I wouldn’t kiss you at school. I made no promises about showing you that you’re mine at home.”
I spun around and nearly collided with his chest since he was standing as close as he could get without touching me. “Don’t you dare.”
“Don’t you dare.”
“This isn’t a competition.”
“Damn straight because it never was.”
“There’s a word for guys like you.”
“Charming?”
“Swine.”
He pushed me against the wall, and after a nervous glance around, I noticed everyone was keeping their gazes purposely averted.
“They won’t say anything,” he assured.
“How do you know?”
“Because I’ll break their bones if they do.”
“Something you picked up from Exiled?”
“More or less.”
I looked into his eyes, searching for a monster but only found a boy haunted by demons that could probably chew mine up and spit them out.
“I want to be alone with you.” His hands cradled my hips as he pulled me close.
“But I just got here.”
“Because you hid in your room for an hour.”
“Doesn’t matter. Tyra’s here, and I’m not leaving her alone with a bunch of guys.”
“Vaughn has her, and he’s not letting anyone get to her. Not even you.”
A quick peek over Ever’s shoulder showed her sitting in Vaughn’s lap as he talked football with a guy lounging on the couch next to them. Just then, our eyes met, and she glanced between Ever and me before smiling sneakily.
Before I could make another excuse, he snuck me out of the room with a tight grip on my hand, then led me down another level and a hall that I didn’t even know existed.
“I’ve never been to this part of the house.”
“You’ve been to the theater room.”
We both tensed at the reminder.
After clearing his throat, he added, “The wine cellar and indoor pool are down here, too.”
Why anyone would need two pools was beyond me. We stopped in front of a door at the end of the hall, and I watched as Ever pulled from his pocket a single key attached to a strip of black leather.
“What’s in there?”
“My workroom.”
“I didn’t know gangsters needed a workroom.” I laughed, but it only gave my discomfort a voice.
He smiled as he shoved the key inside the lock while I prayed he didn’t have someone tied up inside. I was slowly falling for this boy, and I secretly dreaded what might ruin it.
I held my breath as he pushed open the door and guided me inside. The dim lighting from the hall seeped inside but was quickly cut off when he shut the door. It became obvious after