I'm, you know, squatting for other reasons.
I sigh with relief, finishing up, and heading out to find Ranger staring at me with a weird, wary sort of expression. I pause, and we both just stand there in silence, staring at each other. The twins look between us, and then glance over at Church who's frowning hard.
“Did you just …” Ranger starts, but his best friend's already grabbing his arm and steering him toward the door.
“Let's not hang out in a smelly, rest stop bathroom any longer than necessary.” He guides Ranger toward the door, but the dark-haired dickhead cranes his head around and stares at me until the door closes behind him. Spencer's long-gone, so it's just me and the twins now.
“That was a close one,” I say, exhaling in relief and putting my hand to my chest. The brothers exchange a look, and then turn back to me.
“He's onto you,” they say, pointing at me.
“He is not.” I stand back up and waltz over to the sink to wash my hands. The twins follow me, flanking me on either side.
“Yes, he is,” Tobias tells me, blinking his big, green eyes. “Be careful, Charlotte. Once he gets locked onto something, he's like a freaking alligator. He will chomp down and hold on for dear life.”
“I'm not afraid of him,” I say, and Micah sighs, leading us back to the limo.
For the rest of the drive, Ranger just stares at me, brow slightly crinkled, like he's puzzled about something.
“Chuck,” he finally says, testing out the word on his tongue. “Is that short for something, Carson?” I stare right back at him, the tension in the limo rising with each passing mile.
“It's short for Charlie,” I say, and he lifts one perfectly arched black brow at me.
“Uh-huh. I see.” More silence. “You're your dad's only son?”
“His only kid,” I agree with a smile, my glasses slipping down my face. I let them hang there, crouching in my hoodie and wishing Ranger would look anywhere else but at me. The twins and Church keep trying to distract him, but he's fixated.
Ross and Spencer are freaking oblivious.
By the time we get to the cabins—this picturesque place in the middle of the woods called Twilight Slumber Camp—I'm bolting out that damn door and away from Ranger and his unnerving stare.
The twins catch up to me, and our whole group gets let into the building first to check on the food. Everything's been delivered and set up beautifully, the decorations in the room like something out of a fairy tale. There are big clusters of roses in these giant wooden stands, tied up with huge bows made of wide, sparkling ribbons. Overhead, there are these huge rough wood beams draped in living garlands that drip fat blossoms from the ceiling.
“Oh,” I murmur, pausing and looking up at the giant chandelier, lit with real candles and lending a soft glow to the room. They're helped along by the towering fireplace on the wall beside the food and beverage tables. It's so tall, I could stand inside it if the flames weren't roaring. “It's beautiful in here.”
“Is it?” Ranger asks, and I jump. The twins glance at each other and then move around on either side of me, dragging me away from the Student Council's asshole Vice President.
“Told you he was onto you,” Tobias whispers, as they steer me aside, letting the crowd trickle in from the front door. Ranger seems determined to follow after us. That is, until the back door opens and girls begin to filter in.
And not just girls, but like a whole herd of supermodels.
My jaw drops, and my eyes get wide.
Holy. Shit.
My dad's standing near the back door, chatting with an older woman that I guess might be the headmistress of Everly Academy. He doesn't notice me over here, standing in the shadows, dressed in a huge baggy hoodie, jeans, and sneakers. Who would? I feel suddenly inadequate, and kind of nervous. My eyes flick between the two twins, standing tall over me, almost like guardians. I like that. But I'm also not under any illusion that they—or any other member of the Adamson Student Council—will be spending much time with me when there are all these gorgeous girls batting their eyelashes at them.
“Hi there.” A voice draws my attention around, and I come face to face with this curvy redhead, her brown eyes fixated on me. “I'm Aster. I don't remember seeing you here last year …?” she trails off, and smiles