me about your texts over dinner. He’s so cute when he talks about you. If you can call any guy with shoulders that broad cute. Damn, girl, will you just hit that and tell me about it?”
Cutting my eyes to her, I shake my head. “The last thing I need right now is a relationship with a BHU jock.”
“Who said anything about a relationship? Use him for his body. You’re young.”
“You’re sick.”
She gapes at me. “Using an acquaintance for sex is a rite of passage! A time-honored tradition men have participated in since going off to college became a thing. Hell, probably before that.” Her smile falls from her face, and she sighs. “I went back to Mason’s room after dinner hoping to get something out of Arrow, but he was studying and tight-lipped, and moodier than my mom was when she was going through menopause. I wanted to ask him about your little walk, but Brogan was there, so I decided not to.”
“I appreciate your restraint.”
“Come on, Mee. Spill. I’m dying here only knowing half the story.”
I shrug and rub my leaf between my fingers. “I thought Arrow was the guy who’d been texting me. Like I said, it was a big misunderstanding, and now it’s cleared up.”
“There was something in your eyes when you came back from that walk. Will you please admit you like him?”
I fold my arms. “For one, I hardly know him, so any feelings I may or may not have had today were completely superficial.”
“Whatever. Insta-love’s a thing. I’ve watched Disney movies.”
“Two,” I say, ignoring her objection, “he’s a Woodison. Uriah Woodison’s son. He’s literally the son of my father’s worst enemy.”
“Like Romeo and Juliet!” She throws her arms in the air. “So flipping romantic.”
“Why does everyone think those idiots were romantic? Shakespeare wasn’t writing a romance. He was writing a tragedy. Do you remember how it ended?”
She cocks her head thoughtfully. “Something about et tu, Brute?”
“Dork,” I mutter. She tries to pretend she’s dumb, but I know better. And I also know how much she hated the ending of Romeo and Juliet when we read it in high school. I had to listen to her rant for a solid twenty minutes about what a selfish, immature idiot Juliet was. That might not seem like a long time, but it’s probably the longest single block of time I’ve ever witnessed Bailey focus on anything that doesn’t involve a hot guy.
“This isn’t Shakespeare,” she says, her voice softening. “It’s your life.”
“Exactly. And I’m not stupid, selfish, immature Juliet.”
“So that leaves Brogan. The sexy, goofy, charming Adonis.”
“And Arrow’s best friend.”
“Fair enough.” She sighs. “So does this mean neither Blackhawk boy will be initiating you to the pleasures of being a young woman?”
“Sorry to say, but I really appreciate your concern for my sexual health.”
She bumps my hip with hers again, and I giggle.
“Speaking of sexual health and relationships . . .” I clear my throat. “You want to talk about what’s happening between you and Mason?”
She arches a brow. “I think you already know what’s happening between us. We weren’t, um, quiet about it, as you and Arrow pointed out.”
“What’s going on other than the hot monkey sex?”
“It’s just fun. He knows that.”
“Bail.”
She kicks a piece of gravel with her purple Chuck Taylor. “What?”
“This isn’t about Nic, is it?” I shake my head. “Don’t throw away a chance with a great guy because you’re waiting for my loser brother to get out of prison.”
“I didn’t say anything about waiting for Nic.”
“You didn’t have to,” I whisper. I find her hand at her side and squeeze it. “I love my brother, but he’s made his own choices, and they weren’t good.”
“I know.” Her jaw has gone tight, just like it does every time we talk about Nic.
“I don’t want to see his bad decisions drag you down.”
She tilts her chin and studies the sky. Her eyes sparkle in the light of the three-quarter moon. “I know, Mee. And I’m trying to move on. I promise.”
* * *
Two weeks later . . .
When I park the car at the quarry south of town, I can already hear the laughter on the other side of the rocks. The sound makes me tense, but I promised Bailey I’d come if she got an A on her calc test. Because she’s way freaking smarter than her grades would indicate, I knew she could do it if she put her mind to it. So here I am.