For The Win (Gamer Girls, #6) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,52

to look in her face. "So suck it up. Tell them or don't, but if you don't, just know that someone else might."

"Fuck you," she breathed, hearing only a threat.

"I'm not saying me," he promised. "I'm saying there are pictures, and your brother knows how to use Google. I'm saying there's no Ethan Moore entered in those tournaments. I'm saying that Rhaven's made a name for herself, and what happens if she gets a contract this weekend? You're walking on a tightrope, trying to have your cake and eat it too, and something's going to give. I'm just worried that something is going to be you."

"I can't do this your way," she breathed. "Just..." And she groaned. "Let me do this my way, Braden. Maybe I'm a mess, but this is my fucking life, ok? Not yours. Not theirs. This is me, and if you can't accept that I'm not the same person you see at the conventions, then there's no point in this."

"Rhaven..." he tried.

"No!" she hissed. "You can't be all sweet and think that makes it ok. What did you tell him anyway?"

"That I'm not interested in his son. I told him that if he wants to know what's going on with you, then he should ask you - because he was trying to ask me. I told him to talk to you, not me. That's it. I made it clear that I had my own experiences, and so I wouldn't stick my nose in anyone else's."

"He knows," she realized.

"He knows something," Braden corrected. "So tell him, Rhaven."

She just shook her head and backed up. "I can't."

"You can."

"I'm not you!"

He flopped back against the side of his car. "You still can. You're one of the strongest people I know. That means you can, you just don't want to."

"And this is still my life to live," she snapped. "Go home, Braden. Just... leave me alone, ok? I'm not ready, and if you can't accept that, then fuck off."

Before he could say anything else, she turned and stormed back inside, wishing she could take it all back. The problem was that yelling at him was easier than talking to her dad. It wasn't as terrifying as saying something to her brother. She barely knew Braden. If she had to make a choice, then that was the logical one, right?

Besides, girls like her never got guys like him.

Chapter 18

Before she even made it to the porch, she regretted what she'd said. She didn't want to lose Braden! She also didn't want to tell her family, but it sounded inevitable. That was the real problem here, and she was just being a bitch. A very scared, unappreciative one, if she was honest with herself.

Rhaven stormed up the stairs, yanked open the door, and went back inside, only to find her dad putting the extra beer in the fridge. Tyler was changing out the trash. The kitchen was clean, and neither was looking at her.

She should just say it. Just scream out the words, I am a woman, and see what happened - but she couldn't. Her mouth opened and nothing at all came out. Instead, all of the fears rushed in. She wanted to prove to Braden that she wasn't weak. She didn't want to be vulnerable, yet here she was, stuck, unable to just spit it out.

"Hey," Dad said, turning around to smile at her. "He going to find his way back?"

"Uh, yeah," she muttered. Damn it. That wasn't what she was supposed to have said, so she tried again. "I think he had fun."

"Good," Tyler said. "Believe it or not, I like the guy. He's not quite what I was expecting."

This was not the conversation she'd expected. Braden said they knew. Well, they suspected something, at least. One or the other should have been trying to ask about her friendship with him, or something. They should be pushing. They should be freaking out. Instead, that was her.

"Yeah, he's actually fun." Oh, that was lame, but she was floundering over here.

"Beer?" her dad asked. "I have three that won't fit."

"Sure," Tyler said, reaching over to take one.

And that was when Rhaven gave in. This wasn't happening tonight. There was no way she could ruin the end of what should've been a good day - except that she already had. She wanted to go text Braden that she was sorry, to tell him that she hadn't really meant what she'd said. The problem was that it had all been true. She didn't

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