Total pages in book: 186
Estimated words: 176552 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 883(@200wpm)___ 706(@250wpm)___ 589(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 176552 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 883(@200wpm)___ 706(@250wpm)___ 589(@300wpm)
“We can’t trust her,” Cloe leveled.
“I’ve been saying that,” Roxxi gestured with her hand.
“No. I mean it. She’s the one who told Ryder about your bathroom window.”
That captured my undivided attention. “What?”
Ari’s brows pulled together. “She’s right. I didn’t consider who told him until now, but it makes sense. We were the only ones in the house. None of us said anything, so unless a Huntsman told him directly…”
“I told Kellan,” I admitted softly.
Cloe made a sound of disagreement. “Kellan’s a prick, but he wouldn’t run straight to Ryder. You know that.”
“Layla would tell him. She’s been in lust with Ryder forever. Anyone with eyes could see it,” Roxxi doubled down.
I started, thrown. “Okay, slow down. How is Kellan a prick? And are you sure? Ryder can’t stand her.”
Roxxi’s brow arched like I’d just proven her point. “Exactly. That’s what makes it worse. She doesn’t care that he’s never looked at her that way. It’s not about what he wants, it’s about what she thinks she deserves.”
I stared at the dashboard, mind spinning. “Am I an idiot?”
Cloe’s eyes didn’t leave the road, but her voice cut through, calm and matter-of-fact. “No. You’re trusting and tend to give people more grace than they’ve earned the moment you consider them a friend.”
She maneuvered through the parking lot, staring down two guys who were stupidly about to walk out in front of her. “It’s not a flaw, Sanj, but you need to remember that you’re allowed to stop giving out chances to people once they show you who they are the first time.”
No one said anything after that, but their silence was full of agreement.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
SANJANA
We were on time for once. The guys were already waiting in the quad, posted up with the casual, cocky energy they all somehow managed to radiate in different ways. And they weren’t alone.
Roxxi slowed her pace. “Why is Zoe Harris still with them?”
“Still?” Ari repeated in question
“They went live the other night,” Cloe explained. “She was at their house.”
I adjusted the strap of my cheer bag and my satchel so that I could comfortably carry both. “Do you think one of them is seeing her?”
Roxxi scoffed. “Which one? Brooke is there too.” Her voice dipped with more venom than curiosity.
My stomach twisted. I shifted the weight of my bag again, focusing ahead. “Brooke is Ryder’s girlfriend.”
Roxxi’s head snapped toward me. “She was his girlfriend last night, too.” She huffed and shook her head. “Men are the oddest of creatures.”
Ari looped her arm through mine. “Zoe’s always been nice,” she pointed out. “And Brook has never actually done anything to any of us. She kind of just exists.”
It wasn’t a defense exactly, more like a gentle attempt to remind us that not everyone was automatically the enemy.
Cloe, expression unreadable, just clicked her tongue. “Nice doesn’t mean trustworthy.”
We resumed walking.
“Are we dropping the cheer bags off first?” Ari asked.
“Yeah, no way am I hauling this thing around all day.”
“Let’s say our hellos and go before we’re late getting to where we actually need to be,” Roxxi advised.
Cloe sighed and took the lead. The guys were close enough to hear her now, but she didn’t care. Nick, standing comfortably next to Zoe, clutched his chest like she’d mortally wounded him. “Aw, Cloe, what was that for? You know you’re my favorite.”
She ignored him and turned her attention to the pretty girl with dark green hair. “Hello, Zoe.”
Zoe smiled in return, tugging her hoodie sleeves over her hands. “Hey.”
I offered a friendly smile of my own, withholding judgment. Zoe was nice enough, but I was going to be on guard until The Hunt was done and over with. I shifted on my feet, trying not to look at Ryder. I couldn’t deal with that this morning. Not with Brooke beside him, smiling like sunshine and wearing the same hoodie from a few days ago. All I could think about was last night. The things he said, everything I’d let myself feel, what I had agreed to. I wasn’t sure what I expected. Nothing about his relationship status had changed between then and now, and he’d all but told me it wouldn’t until the time was right.
Where did that leave me?
Whatever we were, and whatever we were becoming, it wasn’t public or official. I was still the girl pretending not to be hurt when I saw him standing next to someone else.
Still, the girl putting on a good front like none of it mattered.
Was this karmic justice? Some cosmic slap to the face for doing what I had while Ashton was somewhere in the wind?
“Morning,” Brooke greeted us, chipper but not overly sweet.
“Morning,” I echoed, forcing another smile before I looked away, focusing on the fountain ahead and the sudden, irrational urge to grab her perfect ponytail and drown her in it.
I thanked God when Xander spoke and gave me something else to think about. “You guys shouldn’t be walking around alone. From now on, stick with at least one of us.”