“His girl?” I give a few quick blinks before spotting Bree bouncing up and down and clapping as if she were Drake’s personal cheerleader.
And just like that, all is right with the world—or at least a good chunk of it.
The crowd lets out a collectiveoohas if we’re all back in middle school, and I can see phones appearing as people start recording what will probably end up on social media within seconds.
Logan straightens, wiping more blood from his mouth. “Drake, I don’t know what you think?—”
“I don’t think, Iknow,” Drake cuts him off, taking another step forward. “Brielle told me everything!”
Logan glances at me, and judging by that irritated look on his face, he’d rather take a moment to rearrange Drake’s features than enjoy a reunion with our friends from the future.
Whatever Logan said to Brielle, it obviously backfired spectacularly.
“Look,” he says to Drake, holding up his hands in surrender, “there’s been a bit of a misunderstanding?—”
Drake goes to lunge at Logan once again, and Gage stops him like a brick wall. And I take that as my cue to quickly wedge my body between them.
“I’ll take care of Drake,” Logan says gently, pulling me to the side, his voice barely audible over the crowd’s continued chanting.
“Like hell you will,” I mutter, grabbing both Logan and Gage by their arms. “We’re getting out of here. Bree,youtake care of Drake,” I shout her way, and sure enough, she all but tackles him to the ground—in a good way. I think. Her boobs are out. Drake looks hungry for more than just pizza. And just like that, all is right with this little part of Paragon.
I start pushing through the crowd, dragging Logan and Gage with me, while Wesley and Laken follow behind like some kind of supernatural entourage. The crowd parts reluctantly, clearly disappointed that the entertainment is ending without any missing limbs.
“This way,” I say, steering us toward the sliding glass doors that lead to the back of the property.
The backyard offers a different kind of chaos with the pool glowing like a portal to another realm entirely. The bass from the sound system thumps through the ground while bodies writhe around the pool deck and sprawl across the lawn in various stages of intoxication and undress. The air reeks of chlorine, more chlorine, and whatever they’re smoking from Ellis’ never-ending stash—probably chlorine if I had to guess.
We find a quasi-private corner near the pool house, thoughprivateis a relative term when you’re surrounded by every teenager on the island who thinks drunk skinny-dipping is a brilliant idea.
“Well, that was dramatic,” Laken says, perched on the edge of a planter, looking as elegant as ever despite the chaos surrounding us.
“Drake has quite the right hook,” Wes adds. “Very impressive for someone who looks like he gets winded walking up stairs.”
Logan presses his hand to his split lip. “He’s been working out.”
“Yeah, working out his anger management issues—on you,” I say.
Gage steps in from the shadows. “Okay, what’s going on? And don’t tell me it’s nothing, because I just watched my twin materialize out of thin air to save you from bashing Chloe’s head in.”
Logan and I exchange a look, and I can see Gage’s expression growing more suspicious by the second.
“It’s complicated.” Logan frowns his way.
“Everything’s complicated with the two of you lately,” Gage shoots back, his voice tight with frustration. “That’s right, I saw you that night in front of the gym at West. And I saw you after that, taking Skyla as if she belonged to you. But this goes beyond complicated into completely insane. Who is he?” He growls at Wesley when he says it. “Why the hell does he look exactly like me? And why do I get the feeling that everyone knows something I don’t?”
“Because we do,” Wesley says helpfully, earning a sigh from both Logan and me.
“Wes,” Laken warns.
“What? It’s true, the family resemblance is uncanny. It’s like looking in a mirror, except this version of me has worse taste in women.”
Gage’s eyebrows shoot toward his hairline. “Excuse me?”
I’m about to say the same thing.
“Chloe Bishop?” Wes continues. Oh, right. “Really? I know we share DNA, but I thought we’d have better standards.”
Laken, Logan, and I all share a quick, spontaneous laugh, and honestly, it feels good just to let go for a moment. We all know that Wes ends up having not one buttwokids with Chloe. Trust me, love isn’t in the air between them—but well, sometimes a good look-alike is a means to an end.
