“Your agenda?”
“Making Sloane mine.”
Ethan shrugs like he gets it. “Have you figured out the whole bit where her dad is terrifying and also the coach of the team we work for?”
“I have a five-year contract. I’m not going anywhere. What about you? How long do cute little mascot contracts last for?”
“Cute I’ll accept. I’m not little,” he says.
“Smaller than me,” I reply.
“Isn’t most of the population?” he says, and the smallest laugh escapes me.
Okay, Sloane. I get it.
“Sloane is helping me gain more popularity so that I can become irreplaceable.”
“How does one even become a mascot? Is this one of those furry orMy Little Ponythings?”
Ethan laughs out loud and shakes his head.
“I was a cheerleader before. Didn’t go to college and was looking for something outside of my foster dad’s diner. There was an open casting after the first mascot threw up in his mask after a night of hard partying, and I got the job.”
“Americans do love their cheerleaders. I’m assuming you were quite popular?” I ask.
He smirks. He’s a bit of a cocky little shit, this one.
“Mmm. Very popular. With most of the cheerleading squad and the football team,” he says confidentially. “What about you, Bram? You seem more like the scary kid who never spoke and everyone wondered if they were a psychopath.”
“Never hurt my chances with the cheerleading or football team. The real football team, not this soccer shit you all have here.”
Ethan tilts his head at this new piece of information.
“Does Sloane know that?”
“Know what?”
“That you play for both teams.”
“Right now, I’m only on team Sloane,” I reply to him. “So I don’t see why that matters.”
He takes a sip of his water. “I didn’t think you’d surprise me, but here you are,” he says, waving his hand at me.
I’m about to come up with a comeback when Sloane is clutching her phone against her chest with wide, vacant eyes.
“Sloane?” I ask.
She sits in her seat and grabs her water and takes a heavy sip. Ethan seems worried but lost on what to do.
I scoot my chair closer to Sloane’s.
“Can I get you started with some appetizers this evening?” the server says. My focus is completely on Sloane.
“If you can come back in a little while,” Ethan tells them.
I grab Sloane’s chin and force her to look at me. Her eyes are unfocused.
“She’s dead,” she whispers.
