She nods along as I speak, and it makes me feel a little… vindicated? in my feelings. Like I’m not totally and completelyinsane, which I honestly have no doubt that I am but I’m glad that Freya can see my side of things regardless.
“So, you want to be with him?” she asks, no hint of anything but curiosity in her tone and I feel like I can breathe freely knowing that she’s on board with whatever I decide to do.
The prospect of Noah and I together is bound to be a difficult thing for my brother to come to terms with and the idea of losing him over it is crippling. I really don’t think I could do it if it meant I’d not only lose my brother, but lose my best friend, too.
“I think I do,” I whisper, like the words are a dirty secret that shouldn’t be uttered at full volume. “I really think I do.”
She nods and gives me a reassuring smile that you’d probably see on a therapist when they’re trying to learn all your deepest, darkest secrets. “But you don’t plan on telling him that you know it was him who has been stalking you all this time?”
I scowl. “Fuck no. He had the audacity to play all of these games with me, it’s only fair that I get to do the same to him. I don’t want to hurt him the way I previously planned, but that doesn’t mean that I’m just going to let him get away with it.”
She grins wickedly, a look that I never expected to see on my warmhearted, kind, best friend that can usually do no wrong. It makes me wonder if there’s also a side to her that she keeps hidden. “Well, you’re not exactly playing with him right now. You’re giving him exactly what he wants, but I have an idea for what youcando.”
I lean forward, anticipation whirling in my veins. “Do tell.”
THIRTY-EIGHT
NOAH
Ileave the arena with Harley, dodging the mass of students and heading towards my car. We come to as many of Logan’s games as we can, making sure that there’s always at least one of us in the crowd cheering him on even though he probably doesn’t care.
I’m not actually sure why he’s even on the team still, since he sees it at more of an obligation than anything else. It’s not as though his life is different and that he’s at a school where he needs to play for a scholarship or something. He has no need whatsoever to be on the team, yet he is.
Harley and Cole don’t care much about hockey, but they love our friend enough to endure it, especially when they get to see Logan lose his shit on the ice. That’s always a fun sight to see.
We came separately, so I give him a nod, the area too loud and busy to try and speak to him. I know he won’t hear me, but he’ll understand that I’ll meet him at home.
The closer I get to my car, the more an ominous feeling fills me and once I see a note sticking to the windscreen, secured by one of the wipers, I know why.
What the fuck.
I pull out the paper and unfold it. The words written on the page has a foreboding feeling filling me.
What will your best friend think about you fucking his little sister?
I glance around again, trying to see if anyone is watching me but it’s so busy outside of the arena that they could have slipped away unnoticed. Hell, they could have left it there three hours ago when I first got here and be long gone by now.
Why would someone leave a note like this? Gracie and mine’s relationship is significant to literally one person. Everyone else wouldn’t care if we got together, only her brother.
I shove the note in my pocket, since there’s nothing that can be done about it right now and it’s probably just Logan fucking with me.
That’s the only reasonable explanation there is, since there’s no way anyone could know about what’s been going on between Gracie and me.
Only… this really isn’t something that Logan would do.
Maybe it’s someone who lives in Gracie’s building. They could have seen me coming and going from her place and put two and two together.
I’m sure it’s nothing, really.
In fact, I’m sure nothing will come of it altogether. Whoever left the note has no evidence and probably only left it there to fuck with me.
It’ll be fine.
It has to be.
Once I get inside my car, I sigh and lean my head against the headrest, thankful to be done with people for the day.
I haven’t seen Gracie today. We’ve both been busy with classes in the lead up to winter break and my skin itches with the need to reach out and see how she is and what she’s doing.
