“Ihavebeen hurt!” Noah shouts from the bathroom. “I no longer have a colon!”
Daisy collapses and hangs her head. “I’m sorry, Aunt Marnie. This is all my fault. What I did was childish and irresponsible. I wasn’t thinking about the repercussions.”
“No, you certainly weren’t.” Marnie’s gaze slides over to me. A blond brow lifts.
Apparently, I won’t be getting off scot-free. I’m not even going to try and argue my way out of this one because deep down, I know I’m partially to blame.
“It’s my fault as well,” I pipe up. “I started it.”
When I crashed her date, I never expected the situation to escalate so far out of control. Everything I’ve done to mess with her lately floods back to me, and I realize this is probably more my fault thanhers. I’ve screwed with Daisy since the day I met her. Usually, all I get in return is a bit of attitude.
Obviously, that wasn’t the case this time.
Daisy gives me a bit of wide side-eye.
“I love you both.” Aunt Marnie jerks her chin toward the bathroom. “And so does Noah. But you two need to figure out how to coexist peacefully without acting like a pair of unruly children.”
With bright red cheeks, Daisy nods. “We will. I promise.”
“Yeah,” I add. “We’ll do better from now on.”
My need to push Daisy away is what started this ball rolling and ultimately shaped our relationship into what it is now. I did whatever I could to keep her at a safe distance. I guess it’s up to me to rectify the situation moving forward. There are eight months left before we go our separate ways.
Surely, I can behave that long.
11
CARTER
“Dude, that practice sucked ass.” Noah drops onto the bench that runs parallel to our lockers. “You heading back to the apartment after this?”
Most of our teammates are busy bitching and moaning about the grueling workout Coach just put us through, but not me. I welcome the suicides and hitting drills. I want my muscles to scream bloody murder when all is said and done. I want to be so freaking tired that when I fall into bed an exhausted heap, I won’t dwell on the girl sleeping twenty feet down the hall from me.
Or the curve-hugging tank top and short shorts she likes to torment me with.
I push those thoughts away and shake my head before they can do further damage. “Can’t.” I focus on the inside of my metal locker. “I need to stop at my parent’s house.”
Noah falls silent for a moment and then asks, “Do you want me to come with you?”
“Nah,” I mutter. That would only make matters worse. Just thinking about what I have to do makes my shoulders tense up.
He grabs a T-shirt from his locker and pulls it over his head. “Are you sure that you don’t want some company?”
Because I pride myself on not being a pussy and confronting matters head-on, I turn and meet his concerned gaze. “Yeah, it’ll be fine.”
“You know I’ll come with,” he reiterates in a lower voice. “It’s not a big deal.”
It takes a concerted effort to loosen my muscles and slow my heart rate. “I appreciate it, but it’s not necessary.”
I fucking hate going home, and Noah knows it. He’s one of the few people I trust enough with the truth. Which is exactly why Daisy is off-limits. The last thing I would ever do is destroy my friendship with Noah. He’s like a brother to me. His parents are like my family.
And you don’t fuck with family.
Period.
All I have to do is keep my distance from Daisy. It’s the only way I’ll get through the school year in one piece. But I can’t continue pushing her away or being a dick. It’s exhausting, and I don’t have it in me anymore. Not when all I want to do is tug her close and hold on tight.
The last few days have been cordial between us. This morning we actually made small talk about the unseasonably warm weather we’re experiencing.
