Rich doesn’t appear bothered by Wes’s cold greeting, shrugging with nonchalance and offering an easy smirk. “Nah, just a minor slap on the wrist. My dad’s on the board.” Wes doesn’t respond to that, so Rich turns to me. “Dang, still hanging with the freshman? Glad I didn’t put money on that.”
Beside me, Wes stiffens, but before he can come to my defense, Kaden appears out of nowhere and snaps, “Get the fuck out of here, Rich.”
“You smell like a liquor cabinet,” adds Ben.
Rich only laughs. “What, is the whole team passing her around? Maybe I need to get me one of the quiet ones, huh?”
A wave of embarrassment washes over me, but I’m more worried about Wes. His body tenses, every muscle, bone, and limb. When he speaks, his voice is scary calm. “You should go, Rich. Before you say something else you might regret.”
Rich’s smile falters, and he backs up a step, clearing his throat. I don’t blame him. Pissed-off Wes is a sight to behold, and I pity anyone who gets on his bad side. Well, except the slimeball in front of me. “See you around,” he mumbles, and slinks away, back into the crowd.
“I can’t believe his daddy got him off the hook,” mutters Kaden.
“I believe it,” says Wes, still staring after him.
“God, that guy is a fucking tool,” says Ben. “You okay, Ivy?”
That snaps Wes out of it. His shoulders relax, and he turns to look down at me, his features laced with concern. “Yes, are you? I can’t believe he had the nerve to try and talk to you again.”
“I’m okay,” I assure, though I feel a bit…unsettled. The back of my neck prickles, but it has nothing to do with Rich. I feel like someone’s watching me too closely, and while the three of them continue to shit-talk Rich, my eyes scan over the crowd, searching, searching, searching…
I freeze. My stomach twists because there she is, Alexis Cane, standing a few yards away from us with her catty group of friends. Her eyes lock with mine before moving to Wes, regarding him with a peculiar, calculating sort of look.
No, it’s aschemingsort of look, and I decide that I can’t let her speak to Wes. Who knows what she’ll say. Who knows whatlies she’ll tell him about me. She’s unpredictable, and if given the chance, she’ll ruin the one good thing in my life. She’d take pleasure in it, too.
When Ben and Kaden wander off, Wes focuses on me. “Who’s that?” he asks, following my line of sight straight to Alexis. When I don’t answer, instead pressing my lips together, his brow furrows. Understanding dawns behind his eyes. “That’s not the girl…”
I nod once, nearly imperceptible, and without warning, Wes takes off in her direction. I lunge forward and latch onto his arm, tugging him back. He could easily overpower me and keep charging toward her, but he doesn’t. He stops. He turns. He waits. “Ivy?—”
“Please don’t say anything,” I beg. “Please. It’ll make it worse.”
For a moment, he looks like he wants to argue, but when I take his hand in both of mine, he exhales a long sigh. Slowly, his shoulders relax, followed by his brow. His jaw unclenches, and he nods. “Okay. Okay, I won’t.”
I breathe a quick sigh of relief. “Thank you.”
“If you want to go home, we can. First Rich. Now her. We don’t have to stay here with them. We’re supposed to be having fun.”
I squeeze his hand. “No. No, let’s stay. Really, it’s okay. You should at least go down the hill once.”
He slings an arm over my shoulder again, steering me in the opposite direction of Alexis. He must have some secret compartment inside that broad chest where he stores all his tension, or else he’s just an expert at masking negative emotions, because he’s sunny, easygoing Wes again, all worries about Alexis and Rich evaporating into the cold winter air.
His hand squeezes my shoulder. “You’re the fucking best, you know that?”
My face heats at the compliment, but I look up at him anyway. “Well, I have to earn my title, don’t I? They’re not called best friends for the hell of it.”
He beams at my statement, and I beam back, his smile contagious. And suddenly, I’m not worried about the stares or the whispers or the unwanted attention. Despite the crowd of people, I’m back inside our cozy, insulated bubble, the two of us trekking up the snowbank with a makeshift sled and a tiny little death wish between us.
“Let’s go together,” he suggests, setting the lid down in the snow.
My brows raise. “There’s no way both of us will fit on that thing.”
“You can sit on my lap. It’s no big deal.”
I blink at him. It’s a little bit of a big deal, especially when I watch a guy on a piece of cardboard flip head over heels down the snowbank. “This seems more dangerous than I thought.”
“That’s why we have to go together. I’ll protect you, Scout’s honor.”
“I don’t know, Wes. My eye.”
