Dakota watched me, quiet for a moment as I bit into the muffin. I hummed in confusion at the concentration behind his eyes.
“What?” I brushed at the corner of my mouth, making sure I didn’t have any wayward crumbs.
“Nothing.” He turned to his own food, unwrapping it carefully. “I’m just glad we found each other.”
My smile left as soon as he surprised me with a kiss. His hand grazed my cheeks, reminding me of how easy it was for him to make me bend to his will. Dakota deepened the kiss, offering me a dangerous swipe of his tongue. I teased him back, earning a low moan.
“This has easily become one of my favorite days ever,” he said.
I nodded, smiling wide. “Hands down, it’s one of my favorites too.”
Chapter 33
Gamedayswerealwayshectic. The newspaper article made it ten times worse.
A small, local paper broke the news about Coach Axe’s death. From there, the news spread like wildfire across campus. We’d gone to bed last night without hearing a word and woke up to everyone discussing what happened on Westbrooke campus last year.
People online didn’t stop at discussing the coaches. There were sub-forums exploring the inner workings and problems in the athletic department. The article about Axe reopened wounds. Unanswered questions from last year like why the star quarterback suddenly left and who was behind the coaches’ abduction. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from my phone as I scrolled through story after story.
The problem wasn’t just the coaches from last year. People were uncovering a whole web of interconnected threads of abuse and lies buried by the school.
“Where’s Dad?” I asked once I hurried into the kitchen.
Kai and Silas were also glued to their phones, doom scrolling like their lives depend on it.
Kai didn’t look up as he spoke.“Damage control. The school wants to have a press conference.”
“Shit,” Silas murmured. “I knew they were fired for excessive disciplining, but I didn’t know about the sexual assault.”
I frowned and joined his side. “What article mentions sexual assault?”
Silas tilted his phone to me. The headline read: Former Westbrooke Coach Commits Suicide After Sexual Assault Allegations.
“I didn’t realize either.” I wiped a hand across my brow as I thought about Dakota. He didn’t mention that part. If it was true… Was he one of them? My heart ached, and I tried to call him for the third time this morning. Once again, straight to voicemail.
“There’s so much noise,” Kai said, sounding frustrated. “Physical assault. Sexual. Suicide. Homicide.”
“Homicide?” Silas and I repeated in shock.
Kai looked up. “Some conspiracy theorists that need to stop muddying the actual story. They took over one new site’s comment section with their stories. Half probably haven’t even stepped foot on this campus. They’re insensitive assholes who enjoy stirring the pot.”
My shoulders felt pinched with anxiety about the potential of someone stirring the pot by throwing out names. None of the guys who were hurt by the coaches last year needed this. If Dakota was one of the guys who were more than physically assaulted, he didn’t tell me for a reason. Now that people were clamoring for some drama, they’d dig. How far would they get until they got to him?
“Have either of you heard from Dakota?” I asked, desperate at this point.
“No,” Kai said, gaze returning to his screen, completely distracted once more.
Silas shook his head too. “Nah. Haven’t had time to check in with anyone.”
“Well, will you try?” I asked, pulling up my phone again to text him. Once I sent the text, I waited a few minutes to see if he read it. Nothing came on our thread.
Damn it. I just need to know if he’s okay.
“Hey, we gotta get out of here,” Kai told Silas as he pushed away from the table. “Dad wants us at the gym. Emergency meeting.”
“For sure.” Silas hopped into action, starting towards his room to get his bag.
I let out a low, frustrated sigh. Surprisingly, Kai heard me and frowned in my direction.
