“Come on, Will, I’m eating it myself, cut it out.” I groaned, smiling.
“You’re sweet,” he whispered, giving me a kiss.
And it would’ve been sweet of Will, too, if he didn’t insist on staring at James right after kissing me.
I didn’t like how William looked at his best friend like that while he was with me. I wasn’t a trophy or a reason for dispute. But that was exactly how they were making me feel. If Will had an inferiority complex around James, I wasn’t going to be the one to feed into it even more.
“I’m gonna tidy up before heading to school,” I announced, ready to remove myself from the situation.
James stretched, making his toned muscles swell. The hoodie lifted, exposing his taut, solid abs.
“You’re not coming to school?” asked Will, getting up from the table.
“I don’t know,” replied James.
“June, I’m gonna get dressed. You don’t need to clean up anything, Jamie will take care of it later,” teased William, before going upstairs.
Yeah, sure, so we’re all set.
“I’m not in the mood today.”
“You’re never in the mood when there’s a quiz,” I said, putting the plates into the dishwasher.
“Do you hear how much you fucking talk first thing in the morning? You’re just as awful as your cooking.”
When I turned around, James was staring at me and still sitting with his legs open.
“My pancakes were excellent. And judging by how quickly you ate them, you agree with me.”
He smiled mischievously.
“Maybe you’re pitiful even with the last alternative. But at least it’ll keep your mouth occupied, and you’ll stop being a pain in the ass.”
“What alternative?”
I’d been awake for less than a half hour. My brain was anything but quick. I saw James open his legs under the table and press his tongue against the inside of his cheek. His asshole smirk explained the dirty thing he was referring to loud and clear.
“You’re really bored, huh?” I shook my head, irked.
“Even more when you’re around,” he shot back, crossing his arms.
“And tell me”—I slammed the dishwasher shut and then turned around to look at him—“how come you hug people in your sleep and become a sleepwalker and bring your precious blanket to people you hate?”
I saw him stand up suddenly. “You really talk too much, princess.” He came closer to my ear with a speed I didn’t expect, and I didn’t have time to react. “But you don’t know how fucking little you’d talk with me.”
He was provoking me. Or maybe this was just his infuriating way of being, but I shouldn’t have cared. I should’ve ignored him. I went to the bathroom and locked myself in. I brushed my teeth and put on my uniform. I needed time to fix my hair, which was really unmanageable this morning.
“White! Get a move on,” I heard James yell past the door, impatient as usual.
“Jackson’s already here.” Will came to let me know.
“What is your deal, I was just brushing my hair,” I muttered, heading out of the house.
When I got to the threshold, the fresh eight a.m. air hit me right in the face, more bitter than usual because it smelled like smoke.
James was smoking, leaning against the outside wall.
“Like you wasting time getting ready would change anything,” he said sharply. “You tell me, if we have to wait, Snow White—”
