My heart tripped over itself, stumbling into a rhythm too fast. “He hasn’t?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking, immediately regretting it.
She smiled and shook her head, sending her pink tips dancing. “Not once. Which is unusual for him. He’s in here at least three times a week. Same order. Same time. All summer.”
I set my phone down, suddenly more interested in this conversation than anything else. “Are you friends?”
Her shoulders lifted in a half-ass shrug. “No, I wouldn’t call us friends, but I’ve known him most of my life. Small town.” She picked at her black nail polish, flaking off a chip. “You can’t avoid anyone when there’s only one elementary school and one public high school.”
“It must be nice.” A bit of wistfulness snuck into my tone.
She gave me a curious look. “Where did you live before moving here? It had to be more exciting than this.”
“Texas. Arizona. Washington. California.” I rattled off state after state.
“Wow. A traveler. You must think Elmwood is so boring.”
I shook my head. “No, not really. I love it here.”
She took a drink of her soda. “Give it a month. You’ll be clawing to get out like the rest of us. Are you going to Public then?” she asked, even though she probably already knew the answer.
I nodded. “It’s my senior year.”
“Mine as well.” She smiled. “You’ll see a lot more of him. The Corvos are…everywhere. They’re unavoidable.”
I leaned my chin in my hand, my elbow propped on the table. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
A sparkle danced in Paisley’s brown eyes. “Just wait. You’ll understand what I mean once school starts.”
I had zero patience. “And if I don’t want to wait?”
She sighed and leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Fuck it. You’re going to find out sooner or later anyway, so you might as well know before you make a stupid mistake.”
I stiffened, my fingers tightening around my cup. “Know what?”
“The Corvos,” she said quietly, glancing toward the counter like she was making sure no one was listening. “They’re not just football royalty. They’re dangerous on the field, but off the field…they’re worse. There are things people don’t talk about. Things everyone knows but nobody says out loud.”
My pulse kicked up but not with fear. With interest. “What kind of things?”
“The kind you don’t ask questions about if you’re smart.” She held my gaze. “There are plenty of boys at Elmwood Public, Mallory. Any of them would be safer than a Corvo.”
Safer? Did safe even exist?
“I’m not looking for safe,” I heard myself say and wondered a second later if that was the wrong thing to admit. She was probably going to think I was weird. I was blowing this whole normal gig.
Paisley’s lips pursed, lacking any of the judgment or surprise I expected. “Yeah. I figured. Just...be careful. Okay?” She looked a tad sad, and I wondered why. Had she had a bad experience with Maddox?
“I will.”
“We should hang out sometime, outside of the café, I mean, before school starts. I could show you around, if you would like,” she offered.
“I would. A lot.” I sighed, thinking how wonderful it would be to know someone the first day of school and avoid the awkwardphase of staring at a sea of people and not knowing where to sit at lunch.
Paisley grinned. “Great. How about Friday? I get off at five. You could meet me here?”
I smiled back, feeling a warmth inside, a blooming of hope. “That sounds great. Thanks for being nice to me. Seriously.”
She wrapped her fingers around her Coke can. “I have selfish motives. It gives me time to convince you just what a bad idea it is to get tangled with someone like Maddox Corvo, regardless of how hot he might be. Don’t let those muscles hypnotize you. Plenty of girls have fallen for them and gotten hurt.” She stood from the table, checking the clock on the wall. “See you Friday?”
I nodded and watched as she headed back behind the counter to deal with the afternoon rush starting to trickle in.
