Page 7 of Scarred Crown

“She knows you’re with me, right?”

“Yeah, but she’s still under the impression you’re a good influence.” Julia smirks.

“You’d think she’d know better by now.” The only reason she doesn’t is that Jules takes the fall for at least half the stupid things I drag her into. If Secretary Jensen knew that every time Jules did something idiotic, I was the ringmaster, she’d probably chain Julia to a chair to keep her from hanging around me.

Julia gives me a wry smile before taking a few strokes toward the cliff’s edge. “Give me a piggyback?”

“Up the cliff?”

“I can ask Alex instead.” She bats her eyelashes at me over her shoulder.

I glower at her and swim past. A low blow since she knows I hate being compared to him—at school, at home, in the press.

“Nick,” she calls. “I was joking. It was a joke.”

I climb onto the lowest rock ahead of her, and I offer her my hand to help her up. She eyes me warily but then takes it. When she’s on the rock beside me, she says, “I’m s—”

But she doesn’t get the chance to finish her sentence because I pick her up and toss her back into the ocean.

“Nick!” she screams just before she hits the water. When she pops up, she glares. “You’re evil.”

“I’m evil? I’m evil?” Maybe a little. I offer her my hand again, but she slaps me away this time and hoists herself up.

We stare at each other for a moment, both of us wary for different reasons. She rises on her toes and kisses my cheek. “You’re my best friend, Nicky. I’d never pick your asshole brother over you. So… piggyback?” She waggles her eyebrows.

Good enough for me. I turn around, and she jumps on. “I’m not fucking doing this all the way up,” I say.

“You’re not strong enough?” Her tone is teasing, but the implication pisses me off.

“You’re on fire today,” I mutter.

She laughs, and something strange blooms in my chest. She’s not the only thing on fire. My dick has decided to pay an annoying amount of attention to her today. It’s distracting, and I’m sure as shit not used to noticing Jules like this.

“Please don’t douse me with water to put me out again,” she teases.

I stare at the rocky path ahead. Is carrying her a good idea? Probably not. But when my pride’s at stake, I rarely back down. Not strong enough? Please.

“Hold on tight or I might lose you. I’m going to need my hands in a few spots.” Sections of the climb are more like rock climbing than a clear route.

Her arms and legs tighten around me. “You’ll have to pry me off. I’m never going to let you go. People at school will start calling you the hunchback and wonder about your barnacle.”

Trust Jules to take a word of caution about thirty steps too far. “No one wants to see that,” I say as I start up the path.

“Fine. I’ll let you pry me off at the top.” She lets out a long-suffering sigh.

“Might not have to.” My breathing is already labored. She’s not as light as she looks. “Might drop you first.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” she cries, tightening her hold.

She’s right. I might toss her into the ocean or forget to tell her something when we jump off a cliff, but I’d never intentionally hurt her. “I might dare. You’re heavier than you look, Jensen.”

She slaps my back and wiggles to climb down, but I tighten my hold on her. We’re not at the dangerous stretch yet, but no point in taking any chances. Carrying her isn’t so bad.

“Are you calling me fat?”

“Heavy. Not the same thing.”

“Comments like that give girls eating disorders you know.” She huffs out a breath at my back.