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“Dude, at least I know I’m getting laid tonight,” he says to the kid standing next to him as I glance over my shoulder and find him waving a pack of condoms in front of his friend Michael’s face.

“Oh, so that’s why you asked Lennon to prom,” Michael replies. “I was wondering why you decided to get back together with her after you said she was a boring lay.”

Fury races through my body as I turn around and head straight for him.

“A boring lay is better than no lay—” Justin starts, but he doesn’t get the opportunity to finish because my fist collides with his nose, sending him sailing backward as he lands on the gym floor with a thud while blood pours from his face.

“What the fuck, Buckley?”

“You son of a bitch!” Adrenaline carries me over to him as I bend to punch his jaw while he’s still on the ground, straddling his waist to keep him down. “You don’t fucking deserve her!”

All of the anger, all of my frustration for the past three hours, travels down my arms as I continue to pummel Justin’s face, trying to make him bleed even more for the fucked-up shit he said about Lennon.

“Easton!” Elodie shouts, trying to pull me off of Justin, but I ignore her and connect with his nose again.

“Easton, stop!” It’s Lennon this time, which causes me to spin to face her. As soon as I take my eyes off of Justin, he connects his fist with my face, sending me backward.

Before I can get up off the floor to continue to beat the shit out of him, two chaperones come over to us, pushing me away from Justin.

Fury continues to radiate through me until Lennon reaches for my hand, sliding her palm against mine.

Circle, circle. Tap, tap.

Our eyes lock and it’s like a switch is flipped. I come back to Earth, but not before I realize I probably just ruined her prom night.

***

“Are you ready to tell me what the hell that was about?”

I lift my head to find Lennon standing right in front of me, her arms crossed over her chest. After giving my statement to the chaperones, they decide to let us stay since there’s only an hour left of the dance, but I have to stay seated in a chair on the other side of the gym, as far away from Justin as possible until pick up time, when they could notify our parents in person.

“You don’t want to know,” I grate out as my knee continues to bounce up and down. The last thing I want to do is repeat what Justin said about her, even though perhaps it would help her see what a slime ball he really is.

“I asked, didn’t I?” she fires back.

Sitting up straight, I lean back against the wall behind me. “I thought you’d rather have gone to prom alone than with the wrong guy.”

My words catch her off guard. “What?”

I point across the room. “Justin isn’t the guy for you, Lennon.”

“Says who?”

When I don’t respond, she continues, “Last time I checked, I didn’t ask for your approval of who I date, Easton.”

Irritation makes my heart rate climb again. “Well, I’m telling you that you chose wrong. If you’d heard what he was saying—”

Cutting me off, she asks, “What did he say?”

I shake my head, keeping my lips sealed.

“So you’re willing to punch him to defend me, but you’re not willing to tell me what the hell he said to make you lose your cool?”

Standing from my chair, I close the distance between us. “No, because I refuse to repeat that filth. But please, just trust me, Lennon.” Reaching out to take her hand, I say, “I’m only trying to protect you.”

Hurt flashes in her eyes as she takes a step back, putting more distance between us. “I never asked you to do that.”

“Well, if you keep picking the wrong guy, you’re going to miss out on good guys who won’t treat you that way.” I push a hand through my hair. “I mean, Jesus. If you can’t make smart choices on your own, then someone has to make them for you.”