Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 103104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
He breaks our eye contact and looks off into the distance. “I’m here if you need anything. I know you don’t want that—”
“I forgive you, Chance.” I squeeze his hand.
His eyes glisten as they come back to me. “Shit. Thank you.”
Turning, I lean in closer. “Go and be sweet and especially kind to the next girl you love.” I huff out a laugh. “Even if it’s Brooklyn.”
“Ava, fuck, I don’t even know what to say…” He wraps his arms around me and holds me tight, and we just do that for a long time.
On Monday, I walk into Camden and look around at the portraits hanging around us, all those graduates, and sigh.
Knox, Dane, and Chance lean against the wall near the entrance.
It feels so much like that first day, only this time, there’s no dread in me. I’ve packed up everything that’s happened over the past year. Pretty soon, I won’t have to shove down thoughts and memories about this place.
Knox meets me, jogging over. His eyes search mine, shadows under his. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
“Liam was arrested this morning. I texted you.” He looks down then back up at me. “You didn’t reply.”
I nod, not responding to that.
The police called me on Sunday afternoon and asked me to come. They asked the same questions, and I told them about recognizing Liam’s voice outside the gym, but I couldn’t tell if it even mattered since I didn’t see him.
I look away from Knox’s stare.
“Everyone knows,” he says.
“Good.”
He takes my hand and threads our fingers together. His thumb brushes over my hand softly. “We’ve got this, okay?”
Chance walks up from behind Knox and stands shoulder to shoulder with him.
I nod a hello and look past them, seeing Dane. He won’t meet my eyes, but then he straightens and moves toward me, his gait jerky.
Knox sees him and tenses, a surprised look on his face. “Dane—”
He stops next to his brother, slides his hands into his pockets, and exhales. “Ava.”
I study his haggard features, the slouch in his shoulders. “Dane,” I say solemnly.
The air crackles around us, Knox breathing hard, his hand gripping mine.
“I’d never do anything to you. Ever. Even if I was trashed.” He holds my gaze.
I nod, feeling glad, so relieved he came up to me. “You’re a Shark and a big pain in the ass, but you’re a hero, like your twin, even if you may not see it sometimes. You let me hit you then carried me to the office and sat with me for hours,” I remind him. “I don’t buy anything Liam might say about you. It was him. His voice. Everything.”
I watch as the relief washes over him. His eyes water and he bites his bottom lip. “Ava, shit, I don’t deserve any kindness from you, but thank you for being you.”
Piper rushes up, sees them, and bursts through. “Oh my God,” she pants as if she’s been running. “It’s all over the local news! Liam, that bastard! I just passed Jolena in the hall and she’s wailing and even Camilla is crying and I don’t know why! It’s crazy.” She stops, pushing her glasses up, frowning at my flat face. I’m keeping it together—for now. “Wait, why don’t you look surprised? You already knew?”
“Yeah.” I nod.
Students mill around us, most of them staring, all of them whispering.
Same shit—well, maybe different shit, but still, it feels the same.
“Let’s go to class,” Knox says. “I won’t leave your side. They might call you out of class, I don’t know. Dad can be here in ten minutes. He’s got someone for you, a lawyer from Nashville. She’s high profile and deals with sexual assault cases—”
“I have to see Mr. Trask right now. Later?”
He frowns then nods. “Alright, let’s go—”
“No, I can do it.” I give his hand a squeeze and let it go. “I’ll be okay.”
I head to the office, and Knox is with me every step. “I’m just going to hang out while you talk to him,” he murmurs when we get to the entrance, and I tell him he should go on to class.
He looks at me, a determined look on his face. “Not leaving you.”
We walk inside the office. “I have an appointment to see the headmaster. I called earlier this morning,” I tell Mrs. Carmichael.
She looks up from the papers she’s shuffling. “Ava! Goodness, I saw the news. I’m so sorry, dear. Take a seat and I’ll buzz him.”
I nod and sit on the loveseat. Knox sits with me.
“You’re not going in there with me, you know,” I murmur.
He takes my hand again, and for a moment, I sigh and lean into him, just a little.
“Tulip, are you still angry with me? That I didn’t tell you?”
Angry? I was, definitely, but now…
How on earth can I be? Dane is his family.
“It’s hard to stay pissed at you,” I say. “It’s going to be okay.”