Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 93270 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93270 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
“Funny.”
“Yeah, that’s me, the funny guy.”
“Who are you staring at?” Colt elbowed Hayden in the bicep. He was thankful his friend didn’t see him flinch or Colt would’ve razzed him relentlessly for being soft. Hayden was far from weak, but an elbow to the tender part of his arm was never fun.
Hayden cleared his throat and shook his head for good measure. “Uh, no one.”
Except she was someone. She was his best friend’s sister, and completely off limits.
Hayden couldn’t pinpoint what had changed in him, but for the past two or three weeks, Devorah Crowley had been living rent-free in his mind. His infatuation had started when Hayden spent the night at her house . . . well, stayed with her brother, and they’d run into each other in the bathroom.
She’d smiled at Hayden. It wasn’t one of those “Hey, how’s it going?” types of smiles. It was flirtatious, with fluttering eyelashes and a soft, sexy voice as she said “Excuse me” and tilted her head. But it was when she bit her lower lip and pulled her long braid over her shoulder that Hayden felt a stirring. He wanted to follow her into her room but froze.
What would he even do in there?
Hayden cleared his thoughts and brought himself back to the here and now.
The cafeteria was busy and noisy, with students and teachers moving in all directions. Devorah sat next to Laila Dixon. They were best friends, and Laila was often at the Crowleys’ when Hayden was there. Sometimes the four of them hung out, but Colt hated spending time with his sister and her annoying friend.
Hayden definitely didn’t mind.
After a few minutes, Devorah grabbed her things, waved, and left the cafeteria. Hayden did the same, telling Colt he needed to go to the nurse. The boys were always going to the nurse with some stomach bug because she was young and very pretty.
He made his way over to Laila, hoping Colt wasn’t watching.
“Hey, Laila.”
Her eyes sparkled when he said her name. “Hi, Hayden.”
He sat next to her, and she tried to flutter her eyelashes, but she didn’t do it as sexily as Devorah had. But maybe he was biased. Laila was pretty, but she wasn’t Dev.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yes,” she said excitedly.
“Does Devorah like me?”
Laila’s face fell, and Hayden regretted the way he’d approached her with his question. But he had to know, and there was only one person who could tell him.
“I’ll ask,” she said pointedly and went back to chatting with the others at the table, making Hayden feel like an intruder.
Hayden had no choice but to get up and leave. He headed to his locker. From there, he could see Devorah’s. He’d lost count over the past couple of weeks of how many times he’d stood there, watching her throw her head back in laughter, wishing he’d been the one to elicit that response from her. He hoped she was there because then maybe he could smile at her, and she’d want to talk.
Before the bell rang to send everyone back to class, Laila came toward Hayden. She sauntered over and had a look on her face like she had juicy gossip to share. His heart rate spiked. The anticipation of finding out was enough to actually send him to see the nurse.
“Hey,” he said as casually as possible.
“She thinks you’re a funny guy.”
“Funny?”
Laila shrugged. “Yep.” She walked away, leaving Hayden speechless. He waited for her to turn around and come back with more information, but she continued down the hall without another word or a glance over her shoulder.
“I’m funny?”
A hand slapped down on his shoulder, jolting him. “A laugh a minute,” Colt said as he grabbed his book from their shared locker.
“Funny?” he mumbled to himself in disbelief. He closed the metal door and followed Colt down the hall, shaking his head. What had he done to make her laugh?
Hayden smiled at the memory of when he thought he’d test the waters and ask Laila if Devorah liked him.
Hayden drove. He headed out of town, passed her father’s house, and continued past the boutiques, banks, and other businesses. She said nothing. He pulled into the parking lot of the pier and parked at the water’s edge. The only people who would be able to see them would be anyone who parked next to him. Leaning over, he opened the glove box, pulled out a box of tissues, and handed it to her.
Devorah coughed out a sob and took the box from Hayden. He tried not to watch her, to keep his eyes forward. If it hadn’t been raining, fishing boats would’ve been coming and going. They would at least give him something to watch.
Except, he wanted to keep his eyes on her. It was clear that Chad or whoever it was had hurt her. Hayden didn’t know how or why, or even who. But someone had.