Page 15

I throw the bathrobe across the sink and start to strip. I turn the shower on before peeing because I haven’t heard Cade’s footsteps walk back toward my room, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he is still on the other side of the door, listening to everything going on in here. I hate wash my hair, muttering the entire time about a gross misuse of my personal space, but by the time I use my special body wash, I’m calmed down a bit. The heat from the shower helps soothe my tense muscles. I even take the time to shave my legs and underarms before relaxing in the spray a while.
When I’m done, I turn the water off and go through my usual routine. Well, the routine I used to have. After towel-drying my pitch black hair that’s started to fade a little already, I throw the robe on and stalk back to my room. Cade isn’t outside the bathroom still, but he is sitting in my desk chair texting. “Who’s that?” I ask. “One night stand?”
“Nope,” he says, smiling. “Lucky Number Seven.”
I roll my eyes. They call Reid that sometimes because he’s had the number seven on his jersey for forever and he seems to be the luckiest mother fucker on this earth at times. “And what’s good old Reid doing this morning?”
“Probably tapping Sasha’s ass.”
I groan at that, and my heart squeezes. “Hard to text and tap someone’s ass at the same time.”
“How’d you know about that, Shortie? I’m pretty sure I…Yep. Done it once or twice. May have been drunk out of my mind, but whatever.”
Cade certainly uses his football prestige to bag girls. It’s kind of ridiculous how they all come out of the woodwork for him. I glance over at my bed and see an outfit laid out for me. It’s a cute little sundress that my mom bought me for school in the beginning of last year. I used to pair it with these cute little booties. “I’m not wearing that, Cade.”
“I know it doesn’t go with your hair,” he snipes. “But yes, you’re wearing that today. Also, I’m calling my cousin about how to get that black shit out of your hair too. Now, hurry up. I can’t be late for school. Game night, you know.” The thing about Cade is, he gleams when he talks about football. He loves the sport. Sure, he might be a flirtatious pig who’ll get sex whenever he can, but his one true love is for the game. He likes the teamwork and the rivalry. He thrives on competition.
“I don’t want to wear that today,” I tell him, staying steadfast in my resolve. I really don’t want to go through this with him.
“Listen, Shortie,” Cade says as he rises to his feet. “You only have one option. If I have to stand right here while you change, you’re putting on that dress.”
“You’re not watching me dress.”
“How’s this then? If you’re determined to put on your ugly ass sweats and shirt, I am watching you dress. Every last revolting second,” he says, sneering down at the black clothes at the foot of my bed. “If you don’t want that to happen, you’ll put that dress I laid out for you on.”
“Why do you care?” I ask. I mean it to come out snippy, but all my anger dies on my tongue. I actually really want to know.
He cocks his head to the side. “You keep asking that, and I feel like we keep answering you, but you’re somehow not getting it. Come on, Briar. Humor me. Put the dress on. I’ll get Peter Phillips to kiss you on the lips.”
I drop my head back and groan. I used to have a huge crush on Peter Phillips, another football player. “I don’t like Peter Phillips anymore.”
“Good because I’m pretty sure he likes chicks with dark brown hair, so you’ve already gone and fucked that shit up.”
“Just get out of here, Cade.”
He walks to my door, then turns back with his hand on the jamb. “Put the dress on, Briar. Don’t make me call in the cavalry to force it on you.”
He raises an eyebrow when I raise mine at him. For some reason, I think they’ll actually do that. If I walk out with the same outfit I’ve been wearing for the last few days, I’m sure Reid and Lex would both be knocking the door down within a few minutes. “I’m not promising anything.”
“Don’t mess with me on this, kid. I mean it.” With that, he exits my room and closes the door softly behind him.
I stare down at the dress he’s laid out for me. I loved this dress last year. It looked so cute on me. Then, I stare down at the clothes I wore yesterday. The truth is, I’m tired. I don’t have enough energy to fight with Cade this morning. I grab my silky nude bra from the dresser and the matching panties, pulling them on before I pull the dress over my head. I face my full-length mirror in the corner. The dress is a little shorter on me this year than it was the previous year. I must’ve grown some. Since my hair looks like a bird’s nest, I grab my hairbrush, which is stained from black dye, and pull it through my damp shoulder-length hair.
A knock sounds on the door. “Do I have to call reinforcements?”
“No, jackass. I’m dressed.”
The door opens slowly. He looks around the edge and then smiles when he sees me standing there. For a moment, he doesn’t say anything. He just stands to his full height, his stare perusing me from my head down to my polish-chipped toenails. After a moment, he nods once. “Alright, let’s get some breakfast.”
I see the cute boots I wore with this outfit last year peeking out of the closet, but if he’s not going to make me wear them, I’m just going to put on a pair of flip flops. At least I’ll have a little semblance of control over my outfit today. I follow him into the hallway while simultaneously fluffing my hair, trying to get it to dry quicker. “I don’t eat breakfast.”
“Since when?”
“Since…” I say, trailing off. “Just since I stopped eating it.”
“We can’t skip breakfast, Shortie. It’s the most important meal of the day.” He checks his watch and frowns. “We don’t have a lot of time. How about a bagel?”
He doesn’t wait for my answer. He just goes right to the bread box where we store the bagels and then to the toaster. He knows exactly where everything in this house is. The three of them have been here so many times before they probably know it as well as me. Seeing him move around the kitchen brings a pain to my chest. So much so that when he puts the bagel down in front of me, I start eating it without thinking. I’m numb now, going through the motions, just wanting this day that hasn’t even really started yet to end.