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“Good riddance,” Theo mumbles under his breath. “Remind me again why you dated her. She is such a diva.”
“I don’t know.” I shrug. “She was nice when we first met. Plus, all the guys on the lacrosse team kept saying we’d be good together, so I figured, why not?”
In truth, I can’t be with the girl I’ve always wanted, and Whitney was a welcome distraction. She is attractive and popular and made me feel important—until my accident.
“College chicks are going to fucking love your scar. It makes you look badass.” Theo pats me on the back.
“Thanks, man,” I say, ready to move on from this topic. “Where’s Everly?” I scan the hall as the group disperses, but she’s nowhere to be seen.
Everly, Theo’s twin sister, tags along most of the time, making her one of my closest friends.
The smug expression on Theo’s face turns serious. “You’re not the only one who was stood up for prom. Jacob broke things off with Everly right before eighth period.” His voice drips with fury. “He left her crying alone in the school parking lot.”
I clench my fists at my side, the urge to kick Jacob’s ass building inside me. Everly is the sweetest, most beautiful girl in school, and frankly Jacob never deserved her.
“What a scumbag,” I spit out in disgust. “He needs to be put in his place.” No one disrespects Everly and gets away with it.
“Get in line,” he snickers.
“Where is she now?”
“I’m not sure. She said she wanted to be alone and took off on her bike,” Theo says with a worried frown. “I should skip prom and go look for her. I’m sure Cara will understand if I have to cancel our date.”
I shake my head. “There’s no reason for you to spend the night wallowing in misery like the rest of us. Go home and get ready to pick up Cara. Don’t worry, I’ll find Everly.” There’s only one place she would go if she wanted to be alone without dealing with unwanted visitors.
Except for me, that is.
“Are you sure?” Theo asks, concern etched on his face.
“Absolutely. We’ll make a night of it,” I assure him.
If I could convince Everly to attend prom with me, I’d do it, but knowing her as I do, she’ll want to stay as far away from Jacob and the dance as possible.
Theo nudges me with a mischievous glint in his eye. “Look, there’s Jacob now.” I glance over to him walking toward the school entrance with his friends. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Theo questions.
“That it’s time for payback?” I smirk, cracking my knuckles as I stalk toward Jacob.
Theo cracks. “You read my mind.”
First, I’m going to make Jacob Barlow pay for hurting Everly, and then I’m going to find her so I can mend her broken heart.
As I pull up to the old Miller place, a smile crosses my lips when I spot Everly’s robin-blue bike parked against the house. The place has been abandoned for over twenty years, but it’s become the hangout spot for my siblings and friends. Ev, in particular, has taken a liking to it and comes here when she needs peace and quiet.
I make my way through the overgrown lawn to the backyard, where I find Everly. She’s stretched out on a flannel blanket, her sanctuary under the shade of the giant oak tree, lost in a book. Her black hair falls in waves down her back, a sight that always takes my breath away. I smile when I see she’s wearing her favorite pair of Doc Martens.
Seeing her like this takes me back to the day in our tenth-grade English class when she came in wearing a white V-necktop, light-wash jeans, and those same Docs. Even though we’ve known each other our whole lives, that was the first time I saw her in a new light and I swear my heart skipped a beat when she waved at me with her signature megawatt smile. I couldn’t take my eyes off her during class.
When the bell rang, Theo grabbed me by the collar and dragged me out into the hall, shoving me against the closest set of lockers. He noticed me watching Everly and warned me she was off-limits.
I couldn’t jeopardize our friendship because of a crush on his sister, so I did my best to suppress my feelings for Everly. It wasn’t easy. Something about her called to me, and it kept drawing me in like a gravitational pull, despite my best efforts.
Like she can sense that I’m thinking about her, she looks up at me with tear-stained cheeks as I approach. My chest tightens at seeing her sad. I would do anything to take away her pain and bring a smile to her face.
“Mind if I join you? I brought dinner.” I hold up a bag of takeout from Willow Creek Café—Her favorite restaurant in Aspen Grove.
“Did Theo send you?” She eyes the food warily.
“No. He told me what happened with Jacob, and I figured this is where you’d be,” I answer truthfully.