Page 160 of Brutal Little Secrets

“My dad has tried everything to get me to go to Yale.” Cam smirks. “I pretty much know their curriculum backward and forward.”

I walk over to him and sit on his lap. “You’re smart enough to go to Yale. There will be parties there too. But stop selling yourself short. You don’t need to go to Yale for your father, but you can choose to go to it to be with us. If Damon gets on the hockey team.”

I lift my gaze to Damon. “This doesn’t work if it’s not D1. I’m okay adjusting my dream, but we’re not giving up on yours.”

Damon leans against the row of chairs in front of us. “If you get that internship, you take it. I’m not standing in the way of your dream either.”

My heart thumps because unless the stars align perfectly, we’ll have to compromise somewhere.

And knowing how stubborn we all are, I could see us bending our desires just to cling to each other.

I need to say this. “If it comes down to one or the other?—”

“No, goody.” Cam draws my chin back his way. “Neither of you will give up on your dreams. Hawk and I can figure out our shit, but we’re going to support both of you. Compromise isn’t an option when it comes to your careers.”

I search his eyes. Our dreams are so big. I push my hand through Cam’s hair. “You get to dream big too.”

He smirks and leans into my hand. “I’ve already got my dream. My best friends and the girl we love. What more could I want?”

Chapter 50

Cam

Evan is quiet as we shower. Just her and me. The others took quick ones, so I guess this counts as my alone time with our girl. I trail my hand down her arm. Her skin is so soft. Every inch of her is soft and pretty. It’s easy to get addicted to her.

When she looks up at me, her blue eyes are wide and nervous. “Do you really think we can make this work?”

I pull her into me and rest my chin on her head. She wraps her arms around my waist. Even though we’re naked, I just want to hold her close for a second while I really think over her question. Because it’s not an easy one.

None of us has ever had a real relationship. Nothing we wanted to keep longer than a week or two, but Evan is different. Everything about how she makes me feel, makes us feel, is different. All I know is I’ll do anything to keep her.

“I think Damon would stop the world to make this work.” I breathe out and stare at the dark tile of Hawk’s shower. “He won’t give up on his dream, but that also means he won’t let you give up on yours.”

“What about your dreams or Hawk’s?” She pulls away to search my eyes. “Your dreams matter too.”

I chuckle and shake my head at her. “Dreams change, goody. This year Damon was supposed to be off living his dream. Hawk would have spent all his time working to prove to Columbia he’s worthy. I was going to be alone. Getting drunk at parties and trying to convince my dad Yale won’t have me.”

She drags in a breath. Probably ready to defend me to myself again. I love that about her.

“Instead, Damon was forced to stay and decided to make this year interesting. I’ve spent more time with my boys than in previous years because of you. Yes, wrong reasons and all that, but fuck, you don’t understand how much we need you. How much you make us whole. So, yeah, we could all go fuck off to whatever college and uncertain future that holds. Or we could cling to the one thing that makes everything make sense. You, Evan.”

Her cheeks are flushed, and the corners of her lips turn down like she’s trying to come up with another reason it won’t work. I want to kiss her until she understands.

I cup her jaw and run my thumb over her cheekbone. “You’re the future I see now. You, Hawk, and Damon. Fuck everyone else.”

She rolls her eyes at that last bit. I chuckle but continue.

“When I’m with you or the guys, I feel like I belong. Like I’m part of something special. I’m not about to give that up. Whether we all go to Crowne Mawr, or Yale, or fuck, maybe you’ll get that internship and Damon will go for a year in the USHL to find his place. If that happens, we’ll take a gap year and spend our time with you two so Damon doesn’t go fucking crazy with you gone.”

Evan steps back. “It’s not the way things are supposed to work. High school romances rarely last. We—” She presses her hand against my chest. “We didn’t start out with the best intentions.”

“Who cares about our intentions?” I laugh and hold her hand against my heart. “It doesn’t matter how we started, goody. It matters what we do with what we found. I’ve never seen Damon or Hawk as devoted to one person as they are to you. And I get it, because I can’t stand the thought of having to leave you guys in a year. Of going off by myself and trying to start over. Not when I could choose you. Let me choose you, Evan.”

She searches my eyes like she’ll find the lie, but this is my truth. Because if she lets me, I’ll give it all to her.

“I’m not a big dream guy.” I smirk. “I’m decent at school and good at hockey, but I’m not Damon or Hawk. Maybe I’ll end up in politics because I know how to give a rousing speech.” It’s not something I haven’t thought of, but it’s not my goal. “What I do know is wherever we go will have what I need because all I need is you.”

She glances toward the closed bathroom door before moving closer to me. Her voice is quiet, like she’s telling me a secret. “What if we make all these plans and crash and burn? What if we don’t work out?”