Page 51

"Wow! Tell me, what's it like to feel so entitled that you think you can make up other people's boundaries as you go?" Alaina asked sardonically .

"It's phenomenal. Tell me, what's it like to be a cynical, egotistical twat?"

Alaina scoffed, and Quinn was probably lucky he wasn't facing her because his mouth made a silent "ooh…" as his eyes widened slightly and he avoided eye contact with Raelyn.

Ignoring Alaina's move to sit up and face her with a challenging stare, Raelyn looked at Quinn who had yet to stand up.

"We need to talk. I don't know why you've been ignoring me or why I had to drag my ass all the way over here to witness this again," she gestured vaguely between Alaina and Quinn, "but I need some answers. "

With a hand stuck out in his direction, Quinn grabbed it and let Raelyn pull him to his feet. She winced at the pain in her hand and muttered, "Son of a bitch.” She shook her hand out when Quinn let go of it.

"What happened to your hand?" Quinn asked with genuine concern.

"No one ever tells you how much it hurts to punch someone," Raelyn replied.

Quinn’s eyes grew wide as they flew from her hand to her face. "You punched someone?"

"Yeah, I did. You know, you, me, Chris, and Jett used to be a team. You can't expect me to not want in on the action, too."

"You hit Liam? Rae, he's huge."

"I'm aware. Maybe more so than most people," Raelyn said. When Quinn's face twisted to mild disgust, she laughed nervously, "That's not what I meant. I just meant, like, I've been around him a lot. Near him. I know how big he is. Compared to me. His whole body- Jesus, I cannot get out of this one."

He bit his lip, trying to hide his amusement with her word vomit.

Once he'd successfully contained his expression to one of stony silence and near disinterest again, Raelyn continued with what she'd come to say. “Listen, it’s been a hell of a few days and I still have no idea why you supposedly stood up for me if you were so pissed that I was sharing all your dirty secrets. I wasn’t- but you seem to think I was. So...what the hell? ”

Quinn's expression didn't change and she was starting to get annoyed. If he was looking for some sort of apology, he was mistaken. She hadn't done a damn thing wrong.

“Liam saw the check Dad wrote for the school for football. It was with that form they sent home and it had your name on it. I guess it got left out on the kitchen counter or something.” She continued, “As far as knowing about your mom, people gossip in this town.

And his dad's a family court judge. I wouldn't be surprised if your case popped up on his desk when that social worker kept coming by a few years ago.”

Raelyn watched as the information sunk in and his features softened slightly.

"This would be a good time for you to apologize, by the way," Raelyn said, crossing her arms. When Quinn’s brows pinched together she added, "for having so little faith in the value I put on our friendship.

I wouldn't talk about you like that. I don't know what else he said, but it was either taken out of context or he was just fishing for a reaction and got lucky. "

Quinn's strong chest deflated slightly as he sighed, and gave a nearly indistinguishable nod. "I'm sorry, Rae."

"That's a good start," said Raelyn, eyeing him stubbornly.

Alaina made a derisive noise from behind them, "Are you serious? She just tells you what to do and you do it?"

“Oh, I’m sorry, are you still here?” Raelyn asked with mock-friendliness.

Quinn half-sighed, half-groaned as he ran a hand down his face, “Rae…”

"What?" Raelyn snapped, exasperated. "Is this, like, a thing now?"

"We've been hanging out," Quinn said vaguely.

"Yeah, we have," Alaina got up off the bed and stood next to Quinn. "But please, feel free to barge in here with your petty, rich-girl problems. We would love to hear them. It's not like we have real issues going on in our lives."

"Okay, Alaina, this whole act of yours is getting stale," Raelyn sighed.

"I get it. I have money. A whole bunch of it.

I could raid my parents' bank vault and throw stacks of hundreds around this room and they probably wouldn't notice.

Is that what you wanted to hear? I feel like you're waiting for me to just brag about my financial situation that I did absolutely nothing to help create, and I never have, so there you go. "

Alaina glared at Raelyn. "Wow, I bet that felt good."

"You do realize that you hate me for something I have absolutely no control over, right?

I had no more choice in the life I was given than either of you.

And yeah, I know you guys can probably bond over how much life can suck sometimes, and that's great," she now turned to Quinn and grabbed both of his shoulders, forcing him to look directly at her as she spoke, "but at the end of the day, Quinn, you are my best friend.

I love the shit out of you. And if you want to be mad for a while longer, then be mad.

But you're better than this woe-is-me bullshit.

And for someone who hates feeling pitied, you can throw one hell of a pity-party for yourself, and you're better than that. "

She watched as Quinn's mood changed, the stiffness and tension in his shoulders seemed to dissipate, and the stubborn defiance of his face relaxed.

Raelyn placed her hand gently on the side of his face and ran her thumb over the now green-ish bruise on his cheekbone.

"When you're ready, you know where to find me.

" He was looking back at her, still silent, but his eyes were searching her face.

He gave the vague impression of someone who'd just woken up having forgotten where he was.

Ignoring the presence of this other girl in the room, Raelyn planted a kiss on Quinn's cheek before briskly walking back out the door.

The following morning, Raelyn was eating breakfast at the table while her dad silently read the paper and drank his coffee.

She noticed his frequent curious glances in her direction out of the corner of her eye but would redirect her attention to the back of the Special K box instead of addressing him.

There was actually nothing interesting on the back of the box; just different Special K products that were supposed to make you lose weight .

After several silent minutes, Charlie let out a loud and exaggerated sigh as he looked in Raelyn’s direction. She looked up from the cereal box and snapped her head toward her dad.

“Is there something you’d like to share with the class, Father?”

He smirked, feeling successful that his not-so-subtle technique had gotten her attention. "You went to Quinn's last night, didn't you?"

"Yep," Raelyn stated. She shoveled another bite of cereal into her mouth.

Charlie paused, staring and waiting for her to continue. She did not. He prompted, "And...how did that go?"

Raelyn dropped her spoon into her bowl, leaning onto the back of her chair. "That bitch, Alaina, was there."

With animated enthusiasm, Charlie slapped his hand on the table, "No! Not that bitch, Alaina!"

Finally cracking a smile and laughing at her dad's level of support, Raelyn continued, "She pulled her usual crap, of course.

Quinn didn't say much, but I did get him to apologize for accusing me of being a bad friend.

" She gave him a run-down of the scene, from barging in and wanting to projectile vomit at the sight of Alaina lying on Quinn's bed like she belonged there, to telling Quinn that she'd still be there when he was done with whatever this mood was.

"Wait," Charlie held up a hand, "you kissed him? In front of her?"

"It was just on the cheek, Dad," Raelyn said, "I do that all the time. Or at least I did . "

Charlie scratched the stubble he had yet to shave this morning, "Do you think- and I'm just throwing this out there- but do you think it's possible that you want to be with Quinn? As more than just friends?"

For some reason, Raelyn's mind went to the brief moment after the fight when Quinn had come around the corner toward their lockers and she had caught herself thinking of him differently.

That image played in slow motion in her brain, and she couldn't ignore that his raw masculinity had her feeling unusually warm and flustered.

A pleasant sensation spread down her belly and between her legs as she imagined Quinn grabbing her and kissing her the way he'd kissed Alaina .

Blinking the picture away, but unfortunately not the hot and bothered sensation that had no business between her thighs, she failed to make eye contact with her father as she replied, "No. Nope. He's just my good buddy, Quinn."

With a skeptical look and a chuckle, Charlie said, "Well, I don't think you could get any more convincing than that."

Raelyn glared back down at her cereal and muttered, "Shut up."

The loud gong-like sound of the front doorbell rang through the house. It was rare that anyone came to the house this early on a Monday morning. Raelyn and her dad looked at each other curiously. Moments later, one of the maids entered the dining room with their surprise guest.

Quinn stood beneath the arch that led into the large formal dining room, head lowered slightly, looking down at the floor. Without moving his head up, he flicked his gaze upward and met Raelyn's surprised stare.

"Look, Rae, it's your good buddy, Quinn!" Charlie announced loudly.

"I see that, Dad, thank you.” Raelyn slid out of her chair and walked around the long dining table to stand somewhat awkwardly in front of her friend.

Quinn was wearing a black leather jacket, which couldn't possibly be warm enough for a Northern Michigan winter, and a pair of faded and ripped jeans. He'd already left his shoes at the front door. Even from this distance she could feel the cold from outside coming off him in gusts.

For what felt like several moments, she and Quinn just looked at each other.

Quinn studied her, from her bare feet and sweatpants to her thin t-shirt- his t-shirt, actually.

Their eyes met again, and she wondered when he was finally going to speak or if she should first. Before she could figure out exactly what she would say, Quinn took a step closer and pulled her into a tight hug.

Raelyn’s arms followed suit and encircled him, too .

His arms were wrapped low around her waist, holding her tight to him and his lips were next to her ear. “I’m sorry, Rae,” he whispered. “I’m so...so sorry.”

There was an unfamiliar desperation in his voice that made Raelyn question if she’d missed something.

Had he found out about what Liam had done?

Was there part of the story Chris and Jett had left out?

His tone made her want to hold onto him tighter, so she pulled him closer and leaned into him, burying her face in his chest. She inhaled his familiar scent and closed her eyes.

Though she tried to ignore her dad’s earlier interrogation about the possibility of wanting more than friendship, she couldn’t help admitting that this felt right. Being held by him. Consumed by his strong arms. She didn’t want to let go.