Page 67 of Inferno

Manning acknowledged her with a smile and a nod,thenreturned his attention to Taylor.

She raised a brow at him.“Friend of yours?”

He scratched his ear. “Um, well—”

He was interrupted by the sudden blast of a horn. When he looked back at Caitlyn’s car, she smiled and crooked her finger at him. “Come here.”

He felt a quick surge of annoyance. Glancing around, he saw that several other students had turned to stare at him and Caitlyn, their eyes filled with curiosity and speculation.

“Manning.”Caitlyn’s tone had grown impatient. “Come here.”

Before he could respond, Taylor interjected grimly, “You should probably go talk to her.”

Manning looked at Taylor, wondering why he felt the sudden need to apologize. “I’ll be right back.”

“Sure.” Taylor stepped away from him and slipped on her headphones.

Feeling dismissed—and not liking it one damn bit—Manning turned and stalked over to Caitlyn’s car. By the time he reached her,shehad the nerve to look pissed.

As he crouched down beside her door, she demanded, “Were you trying to ignore me?”

Manning scowled. “No. But aren’tyouthe one who told me you didn’t want anyone at school toknowthat you went all the way with a freshman?”

She sniffed. “I changed my mind. All my friends think you’re totally hot, so it doesn’t matter how young you are.” She looked him up and down, her hazel eyes gleaming with possessive satisfaction. “Get in.”

“Nah, I’m taking the bus home.”

“No, you’re not. I’m giving you a ride home.”

Manning’s temper flared. “Yo, I’m not your little bitch, alright? Stop telling me what to do.”

Caitlyn’s eyes widened with wounded disbelief. “What’s wrong with you? Do you seriously expect me to believe that you’d rather take the cheese bus home than catch a ride withme?”

Manning clenched his jaw. Itdidsound crazy.

When he didn’t respond, Caitlyn looked over his shoulder, her lip curling scornfully. “Like, oh my God. Please don’t tell me you’re ditching me for that…thatthing.”

“Don’t.”

Caitlyn hesitated at the low, deadly warning in his voice. “Don’t what?”

“Don’t call her that. Her name’s Taylor.”

Caitlyn eyed him incredulously. “You think I give a shit what her name is? Look at her, Manning. She’s, like, a total disaster! Look at her clothes, and thoseheinousshoes. Where the hell does she shop? At a thrift store for circus freaks?” She cast another disparaging glance at Taylor,thenlet out a shriek of laughter.

Manning had heard enough.

As he moved to get up, Caitlyn grabbed his arm. “Wait, Manning, don’t go.”

“Yo, I ain’t got time for this petty bullshit,” he snarled.

“I’m sorry,” Caitlyn said contritely. “I didn’t mean to make fun of your little friend. I know you stood up for her because you felt sorry for her, and that was really admirable of you. But, sweetie, no one’s expecting you to become her best friend now. You’ve already done more than enough for her. You’ve made her the envy of practically every girl at school because you chivalrously protected her, and now all the other little nerds look up to her, too.” Caitlyn smirked. “She might even get herself a dweeby boyfriend out of the deal.”

Manning glared at her for a moment. “I have to go. My bus is here.”

Caitlyn glanced across the parking lot, watching as the buses began to depart. “No, it’s not. Ms. Shirley probably has another ‘flat tire.’ ” She made air quotes around the last two words, alluding to the rumor that the bus driver was a closet drunk who was sometimes late because she was hung over. But Manning’s mother had already looked into the rumor and proved that it wasn’t true. After personally meeting with Ms. Shirley—who took care of her elderly father—Mom had urged Manning to speak up for the bus driver whenever possible so that her good name and reputation wouldn’t be ruined by malicious lies.

Not that kids like Caitlyn were interested in the truth.