Page 71 of The Illicit Play

Shit, he really is a good guy.

I should be grateful, not annoyed.

After another thick beat, I let out a long, slow sigh and lie back down beside him.

The sky above is a brilliant blue, making the white clouds pop, and I soak it in, focusing on the vastness of the beauty above me and trying to cool that sting of Grady’s rejection.

And that’s when a soft reminder filters into my brain.

Grady may have pulled away from the kiss.

But before he did… he totally kissed me back.

CHAPTER 20

GRADY

I kissed her back.

I totally did it.

Shit, I’m a lousy friend.

Wily is gonna kill me.

If he ever finds out.

The thought of keeping secrets from the guy sucks, but the fallout from telling him? He’s trying to heal and focus on getting back to football; he doesn’t need the added pressure of knowing what I did. Especially when it’s not going to happen again.

Driving Blake back to Football Frat is a quiet affair. We’ve got a little Drake to keep us company, but we’re not saying anything.

Man, I can’t believe what she’s been up to in Chicago. You never would have picked it by looking at her. She’s got the angelic smile down pat. It makes me realize that she must have been wearing a mask this whole time, and she’s been perfecting it her whole life. Being the girleveryone wants her to be… and they have no fucking idea.

I get why she doesn’t what to confess everything to her family. They think she’s a walking genius who never fails. They think she’s perfect. Which is so unfair, because no one is, or ever could be.

The amount of pressure she must have been living with, it’s a miracle she didn’t crack in her teen years.

She’sstilla teenager.

She’s nineteen now. She’s an adult!

And she should technically know better, but if you’ve been perfect your whole life, there’s bound to be a breaking point.

And man… did she break.

Tapping my finger on the steering wheel, I try to figure out how I’m supposed to help her through this.

Is she seriously going to keep lying and pretending to study while she’s living with us?

The truth has to come out. She can’t move on until the people who love her most find out about her downfall. And she’ll never be set free from Cleo’s blackmailing until she erases those threats by coming clean.

But she’s kind of adamant about not saying a word. I won’t betray her trust, but I’ll need to keep working on her, letting her know that telling Wily will be painful, sure, but it’ll ultimately release her from this burden. Then she can figure out what she wants to do with her life and move on.

Maybe Wily and I can head up to Chicago and pay Cleo a little visit. I grit my teeth, knowing that’s a terrible idea, but what I wouldn’t give to fix this for Blake. Set her free from this burden.

How can she ever forge ahead with her life when she’s got this hanging over her?

“What do you want to do with your life?” I suddenly ask.