Page 54 of The Trouble with You (Rixon Raiders 1)

“I’m just saying, if we don’t do something to end this, it’s going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better. And if it gets that bad, and the wrong teacher overhears something, it could land on Finnigan’s desk. And that is trouble we don’t need.”

My best friend regarded me for a second, scrubbing his face. “Fucking girls,” Jase mumbled, shoving off the bench. He stood up and glanced back at the two of us, “Come on then, I’m not doing this shit alone.”

“Oh, hells yeah, I’m in. Maybe I can tap up Felic—”

“She’s off-limits,” Jase barked.

“She is?” Asher jerked back as if he’d been slapped. “But why? I thought everyone except Hailee was fair game?”

“Because I said so, jackass.”

Asher threw up his hands in surrender, his lips twitching.

When we reached their table, Hailee and her friend gawked up at us. “Yes?” she said flatly. “Can we help you?”

“No, but I think we can help you.” Jase dropped down beside Felicity. Her eyes widened, glancing between him and Hailee and back again.

“What is happening right now?”

“You need us,” he said as if it was that simple.

“Hmm, no,” Hailee quipped. “No, we don’t.”

“That’s not what he thinks.” Jase flicked his head over where the guy who she’d slapped watched us. The little fucker looked ready to piss himself, his eyes darting to the ground when I narrowed my gaze right on him.

“Pfft,” Hailee grumbled. “I handled him just fine.”

“That you did, Hails,” Asher added, sliding in next to her. I sat on her other side, watching her out of the corner of my eye.

“Don’t call me that,” she said, a defensive edge to her voice. “We’re not friends.”

“Looks like we are from where I’m sitting.” He grinned.

“If I recall.” Hailee glared at him. “None of this would be happening if you hadn’t gate-crashed their party and started brawling with Thatch—”

“Brawling?” Asher quipped as Jase sat back, watching her with a dark expression. “Naw, baby, that wasn’t a brawl, that was just the warm up.”

Hailee sneered, her eyes quickly moving to her step-brother. “This has been fun and all, but you can go now.” She wiggled her fingers in a wave.

“Yeah, I’m thinking this was a bad idea. I’m out.” Jase got up and walked off while Asher threw me a ‘what should we do now?’ look. But before I could say anything, Hailee levelled me with a cold look, and said, “I don’t know what this is, but I don’t need you to pretend to be friends with me. I managed just fine without you all this time; I think I’ll survive this.”

“Fine,” I said, realizing maybe Jase was right. Maybe coming over here was a huge fucking mistake. “Have it your way, Sunshine. Ash, let’s go.”

“But…” His eyes flicked to Felicity, but when I shook my head, he let out a long breath. “Fine, I’m coming. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t, ladies. See you around.”

Everyone watched as we stalked away from Hailee and her friend, but they could look. If she was too stubborn to admit she needed us, then we’d just have to go around her.

“She’s a handful,” Asher muttered as he shouldered the door. “But her friend is quiet. I like that. Means she’s probably a real freak between—”

“Do you think with anything other than your dick?”

“Football and pussy.” He shrugged, a lazy grin splitting his face. “What else is there?”

I wanted to tell him that, one day, he’d meet a girl who made everything else pale into insignificance. A girl who would get under his skin and gnaw away at his soul. But he wasn’t ready to hear the words… and I wasn’t ready to admit I knew what the hell I was talking about. So instead, I slung my arm around his shoulder and said, “Come on, Casanova, we should probably show up for a class or two.”

Our little stunt at lunch calmed the vicious rumors spreading through the halls, but it still didn’t stop some guys, and girls, thinking they could talk about Hailee like she was the town slut.

“You need to do something,” I urged Jase as we walked from last period to the locker room.