Page 21 of Wicked Ends (Hellions of Hade Harbor #4)

Arianna

I went ahead and dropped the phone in the lost and found at lunchtime, avoided the cafeteria, and kept my head down.

I planned to head back to the Night Owl after my last class to have an early night and freak out in private, my senses on high alert.

I hadn’t heard from Marcus all day, but his threat about consequences was far from forgotten.

However, my plans were ruined when I made to sneak past the staff room and Wade caught sight of me and called me in. There were more teachers than usual inside, and someone was cutting a cake.

“It’s Sally’s birthday,” Wade said, gesturing to a woman I didn’t recognize.

She was handing out cake with a wide smile. Sally? Kenna had mentioned her before.

“Cake?” She reached me and Wade last.

I took the plate from her with a smile. “Happy birthday!”

“I heard we’re nearly birthday twins… yours was last week, right?” she asked.

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

“Oh, we have ways of knowing everything about everyone in Hade Harbor,” she laughed, goosebumps sprouting up my arms.

“Kidding! I work in the admin office, and when Kenna was inputting your info in our system, I saw your birthday. We aren’t very high-tech around here. Lots of manual data entry. Any friend of Kenna’s is a friend of mine!”

“Oh! Well, likewise.”

She snorted. “She’s the best, except for the fact that she’s on a blind date tonight and not here for my birthday. If she didn’t need to get laid so bad, I’d have given her a harder time about it.” Sally clapped; something seemed to occur to her.

“Oh! By the way, I know Dean Eastwood is going to ask you to perform at the music department showcase tomorrow, FYI, and he doesn’t take no for an answer.”

“Wow, I might have to actually go to that assembly, in that case,” Wade joined in. “I’d love to hear you play.”

I gave him a tight smile. I hadn’t performed in front of a roomful of people in a long time. A very, very long time.

“So, you’re coming out tonight, right? Us younger and less stuffy staff members have to stick together.”

“What?”

Sally grinned. “It’s my birthday. Cake in the staffroom is for the oldies. Everyone with a pulse is heading out for drinks and dinner on Dean Eastwood and then karaoke.”

“Karaoke?” I squeaked. Karaoke was a far cry from hiding out in my motel room and turning in early.

“Sure. Hey, maybe there’ll be a keyboard and we can hear you play!”

“I’m not sure. Honestly, I was planning on crashing…” I started.

Wade scoffed. “You’re new to town. You want to grab an opportunity to make some friends and have a social life, don’t you?”

The most annoying thing about that manipulative comment was how true it was. I did want friends, and a real life, and I wouldn’t get one by hiding at the motel.

“Okay, sure. I’d love to come.”

Sally smiled and threaded an arm through mine, tugging me toward the bathrooms.

“We are going to get ready,” she called to Wade.

I hurried to keep up by her side. I wasn’t used to this casual female camaraderie.

I had never had many friends. Growing up, I’d had a few, but over time, they’d been run off by Dale and his antics.

He’d always make sure to have his buddies over when I did, and they were more than enough to put anyone off being my friend.

At age twenty-five, the closest friends I’d ever had were my grandma and my sister-in-law. Pain squeezed my chest tight at the thought of my sister-in-law and my little niece. My brother had never deserved those women. Never. He’d ruined everything. Their lives, my life… and now, they were gone.

I blinked at Sally, realizing she’d asked me something.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I asked if you’re married or dating.”

“I’m single.” For some reason, Marcus’ face jumped into my mind when I said it.

Sally nodded and raised her eyebrow at me. “And I heard you love hockey… You’re going to have fun in Hade Harbor.”

“How did you know I liked hockey?”

“I told you, we have our ways… and a friend of mine might have seen you watching the game at The Clutch last weekend.”

Dread hit my knees, and I gripped onto the edge of the sink. “A friend?”

“She’s a bartender there. Her name is Veronika. She’s studying part-time and working all kinds of hours. A couple of the hockey players on the Hellions work there, too.”

“Seems like kind of a rowdy place for students to work,” I muttered and avoided her eyes in the mirror.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a red lipstick, holding it out to me.

“They’re consenting adults, and besides, the trouble those boys get themselves into is definitely not PG-13. This shade would be great on you.”

I took the lipstick. It was brighter and bolder than anything I’d ever worn before. Opening the tube, I carefully dotted my lips with it.

“Still, they’re only students,” I started.

Sally laughed. “They’re only a few years younger than us. Honestly, it’s confusing. If there wasn’t such a strict no-fraternization policy between staff and students, there’d be a whole lot more public hookups, I’m sure. As it is, badly kept secrets aren’t fireable offenses.”

“Teachers hook up with students?”

“Professors hook up with college students. This isn’t high school. No one cares, except for the administration. Is this your first teaching position?”

I nodded, and she tilted her head to the side.

“Did you take time off after graduating?”

“A little. I had some family things to take care of,” I evaded.

She nodded. “And that strangely specific non-accent, what is it… California?”

I nodded again tightly, hoping she’d drop the subject now.

She was looking at me in the mirror and smiled with approval. “I knew that shade would suit you. Let’s go. We need to get dinner in that lot out there before things turn ugly. Bethie, the librarian, eats at four-thirty and not a minute later.”

A reluctant laugh tugged free from my chest. Sally was warm and chatty and made me feel included. It was a nice feeling. Really, really nice.

“Okay, let’s go.” I followed her out of the bathroom, back to the bustling staff room.

As we organized rides, with Wade offering to drive me, Sally, and Bill into town, I thought for a second of Marcus’ order to be in the lot after his practice finished.

It looked like tonight I was going to call his bluff and find out if he really was going to tell on me… or if he was messing around.

He has to be messing around , the voice in my head that sounded like my brother muttered. Why would a guy like that be interested in pursuing you?

Right. It didn’t make any sense. It was a game to him, and one I had no intention of playing.