He moved in closer to me, and I took a step back, jarring up against the wall behind me. He placed one hand against the wall, just above my head, and leaned in close. “What’s not to love?”
“You want a list?” I replied.
“Sure,” he gave me an indulgent smile. “Let’s hear your list.”
I huffed out a breath, again wishing he wasn’t so close. His proximity was distracting me, and I was so focused on the fact he was invading my personal space that my quick retorts were becoming sluggish.
“Well, to start with, you’re rude,” I eventually said.
“Only to you, kitten. Everyone else loves me.”
“You’re arrogant,” I continued, marking the quality off on my finger.
“I have every right to be. I’m brilliant.” He grinned.
“You’re a man-whore.”
“You listen to too much gossip.”
I shook my head in disagreement, but I refused to be derailed. “And you’re not as hot as you think you are.”
He laughed out loud and stood back, giving me room to breathe once more. “Now you’re just making things up.”
I shrugged. “You just don’t do it for me.”
“Sure I don’t. I bet you have naughty thoughts about me just like all the other girls do.”
“You’re disgusting.” I scrunched my nose up. “Every word that comes out of your mouth is riddled with dirty undertones. I’m going to need to sanitize the kitchen and my ears.”
He laughed; smiling at me like it was cute I thought he was a scumbag.
“Okay, you need to leave now,” I said. I didn’t like the way he was looking at me. His smile was genuine and totally disarming, and I wanted it nowhere near me. He needed to save it for the girls in his stupid competition.
“Aren’t you enjoying my company?” he asked.
“You barged into my house, flirted with my mom, stole my cookies and now you’re invading my personal space. You think I enjoyed all that?” I asked.
He paused and tilted his head as if he was thinking the question over. “Yeah,” he replied. “I think you enjoyed all of it.”
I shook my head at him. “Get out of here, Cole.”
He laughed and lifted his hands in surrender. “Fine, I’m leaving.” He started to move away, but before he did, he leaned in close to me once again. “And don’t pretend you didn’t enjoy sharing your cookies with me.”
I placed my hands on his shoulders and pushed him back. “Must you make everything sound dirty?”
He grinned down at me like my comment had made his day. “Only with you, cookie. Only with you.”
6
Madison
I got out of Mom’s car and slumped my heavy bag over my shoulder. I felt exhausted. Jake hadn’t answered any of my calls the previous evening, and I’d been up half the night worrying about it. He hadn’t arrived to pick me up from school, and it was lucky Mom had been running late for work, or I wouldn’t have been able to get a ride from her either.
“Have a nice day, Madi,” Mom called out through the lowered car window as she went to pull away. I raised a hand in reply and started heading toward the school.
My heart was a swirling bundle of uncertainty and misery. I wasn’t exactly sure what I’d done to make Jake upset, but I already had a bad feeling that we weren’t going to come back from this.
I made my way straight to his locker, where I found him leaning against the wall, surrounded by his friends. I didn’t want to talk to him in front of them, but I didn’t feel like I was left with any choice.
“Hey,” I said, softly. I lightly touched his arm, causing him to turn.
When Jake’s eyes landed on me, I could see disappointment etched in them and my stomach sunk. Jake was always impulsive and emotional, and right now I could feel every bit of his unhappiness directed at me.
“Can we talk?” I asked.
He glanced over his shoulder at his friends and, for a second, I worried that he would refuse. I breathed a silent sigh of relief when he nodded and led me to an empty classroom.
“What’s going on?” I asked, clutching my arms around my waist as he closed the door behind us. I felt suddenly vulnerable and apprehensive about what he was going to say.
He let out a breath and rubbed his face as if he too had suffered a sleepless night. “I’m sorry I haven’t spoken to you, Mads. I’m just trying to figure out how to deal with all of this.”
“All of what?” I asked, tilting my head as I watched him.
“You know what I’m talking about,” he replied.
“I can guess, but that doesn’t mean I’m not confused.”
“What’s there to be confused about? Are you really surprised that I don’t want my girl dating another guy in front of me.”
My brow creased at his admission. “Jake, it’s just some stupid charity competition. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s not like I volunteered to do it.”
“Yeah, but you are doing it,” he replied, directing his words at the floor.
I walked forward, closing the gap between us. “It’s just for one week. I’ve already spoken with Angus, and he’s going to make sure I’m voted out at the first ceremony.”
“Really?” Jake lifted his head to look at me, a hint of hope in his eyes.
“Yes. And you would know that if you had taken me home last night like you were supposed to. Or if you had answered my calls or picked me up this morning.” I let out a frustrated breath. “I didn’t ask for this, and yet you’re treating me like it’s my fault.”
He lifted a hand to cup my face. “I’m sorry, Mads. I was angry and not thinking straight.”
“Are you still mad?” I asked.
He shook his head and brought me in for a hug. “I don’t like it, but I guess I can handle a week of this stupidity.”
I smiled into his chest. “Thanks, Jake.”
He pulled back and looked me in the eyes. “You just have to promise me that you won’t do anything with him. No hand holding or kisses or anything like that.”
“I wouldn’t do that stuff with him even if they paid me,” I replied. “You’re the only guy for me. You know that.”
He nodded, seeming happy enough with my response. Despite his warm smile, I didn’t feel convinced he was all that happy though. There was something in his eyes that told me he was still angry and, despite his words, he still held the competition against me.
I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. At lunch, Hayley couldn’t stop glancing at Jake. Meanwhile, Jake couldn’t keep his eyes off Cole, who was at the other end of the table.
“I feel like I’m watching Bruce Banner and I'm just waiting for him to Hulk out,” Hayley murmured, nodding in Jake’s direction.
“He’s not that bad,” I replied.
“Madi, there’s like a massive throbbing vein on his forehead,” she said. “I really don’t like him when he’s angry, and he’s this close to turning green.” She pinched her fingers together, indicating that she thought he was about an inch away from losing it.
“He’s not going to turn green!”
She shrugged. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I glanced over my shoulder at Jake. He’d barely said a word at lunch, and Hayley was right. There was a rather large looking vein throbbing on his forehead.
“He told me he would be okay with it for a week,” I said, turning back to face Hayley.
“Well, it probably doesn’t help that Cole has spent the entire lunch break looking at you,” she replied.
My eyes jerked in Cole’s direction, and again I found that Hayley was right. He was watching me and he grinned when our eyes met. I glared at him in return before focusing back on Hayley.
“This is going to be the longest week of my life,” I said. “Is he still looking at me?”
Hayley laughed. “Yep. He looks really pleased with himself too.”
I squinted my eyes shut and blew out a long breath. “Why do you think he’s so
fixated on ruining my life?” I asked, opening my eyes once more.
“Dramatic much?” Haley asked, making me smile.
“Yeah, maybe a little,” I conceded. I let out a sigh. “I just want this week to be over with already.”
She patted my arm. “It’ll be over before you know it,” she said.
I hoped she was right about that as well.
Hayley wasn’t right. The week dragged by so slowly I began to worry I’d been caught up in some kind of time loop. No matter how much I wished the competition would be over and done with, it seemed to trail me everywhere. We hadn’t even started filming, but people were already chatting to me about it in the corridor and wishing me luck. It was like they had forgotten Jake even existed and that he was my boyfriend.
Jake, on the other hand, was starting to act like he’d forgotten that I existed. Aside from driving me to and from school each day, we barely spent any time together, and he hardly said a word to me when we did. I knew he was upset, but he’d taken it to a whole new level. By the time Friday evening rolled around, I was beginning to wonder if there would even be a relationship left for me to save once the competition was over.
Hayley came to my house beforehand to help me get ready for the first group date. Not that I wanted to put any effort in. I could only imagine how Jake would react if he thought I’d tried to dress up for Cole.
“You have to wear this,” Hayley said, coming out of my closet with a short black dress in her hand. Mom was always buying me clothes and putting them in my room for me. The dress Hayley was holding definitely wasn’t something I’d picked out.
“That dress would barely cover my ass,” I replied.
“Exactly.” Hayley’s eyes lit up at the thought.
“Not going to happen,” I said.
Hayley let out a frustrated huff before returning to my closet in search of something else.
“You have so much cute stuff in here,” she called out to me. “How come you never wear any of it?”
“Because I’m pretty sure my mom only put it in there to try and pimp me out.”
Hayley laughed and her head appeared in the doorway. “Why would she want to pimp you out?”
“She’s not the biggest fan of Jake,” I replied.
“Can’t say I blame the woman,” Hayley responded.
I threw a pillow at her head, but she easily snatched it out of the air before it hit her. She poked her tongue out at me. “You know what I mean. He was so sweet when you guys first started dating, but I just don’t think he’s like that anymore.”
My stomach dropped at her comment. Hayley had never admitted that to me before, and it hurt to know that she didn’t fully approve of Jake. The problem was that I couldn’t entirely disagree with her. Not when I’d been feeling something similar for the last few months.
I let out a sigh. “Yeah, he’s changed a lot this last year.”
Hayley slowly came out of the closet, a sad expression on her face as she sat next to me on my bed. “Do you still love him?” she asked.
I’d told Jake I loved him dozens of times in the two years we’d been together. I just wasn’t sure if I really knew the meaning of the word. Was the way I felt about Jake really true love?
“I’m always going to care for him,” I replied.
She tilted her head as she watched me. “You’re meant to be madly, stupidly, crazy about the boy. You don’t sound like you’re any of those things.”
“I don’t, do I?” I replied.
“No,” she agreed. “So, are you going to break up with him?”
I shook my head almost immediately. “No, of course not,” I replied instinctively. The thought of losing Jake made breathing harder. It made me feel anxious and uncertain. I didn’t know how to be without him. How could I break up with him?
She reached out and squeezed my hand. “It’s not fair on either of you to stay together if you’re not happy.”
“I know,” I replied. “I just think we’re going through a rough patch at the moment. Things will get better.”
She gave me a sad smile. “I hope so,” she said. From the way she was looking at me, I knew she wasn’t convinced.
“Enough moping about Jake,” she said, suddenly springing up from the bed. “We need to make you look hot for the big group date.” As she disappeared into my closet once again, I had a bad feeling that whatever I ended up wearing was not going to be Madi-approved.
After an hour of arguing over outfits, I managed to coax Hayley into letting me wear a pair of jeans. They hugged my legs tightly and were nothing like the ones I’d typically wear, but Hayley seemed happy enough. She somehow convinced me to wear a tight top that was far too revealing, but I’d succeeded in covering it up with a leather jacket that I could zip up to my neck if I felt uncomfortable. I finished the outfit with cute wedged ankle boots—the only thing the two of us agreed on unequivocally.
Hayley then helped me with my hair and makeup. We started on my hair, curling it in big loose waves that hung loosely down my back. I wasn’t sure if I wanted the makeup, but Hayley refused to let me leave the house without it. The girl sure knew how to channel the aggressive nature of a cheerleader when she needed to.
“You look so beautiful,” Mom gushed when I finally made my way downstairs. “That Cole Kingston would be crazy not to pick you.”
Dad was standing next to her, nodding in agreement.
“Mom,” I groaned. “I don’t want Cole to pick me. I have Jake.”
“Yes, yes I know,” Mom replied. Though it sounded like she had long forgotten Jake.
Dad gave me a hug. “Have fun tonight kiddo, and don’t forget to take photos so I can stalk them on Instagram.” The scary part was, he wasn’t joking.
“Dad!” I exclaimed. “And on that note, I’m leaving.”
I rushed out the door, dragging Hayley with me, not waiting to see what other mortifying things my dad would say next.
“He can be so embarrassing,” I muttered as we walked down my driveway.
“Really?” Hayley asked. “I think your dad’s hot.”
“Oh my gosh, you did not just say that!”
Hayley laughed and shook her head. “Totally joking, Mads. I like my boys older, not ancient. I’m not going to go American Beauty on you. I mean, maybe if he was twenty years younger and didn’t have such a dad-bod…”
I shoved my friend, laughing. “You’re terrible. You know that, right?”
“Yeah,” she agreed. “I’m totally going to hell.”
Hayley walked with me as we crossed the street and made our way to Cole’s house. Angus had decided to take advantage of the fact that Cole lived in a ridiculously nice house, by using it for the main parts of the competition. Apparently, all of the selection ceremonies would be happening there and some of the group dates, including the first one tonight. It definitely worked for me, because it was only down the street.
It had been years since I’d visited the Kingston family’s home. I used to play there all the time as a kid, but that felt like a lifetime ago. My mom still visited Cole’s mom, but I hadn’t set foot in the house since high school started. Not even for one of Cole’s legendary parties.
“Well, I should probably leave you here,” Hayley said when we reached the front gate. I glanced at her and nodded, desperately wishing for a moment that she were in the competition with me.
“Wish me luck,” I said.
“Nah,” she grinned. “You don’t need it.”
I smiled warmly back at her, before taking a deep breath in and making my way up to the Kingstons' front door. I pressed the buzzer, and Cole’s mom opened the door almost immediately. Her hair was tightly pulled back, and she was still dressed in one of her work suits. Her eyes brightened when she saw me, and she pulled me in for a warm hug.
“It’s so good to see you, Madison,” she said.
“You too, Mrs. Kingston,” I replied. I was surprised by her reaction, but I didn’t mind the hug too much. Despit
e her formal appearance, Cole’s mom had always been really fun, kind and she gave great hugs.
She walked me in through the entrance lobby. “I’m so glad Cole’s got you in this contest,” she murmured to me as we walked. “I’m a bit worried some of the girls might be in this competition for the wrong reasons. I don’t want to see Cole get hurt.”
I smiled at how worried Cole’s mom was about her son, but I knew it was much more likely that he would be the one breaking hearts, not the other way around. “You don’t have to be too concerned,” I said in an attempt to reassure her. “Some of the contestants are my friends, and I know they’d never hurt Cole,” I replied.
“You’ve always been so sweet,” she said, a smile returning to her face. “I’ll be secretly rooting for you.”
I laughed and shook my head. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I’d be out before the week was through.
Mrs. Kingston led me out onto the back patio where most of the girls and half the film club were already waiting. Laurie glared at me as I approached, her eyes moving up and down my body as if it offended her somehow. She turned and started whispering to her sister. Brooke’s eyes flickered in my direction, but there wasn’t the same malice in her gaze as her twin had shown me. She almost seemed uncomfortable as she listened to Laurie’s whispers.
I felt a wave of relief when I saw that Teagan and Evan had already arrived.
“Looking good, Mads,” Evan said as I sat down next to him.
“You guys look great too,” I replied.
“I know,” came Evan’s response.
“Thanks, Madi,” Teagan said. Like the rest of the girls, Teagan was wearing a pretty dress. I probably should have listened to Hayley’s advice and worn one too, but at least I felt comfortable, and I knew Jake couldn’t disapprove.
Teagan was playing with the ends of her long blonde hair, just like she did every time she was preparing to go on stage. She always looked so perfectly calm before she performed, but this was her one tell that beneath the surface she was actually nervous. I was surprised that our little charity show even warranted her nerves.
The Wrong Bachelor Page 5
