4:28, 4:29, 4:30. The clock slowly ticked away the last minutes of their detention. Mr. Fields released them at 4:31.
“Come on,” Ken said and whooped exuberantly as they raced from the school. “Let’s rock this game!”
Their football team, the THS Tigers, was playing their worst rivals, the Rose Lake Wolves, across town in half an hour. The boys were guilty of a streak of late arrivals to practice but had never missed a game. They leapt into Zack’s Lexus, surged forward, and screeched to a halt at the exit to the street. A steady stream of traffic blocked their path. “Coach is going to kill us if we’re late.” Zack stepped hard on the gas. His Lexus shot forward and clipped the mirror of a 2019 Corvette. “Oops.”
“Be careful with that beautiful car!” Ken shrieked, clinging to his armrest. “Slow down!”
Zack gripped the steering wheel and cut in front of a red SUV. “If I slow down, we’ll be late.”
“If we die, it won’t matter!” Ken’s eyes bulged as the driver laid on his horn. “Zack!”
He zoomed through a yellow light. “Why are we playing Rose Lake on a Monday?”
“Something about needing to do maintenance over the weekend.” Ken nervously checked his watch.
They arrived with five minutes to spare. Zack strutted into the locker room and came face to face with their fuming football coach. Coach Coleman was a huge African Canadian in his early forties. He had black hair, dark brown eyes, and a stern, square face. His nose was slightly crooked from a college football accident. He had played for the pros in the nineties and coached the Tigers like a military drill sergeant.
He crossed his arms and scowled at Zack. “If you are late one more time, I’ll suspend you. Playing on this team is a privilege, and if you guys treat it like a joke, I’ll treat you the same.”
Zack glowered at Alex, who was smirking at them behind Coach Coleman’s back.
“Ignore him,” Ken muttered. “He’s just hoping we’ll get kicked off the team so he’ll actually get to play.”
Zack flipped Alex off and focused on the game, imagining every member of the opposition had Alex’s sneering face.
The THS Tigers obliterated the Rose Lake Wolves 34 to 10 and headed to Pete’s for a victory celebration. The team claimed the diner’s two best tables and ordered their usual. Burgers, fries, and shakes all around.
The waitress placed a giant bucket of complimentary fries in the center of Zack’s table, Pete’s way of mimicking fancy restaurants’ bread baskets. Zack grabbed a handful and checked her out. She had a great ass and silky, straight ebony hair. He choked. It was Amy. Her orange uniform was unflattering and blinding, yet she still looked seriously hot. He stared as she swept away and returned a few moments later to take their orders. How did she pull off that uniform so damn well?
Amy barely said two words to him. Zack pretended they had never met. Ken beamed at her as if they were old friends. “Sup, locker buddy?”
She stared at him, dismissed him with her eyes, and moved on without comment. Zack snickered. Ken’s charm had no effect on her either.
Zack elbowed his friend as Amy walked away. “That’s Susan’s sister.”
Ken stared at him. “Diner chick is your brother’s friend’s sister? Why do we care?”
Zack shrugged. “She’s hot.”
“Really?” Ken turned in his seat to check her out.
Zack chuckled nervously. “What the hell, man! Don’t stare.” Ken smirked. “So, like, you know her?”
“Nope, but we see each other every day.”
“The hell? How?”
“Her locker is right below mine. Hence the locker buddy reference.” Ken’s eyes crinkled at the corners. He was getting a kick out of the interrogation.
“Have you talked to her before?”
“Nope.”
Zack shook his head. He had never understood Ken’s insufferable need to flirt with every girl he met. “Do you ever see her with friends?”
“Not really. She likes to keep to herself.” Ken stuffed his face with fries. “What’s with all the questions? You got the hots for loner chick?”
“Of course not. I’m curious about her is all. She’s a mystery.”
Zack watched Amy out of the corner of his eye. She kept pacing to the window to discreetly wipe her face. He got up to get napkins and passed her as she brushed a tear from her cheek. He bit his lip and averted his gaze. Despite his ladies’ man reputation, he was laughably out of his depth when it came to comforting a hot, crying stranger.
It all happened so fast, Zack felt sure he would have missed it if his eyes hadn’t been glued to Amy. Alex slipped a hand down her shirt as she leaned in to refill his glass. Amy reeled backward and dumped her entire pitcher of water over his head. Shocked gasps and a smattering of laughter rippled through their teammates. Amy slammed the pitcher to the table with a dull, muffled thud, turned on her heel with a murderous look in her eyes, and marched away with her back ramrod straight.
Zack’s temper flared, along with a protective instinct he hadn’t known he had. “Asshole.” He glared daggers at Alex. Was this a good enough reason to punch him? Coach Coleman had to agree Alex deserved it.
“Piss off.” Alex grabbed a wad of napkins and wiped at a stream of water dribbling from his mocha hair. Beside him, Peter fought a smile. Alex slouched off to the bathroom.
Zack got up to check on Amy. He glimpsed a flash of ebony hair as she whipped around the corner into the kitchen. A dark-skinned guy in a Pete’s uniform emerged to take her place.
Zack cursed under his breath. He had blown another chance to talk to her. This girl had seriously thrown him off his game.
He tossed and turned all night, his mind replaying conversations with Amy. Her adorable snark and hilarious bad temper made him want to kiss her, half to shut her up and half to find out if she would kiss him back. Amy was unaffected by everything that attracted girls. Money, popularity, and flirting repelled her. He had never had to work to make someone like him. The challenge was fun, and the pretty brunette more than fulfilled his fantasy of a mysterious conquest.
“What’s up with you?” Ken yawned as Zack searched for a parking space in front of THS Tuesday morning. “All you’ll talk about lately is diner girl.”
“Her name’s Amy. I don’t understand why you won’t introduce us.”
Ken waved good morning to Jessie. “Because you’ve already met her. And what’s wrong with Chelsea?” He chuckled. “Okay, don’t answer that. But you could easily dump her and date someone more in your league. What about Raquel? She’s hot.”
“I’m not interested in Raquel.” Zack pursed his lips. “I’m not even interested in Amy. I just want her to know she’d be lucky if I was.” He found a tight space and cautiously parallel parked. “You’re locker buddies.” He smirked. “You know her. Put in a good word for me?”
“I don’t know her, though. If she was a serial killer or a saint, I wouldn’t be able to tell you which!”
“Why are you so crabby this morning?” Ken was usually Mr. Cheerful, even at school.
Ken clenched his jaw. “You’re always whining about how I treat girls. Then you turn around and do the same thing.” He slammed his car door and shouted through its closed window. “Don’t expect my help messing around with bonus chicks.”
Zack’s mouth fell open. “Chill out!”
“You have a girlfriend! Remember that before you cheat!” Ken scowled over his shoulder and marched off with Jessie.
Zack goggled after them. The auburn-haired beauty had turned his player best friend into a stand-up dude.
Zack’s morning went steadily downhill. Jessie surmised that Zack was cheating and ran straight to Chelsea with the news. Both girls began giving him the silent treatment, and Ken followed suit upon orders from Jessie. Zack’s classes were even worse than the state of his social life. Mr. Fields gave him another detention, he took a dodgeball to the face during PE, and he incurred hefty late penalties for forgetting to w
rite his English essay.
His friends had all disowned him so he entertained himself by looking for Amy. Zack hesitated halfway across the cafeteria at lunch. Did Ken have a point? Was he becoming her stalker? He shook his head. When had Ken ever been right? Amy was a phase. He just had to get her out of his system. Like a junk food craving or the urge to binge-watch Friends, his fascination with the beautiful brunette would quickly run its course.
He found her outside on a concrete wall near the football field. She was sitting with Charles Banks, a nerdy kid Zack had gone to school with since kindergarten. The two sat side by side, their interaction stiff and forced. Amy looked even more pissed than usual, like she was preparing to punch him out. Zack’s lips curved into a smirk. He’d love to watch that spectacle, but years of ingrained politeness made him turn away to let them talk. He wandered back inside with another piece of the puzzle that was Amy’s confusing life.
Alex Cardelle and Peter Jenkins, the two members of Assassin’s Honor on the THS football team, stood a few meters from the exit. Both wore anxious expressions as they peered through a foggy window.
Zack crept up behind them to see what warranted such rapt attention. They were staring at Amy and Charles. His gut curdled with unease. “What ya doin’?” he said with a singsong edge of mockery.
They whirled to face him, Alex puffing like a hornet protecting its nest. “That’s none of your business.”
Zack’s hands curled into fists. Alex had already made an inappropriate move on Amy, and now he was ogling her like a creeper? “If you have something to say to her, say it to her face.”
“I don’t care about the chick. It’s the company she keeps whom I have a problem with.”
Zack rolled his eyes. Alex had launched a campaign against Charles back when they were kids. Anyone who hung out with him was bullied until they stopped. Charles had never done anything to warrant such abuse, and Zack was appalled Alex’s hatred had persisted into high school.
Zack gave the gangsters a narrow-eyed glare. “When are you losers going to grow up and find a new hobby? Guess spying on chicks is all the action you get.”
Alex advanced with a murderous look of fury. “I think you want to take that back.”
“Zack, I need to talk to you!” Ken rushed up and skidded to a halt at Zack’s shoulder. “Hey guys. We having a team meeting or something?”
“God you’re stupid.” Alex threw Ken a withering look and stormed from the cafeteria.
Zack frowned. It wasn’t like him to let things go. “What’s he up to?” he said, turning his glare on Peter.
“Couldn’t tell you even if I knew.” Peter joined his friends at a nearby table.
“Picking a fight with those guys will get you in trouble with the coach,” Ken said.
Zack made a derisive noise and brushed past him on his way to the lunch line.
Ken kept pace with him. “I know how you can talk to Amy.”
Zack cut him a doubtful sideways glance. “Yeah? How?”
“Go to Parsons Elementary. Amy has a little sister in Chris’s class, right? Casually drop by to scoop your brother. He’ll be with Susan, and Susan will be with Amy.”
Zack offered his friend a lopsided grin. “You have a brain after all.”
Ken’s blue eyes twinkled. “Let’s just say I understand why you want to dump Chelsea.”
Zack shut his eyes, praying for patience. “I don’t want to dump Chelsea.”
Ken pretended not to hear him. “She’s a babe, but annoying as hell. Now, Jessie, she’s—”
“She’s the center of your universe, I know.” Their magic or whatever needed to die, but he had only himself to blame. His matchmaking had turned two quality friends into lovestruck idiots. “I can’t talk to Amy today. I have detention again.”
“So go for it tomorrow!” Ken thumped him on the back as if he had scored a touchdown.
Zack was half-asleep in history when his name was announced over the school intercom. He jerked upright. “Zack Donnellson and Amy Evans, please report to the principal’s office. Once again, Zack Donnellson and Amy Evans are needed in Principal Cook’s office. Thank you.” Zack gaped. What had he done now?
Ken laughed. “It’s fate, man.”
Ten
AMY CLENCHED HER pencil in her fist and silently cursed out Zack. What cruel twist of fate had landed her in the principal’s office with him of all people? A sharp snap made her look up from her seat at the back of her English classroom. The girl in front of her was rubbing the back of her neck and glaring over her shoulder. Amy’s pencil tip lay on the floor between their desks. “Sorry,” she mouthed.
She gathered her things and stood to leave. Charles glanced over his shoulder from his seat in the front row. She shot him an icy glare and strode out the door. He had found her at lunch to apologize for Monday. His introduction had come with a shock. He was the son of her mother’s former rehab counselor. She had sworn him to secrecy and promised to ignore him in future. They each had their own problems to deal with and they were better dealt with alone.
The first problem on Amy’s list was freaking Zack Donnellson. She marched to the office, cursing him with every step. He beat her there.
“Kind of you to join us, Ms. Evans,” Principal Cook commented dryly.
“Uh-huh.” Amy folded her arms. So what if she had arrived last? The principal was scowling at her as if she had committed a crime. Amy sat next to Zack in the only free seat.
Principal Cook’s office had cream-colored paneling, elegantly trimmed with mahogany crown molding. A collection of family photos decorated one wall, and a vast array of awards and degrees adorned another. The woman sitting behind the imposing oak desk was as elegant as her office. She had a trim figure, perfectly shaped eyebrows, and luxurious chestnut hair. She was dressed like a lawyer in a crisp navy blue pantsuit that brought out her aquamarine eyes.
“I’m tired.” Principal Cook leaned back in her beige leather chair. “Are you growing sick of this office, Mr. Donnellson?”
“Absolutely!” Zack flashed her a grin. “I can’t imagine how you must feel. Maybe you should hold meetings somewhere else every once in a while, like the football field or a buffet?”
“Idiot,” Amy muttered under her breath.
“Ms. Evans, do you have something to share?”
Amy forced a bright smile. “Nope.” Zack scowled at her.
“Do either of you know why you’re here?” Principal Cook folded her hands on her desktop and regarded them with stern disappointment.
Amy and Zack exchanged a puzzled glance. “No,” they chorused.
Principal Cook swept some files aside. “Let me clear it up for you. Your younger sister,” she nodded to Amy, “and your younger brother,” she pointed an accusing finger at Zack, “also got detention this afternoon. They told their teacher you guys enjoy it and purposefully got into trouble to try it out.” Her lips twitched. “Do you enjoy detention, Mr. Donnellson? Because we can arrange many more after-school visits if you desire.”
Zack’s jaw dropped. “I never said that! What lunatic would like detention?”
“I can’t imagine why either of you would say such a thing.”
Amy’s temper flared. “I have never told my sister anything that stupid. Who knows what he told his brother, but it’s not my fault if Chris got my sister into trouble because of Zack’s bad example.”
Zack scowled. “This isn’t my fault. Kids that age copy their older siblings.”
“That’s right, and which of us is the one always in trouble?” Amy raised her voice above Zack’s indignant protests. “This has nothing to do with me. This conversation is a waste of my time.”
“Enough!” Principal Cook slapped a hand to her polished desktop. “I want the both of you out of my office. Do not return to class,” she added as they bolted for the door. “Go over to Parsons Elementary and sort things out with Susan and Chris’s teacher.”
Amy accidentally slammed the door on her
way out. A clatter echoed within. Had a family portrait taken a tumble?
“Temper, temper,” Zack said. “Anger issues much?”
“Oh, I’m the one with issues, am I? Look in the mirror.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Amy tossed her ebony hair. “You’re a spoiled rich jock who drinks too much. At our twenty-year high school reunion, you’ll be sending a postcard from your state-of-the-art rehab center.”
His eyes narrowed. “Well, you’re pretty much trailer trash so you won’t have to send a postcard. You’ll just show up in your orange uniform.”
“Now I’m going to prison?” Amy laughed despite herself and flounced past him down the hall.
“I meant your Pete’s uniform, but prison works too.” He smirked and opened the outside door for her.
Zack headed for his car. Amy walked straight across the street to Parsons Elementary. She smiled sweetly as she forced him to stop while she crossed the road.
Chris, Susan, Principal Castello, and their teacher, Mrs. Peters, were all crammed into Mrs. Peters’s tiny office. The rectangular space was painted a soothing spring green. A bouquet of yellow daffodils rested on her narrow, cluttered desk next to a framed photograph of a beaming Mrs. Peters with her two grown sons.
“Amy!” Mrs. Peters flashed her a smile. “Sorry to pull you out of class, but we felt this matter required immediate attention. Is Mr. Donnellson also attending?”
“He’s on his way.” Amy flopped into the empty seat next to Susan. Zack arrived and sat beside Chris.
The adults stood to face them like an alarming knockoff of the Spanish Inquisition. The two women made a funny pair. Mrs. Peters reminded Amy of a super fun aunt with her round figure, girlish smile, and quirky style. She was the type to bake cookies for dinner on a weeknight or stroll through the park with dog treats for all her four-legged friends. Principal Castello gave off strict grandmother vibes. She had a stern face, graying hair, and penetrating arctic blue eyes perfect for unraveling childhood schemes. If Amy were nine years old, she’d cross the street when she saw the woman coming. Susan’s teacher adored her because Amy escorted half her class to school. She expected leniency from Mrs. Peters but had little hope for the hard-assed principal.
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