“Talon, I want you to meet my brother, Zach. Zach, this is —”
“JT,” Zach said, finishing her sentence. “What the hell are you doing with my sister?”
“JT?” All the blood drained out of her face. It had to be a mistake. He couldn’t be JT. He would have mentioned it during one of their talks.
Wouldn’t he?
Doubt started to creep in.
“Baby doll,” he whispered softly, the words barely audible.
“What the hell is going on here, Keels?” Zach demanded to know.
She ignored her twin, keeping her eyes locked with the boy standing before her. “You’re JT?”
Talon’s face contorted. “Keeley —”
“You’re the varsity quarterback of Crosswell?” The look on his face said it all. She had trusted him. She had confessed to things not even her best friend knew.
“Keeley, wait. Let me explain.” Talon reached out to grab her hands, but she stuffed them in her pockets. “What I told you yesterday about waiting till after the trip to explain everything. I —”
Zach swung his gaze to her. “You went to Barnett with him? How could you do that?”
Keeley didn’t appreciate the criticism in his tone. She wasn’t a child who needed scolding.
Talon stepped between them. “Back off, Brewer. This is between me and Keeley.”
Zach’s nostrils flared. “There is no you and Keeley.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure about that,” Talon shot back.
Did he really think they could pick up where they left off, even though he lied to her?
“What is that supposed to mean, Harrington?” Zach growled.
“Exactly what you think it means,” Talon countered, his expression turning smug.
Zach took a threatening step toward him. “You better not have laid a hand on her!”
Why were they talking as if she wasn’t there?
Talon straightened his shoulders, drawing himself up to full height. “I only did what she wanted me to do,” he taunted.
Not only had he lied about his identity, but now he was lying about their relationship. Making it seem like more than it really was — they’d only kissed — but also, somehow less than it really was, too. Keeley’s self-control snapped. “Excuse me?” she interrupted, her voice low and calm, belying her fury.
Talon’s face paled when he realized what he had implied. “That came out wrong. I didn’t mean it like that. You know I didn’t.”
“I don’t know what you meant, JT. And a piece of advice? Acting like a dick won’t make yours any bigger.” She’d had enough. “Let’s go, Zach.”
“Baby doll, listen to me.”
That nickname. It hurt so badly she had to close her eyes.
“It’s not what you think. I wasn’t playing you. It was real. It IS real.”
She needed to go before she broke down.
“So, you’re just going to leave?” he called when she started walking. “I never took you for a quitter.”
“And I never took you for a liar. Guess we both don’t know each other as well as we thought.”
She got into the car. Her brother sat in the driver’s seat, his hands gripping the wheel. His face was a mixture of anger and betrayal. “Do you want to tell me what the hell that was about? Why were you with him? And how do you even know him?”
“I don’t want to talk about it right now.” She wanted to go home and forget the whole incident. Forget she ever met him.
“Are you dating him?” he persisted.
“Drop it, Zach.”
“Well, are you? I think I have a right to know.”
Couldn’t he see she was at her breaking point? “I’m not dating him. Now, can you just shut up and drive?!”
“What’s your problem?” Zach asked incredulously.
“My problem?” Keeley repeated in a low tone. “My problem is that I don’t want to talk. My problem is that I just want to go home.” Her voice cracked on the last word, surprising both of them.
There was an awkward silence as Zach fumbled around looking for his car keys. “Um …” he mumbled, refusing to look at her, “have you seen —”
“The keys are in the ignition,” Keeley said in a wooden voice.
Sitting in the car, driving home … everything was exactly the same, and yet it felt different. Maybe she was the one who had changed. This whole time she’d been acting like the girl texting Talon was separate, but maybe that girl was a part of her real self, one she didn’t show many people. And you know what? She liked that girl. She wanted more of that girl.
The realization made her wonder about Talon. Maybe Talon was doing the same thing, except in reverse. The guy she met today at the station — the guy who got into fights and said crude things — was his true self, and the guy he showed her over the phone and this weekend was just an act. A lie. But even if it was an act, there had to be some truth to it, right? Maybe that person was still a part of him. Just not the whole part. But if she considered him a liar, did that mean she was one, too?
When they got home, Keeley headed straight to her bedroom. Tucker tried following, but she kept him out. She wasn’t in the mood. Not with Tucker. Not with her brother. Not with anyone.
Her cell phone rang. It was his ringtone. Before she even realized what she was doing, she was across the room, grabbing her phone. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the screen, his name flashing brightly like a neon light.
Talon was JT.
JT was Talon.
Keeley hit the red reject button, sending his call straight to voice mail. Did he make up that name? Why didn’t he tell her the truth?
Zach poked his head in. Gave her a cautious smile. “Left your stuff in the car. I brought it up for you.” He set it down, then hovered in the doorway.
“I’m not ready to talk about it,” she told him. Zach didn’t move. She started to grow angry. “Why can’t you just leave me alone? This isn’t about you! This is about me and my feelings!”
“Keeley —”
She didn’t want to hear it. “Leave me alone!”
“I just wanted to see if you’re okay.”
“I’m not. I’m miserable and angry and confused. There. Does that make you happy?” He just stayed there. Staring at her. “What do you want, Zach?”
Without a word, he walked over and pulled her into his arms. The silent acceptance broke her. Collapsing against him, she let the tears fall.
Three days had passed since Keeley learned the truth about Talon, and his betrayal felt as painful and raw as it had the moment it happened. Keeley found that burying herself in a mountain of homework helped. She even reserved a study room at the local library. Funny that it took heartbreak to drive her to work hard. There was no clear goal in mind, but maybe this would give her a direction to aim for.
She was in the study room, preparing for her first math test, when Talon walked in. “What are you doing here?” Keeley asked. How did he even know she was at the library? Did he follow her? She wouldn’t put anything past this guy. She had no desire to see him or talk to him.
“I thought we should talk face-to-face.”
“I have nothing to say to you.”
He dropped in the chair across from her. “Good. Because I don’t want you to talk. I just want you to listen. And can you please calm down and not go all Kill Bill on me?” he said, looking at her hands.
Keeley was clutching her pen like she was going to stab him. “Get out.”
“No.”
“I’m not doing this with you.” She didn’t want to listen to excuse after excuse. “You lied to me.”
“I never lied,” he stated matter-of-factly.
“Come on.” Did he really expect her to buy that?
“Technically, it was an omission of the truth. My
full name is James Talon Harrington the Fourth. A mouthful, huh?” He gave a sheepish smile meant to charm.
“So what the hell do I call you? James? Talon? JT?” The Easter Bunny?
“Talon,” he stated firmly. “You always call me Talon.”
Always? “You know what? I don’t have time for this. I have to get back to studying.”
“Then study,” he said, unconcerned.
Keeley stared at him.
He stared right back.
“Aren’t you going to leave?” she asked.
Talon put his hands behind his head and stretched out. “I’m good right here.”
“You can’t stay!”
“You can’t kick me out of the library. It’s public property.”
Keeley pointed to the sign on the door. “This room is for studying and you aren’t studying. So you need to get out.” She would get an adult involved if she had to.
He lifted a backpack she hadn’t seen from under his legs. “Then it’s a good thing I brought books.”
“Talon,” she sighed.
He grinned at her from across the table. “You said my name. I consider that progress.”
He was persistent, she’d give him that. “I can’t do this with you right now. I need time.”
“How much time?”
“I don’t know.” She couldn’t put a number on her feelings.
He stood up and walked to the door. “I’ll call you Friday night. We can discuss everything then.”
Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. Friday was two days away. “I’m not agreeing to that.”
“How are we supposed to get past this if you won’t talk to me?”
“What is there to talk about? You hurt me. The end. What did you think was going to happen?”
“I thought I’d explain and you’d forgive me.”
Did he really think it would be that easy? “I deserve more than a ten-second acknowledgment that my feelings matter.”
“I never said they didn’t,” he scoffed. “It’s like you want me to grovel or something!”
She wasn’t asking for that. She just wanted some consideration.
“Fine. Prepare for some groveling,” he snapped, and slammed the door behind him.
As Keeley was getting ready for bed that night, her phone beeped with a text. It was a picture message from Talon. Her eyes widened when she saw what it was. There was a blue marshmallow Peep sitting on top of a pillow. Next to the Peep lay an index card with the words “Sweet Dreams” scrawled across it.
The Peep reminded her of the bonfire at the beach. She’d opened up to him that night. Told him things she hadn’t even admitted to herself. And that kiss. She touched her lips. That kiss had been powerful. She glanced at the text again. This at least deserved a response.
Good to know “groveling” doesn’t diminish your self-confidence.
Just my reputation … but you’re worth it.
Cheesy doesn’t suit you.
You haven’t even seen cheesy yet. I can cheese with the best of them. Goodnight, Keeley. Dream of me.
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