“I was in class!” Nicky sputtered. “What did you expect me to do?”
“You weren’t always in class. You went and did stuff with your study group.”
“I couldn’t invite you to that. You weren’t a part of the group.”
“You went to the arcade together! You couldn’t have invited me then?”
“It was a spur-of-the-moment thing, Keeley. This is different. We had set plans and you invited your boyfriend along.”
“I wanted you to meet him! Is that so wrong?”
“Yes! No. I don’t know.” Nicky took in a deep breath and exhaled. “I just … I really wanted to talk to you tonight. Alone.”
Keeley sighed, too. Okay, she had messed up. But she just wanted to make things better now. “I guess I got so caught up in Talon I didn’t realize how much I was ignoring you.”
That was all it took for Nicky to admit her own mistakes. “I guess I was the same way this summer. There was so much going on with the classes, and when those college kids wanted to hang out with me, I felt so special. I didn’t want to share. But once class was over, they pretty much forgot about me, and then you were constantly with Talon and I … I …”
“You what?”
“I needed my friend.”
All other emotions fled except concern. “What’s wrong?”
“All my hard work at school might not even pay off,” Nicky said. “My mom says money’s real tight right now. Basically the only way we can afford college is if I get a full-ride scholarship.”
“Oh, Nicky …” She knew how much college meant to her.
“I know. It sucks so much. I’ve been working my butt off for nothing.”
“That’s not true. You have the grades. You can get a full ride.”
“But probably not to the schools I want.”
Keeley knew Nicky had it all mapped out: a good pre-med program and then right on to medical school. Her plan would crumble if she didn’t build a strong foundation. Maybe that was even worse than having no plan at all. “Listen, why don’t we go back to the table and you can vent all you want? We can order our usual.”
“What about Talon?”
“He wanted to give us time together, so he left.”
Nicky was skeptical. “Just like that?”
“Just like that. I know you don’t like him, but can you try and get along? You’re my best friend, my other half. It’s important to me. Please?”
Nicky made a disgruntled noise. “Especially because your actual twin doesn’t get along with him either.”
She winced. So they had plenty of roadblocks. But they could get through them. She had faith. “I’ll get on my knees and beg if I have to.”
Nicky wound her arm through Keeley’s and locked elbows. She pulled her to the door. “No need to beg. You can buy me a cupcake instead.”
“Of course. One cupcake coming up.”
“He was an ass. Better make it two.”
Keeley bumped Nicky’s shoulder in thanks.
Keeley wiped a bead of sweat off her forehead, then took another long gulp of water. Traipsing around the state park was much easier at night when the sun wasn’t beating down. Her head whipped around when Talon slammed his phone on the picnic table. Lowering her water bottle, she asked, “You okay?” He’d been texting ever since they’d hiked back down the mountain after finding a cache hidden near one of the lakes.
“It’s my dad again. He turns into this crazy person during football season. I hate it.” Talon didn’t speak of his dad that often. Keeley got the feeling they fought a lot. “He couldn’t care less what I do in the off-season, but football time rolls around and suddenly he’s dictating my every move.”
“Why does he care about football so much?”
“I don’t know. I think it’s some sort of status thing. Growing up on the farm, my dad didn’t have a lot of money, but he played football and it opened a lot of doors for him. Got him a scholarship to college. I think he assumes it’s the only way I’ll succeed. Which is insulting. I’m not a stupid jock. My grades are high.”
Keeley wondered if Talon even liked football or if he played because his dad wanted him to. “Are you going to play in college?”
“If I didn’t, my dad would have a heart attack. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing. I just wish he would let me do it without the constant criticism.”
“Zach would trade places with you in a heartbeat. My family isn’t big on football. We go to all his games, but we’re not die-hard fans.” Keeley knew the basics, but couldn’t talk anything beyond, like strategy.
“My entire family is — all my uncles, aunts, cousins. One of my girl cousins, Linda, played in high school.”
“That’s badass.” And incredibly brave. “I wish I had the guts to do something like that.”
“You can. Although maybe not sports. I’ve seen you run,” he teased.
“It’s not even about sports. I don’t think I can get out there and make a big statement like your cousin.”
“Who said it has to be big? The only thing that counts is if it’s important to you, or at least that’s what my gramps told me.” Talon’s stomach let out a growl. “I’m hungry. Do you have time to grab dinner before I have to take you home?”
Keeley glanced at the clock on his phone. “I have time.”
He grabbed the empty water bottles scattered on the table. “Let me throw these away and then we can go.”
She picked up his car keys and phone. “I’ll get the air- conditioning started.”
As she unlocked the truck, his phone beeped. It did it again. Then again. Must be texts from his dad. She went to turn it to silent but more texts popped up on the screen, from two guys named Mitch and Finn.
Mitch: You’ll never believe who we saw at the store. CLAIRE.
Whoever that was.
Finn: Completely ignored us. Don’t know why you were so hung up on her.
Mitch: Think she moved back?
Finn: Who cares? An ex should stay an ex.
An ex? She hadn’t realized Talon had an ex-girlfriend.
When Talon hopped in, he checked his phone. He typed something, then slipped it in his pocket. “Let’s eat,” he said, his expression unreadable.
Keeley didn’t know why she was so bothered by Talon having an ex-girlfriend. Maybe it was because he’d never mentioned her, not even when she talked about Randy. And if Talon had an ex-girlfriend, it meant he could be comparing Keeley to her at all times. She did it with Randy. Thankfully, Talon always came out ahead, but what if she wasn’t as lucky?
At dinner, she tried to work the ex-girlfriend into the conversation, but either a waiter would interrupt or Talon would start talking about something else. She was starting to think it was a conspiracy. They were walking to his car when she decided to stop being subtle.
Looking him straight in the eye, she asked, “Talon, have you ever had a girlfriend before?”
He stalled. “Besides you?”
“Besides me.”
“Uh, yeah. Once. My freshman year.”
When he didn’t say anything else, she nudged his side. “Come on, I want more than that. You know about Randy.”
The ends of his mouth turned down. “Her name’s Claire. She was in my art history class and we were paired together for a project. We hit it off and started dating.”
“And …? What happened?”
He sucked in a breath and slowly let it out. “I don’t like talking about it.”
Even to her? She thought they could talk about anything.
It was quiet as they turned onto Keeley’s street. Talon parked half a block away so Zach wouldn’t catch them. When they got out of the truck, Keeley turned to Talon, intent on giving him a hug goodbye, but he stopped her. “Are you mad?”
She wasn’t mad. More confused. And a little wary. What didn’t he want to tell her? “Was the breakup bad or something?” That’s the only reason she could think of.
“You could say that,” he admitted rather reluctantly.
“You can tell me anything, you know. I won’t judge you.”
He sighed. “I thought everything was great between me and Claire, but …” He shrugged and looked away. “One day I got a text from my buddy Mitch. It was a picture of her and this guy kissing at a party. We’d only been dating for a couple months. I felt like an idiot.”
He’d been cheated on? Keeley couldn’t imagine this happening, especially to a guy like Talon. Most people didn’t see it, but he had a soft heart. “I’m so sorry.”
“The worst part was the guy purposefully went after her to get to me.”
What kind of guy would do something that low? “Why would he do that? Does he —”
A loud ringing interrupted her.
“Damn,” Talon said, pulling out his phone. “It’s my dad again. I have to take this.” He held the phone up to his ear, a small grimace on his face. The volume was loud enough for her to overhear.
“Do you know what time it is? You were supposed to be home ten minutes ago.”
Ten minutes ago? It was only eight o’clock.
“Dad —”
“The game is tomorrow. You should be home resting. Not out with your girlfriend.”
Talon’s shoulders were hunched over, his voice hushed but urgent. “I’m not doing anything illegal so stop treating me like I am.”
“So you’ve said. And don’t think for one second I’ve forgotten about you storming out of the house this afternoon while I was talking.”
“That wasn’t talking, that was lecturing. And I don’t see what the big deal is.”
“This is no time for girls, son. You can date all you want after the season is over, but right now, your mind needs to be on football. This is your future we’re talking about.”
Talon blew out a frustrated breath. He twisted his body, shifting away from Keeley. “Dad, I’ll be home in twenty minutes. We can talk about it then.” He ended the call and gave her a smile, but she could see the anger swirling beneath. “Dad at it again.”
“I didn’t know he wanted you to stop dating me. Why didn’t you tell me?” What else had he left out of their conversations? She was starting to get a bad feeling about this.
He shrugged and looked away. “Didn’t want to worry you.”
“Talon,” she whispered, emotion radiating from her voice. “I don’t want to get you in trouble.”
“You’re not trouble. Trust me, I’ve been in trouble.” He reached into his pocket. “I know we haven’t been together that long but I want to give you something. Will you wear my class ring?”
He held out a square gold ring with a dark-green emerald embedded in the middle. “Crosswell High School” was printed around the gem in block letters. A football was etched on one side while his name, JT Harrington, was etched on the other.
He was giving her his class ring? All of a sudden, their relationship felt more serious than it ever had. This was an expensive piece of jewelry. Her parents had been furious with Zach when he’d lost his. Was he really comfortable letting her wear this?
He pulled at the collar of his shirt. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. It’s just an idea I had. Stupid, really.”
“It’s not stupid.”
“Then why won’t you wear it?”
“I don’t know what this means,” she answered truthfully.
Planting his feet on the ground, he leaned against his car. Then he pulled her to him, one hand on her lower back, the other holding the ring. “It can mean whatever you want it to mean.”
“That doesn’t help.”
He gave a crooked grin. “I know we haven’t been dating long —”
“Not even a full month.” It felt longer, though. Maybe because their relationship began way before their first date.
“But knowing you’re wearing it, especially at the game tomorrow, is important to me.”
“Why?” She didn’t understand. It wouldn’t affect anything.
He shrugged. “Wearing it feels like you’re supporting me somehow.”
“Of course I’m supporting you.” Why wouldn’t she?
“What about Zach? Aren’t you going to be cheering for him?”
She bit her bottom lip. She hadn’t thought about the logistics. She’d been too caught up in Talon and the newness of their relationship. She couldn’t openly cheer for Talon, not if she wanted to keep him a secret from Zach.
Feeling her tension, he rubbed her shoulder. “I get it. I do. That’s why I want you to wear my class ring.” He brought his hand between them and opened it. The ring lay on his palm.
She was still nervous, but she got why it mattered to him. And how could she not accept it when he was being so understanding about her brother? “I’ll take it on one condition,” she told him. “I give it back after the game.”
“Deal.”
She had the perfect place to put it. Reaching back, she unclasped the delicate chain around her neck and threaded it through the ring. It jingled as it collided with the silver charm.
Talon fingered the miniature cell phone. “I didn’t know you wore this.”
“Every day.” The chain was long enough that she could hide it under her shirt. It felt like her own little secret from the rest of the world.
His lips parted in surprise and then spread into a large smile. Seeing him smile at her did something funny to her chest.
“What?” she asked. It wasn’t as if she’d just declared her undying love.
Half expecting a flippant answer, she was surprised when he said, “Makes me happy, that’s all.”
It made her happy, too.
“I hate pep rallies,” Nicky commented as she propped a foot on the bench in front of her. Today was game day and tension was mounting. Last year’s defeat couldn’t — wouldn’t — happen again. The football players vowed it. A loud cheer went up in the school gymnasium as the cheerleaders entered. They took their places just as music started blasting. The whole school watched as they tumbled and danced to the beat.
“You hate pep rallies because you’re jealous of the cheerleaders,” Keeley replied.
“I don’t see why I didn’t make the team. I’m peppy and loud.”
“You can’t even complete a cartwheel.”
Nicky wrinkled her nose. “The floor was slippery. They didn’t give me a fair chance.”
Yeah, right, Keeley thought. But being loyal, she said, “You would have been the best cheerleader out there.”
They watched as a girl was hurled into the air, completing multiple flips before being caught in the arms of her teammates. Nicky sighed. “Fine. I could never have been a cheerleader, but I would have been the cutest one if I had any talent.”
The music stopped and the cheerleaders left the floor as the football players made their entrance. One by one, the school principal introduced them.
“And finally, number six, Zachary Brewer!”
The school erupted into thunderous applause. Everyone loved Zach, even the teachers.
Keeley stood up and clapped, shouting her brother’s name. He was scanning the stands, searching for her. When he spotted her, he touched his chest right over his heart and caught her eye. She did the same and winked. The ritual dated way back to when Zach first started playing football.
As the principal droned on about beating Crosswell, Keeley zoned out. Absently, she toyed with the necklace that held Talon’s class ring and the cell phone charm.
“What do we have here?” Nicky asked. She lifted the ring and studied it. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
“He just gave it to me las
t night. And I only have it for this game,” she rushed to explain. Then she hesitated. “Plus, I … well, I didn’t know how you’d respond, especially after what happened at The Factory.” She didn’t want to hear any rude comments that could ruin the special moment she and Talon had shared last night.
Nicky drew her eyebrows together. “I hate that you feel like you can’t talk to me. I won’t lie — I’m still not a hundred percent sold on him, but I am trying.”
“I know.” Nicky had asked for a redo. It’d taken some convincing on her part, but finally Talon agreed. They were planning on coffee next week. “And I love you even more for that. After the rally, we can sit down at lunch and I’ll tell you everything.”
Suddenly, the principal announced, “We need a volunteer from each grade to participate in a game. Show your school spirit!” Cheerleaders searched the crowds, pulling people from the gym bleachers.
Amy, a senior cheerleader, approached them. “Come on, Keeley.”
“No.” She put her hands up. “Absolutely not. You are not getting me down there.”
Amy grabbed an arm and pulled her up. “It’ll be fun!”
“Define fun,” she grumbled as she let herself be dragged across the gym floor.
When the four volunteers were gathered, the cheerleaders brought out a Twister mat, except instead of blue, green, yellow and red dots, there were mustard, ketchup, whipped cream and chocolate syrup dots. The person who lasted the longest won their class free ice cream. All around her, students were egging each other on, bragging how they were the ones who were going to win.
Suddenly Zach was next to her. “Don’t worry, Keels, it won’t be too bad.”
“You did this,” she accused, throwing her brother an evil glare.
“I’m just giving you a chance to show off your moves.” He ignored her jab to the stomach and moved to the side so he could have a front-row seat.
Rolling up the ends of her jeans, she listened as the principal read off the first set of instructions. Hesitating, she watched as the other students stepped onto a dot of yellow mustard. Zach waved her forward, a toothy smile pasted on his face. With a grimace, she placed her right foot on the dot, mustard gushing between her toes. Gross.
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