by L A Cotton
But the second I went to move I realized my mistake. To get out of the cafeteria, I’d have to walk directly by Jason and Jenna.
Crap.
Taking a deep breath, I grabbed my tray and kept my head held high. I was so proud of myself for keeping it together. Only a few more steps and I’d be clear of them and their live sex show. Until something brushed the back of my leg, and I froze. My breath caught as I willed myself to calm down. It was nothing. A gust of wind from an open window maybe, or dust particles in the air. Before I could stop myself, I looked down. Dark eyes stared back at me.
Jason.
It was Jason.
He stared at me, through me, as I stood there paralyzed. Jenna was still kissing him, trailing her treacherous mouth all over his skin. Skin that less than forty-eight hours ago, I’d tasted. Skin I had been kissing.
A violent shiver rolled up my spine, my stomach churning.
Move, Felicity. Just keep walking.
Jason’s brow rose as he continued to stare at me, barely kissing Jenna back, but not stopping her either.
His intense gaze was cruel.
But then, I shouldn’t have expected anything else.
Steeling myself, I narrowed my eyes at him, lingering for a second, and then put one foot in front of the other and kept walking. Telling myself he hadn’t just ripped out my heart and stomped all over it.
Jason
“We need to talk,” Cameron pressed his hand against my chest blocking my exit from the locker room.
“Not interested,” I said coolly.
“We are doing this.” His brow arched as he shoved me. It was only a mild push but enough for me to know he meant business.
“Fine,” I shot back. “Say whatever you have to say, man, and let me get the fuck to class.”
“You go to class now?” He smirked.
“Fuck you.”
“Why’d you do it?” Cam let out a weary sigh, his eyes asking me a million things I didn’t have the answer to.
Shrugging, I said, “Because I was drunk and she was there.”
“Don’t give me that bullshit. You like her.”
“Like her?” I barked out. “I can’t fucking stand her.” Felicity Giles was exactly the kind of girl I spent my days trying to avoid. Needy. Desperate. Weird as hell.
“You really are a dick sometimes, you know that?”
“Never claimed to be anything else.” I shrugged dismissively.
“I just don’t get it. Vaughn was all over you. You could have taken her back to the hotel…” He let the words hang between us. We’d gone to New York for Hailee’s birthday last weekend. Asher’s cousin Vaughn had showed us around with her brother. She was hot. Slim with curves in all the right places, and Cam was right, she was up for it. Whispered it in my ear more than once during the night. But I hadn’t gone there. Instead, I’d drank more than I should have, gone back to the hotel and found myself outside Felicity’s room in the middle of the night.
“Look, it was just sex. Drunken sex. I was horny, and she was there.” She might not have been my type, all geeky with no filter, but there was no denying Felicity was gorgeous. Long dark hair, narrow waist, and legs that seemed to go on for miles, even if she did stand a good few inches shorter than me. And her eyes, fuck. Two pools of sea-green that had worked some hypnotic voodoo shit on me.
Obviously.
“Just sex,” my best friend repeated flatly.
“Yeah, just sex. She knows the score. It was a good time. Now it’s over. So can we all just fucking move on?” I couldn’t get distracted by some girl-drama, not when I had the play-offs in sight. My focus needed to be one-hundred-and-ten percent on the team. On winning State.
“So it wasn’t a game?”
“Game? What the fuck are you talking about?” Irritation rippled through me.
“You didn’t know?”
“Seriously, Chase, spit it out already.”
Cameron was staring at me like I’d lost my fucking mind. And maybe I had. If I’d had known it would cause this much trouble, I never would have looked twice at Felicity. But then, my step-sister wasn’t supposed to walk in on us.
He didn’t reply, still gawking at me, so I added, “Look, I know she’s Hailee’s best friend, but she knows the deal. I didn’t promise anything, and she didn’t—”
“Will you just shut up a second,” he ground out and it was my turn to gawk.
A beat passed. Another. The air charged around us.
And then he delivered the last words I ever expected to hear.
“She was a virgin.”
“A virgin?” I choked out. “Is that supposed to be a joke?”
Felicity wasn’t a virgin. Sure, she’d been tight, but I just figured she wasn’t as experienced as Jenna or the other gymnasts and cheerleaders who rode dick like it was an Olympic sport. But she hadn’t said a word when I’d gone faster. Harder. I always liked to be in control and that spilled over to sex. I never made a girl do anything she didn’t want to, but I wasn’t gentle either. I liked to fuck. And then I liked to get the fuck out of there. I’d tried the whole relationship thing once before and it had blown up in my face, and I wasn’t ever looking to go there again.
I didn’t do sleepovers and except for a handful of girls, I didn’t do repeat performances. Sex was an outlet. Nothing more, nothing less. And like football, I excelled at it.
So how the fuck hadn’t I realized Felicity was a virgin?
“You really didn’t know?” Cam asked.
“Do you think I would have fucked her if I did?” He winced at my harsh tone. “She was practically begging for it.”
I think. It was all a little hazy. But she’d wanted it as much as me.
“Nice, real nice.” He deadpanned.
“Are we done? Because you’re starting to piss me the hell off.”
“Yeah, we’re done.” He let out an exasperated breath. “Just stay away from her, Jase. She’s Hailee’s best friend and things are already strained enough.” He didn’t say the rest; he didn’t have to.
Things between us were strained. But then what had he expected when I found out about him and Hailee?
Growing up, she had been the bane of my fucking life. I’d hated her. Hated everything about her. But a lot had changed since senior year started. I guess that was a trending theme with it being the final year of high school.
Me and Hailee weren’t exactly friends now, but for the sake of Cameron, we’d called a shaky truce.
“Is that all?” Anger laced my words. I was so fucking over all this bullshit.
“I know it’s hard seeing me with her—”
“Save me the ‘I’m sorry I chose your step-sister’ speech.”
“Jase, come on...” His hand curled around my arm. “It doesn’t change anything. You’re still my best friend. I’ve got your back. Always.”
But it did change things.
It changed everything.
It had always been the two of us against the world. Now it wasn’t.
And I didn’t know what the fuck to do with that.
I pushed off the wall the second Felicity appeared. Mondays she stayed behind after school for book club.
Fucking book club. It sounded like something my grandma would have enjoyed if she were alive.
“Jason?” Her mouth fell open when she spotted me, those big sea-green eyes widening to saucers. “What are you—”
“Let’s go, Giles,” I said, trying to keep it as impersonal as possible. My dick had other ideas though, traitorous motherfucker, stirring to life the second my hand clasped around her tiny wrist. Remembering how it had felt to pin them above her head while I slid inside her, making her cry out my name.
“Go? Go where?” She huffed indignantly. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“You think you have a choice?” I dragged her around the side of the building toward the gym. It was quiet, just like I knew it would be.
“Jason,” she hissed, trying
to yank free of my grip. But I kept walking, refusing to do this out in the open where anyone could walk by and see us.
Shouldering the door to the gym, I pulled her down the hall toward the locker room. The second we were inside, and the door closed, I was on her. Crowding her against the wall, I placed my hands either side of her head and glared at her. “A virgin? You didn’t think to fucking mention that before we—”
Her scowl deepened, a low growl rumbling in her throat. It would have been impressive if she wasn’t so tiny and vulnerable compared to me as I loomed over her. “It wasn’t like you asked,” she seethed.
“Because I didn’t think—”
“Oh that’s right.” Her brow rose. “You’re used to fucking skanks.”
Jesus, this girl.
“Watch it, Giles.”
“Or what, Ford?” she threw back without hesitation.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” My voice softened, surprising me. It surprised Felicity too, if the hitch of her breath was anything to go by.
“It’s not a big deal.” She gave a lackluster shrug. “I wanted to get it over with, and you were available.”
“Available?” I balked. She couldn’t actually be serious. “You make it sound so—”
“What are you doing, Jason?”
What was I doing?
“Nothing, I just... shit, Felicity, you should have told me.”
Sardonic laughter spilled from her lips. “What, so you could make it romantic? Buy me flowers and tell me how pretty I looked before dirtying me up. Please. This isn’t a fairy tale and you’re certainly no prince. It was just sex, Jason.” Something flashed in her eyes, but she quickly schooled her expression.
It was too late though. I’d seen that look before. Right before I glided inside her.
Fuck.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Memories washed over me. Her damp skin, the little moans she made as I moved above her. Inside her. The way she’d clung to me, meeting me thrust for thrust.
“You’re sure you were a—”
“Are you kidding me right now?” Her eyes widened.
“But you didn’t...” The words got stuck in my throat.
“What, bleed? I did, you were just too wasted to notice.” Shame colored her cheeks as she lowered her gaze.
I had been drunk, but I hadn’t been that drunk. Had I? It had been dark and messy. A tangle of heated kisses and desperate touches. And then Hailee had burst into the room killing the moment and I’d pretty much hightailed it out of there, not bothering to check if she was okay.
“Can I go now?” she added, barely looking at me.
“I… what...” I choked out unsure why I felt like shit all of a sudden. So she was a virgin. It wasn’t like I initiated it. She was as hot for me as I was for her.
Was I really hot for her?
I’d told Cameron it was just sex, convenient. But I couldn’t deny I didn’t like hearing her describe what had really gone down.
A girl’s first time was supposed to be... more or something, wasn’t it?
Hearts and flowers and mood lighting and all that shit. I didn’t know because I didn’t make a habit of fucking virgins.
“Why?” The word flew out of my mouth before I could stop it.
“Why?” Felicity frowned. “Why, what?”
“Why me?”
“Oh don’t flatter yourself, Jason.” She tapped my chest, smiling wryly. “I have a list and you were a means to an end.”
A means to an... what the actual fuck?
“Now if you’re done, I have places to be.” She ducked under my arm and came up on the other side, but my hand shot out, grabbing her arm.
“What game are you playing, Giles?”
“Game?” Surprise flashed in her eyes, her earlier confidence slipping away. “You think this is a game?”
“You’re telling me it isn’t?”
The air electrified around us, crackling with sexual tension. My dick felt it. Hell, my entire body felt it. And it wanted more.
More Felicity.
More of her smart mouth and witty retorts. Her slender hips and pouty lips.
I needed to get a fucking grip. Because I had enough to worry about without adding a girl to the mix. Especially my step-sister’s best friend.
“Go to hell, Jason.” She stormed off, her anger almost palpable as she disappeared into the hall.
Long after she’d gone, I was still standing there. Processing our interaction. My body’s strange response to her. She was pissed, that much was obvious—her attitude a front for her true feelings. Her closing line had been telling enough. She wanted me to stay the fuck away.
So why did all I hear was game on?
“Jason, can you come in here please?”
With a groan, I stalked down the hall and into the kitchen where I found my dad at the kitchen table, pouring over a stack of papers. “Yeah?”
“We’d like for you to join us for dinner today.”
“I’m good, but thanks.” No way did I want to sit around playing happy families with my old man, his new wife, and Hailee.
“Son,” Dad let out a heavy sigh. “We need to move past this.”
“I’m over it. I just don’t want to pretend I actually give a shit.”
“Jason,” he snapped, eyes sliding to Denise. “I know you’re hurting, but this is not the way.”
Me and my old man were most definitely not father and son goals. To the rest of Rixon, Dad liked to exude togetherness. A team. The local football hero and the son set to follow in his path. But I knew the truth. I knew what Kent Ford was really about. There was a time when I’d worshipped the ground he’d walked on. But that was before. When he and my mom were in love. When our family was enough.
“I’ll be in my room,” I said, swiping a banana from the fruit bowl and retreating into the hall. Almost colliding with Hailee as she flew off the stairs.
“Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t see you.”
“Yeah, okay,” I grumbled. It wasn’t like you could really miss me. Six one. Broad. Wearing my blue and white football jersey. “In a hurry?”
Hailee’s brows pinched. “You want to talk?”
“Forget it.” I waved her off.
“Jeez, I’m sorry. I just didn’t expect... what you were saying?” Her expression softened, and I found myself humoring her.
“I said are you in a hurry?”
“Felicity’s picking me up. We’re going to The Alley.”
Of course they were. I didn’t get the appeal. It was a dive place on the Rixon/Rixon East border. Too many East kids came around there for my liking.
“You think it’s a good idea to go there alone?”
“I won’t be alone. I’ll be with Flick. But it’s nice to know you care.” A hint of amusement played on Hailee’s lips.
Before I could correct her, Felicity’s horn blared outside. I knew because I’d been listening to the annoying-as-fuck sound for almost two years since she passed driver’s ed.
“Right then, I’ll guess I’ll see ya.” Hailee moved toward the door, but I called after her. “Yeah?” She glanced back.
“I didn’t know.”
“Know?” Her brows knitted.
I dragged a hand down my face wondering why the fuck I’d said anything to begin with. But it was out there now, hanging between us. “Yeah, about Felicity being a... you know,” I explained.
My step-sister inclined her head, studying me for a second and then said, “Okay.”
Okay?
What the fuck was that supposed to mean?
“I’m glad we cleared that up.”
A hint of a smile lifted the corner of her mouth but then her expression turned serious. “I know we have to tolerate each other for Cameron’s sake, but stay away from Felicity, Jason.”
“I—” The words got stuck, but it was too late anyway. Hailee had already slipped outside and disappeared, leaving me standing there, wondering what the fuck just happened.<
br />
Felicity
“You’re distracted,” Hailee said over her sundae. “It’s him, isn’t it? Jason.” There was a coolness to her voice that squeezed my heart.
“It’s not…” I let out a heavy sigh, meeting her gaze. “I thought I’d feel good or relieved or something but now I just feel…”
I didn’t know what I felt.
The list was supposed to help me push my boundaries, to step out the confines of my perfectly average life and take more risks. It wasn’t like I’d planned to seduce Jason. To play his stupid game of cat and mouse. He was just there. Like a slow building wave that before I realized what had happened, crashed over me and swept me off my feet.
“Oh, Flick.” Hailee reached over the table and grabbed my hand. “I could kill him for doing—”
“It wasn’t his fault. I need you to know that. I—”
“You like him, don’t you?”
“I can’t really explain it but something’s different this year.” I’d never looked twice at Jason and his friends before. Neither had Hailee though, and look how that turned out. Now she was madly in love with Cameron and they were planning to go off to college together and have cute football playing babies.
“Did you think if you slept with him, he’d suddenly change? Because—”
“What? No. No!” I shook my head. “I know Jason isn’t boyfriend material. Trust me, I know. But there’s something... he makes me feel...”
Just then, the door opened and a swarm of people entered, all wearing red and white jerseys.
“Crap,” Hailee grumbled as we watched the Rixon East football players stroll up to the diner counter.
“Don’t they know this is Switzerland?” I whispered.
Tate, the owner of The Alley, refused to let the rivalry between Rixon High and the high school across the river, Rixon East, affect his business. Anyone was welcome here so long as they played nice. That meant no football jerseys, colors, or smack talk. It’s why both football teams usually avoided the place like the plague.
“Apparently the rules just changed.” Hailee retreated into herself, and I couldn’t blame her. Lewis Thatcher, captain and QB for the Rixon East Eagles, had come after her once he discovered she was Jason’s step-sister. It had been a shitshow, but since Rival’s Week was done, we figured—hoped—the stupid pranks were over.
