Interference: Book One (Bases Series)

by Grace, Hazel

Me: Right.

  Taylor: That means we have to go to extremes.

  Me: Explain.

  Taylor: Colson won’t back off easily.

  “Nice of you to join us, Mr. Hayes.” I jolt in my seat, my head snapping to Mrs. Yemin staring at the doorway. My eyes follow her attention, tumbling on the chest of Colson.

  What. Is. He. Doing. Here?

  Adjusting his blue flannel around his forearms, he gives her a smile. “Sorry, got hung up in Mr. Tim’s class.”

  Mrs. Yemin extends her arm toward the empty desks in the room. “Take a seat, please.”

  I sink deeper in my chair, positioning my body to lay parallel to the stocky guy in front of me. What are the odds of him getting detention on the same day as me?

  I’m thinking not very high.

  Leaning more towards planned.

  The sound of sneakers squeak along the mopped tile floors, and I pray. I pray so loudly in my head for someone up there to save me from Colson’s pettiness. Because if he sees me, he’s going to sit by me.

  And then he sucks my silent pleas away when his chestnut eyes fall on me. “Hey, Bases.” His lips hoist into an amused grin.

  Yep, planned.

  I don’t respond, just clasp my phone tightly in my hands. He takes a seat next to me, dropping his backpack loudly on the floor while I prop my head on my fist, looking away from him. My phone vibrates in my palm, Taylor’s last text resounding in my head.

  Colson won’t back off easily.

  I can agree to that, but what she could possibly have in mind scares me. What if it makes it worse? What if what she thinks is a good idea might get me kicked off the softball team or even expelled from school? Stressing out my parents, even more, is out of the question. And I can’t be kicked out of Freemont High because I plan on going to college.

  But I’m so curious about what she’s thinking. She must know something about Colson, a weakness, or a secret, maybe?

  “You’re not supposed to have your phone out,” Colson chides, making goosebumps prick the back of my neck and down my arms.

  I turn my head toward him. “Don’t worry about what I’m doing.” He shrugs, leaning back in his chair, crossing his arms and nodding toward the front of the room.

  “Mrs. Yemin will care.”

  I raise a brow. “You a rat, Hayes?”

  He grins, which slightly crinkles the skin next to his eyes. “You part of the mafia now, Bases?”

  “What are you doing here? You’re missing practice.”

  He crooks his neck, facing me. “I earned it.”

  “What, picking on another innocent victim?” He smirks, keeping his eyes on Mrs. Yemin.

  “You could call her a victim, but she’s far from innocent.” He glances at me with mischief in his eyes. “I got caught sucking on Tracy Wenthers’ tits in the janitor’s closet.”

  My jaw goes flaccid with his open admittance.

  God, he’s so freaking blunt and whore-ish. I can’t stand him even more as the days go on. Each one that passes makes the level of hate I have for him only increase. And I’ve never hated anyone before in my life.

  “Is that an invitation, Bases?” He raises a brow. “Because with your mouth open like that, you’re leaving the wrong impression.”

  My mouth snaps shut, and I can feel my cheeks burn while I turn my face away. Immediately, my fingers slam into the keyboard of my phone.

  Me: What’s the plan?

  Taylor: You’re not going to like it, but it’s good.

  Me: Try me.

  Colson: So that you don’t have to say it out loud, you done with Gavin?

  My head snaps back to him, my glare fused into his smug face. But it doesn’t stop the look he gives me like he is silently telling me that I won’t get another chance to obey him by breaking up with Gavin. A way to bow down to the boy who thinks he’s a king and can subject anyone to do what he wants.

  The thing is, I used to be like everyone else. I didn’t lead, I minded my own business. I hung out with my friends, and I was just a normal no one. But everything has changed since Colson decided to bend my life to his own will. I can’t keep the hostility that he renders inside me any longer.

  He did this.

  I just want a regular, average life. No random text messages about if I was going to break up with the boyfriend who’s been nothing but perfect to me. My personal property not to be taken from my back pocket so I can give him my full attention. Being dragged into an empty room where I’m chastised about a date that had nothing to do with him.

  Then, the icing on the cake, the planted forged paper for Mr. B’s class, which landed me in my first detention ever.

  I. Was. Done.

  Me to Colson: Don’t talk to me.

  Taylor: I’ll call you when you’re out of detention.

  Colson: Simple yes or no.

  I inhale a soft, deep breath.

  Me: Nope. Nice try though.

  Colson: You don’t know what you’re doing, Bases. I’ll ruin everything.

  Me: Can’t wait to see you try.

  Colson slams his phone on his desk, rattling the class to look over at him. He sends them a glare, and they turn back around.

  “Is there a problem, Mr. Hayes?” Mrs. Yemin bellows, her magazine folded down.

  Colson’s chest heaves in and out, irritated, angry, probably wanting to strangle me with his bare hands.

  “Nothing I can’t handle,” he answers back with malice in his tone.

  Yep, we just went to war.

  And I hope Taylor has a plan of gold.

  Present Day

  After glancing at my phone for the tenth time this morning, I try to get lost in my work. I don’t know what I was looking for, a text from Colson? Myles? Jake was sleeping, not used to the time difference yet, and Dad was going to come into the office today. He’s interviewing another real estate agent so that I can go back to school and have some more time for myself.

  This was never a career for me, Dad knew that and expressed how thankful he was that I stepped in and helped him after his heart attack. My sister was still in her own world, not lifting a finger to do anything to help. All I want to do is finish my teaching degree in History and English and go from there. I’ve always felt unsettled, like I was walking down a blind path while everyone around me knew what they wanted to do and accomplish.

  And now, I feel like I’ve time traveled to being seventeen again, waiting for a text from a guy who didn’t have a reason or right to text me.

  I tap my fingers along the oak of the desk, trying to concentrate on my breathing. It’s a curse to have my heart plummet every time he reminds me about what I did to him. He’s completely over our high school romance, and he can, and will, fuck anyone that will affect me.

  The problem is it does affect me, and I can’t get it to stop.

  “Morning,” Dad greets, walking into the office and placing his thin suitcase on one of the chairs. “How are we doing today?”

  I force a smile. “Me or the business?”

  “You first, then the business,” he replies, taking a seat in the chair across from me.

  “I’m good, and we have a few offers on two of our listings.”

  “I’m happy to hear it,” Dad approves with a smile that makes his crow’s feet appear. “I was thinking we hire two new agents instead of just the one.”

  I frown. “Why?”

  “Well, with you going to school and business doing so well, you’ll need—”

  “No, Dad.” I shake my head to make sure I am being perfectly clear. “I’m not severing myself fully from the company. We just need someone to pick up some slack when I’m in class.”

  “You’ll be busy enough,” he presses. “I think we’ll be—”

  “Don’t you like having me here, Dad?” I’m guilt tripping him, I know. But I don’t trust anyone else to run this place properly and look out for my dad’s future. Plus, he needs my social media skills.

  I watch his face fall b
efore he quickly recants. “Of course I do, I’m not kicking you out. I love you here, I just know you have dreams of your own.”

  “Gosh...okay.” I hold a hand to my heart, just to keep him on the same page as me. We can’t afford another agent, I’m finally getting us out of the red on the books. “I like working with you, we work well together.”

  He smiles. “We do. Stay as long as you want, no pressure.” I stand from my chair and round the desk, kissing the top of his head. I feel like Skylar, manipulating him to do what I want, but it’s for his own good.

  “I’m going to go grab a coffee, what do you want?”

  “Large decaf to please your mother and a donut, don’t tell her that,” he conveys.

  “You got it.” I grab my purse, swipe up my phone, and walk out the front door. The spring day brings along a warm breeze, the brightness of the sun, and the promise that summer is on its way. Then my phone goes off again.

  Skylar: I can’t thank you enough!

  Myles: Hey, you wanna grab a movie this Sunday?

  I fire off a “yes” to Myles with a smiley face and sit on Skylar’s text.

  I don’t want to ask her what she’s talking about since I can already guess the answer myself. All I can do is hold on to my extreme dislike for Colson Hayes and use it to get through his bullshit. I know why she’s thanking me, after the little stunt that Colson pulled of leaving the bar with her, she probably had her mouth full.

  Of his dick.

  I inhale deeply, letting the fresh air fill my overworked lungs from all the heavy breathing I’ve had to do lately.

  Me to Myles: Yeah, sure. Just want to—

  I slam into a steel wall and stagger back, almost falling on my ass until a pair of hands steady me. Then meet with a set of familiar eyes admiring me.

  “Hey Bases,” he greets with a wicked smile and peril gleaming in his irises. “Was just coming to see you.”

  The fuck…

  I shrug off his hold and take a step back. “You’ll need an appointment.” He bends to pick up the papers that I didn’t notice fell out of my purse. As he straightens back to standing, his gaze scales up my legs to the seam of my black dress, before peering up at me.

  “I like your polka dot tights,” he quips with a grin, handing over my belongings.

  “Uh, yeah, thanks.” I snatch my listings out of his grip, shoving them back into my oversized knockoff purse.

  “I was just going to stop in real quick to see if there were any offers on my mom’s house yet.” I try not to notice his muscles in his black Freemont High T-shirt or the way the rips in his jeans make him look like he just threw them on after a rough night, but I fail.

  My God, whyyyyyy...

  “Yeah—yes. Two offers, we got them last night,” I reply.

  “Excellent, can you bring them over to the house later? I want to look them over.” I tilt my head behind me toward the office.

  “I can just go grab them for you now.”

  “Can’t wait,” he says. “I have to run, got a meeting with the school board. I’m trying to get new equipment for the team.”

  “Oh, that’s nice. I’ll just drop them in your mailbox then.” He rubs the back of his neck, exposing a bulky muscle under his arm.

  “Nah, I might have questions.”

  “Just send me a text,” I grit out.

  He lifts a brow. “Then I have to wait for an answer.” My nostrils flare, and I remember that this is a professional conversation.

  He is a client, I’m his agent, so chill.

  “I’ll be sure to be by my phone,” I promise with a forced grin.

  “Not the same.” He rolls his shoulders like he’s about to start practice right here and strike me out with conversation.

  “Seriously, Colson, I have some arrangements I have to make tonight and a possible showing across town.”

  “You say that like we live in New York City, Bases. The radius of this town is twenty miles, and that’s mostly farmland.”

  “I need to take my dad to—”

  “Quit with the bullshit,” he drones. “You’ve always been a horrible liar.”

  I narrow my eyes. “I’m sorry, do you have a schedule of my life?”

  “Eight work for you?” he conveys, ignoring me.

  “No.”

  “Fine, seven.”

  Business. This. Is. Business.

  He’s got a house he wants to sell and one he wants to buy. Which means money to help Dad’s business.

  “Fine,” I concede. “I’ll see you then.”

  “See you then,” he says with a victory smirk as his eyes linger back down my body. “And keep the tights.”

  Ten years ago

  I skip out on lunch, needing a distraction from my vendetta against Sawyer and from seeing Gavin up her ass every day at her lunch table.

  He’s pissed at me for getting her detention and the way I’ve been snapping at her at practice and everywhere else. Not to mention the way I burn holes into her head with my eyes, but alas, she is still alive.

  He’ll get over it.

  He never stayed mad at me for long, and Sawyer would eventually be a ship passing in the night. That, or I’ll make her break up with him. Starting with her self-esteem and her need to be wanted by her fellow teammates. Then I’ll fuck with her grades. Followed by having every girl who already hates her make her life a living hell. Sawyer wasn’t one to get into a fight, it would eat at her the way these girls would taunt and terrorize her.

  Especially when all of them want Gavin’s free dick.

  It’s funny how they’ll team up together with the same mission just to disband and compete amongst each other seconds later.

  Slamming my locker shut, I grab my books for Calculus class and head toward an empty classroom on the second floor. Tracy has been up my ass begging to give me a blowjob ever since I got detention for licking her tits.

  To make it even, she says.

  As I head toward the empty classroom to waste the twenty minutes left of lunch period, my phone vibrates in my pocket. Pulling it out, I expect yet another text from Tracy to show up on the screen

  Mom: Dylan wants you to wash his truck when you get home from practice.

  My whole jaw locks.

  Dylan, my mom’s new twenty-something-year-old boyfriend who thinks I’m his fucking errand boy. And my mother just lets him do it.

  Me: He can go fuck himself and wash his own damn truck.

  Mom: Colson! He’s good to us, have some respect.

  Me: Have some for my fucking father who died only a year ago.

  Mom: I’m not doing this with you. Get home and do it. End of story.

  Me: I’m not doing it, mother. If Dylan asks me to do it, he’s going to be wearing a black eye to match your heart so make sure you let him know that.

  I shove my phone back into my pocket and stride down the hall. My vision is blurring, my blood boiling in my veins. It’s to the point where I can’t stand the flesh and blood who birthed me. Her selfishness and unempathetic way that she treated me after Dad died is unforgivable.

  She gave the sheriff a blowjob to keep him from putting suicide on Dad’s death certificate, having him put that he choked so she could get his life insurance. She was only ever worried about the money, not that my dad had just killed himself, and not that I saw him hanging there.

  I hate her.

  I hate this town.

  I hate him for leaving me behind.

  “You can’t do this to me!” A sharp plea cries out through the empty halls. I round the corner, halting midstep.

  Miss McMahon is being shoved out of the main office, hands cuffed behind her back with two cops on either side of her.

  Teachers start to come out of their classrooms, closing the doors behind them to keep their students inside. A few stray students gape in shock at her digging her heels into the tiles.

  “I don’t have any speeding tickets,” she snaps, her blonde hair astray from struggling to get fre
e of the two muscular cops.

  “Ma’am, stop resisting or we’re going to hit you with refusing to cooperate and resisting arrest.”

  “This is ridiculous,” she storms, yanking at their grip. “Since when do you hunt people down for this? This town is absolutely—” The cops halt, one leaning into her ear to whisper something.

  What the fuck is happening? Did this town not have anything else better to do than stalk people at their jobs over an unpaid ticket?

  Before I can even fathom another thought, Miss McMahon’s crystal blue eyes padlock onto me. Her face collapses in fear and dread, paling to whatever the cop just said to her.

  They continue to escort her out through the front of the school as she dredges next to them, shoulders slumped, head bowed in defeat. I take a step to follow her out to ask what the hell is happening, but a voice slams into my back.

  “I heard she was fucking a student.”

  My fingers close on their own, my mouth set in a fine line. The velocity of my heart rate is at record speeds in my chest at the simple sentence.

  I’m going to annihilate this girl.

  Slowly, I turn around, coming face to face with the redhead who has been spending more time in my mind than she should. Her hair is perfectly wavy over her shoulders, arms set across her chest, ready to throw down.

  And we’re about to.

  “What the fuck did you do?” I growl, taking a step toward her. She doesn’t move, she just watches me with an impassive expression.

  I’m not used to seeing her with balls, usually, she cowers back from me, blushing with uneasiness and all the innocence of the world.

  But not now.

  Now, I see a stupid girl who underestimated me and took someone else down to discourage me from all the things I was going to do to her.

  “I warned you,” she says, using my words. It only ignites my feud with her. The chatter of students starts to fill the halls, word already spreading of Miss McMahon’s arrest.

  But Bases and I aren’t done yet.

  “I’m going to fuck you up,” I fume, closing every inch of space between us. “And not in the way you’re thinking now.”

  “Looks like I already did that.” She nods toward me. “To you.” She takes a step toward me, airing no reverence to what she’s just done. “You wanted to play hardball, mess with my grades, my senior year?” Her index finger stabs into my chest. “Threaten me with expulsion because you have this weird obsession with me dating—” My hands grip her arms as I shove her backward, getting us out of the center of the now congested hallway.