Page 82 of The Draft

“I’m working on it.”

“Well, you need to work harder,” he said pointedly before lying back and closing his eyes. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need to get some sleep before anyone else starts talking to me about things I don’t care about.”

Cade had pretty much switched off our conversation, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Did they actually have an unspoken rule? It would make sense that he would think that, but Madison sought me out, and didn’t let me go until it was too late.

I needed to speak to Madison. I wanted to text her, but the risk of Cade opening his eyes and side-glancing at our text exchange was too much. It wasn’t until I heard a steady rhythm of snoring from him that I dared to pull my phone out of my pocket. After turning on the plane Wi-Fi, I was hit with several unread messages.

Madison: I can’t believe it’s five hours to New York. What am I supposed to do while I wait for you to turn your phone on?

Madison: Oh…wait, I’ve got a few ideas.

Madison: *Photo Attached*

I clicked on the picture, and unsurprisingly, it was zoomed-in like all the other ones she sent me. It was pink and blurry, but this time it had a little shimmer to it. My jaw clenched, and I swallowed, thinking about what that could be based on the other things she’d sent me.

Madison: That’s better. Can you figure out what it is a picture of?

Madison: Oh, that’s right. You’re in the air. I guess I’ll leave you a full shot, so you have something fun to look at when you’ve landed.

Madison: *Photo Attached*

My thumb hesitated over the download button for a minute. Did I want to know what she sent me? Her brother was sleeping to my right and he’d just said she was off-limits. Yet, here I was, his best friend and teammate betraying him. And I wasn’t going to stop. This could only end in disaster, but he wasn’t going to wake up anytime soon, so I accepted my fate and clicked the button. It took a few minutes but when the picture opened up, I had to close my eyes and take a deep breath, hoping that it would calm me. Nope. That did nothing. How could I expect it to? Madison had just sent me a picture of three of her fingers. Three of her very wet fingers.

Madison: I thought about you the entire time. Thanks for the O.

I scratched my palm across my face and hit the back of my head against my seat methodically. How the fuck was I supposed to concentrate on anything when she was sending me shit like that? All I wanted to do was go to her dorm and give her everything I had, but I couldn’t.

Dash: I cannot believe you sent me that.

Madison: Oh, you’re back. Still in the air, I presume. How are things?

Dash: I’m sitting next to your brother, hoping to hell he’s sleeping, and he hasn’t just seen that message.

Madison: What’s wrong? I was just merely sending my friend a couple pictures.

Dash: You’re going to be the death of me, I swear.

Madison: I’ve got a solution for you. Just wake my brother up and tell him that we’re dating. Boom. Problem solved.

Dash: I wish it were that simple.

As I looked over at Cade, I cursed the fact that Madison was his sister. If it were any other girl, I’d be able to date her freely and not have guilt gnawing in my stomach. Things were so damn complicated between us. The reality was that I wasn’t close to many people. Cade was my one confidant, and he helped me through the toughest time of my life. Losing him would be a big blow, even if it meant gaining Madison. There had to be a way to have both. I just needed to take it slow and figureit out.

Chapter 20

“So, when do you plan on telling Cade that you’ve been sleeping with his best friend?”

“Tiff,” I whispered sharply down the phone, looking around campus as if anyone else was actually interested in this conversation. “Haven’t you been listening for the last thirty minutes?”

“I have, but honestly, I don’t have time for games these days. I’m either changing a diaper or dealing with a tantrum, so you need to get to the point.”

“Fine. We haven’t told Cade because we aren’t official yet.”

“But he took your V-card like a month ago?”

“Yes.”

“And you fooled around in a janitor’s closet a couple of days ago.”