Page 115 of The Golden Boys
I laugh, because we both know she’ll never take a guy seriously enough to lethim give her trouble.
“Anytime,” I promise.
She’s quiet and it makes me suspicious.
“You’re looking at that pic again, aren’t you?” I accuse with a laugh.
Caught, she stutters a bit, then doesn’t bother lying to me. Instead, the line goes dead when she hangs up, and I can only shake my head at her.
She’s crazy, but she’s also my best friend. The one who always knows how to make me feel better. Her advice is sound, suggesting that I keep my guard up within reason.
And I can do that.
As I begin to think about regionals in a couple weeks, my immediate plan is to keep West at arm’s length. Still harboring some pretty deep-seated trust issues, I don’t think we’re ready for whatever aftermath we would face if sex were added to the equation. However, if I find him harder to resist than I expect, I’m also committed to not beating myself up if I give in.
As for the future, who knows where West and I will end up, but wherever we’re headed, we’ll get there atmypace.
Which, for now, is set to super slow.
Well, mostly.
… Kind of.
Why don’t we just say I’m a work in progress.
Chapter 36
WEST
“You and Parker back at it again?”
I peer up from my duffle toward Dane when he asks. I’m confused at first, until he points at the strip of condoms I just dropped into the bag.
Smiling, I zip it closed. “Nope.”
Curious, he shoots me a look. “Who then?”
I shrug, pretending not to have anyone specific in mind, but there is definitely someone specific in mind. My brothersjust don’t need to know that. Not right now, anyway. Eventually.
I’ve spent two weeks thinking about this weekend, and not because our team dominated in the district finals last week, clawing our way to regionals. What I look forward to has perfect C-cups and an ass I want to sink my teeth into.
Now that we’re done with the swimming unit, I haven’t had an excuse to be around her. No excuse to touch her. Sucks that I even need one. I’ve given her plenty of reasons to keep her distance from me over the past couple months, though. Now, she naturally avoids me.
She’s at every game, snapping pictures for the paper, but as far as interaction goes, there isn’t much of it between us. Not unless you count how we can hardly keep our eyes off one another during the one class we do share, when we pass one another in the halls and during lunch. I’m always aware of her.
Always.
I’ve even gone as far as telling the girls to pull back. Most couldn’t care less either way, but for Parker, everything concerning Southside is personal. Probably because being told that her sole target since the beginning of the school year is now off limits serves as a glaring statement. It speaks to my growing respect for the girl I once vowed to destroy.
I haven’t gone soft by any means, but I’m not so stubborn I can’t see the need to reevaluate. Starting with a decision I made about two nights ago, when I couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t stop thinking about …
It actually doesn’t matter who or what I was thinking about. The point is I was restless.
It was during this restlessness that I accepted something. Southside and I are long overdue for a conversation. One she’s been asking to have since the beginning. One in which I plan to lay everything out on the table, including what I believe about her involvement with my father. Having had that man’s heel pressed to my neck my whole life, it hasn’t been hard to see how she could get roped into whatever happened between them.
Ifit’s happened between them.
It’s the reason I’m past the anger and looking forward to putting this shit behind us. Honestly, I just want the air between us cleared.