Page 26 of A Little Jaded
“Uh…” I shrug again, surprised by how much they know and how bold they are. I can’t decide if I’m impressed or offended, but I’m not sure it matters. Their friend and brother is helping me. Helping me more than he knows, and likely, more than he wants to. “We haven’t really talked about it,” I hedge.
“Well, after the chaos from last night, I’d say you probably should be officially faking dating. At least until your ex gets bored or something,” Finley offers.
My brows pull as I take a sip of my coffee. Drake? Bored? Yeah, I don’t see that happening, which means I’m screwed. How the hell am I going to get out of this? And the fact she said ex? As in…it’s over? Hardly. He hit me, then kicked me out of his car. That’s it. Which means this mess is far from being cleaned up.
“What is it?” Ophelia prods.
“Hmm?” I ask.
“You’re making a face.”
Setting my mug back on the table, I lick my bottom lip and wince. “It’s…well, you said ex.”
“Yeah?” Finley answers.
“We haven’t officially broken up.”
The girls exchange glances, each of them grimacing. “Well, shit.”
I laugh. “My thoughts exactly.”
“Has he tried contacting you yet?”
I nod, thinking back to my phone still resting on the dresser in Everett’s room. “Only about three—no, four—hundred times.”
Ophelia’s eyes pop. “Four hundred times? Are you serious?”
“Yeah. I should probably turn it off.”
I start to stand, but Ophelia stops me. “Girl, four hundred is like a major red flag.”
“Yeah, so is hitting her,” Finley quips.
“Finley!” Dylan scolds.
“I’m just saying,” Finley defends, looking at me again. “I hope you break up with him with a text. He doesn’t deserve an actual phone call, and I wouldn’t be face-to-face with himeverafter the way he hurt you last night.”
She’s right. How am I supposed to see him again? How am I supposed to break things off? The first time ended with a major blow up and an extra bottle of foundation. Now, with Everett involved? Drake will kill me.
I rub at my tired eyes when the door from the garage opens. One half-naked hockey player after another enters the kitchen. Muscles upon muscles. Tan skin. Low slung joggers. My lips part, and my jaw threatens to unhinge.
I gulp and stare into the caramel liquid in my cup, blindsided by all the gorgeous male specimens walking into theroom. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve seen plenty of half-naked hockey players in my life, and maybe it’s because I haven’t finished my cup of coffee or something, but these guys? They’re something else entirely. From the corner of my eye, I catch Reeves dipping low and kissing Dylan’s cheek across from me as a guy scoots beside him and bends closer to kiss Ophelia. My pulse stalls as soon as I recognize him. He must feel my gaze because his attention snaps to me, and his brows wrinkle.
“Bo?” he asks.
“Uh.” I gulp again. “Hey, Mav.”
“What the hell are you doin’ here?”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
RAINE
Ifeel like the world is spinning. Like I might literally vomit as the room turns into a tomb. No one moves. No one even seems to be breathing. Instead, they just…stare at me.
“I’m sorry, who’s Bo?” Ophelia finally asks.
Mav glances at his girlfriend, then back to me. “This is Bo. Bo’s my what? Second? Third cousin?”