Page 3 of The Sacrifice
Heat floods my chest, works up my neck, and across my cheeks before setting at the tips of my ears. “Let’s go.”
Jade laughs as she follows behind me. Sex is in the dark and in a bed, with no bells and whistles. At least, that’s what Warren liked. I frown. I doubt he’s having missionary sex in the dark with Ms. Hooters in the Caribbean. Asshole.
Chapter Two
The Next Day
Jackson
I grab two ice-cold canisters of beer from the black mini fridge on my kitchen countertop. After my shitshow of a year last year, I don’t drink much, but I want my beer cold when I do.
“Here you go.” I hand one of the beers to my best friend, Andrew Bennett.
“Sorry, dude.” He raises his hand to ward me off. “I can’t. I’ve got to head to work later.”
“Water?”
“Sure.” He nods.
After I return the beer to the fridge, I snatch out a water bottle and hand it to him. “Perfect.” He twists off the top and tosses the cap into the trashcan. “How does it feel to be one of the big money men?”
“Great.” I tip my head back and take a drink.
“It’s well deserved.” He takes a drink and sets the container on the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. He’s been there through it all.
“Thanks. I busted my ass for it.” He’s right. It is well deserved. Now.
My head football coach placed me on the second-string team a year ago, and I was slapped with the franchise tag. He’d had enough of me showing up late for practices. I didn’t take the news well, and the drinking that kept me up late got worse. It turned to whiskey, blacking out, and lots of vomiting.
Andrew smacks my back. “I’m proud of you.” He grins. “Just think. You’re the same guy who got me suspended during freshman year of high school, and now, you’re bringing in more per game than Principal Lawson makes in a year.”
I drain the rest of the alcohol and toss the empty bottle into the trashcan. “It’s crazy. I used to think Principal Lawson was a dick.”
“And now, you realize we were?”
I laugh and shake my head. “Yes, we were. We were total assholes.”
For several minutes, we reminisce about the good old days.
Not that I was a bad kid. I was too busy working out and playing sports to get into too much trouble. But Principal Lawson found out we were sneaking in and lifting weights an hour before the building was supposed to be open. He caught us and threatened to suspend us for the day. There was no one there to keep an eye on us, and if we got hurt, the school would’ve been responsible, so he changed the locks.
We decided to prank his uptight ass. Okay, I decided to prank him, and Andrew went along for the ride. It took us a week of shoving paperclips and gum in the lock to finally get it where the door appeared secure but would open from the outside.
Imagine his surprise when he stepped out of his office and into the hallway to see what the commotion was all about. The mannequin no longer wore our green and gold colors, but instead was decked out in his office sweater and some clothes I found in my old man’s closet that were identical to his.
Let’s just say what was epic in our 14-year-old minds was not popular in his. We were suspended from school for a week. It’s hard to deny you were involved when you’re caught on camera.
He finishes his drink and tosses it into the garbage with mine. “I think the baseball game is on.”
“It should be.” I lead the way to the living room. The L-shaped, ebony leather sofa takes up half of the room, and it’s a big room.
“Thanks for letting me hang out.” He falls onto the cushions, and I take the recliner, adjust the footrest, and flip on the television, scanning through the channels until I find the game.
“It’s no problem. You’re always welcome here.” We’ve been best friends since third grade when my family moved to town.
“Thanks.” He cringes. “Mia is driving me crazy.”
Mia.My shoulders tighten. Andrew’s older sister hates my guts. She didn’t like me before the mannequin incident. Afterward, I was the equivalent of the scum on the bottom of a pond bed. “Her holier-than-thou routine getting to be too much for you? You should have told her to stay at a hotel. Or with your parents.”