I open the door and she reaches over for my hand.
“No matter what you think, I always listen to what you have to say. I push you because I know how big the world is outside of Willows Peak, and because I know you’d make a great part of it.”
Nodding, I close the door and cross the lawn to the dormitory. Once I’m inside, I turn to watch mom start the car, but not before wiping her eyes. I didn’t think how I affected her or my dad. They only want the best for me and here I am throwing it in their faces. I head up to my room promising them both I’ll give college a serious go.
Letting myself into my room, which mom helped me get ready this afternoon, it doesn’t feel as daunting and cold now.
The first thing I go for is my phone. I call Leo and my heart thumps like rocks waiting for him to answer.
“I was this close to riding out if you didn’t call.” Is the first thing I hear from him when he answers.
“I’ve been calling all day, why haven’t you been picking up my calls?” he asks, not giving me a chance to speak.
“I’ve been with my mom all day, she just dropped me off and left.”
It goes quiet and I’m nervous. I’ve never been nervous with Leo. Always confused, but never nervous.
“I’m sorry about this morning, I acted like a child, you have every right to hate me.”
“I don’t hate you, I’m sorry too. I had too much to drink and you caught me off guard. I shouldn’t have let you leave. I’ve been going crazy all day.”
“I’m going to stay so you don’t have to worry about anymore middle of the night visits from me.”
“Indie, I want you here with me, but you need to be at college too. Please believe me when I say I’ll wait for you.”
“I do,” I promise because I do believe him.
“I’m going to ride out this weekend, you can show me around and I’ll show you how much I’m missing you already.”
I can hear the smile in his voice and I know everything will be fine. This can work. I’ll study my ass off during the week, and weekends and school breaks will roll around fast.
The call goes quiet and I wonder if we’ve been disconnected.
“Leo? Are you still there?”
“Yeah,” he sounds all wrong, “I should tell your parents about us, my dad knows and he’s not big on keeping secrets.”
“How?”
“He saw you leaving this morning, and me chasing after you. He put two and two together and came up with the fucking truth.”
“You came after me?”
“Don’t sound so shocked, of course I did. You were upset, and I hated it.”
This makes me grin like a fool.
“I should be there when you tell them, let’s wait until I’m next home and we’ll do it together.”
Together.
Together with Leo.
We can do this, I will push out the negative and focus on school and Leo.
Leo
I smash the white ball into the striped ball and it misses the pocket by a mile. JJ laughs and knocks me out of his way to take his shot.
Zach watches on with his full on, permanent glare and I ignore him like I usually do.
I can’t guess how he’s going to react when he finds out about me and India. Part of me thinks he’ll want my blood for going with his sister, but then the other part feels like he won’t give a fuck. He surprises you sometimes, so I stop trying to work him out.
“Who are they?” JJ murmurs, pausing his shot.
I follow his line of sight and an older woman is walking in with a girl who looks to be around India’s age.
I lean against the pool table and watch Slade get up and hug the older woman. The younger one is hot and has way too much body on show that screams she knows she’s hot.
“That’s my Aunt Lily, and cousin Harper,” Zach mumbles.
JJ’s not interested in the game anymore and I’m not interested in the new comers anymore. I play all the shots myself.
“Eyes off, Carter,” Zach growls, showing more life than I’ve seen in months from him, “You can keep your over used dick away from them.”
JJ doesn’t discriminate, age doesn’t bother him as long as the ass is firm and round, and the tits aren’t hanging around their knees.
“Shove your head back up your ass, McCarthy. Some of us don’t fuck too close to home,” he says, getting my attention.
Raising my eyes from the shot I was about to take, I’m ten seconds away from sticking this cue up his ass if he brings me into this again. He smirks at me, and I silently tell him to shut the fuck up.
JJ straightens when the cousin waltz’s over and takes a seat next to Zach. He looks uncomfortable with her being so close and again, I wonder what his problem is?
“Hey, chatterbox,” she chuckles, and Zach remains stoned faced.
This makes me laugh, she’s obviously used to his ways.
“Harper,” he mutters, “What are you doing in town?”
“As of now, and because mom can’t pick a decent guy, we are new residents of your shitty backwards town.”
JJ moves around the table, moving closer to Zach and Harper.
“Don’t be rude, brother. Introduce us to your cousin,” he grins, and I expect this will infuriate Zach even further.
Rolling his eyes, and sighing, he says, “This is Harper, Harper, this is Leo and JJ.”
I’m soon uncomfortable, she switches from looking me up and down and then JJ, it’s like she’s choosing which one of us she likes the look of the most.
“Maybe it won’t be so bad around here after all,” she drools.
Zach looks between the three of us and pulls her up with him as he stands. She comes up to his shoulders and his added height doesn’t faze her as he glares down at her.
“Stay away from these two,” he growls, and walks her away.
I guess I know how he’s going to be when it comes out I’m fucking his sister, if he’s this protective over a cousin.
Harper smiles over her shoulder and I’d put all my money on it that she’s putting in extra effort swaying her ass for our benefit.
“If he doesn’t want us near his cousin, he’s sure as shit not gonna want you near his sister,” JJ mutters quietly, telling me what I already know.
“I don’t care, she’s worth whatever is coming for me.”
“Plus, you can handle Zach or you’re not the guy I thought you was,” he laughs, and racks the balls up for a new game.
It’s not a case of not being able to handle him, no matter how right I feel with India, I’m still in the wrong when it comes Slade and Zach. However, if he wants to fight, I’ll let him throw the first punch then I’m fighting back.
Brothers stop what they’re doing when the sound of thunder falls upon us. There are too many brothers already here to be us riding in.
JJ and I put our cues down and follow dad outside, with everyone else. The entire club is on alert until we see who it is.
Niall comes to a stop first and brothers come to a stop behind him. I haven’t seen Niall since he became president over their chapter after Noah died a couple of years back.
Noah and Niall were originally patched into a club called the Devils Bastards. Until, one of their own, a guy called Danny turned on them and took the presidents patch for himself. He went on a rampage, going after our club and even managed to kill Oak and cut up Sparky’s face. Some of the brothers got out and came to dad. When everything settled down, they set up another Lost Souls chapter where they were originally based.
We weren’t expecting them today, and they look rough from where I stand by the door watching.
In fact, when he struts over to my dad, he is pissed.
“Brother?” dad greets him.
“We’ve been hit, the Black Crows attacked us late last night.”
It’s clear something has happened to them, tiredness creeps around them all.
“Let’s go inside and talk.”
Everyo
ne follows each other back inside and JJ and I hang back, sitting at the bar.
Niall sits at Dad’s table and lights a cigarette as a prospect puts a beer in front of him. “They’ve been on the attack for weeks, they try to hit us, and we retaliate. But last night, they surrounded us. It quickly turned into a shoot out and then they started throwing in petrol bombs and rode off. Our clubhouse is gone, Cas.”
Dad hisses and Sparky leans forward.
“Why didn’t you call? Fuck, why didn’t you tell us about the trouble you’ve been having?”
“We had a handle on it.”
“Clearly fucking not, brother,” Slade says.
I love watching the older brothers in action. They’ve seen so much shit over the years, not a lot can touch them. Violence rolls off their shoulders like water off a duck’s back and they’re ready to fight at a moments notice.
“Do you know what this means?” JJ whispers, passing me a beer.
Smirking, I take the bottle and take a long swig.
“We’re gonna get to fight.”
India
My first class was…I loved it. There are no words to describe it, apart from it went a lot smoother than I expected it to go.
As I step outside, I smile when I think back to an hour ago when I walked in telling myself I’ll get it over and done with so I can call Leo, and now I’m stepping out and I’m happy.
Searching my bag, I’m busy looking for my phone when someone taps me on the shoulder.
I spin around, and I’m faced with a solid chest in my face. Quickly taking a step back, my hand lands on my phone and I look up to a beautiful guy standing in front of me. His dusty brown hair flops over his bright blue eyes and his full lips stretch across his face as he smiles down at me. Beautiful in a much different way to Leo, not that there is a competition. This guy is beautiful in a way that makes you look twice, my Leo is beautiful in a way that I never want to look away.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t, you’re just a little too close,” I tell him.
His laugh catches the attention of people close by and I notice his friends are lingering around nearby.
“I’m Sean,” he introduces himself.
He sounds kind enough and he sticks out his hand. I shake his hand, it’s warm and strong, and completely swallows mine.
“India,” I finally reply.
On closer inspection, his friends look a lot like a football team, and they’re currently all staring at me and Sean like we’re the only thing around to see.
“We’re having a party this weekend, you should come,” he tells me.
“Oh.”
I think quickly and hope I don’t look like a stuttering fool.
“I can’t, I have plans this weekend.”
I’m going to spend every minute I can with Leo. He promised me visits and I promised him I’d keep myself free.
“No problem.”
He shrugs his bag on his shoulder and joins his friends. Forgetting about him, and his invite, I sit down on the nearest bench and call Leo.
I have two missed calls from him and he answers on the third ring. I can hear him moving around before he speaks.
“Hey, I just got out of class and saw you called, twice.”
“Yeah, I was calling to say I can’t make it up this weekend. Something has come up at the club and my dad has called everyone in.”
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing for you to worry about, babe. I promise I’ll make it up to you soon.”
I go to ask him how soon, but I swear I hear…
“Is my cousin Harper, there?”
“Yeah, she showed up with your aunt yesterday. Your brother is keeping her away from us,” he chuckles.
“Well, he doesn’t need to worry about you with her, does he?” I ask, a little too sharply.
I hear him sigh before he says a word.
“He doesn’t know about us, does he. Don’t go getting jealous on me, you have nothing to worry about while you’re gone.”
Leo is Harper’s type. I don’t think he’s not anyone’s type.
“I’ve got to go; my next class starts in five minutes.”
It doesn’t, I have half hour to spare.
“Hey, don’t do that. You sent me a copy of your schedule, I know you’re lying to me right now.”
Shit.
“I love you, I’m loyal to you, I don’t want anyone but you. Are you catching what I’m telling you?”
“What are you going to do if she tries it on with you? Everyone knows you don’t say no, how are you going to explain it?”
“Are you fucking crazy? I haven’t been with anyone in months because I’ve been with you. Why would they think any differently now?”
I don’t have an answer for him. I keep my mouth shut, like I should’ve done in the first place and squeeze the phone in my hand.
“Babe? You still there?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you thinking straight now, or shall I call you back when you’ve come to your senses?”
“I…I’ll call you at lunch.”
I hang up on him and shove the phone in my pocket. He won’t be happy with me, but right now, if I stay on the phone with him, I’m going to drive us both crazy over nothing. Or, it won’t be over nothing and that will hurt a lot more.
Harper loves attention. She’s just like Aunt Lily, and she loves anyone who will chase her around, hell, she loves to chase when a guy doesn’t show her any attention, she takes it as a challenge.
My plan to study hard throughout the week and spend weekends with Leo to get me through have already messed up. Now I have Harper crawling around, this is going to be long.
The footballer breezes by and I remember I’m now free this weekend. I will drive myself crazy if I stay in my room alone.
“Hey…Sean?” I call out, thinking I’m remembering his name correctly.
He stops, and I wave when he looks around for who called out for him.
“My plans just cancelled on me, is your invite still open?”
His mouth stretches into a wide grin, and he nods, “For you…sure.”
The party will be a good distraction, I feel a lot better and as he walks over, a strange sense of guilt sets in. I don’t need to feel guilty for going to a party, Leo parties at the club all the time.
Sean grabs my hand and with the pen from his pocket, he writes an address down and tips his chin up at me before walking off again.
My phone vibrates in my pocket and I ignore it for all of ten seconds. Digging it out, I answer, and Leo doesn’t miss a beat speaking first.
“Don’t hang up on me again, we’re not kids.”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do, Leo. I’m allowed to be pissed that you’re not coming to see me…”
“Which I can’t help, you know the club comes first when there is trouble.”
“Maybe I don’t want to live like that anymore.”
Dad was always the same and it drove mom crazy and they’d argue for days about it.
“What the fuck, babe? What’s wrong with you today?”
“I had plans, and then I didn’t. Do you know when you can make it here?”
“I’m hoping next week. I’m sorry, but don’t talk like that. I can’t handle it if you’re there and I can’t speak to you properly about it.”
“Sure.”
“Come on, I can’t help it. Shit is sliding sideways and if my dad is concerned, so should we.”
“Shit you won’t tell me about though.”
“You don’t need to know. Anyway, tell me how your morning went.”
And like that, the fight comes to an end, although I still feel the fight brewing inside me.
“Okay, I do need to go now. I’ll call you tonight.”
“Love you, babe.”
“Love you too.”
Walking into my next class, my bad mood lifts when I see Sean sitting at the back. He sees
me too and waves me over. The chair next to him is free and I slip into it before anyone can take it.
I haven’t had chance to open my bag when I catch the girls in class glaring at me over their shoulders.
“Why are they staring at me?” I whisper to Sean.
His laugh is carefree, and I soak it in.
“They want to be sitting next to me.”
“What’s so special about you?” I blurt out, not thinking about how rude I sound.
He mocks being hurt and holds his hands over his heart.
“I’m the star quarterback. You’re sitting next to royalty.”
“I’m sitting next to a douche if you refer to yourself as royalty.”
He barks out a laugh and it bounces off the walls and gains more attention as everyone looks around to see what’s so funny.
“I could tell you were funny, this year is going to be a blast next to you.”
“As long as you know I have a boyfriend, and even though I’m pissed with him right now, I’m not interested in anyone else.”
“That’s cool. I don’t go for hot blonds with banging bodies anyway, it’s no big deal.”
I shouldn’t but I can’t help the grin that cracks my face wide open. College is definitely not as bad as I originally imagined.
Leo
Niall wasn’t exaggerating when he said their clubhouse was burned to the ground. Riding out to a pile of ashes was pointless but dad wanted to see it for himself and see if we ran into any Black Crows. We didn’t. Now, we’re home and I’m tired, missing India and in need of a drink.
Ordering a beer, I wait as patiently as I can and scout out a seat I can fall into. I spy one in the back corner and it’s still available when I get my beer. My back is stiff from the long ride and it isn’t long before JJ is joining me. I don’t mind as long as he doesn’t chew my ear off.
I try calling India and get her voicemail. I try again five minutes later and still, I get her voicemail.
I should’ve woken up with her this morning and be with her now. Instead, I’m in the bar, alone and miserable.
“I hear your girl’s out partying with the college quarterback tonight,” JJ says.