Games of Fire (44 page)

It was on the tip of her tongue to say
I’m sorry,
but it was so stupid, so meaningless.

“I don’t know if it means anything,” she began slowly. “But I choose you.” It sounded so cheesy and stupid. She wanted to suck it back down her throat and erase it from ever having been said, but she couldn’t.

Spencer’s features softened. A small smile turned up his lips and reflected lightly in his eyes. His fingers were feather soft brushing her face. “Why couldn’t I have met you years ago?”

Sophie shrugged, captivated by his eyes. “Maybe because you didn’t need me years ago.”

His gaze dropped to watch the slow glide of his thumb over the curve of her bottom lip. “Maybe, but you’re making it impossible not to need you now.”

“That is so romantic!”

They started at the dreamy sigh from across the table. They turned their heads and stared at Jessie, who flushed.

“I wasn’t
… I only heard the last little bit,” she stammered, growing redder by the second.

Sophie laughed. Against her back, Spencer’s chest rumbled with his silent chuckle.

“Do you have a brother?” she practically sighed.

“Yes, and we already established that he’s an ass,” Lauren reminded her.

Jessie’s shoulders slumped. “I want one.”

“An ass?”

Jessie blinked. “What? No! A guy that’s crazy about me.”

Lauren looked appalled. “And give up this awesome life of bachelorhood?”

Jessie scowled. “Says the girl who was making out with Roy Praxton for like six hours!”

Sophie’s jaw dropped. “Six
… what? Lauren!”

It was hard to tell with her dark complexion, but Sophie could have sworn she saw a light flush appear on Lauren’s cheeks. “It was like one time and it meant nothing.”

“When?” Sophie pressed. “And why didn’t you tell me?”

Lauren dropped her gaze, poking absently at her pudding cup with a spoon. “When we went to the cabin and I didn’t tell you because you had your own
… ” She gestured to Spencer. “Problems.”

“Hey!” he protested.

“Not cool!” Sophie said, feeling a stab of hurt at being left out.

Lauren tossed down her spoon. “It’s not a big deal, okay? It was the one time and I didn’t want to freaking broadcast it to the world. The only reason Jess knows is because she walked in on us and I told her not to tell!”

Sophie glanced at Jessie, wondering if she was just imagining the hostility in Lauren’s tone.  Jessie met her gaze with a sad purse of her lips. She hung her head as if guilty of betraying a sacred trust. Sophie turned her attention down the table to where Roy Praxton sat surrounded by his friends and a very busty brunette and it all made sense.

Anger flared up inside her as she glared at the asshole who’d hurt her friend. A large part of her wanted to heft up her fruit cup and chuck it on him. She wanted to crush her cookie into his curly hair and kick him where it would hurt the most.

“Hey.” Spencer rubbed her arm lightly and she realized she was shaking with fury.

The end of lunch bell tolled and people began getting up all around them, preparing for next period. Sophie watched the brunette plant a sloppy kiss
on Roy’s cheek, gather her books and flounce away. Roy bumped knuckles with a couple of the guys, including Brian, grabbed his bag from beneath the table and followed the herd towards the double doors.

“I’ll see you guys later,” she told Lauren and Jessie. She hastily pressed a kiss to Spencer’s lips. “I’ll text you.”

Before anyone could stop her, she tore off after Roy, determined to give him a piece of her mind. How dare he break her friend’s heart. How dare he use her and then discard her for a second rate bimbo! How dare he act so superior when her friend was hurting.

“Praxton!” she called, not caring when several heads turned in her direction.

Roy turned, dark eyes widening with surprise. He said something to the group circling him and stopped to wait for her as everyone else ambled along.

“Hey!” he said, smiling brightly. “Sarah—”

“Sophie!” she snarled, more determined than ever to kick him.

He had the decency to wince. “Sorry. What’s—”

“What’s the big idea you hurting my friend?” She speared her hands onto her hips. “Did you think it was funny? Did you think she didn’t have friends that would kick your ass? Because, pal, I’m ready to make sure your bloodline ends with you!”

“Whoa!” He put his hands up and took a quick step back when she took one forward. “Hold up! Do you mean Lauren?”

“Yes I mean Lauren!” She snapped. “Do you have any idea what an amazing person she is? She’s funny and smart and has a heart a mile wide. You’d be so lucky to have her—!”

“I know.”

“And for another thing … what?”

A sad sort of smile crept across his handsome face. “I. Know.”

Sophie blinked, not sure she was hearing him properly. “You lost me.”

He sighed. “I don’t know what she told you, but I’m not the one
who walked away. She did.” Then
he
walked away without his usual swagger.

Roy’s comment replayed in Sophie’s mind much later that evening as she sat on the hotel bed with her homework sitting closed in front of her. She stared out the window at the solid wall of clouds fading into the distance, chased by the blanket of night coming in from the east. Her pen made a rhythmic cluttering sound as she rapped it against her History textbook. She had every intention of breaking it open at some point in the near future and doing her homework.

“Hey.”

Her head came up fast at the unexpected intrusion into her private thoughts. Up until that moment, she’d been alone in the room, or so she thought. Spencer stood in the adjoining doorway, hands tucked into his pockets.

“Hey!” she said, straightening.

She hadn’t seen Spencer since they arrived back at the hotel. Her dad had dropped them off, told them to go to the room and stay there while the adults ran some errands. Spencer had gone into his room and she into hers, lost in her own mind.

“Everything all right?” he asked, venturing deeper into the room.

Sophie nodded. “Yeah, just doing some homework.”

His gaze dropped to the unopened books. An eyebrow lifted. “Do you have some kind of superpower I don’t know about?”

A flush crept into her cheeks. “I guess I was daydreaming. What were you doing?”

He sat down at the foot of her bed. “Watching TV. Nothing on, by the way.”

Sophie chuckled. “Want to do homework with me?”

He glanced at the books again and gave a resigned sigh. “Why not.”

She watched him roll off the bed and disappear into his room. He returned a moment later with his bag. She slid backwards to give him room on the mattress.

With no other choice but to get started, she opened her books to their last page, hunted down her pen and was about to begin when the phone rang. Dropping her pen, she reached for the phone.

“Hello?”

“Hey honey!” Her mother’s voice carried loudly through the receiver, barely audible over the howling wind. “Just wanted to check in. Everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine. Just doing homework.”

“Okay! We’ll be back in about an hour or so.”

“Okay!” With a farewell, she hung up and turned back to her books, only to find her notebook missing. “What
… ”

Spencer had it, upside down in his hands and turning it clockwise while reading something on the page.

“Interesting,” he mused, amusement coloring his tone.

She couldn’t imagine what was so interesting until she realized he held her History notebook.

Shit!

She snatched it back from him, snapping it closed and hugging it to her chest. “I was bored!” she exclaimed, drowning in a pool of boiling water.

His smirk was devastatingly gorgeous and very smug. “I never took you for the name in hearts kind of girl.”

She glowered at him, almost positive her face was about to melt off. “There are no names in the hearts!”

His tongue rolled over his teeth. “I’m a little disappointed.”

“You weren’t supposed to see that!” she moaned, cover
ing her face with the notebook.

He hooked a finger over the top of the book and nudged it down a notch to look into her eyes. “Why’s that?”

“Because I don’t normally do girly things like that,” she admitted.

The notebook was taken from her and tossed over the edge of the bed. His bag and her books quickly followed as he crawled towards her on all fours, forcing her onto her back. His hand rested lightly on her waist as he hovered over her.

“Well, I’ve never had a girl write my name in her notebook before.” She started to tell him she didn’t believe that, but he was kissing her and she didn’t want to talk anymore. “I think I kinda like it.”

They got very little work done before their parents arrived. Most of the time was spent kissing and some talking. They’d only just righted their clothes and hair and opened their books when the door opened and their parents walked in carrying paper bags of groceries. They were informed that the police had no leads and that they would be staying in the hotel a little longer.

Sophie was both excited to be spending more time with Spencer and disappointed by the fact that they hadn’t captured the people responsible.

“I talked to Roy,” she told Spencer much later, as they sat in his room watching television on his bed. The room held the linger
ing scent of tuna fish from their supper.

“About Lauren?”

She nodded. “He said she was the one that walked away. Do you think that’s true?”

The shoulder she was resting her head on jerked in a shrug. “I don’t really know either of them, but I know Roy’s a good guy.”

From her reclined position against his chest, Sophie tilted her head back to peer up into his face. “Why do you think she did it?” It was stupid to ask him. How would he know? But she couldn’t seem to formulate the answer on her own.

“You’d have to ask her.”

But would Lauren tell her? She seemed so upset that Jessie had told them about the kiss that Sophie doubted it. The whole situation made no sense. Lauren had been in love with Roy forever, so why would she turn him away?

“Hey.” Spencer tugged lightly on a curl. “You should talk to her.”

Sophie nodded. “But will she talk to me?”

“Why wouldn’t she? You’re her best friend.”

Somehow, this incident made her feel as disconnected from Lauren as humanly possible. It hurt to know there were things Lauren didn’t want to talk to her about when they used to share everything. There had never been a secret between them.

Gingerly, as if the phone might try and take a chunk out of her, Sophie pulled the device from her pocket and punched in Lauren’s number.

Behind her, Spencer kissed her jawline. “Want me to go?”

She started to say no, but it was a private matter. She didn’t think Lauren would want Spencer being there, listening. But at the same time
… she hung up before it could finish dialing the numbers.

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow.” In person. Not over the phone. Then another thought occurred to her, which made her question if she should be put on ADHD medication. “Spencer?”

“Mm?”

She opened her mouth to answer when something stopped her. She shut her mouth. “Nothing.”

He poked her side, making her squeak and jump. “No, no, tell me.”

Threading her fingers through his, more to restrain him from more poking than anything else, Sophie sighed. “I was just thinking
… ” She hesitated, not sure where this thought was going, or if she was ready to face the possibility.

“Hey.” Spencer tipped her face up gently with a nudge of his finger. “What is it?”

She dampened her lips. “What if the person goes to our school?”

She expected to see surprise or fear in his eyes, not a sadness that spoke of regret. His fingers ghosted the line of her jaw while he returned her gaze solemnly.

It dawned on her slowly. “You already thought of that! When you told me to keep texting you.”

He nodded, looking down. “I’m not ruling anything out.”

A cold chill swept through her. The very idea that someone she’d gone to school with possibly her entire life could do something so horrible had her stomach churning. Her mind choked on the very idea that every day she could be sitting beside, talking with, the person terrorizing her and her family.

“But why?”
Her voice broke. “Why are they doing this?”

Spencer’s arms locked around her tightly, crushing her into his chest. He rested his brow on her shoulder. “I don’t know.”

A soft cough drew their attention to the adjoining doorway. Jackie smiled at them a little sadly.

“Sorry,” she said. “Time for bed.”