His jaw clenches. I count it—can’t help it now that I know to look for it. Once. Twice. Three times.
On the fourth clench, I kick him again.
He stands up and looks at Marie.
“I thought we weren’t gonna tell anyone,lovebug,” he finally manages to get out through his clenched teeth.
Marie flashes him a hundred-watt smile. “Well, the cat’s out of the backpack, so to speak.” She laughs at her own joke. When nobody laughs with her, she cuts off abruptly and swallows hard, eyebrowsfurrowed, still looking meaningfully at Caleb. “Someone snapped a picture of us on the road this morning.”
Oh fuck.On the road.
This morning.
I do remember hearing a car go by. When I was wrapped around Caleb and then dragged him into the woods, thinking about nothing except the feel of his?—
Caleb has enough control of himself not to look at me, though I have a feeling it’s taking everything for him not to.
I can see his hand tapping his thigh from the corner of my eye.
Tapping twice. Three times. Four.
He stops.
Then starts again. One-two-three-four.
He’s counting. Using it to stay calm and keep his face neutral.
To not look at me.
But McKenzie’s eyes are narrowed on me. “Isn’t thatyourleather jacket?”
Marie leans her head on Caleb’s shoulder. “Oh, Harper let me borrow it last week when I said I thought it was cool.”
She’s got acting chops, I’ll give her that. And she has come out of her shell this semester, hanging around me and Caleb’s friends, who have welcomed her into their fold just like they did me.
Caleb’s clearly clued into what’s at stake if a rumor starts going around school that he’s fucking his step-sister because he tosses an arm around Marie’s shoulder.
Except it’s not really a toss. It’s calculated. Precise.
He adjusts his position. Once. Twice. Gets the angle right.
Even faking casual, he can’t help being exact about it.
“What’s up, Kenz? Why do you care who I’m dating?”
His voice is steady. But I can see his foot tapping anxiously. Just slightly. Barely noticeable.
McKenzie is finally knocked off her footing a bit by his direct question. Especially now that she’s made a scene and everyone’s gone quiet around us and is staring at her.
“Oh. It’s nothing. I just thought—” McKenzie looks around her, suddenly realizing the crowd she’s attracted, who seem even more interested now that the throwdown isn’t going her way. The only thing people love more than worshipping a Queen Bee is seeing her toppled off her throne.
“Thought what?” I ask, unable to stop the dig. “Were you about to accuse Caleb of something… improper? In front of all his classmates? Or is it him dating a scholarship student you have a problem with?”
I’m satisfied by the audible gasps I hear from around the room.
“What! No, I—” McKenzie’s head swings back and forth. “No!”
She glares back at me, then her voice goes low and deadly as she leans in so only I can hear, keeping a big smile on her face for all the onlookers. “You think you can make a fool out of me? I’ll make you wish you weredead.”