“This is a really nice photo.”
“I know. Post it, then I’ll post this at the same time, to prove I was there.” He snapped a selfie of his face with his own phone, an easy grin on his lips. I envied his casual, carefree attitude. Both he and Lena were so assured, so confident.
I posted the photo with the caption “sunset” and tagged Cassius, then turned my phone off so I wasn’t tempted to look at the notifications.
“Thanks for helping out.” We started walking back down the pier.
“That’s what friends are for. Anytime you need a favour, tell me.”
We reached the end of the pier, where Lena was waiting for us. Cassius gave her a quick hug, and she smiled at him. Even though she’d recently dyed her hair a pastel pink, there was no mistaking the fact that they were siblings. Both tall and gorgeous, with almost identical smiles, it was easy to see why they attracted attention whenever they were together. Lena turned to me, surprising me with a quick hug, too. “Everything okay, now?”
Smiling, I nodded. “I think so, yeah. Or at least, everything feels less confused in my head. Your brother’s a good listener. Both of you are, in fact.” Turning to Cassius, I met his eyes. “Thanks for taking the time to do this.”
“I did have an ulterior motive. It was the excuse I needed to get everyone here so I could kick their asses at bowling.” He waved his hand towards the bowling alley that stood at the end of the pier, on the seafront. “You wanna join us?”
Hanging out with Cassius and Lena was one thing, but with their friends there as well? I shook my head. “Thanks, but no thanks. I need to get back and make a start on my homework, plus I have to send some design sketches to a client.” Client. I actually had people who were willing to pay for my designs—it hadn’t been a one-off. Of course, it was all very sporadic at the moment, with my schoolwork taking priority, but it gave me hope for the future.
“Okay. Lemme get your bike from my car.” Cassius jogged away before I could reply, and I sat next to Lena on one of the wooden benches at the bottom of the pier.
“How can I repay you for all this? You’ve made my life so much better since you came into it.” I glanced over at her, and she grinned.
“You have nothing to repay me for. That’s what friends are for.” She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “Are you sure you don’t want to join us?”
“I’m sure.” It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but meeting Cassius’ college friends? All of whom were part of the most powerful families in Alstone? I wasn’t quite ready for that. That was so far out of my comfort zone.
Cassius returned with my bike, and I took it from him, swinging my leg over the saddle.
As I waved goodbye and started pedalling away, I heard someone shouting Cassius’ name in a commanding tone. Curious, I stopped pedalling and turned to see a guy in a leather jacket with messy black hair and a brooding look on his face stalking in the direction of the bowling alley. Caiden Cavendish. My heart rate kicked up a notch—no doubt about it, he was absolutely gorgeous, even more so than when he’d attended AHS, but to me, he came across as completely intimidating. As I watched him, I saw him suddenly stop dead as another shout came from behind him. His face completely transformed with a huge grin, as a beautiful dark-haired girl ducked under his arm and he pulled her into him. She stared up at him with an adoring smile, and he leaned down to kiss the top of her head before they both made their way over to Cassius and Lena with matching smiles on their faces.
As I pedalled away, it suddenly clicked with me. The girl with him was Winter—the one Cassius had kissed. Well, I guess it had worked. They looked as if they were both completely smitten with each other. A sudden pang of longing hit me. I wanted this. Wanted to be with someone who wasn’t afraid to be seen with me. Someone that was as interested in me as I was in them.
The hard, desperate way Carter had kissed me showed me he still had feelings for me, but would that be enough? Was I enough for him? Would the photo push him to take action? Would he still find reasons to push me away? I had so many questions, but what I did know was that if he wanted something, I wasn’t going to settle. If he wanted me, he was the one that needed to make the decision to be with me properly.
The ball was in his court, now.
32
What the fuck was I doing here? Pulling up at the pier car park, which was quiet thanks to the time of year and the fact it was a weeknight, I easily spotted Cassius Drummond’s huge SUV next to a matte-black Audi R8. Parking at the opposite end of the car park, I slid from my truck, palming my keys. My head was fucked. Raine’s words kept echoing through my mind, and that picture of her with Cassius that she’d posted… Fuck.
Because I was quite clearly a sadist, I opened up the social media
