“No, I haven't seen them, but I don’t give a shit. All those assholes who watched are nothing but motherfuckers anyway.” Reese started walking. He didn’t give a shit about some pictures drunk-ass people took of him kicking the shit out of that douchebag Sully. The fucker deserved the beating.
He headed into the lunchroom and grabbed a drink, and after paying for it, he headed into the main room, where he searched for Keira.
“These, man.”
“Shit, dude,” Reese said, not realizing Nate had followed him.
Nate all but shoved the cell in his face, and Reese snatched it out of his hand to get this over with. The first few pictures were stills of him and Sully grappling. The others showed Reese’s fist connecting with Sully’s jaw. He went to hand the phone back, shrugging in the process.
“Keep looking.”
Reese felt his brows dip low and scrolled through more of the same photos, but the next one had everything inside him stopping.
Someone had snapped several photos of the girl who’d been talking to Reese right before Sully mouthed off. The angle was awkward, the picture slightly grainy, but when she’d lost her footing and he’d reached out to stop her from falling, it made it seem like they’d been in an embrace. In fact, the longer he looked at it, the more it looked like Reese was fucking making out with her.
Her body was bent forward, his hands around her waist, and his face was blocked by her, so it was easy enough to envision what the fuck could be going on.
“What the fuck, man?” He swiped his finger across the screen and looked through the rest, but they were all the same. Reese noticed there were none of him shoving her away. Anger, white-hot and burning, moved through his veins. Reese shoved the phone against Nate’s chest. “How the fuck did you get them?”
“Fucking Lindy, man. But the whole school heard about the fight, and then this shit got passed around.”
“It looks like I’m fucking making out with that drunk chick.”
Nate nodded slowly. “No shit.”
“I didn’t do shit,” Reese said, his thoughts instantly going to Keira. “Man, if Keira sees that….”
“I know. She’s gonna think you fucked around.”
Fuck.
Looking around the cafeteria showed him Keira hadn’t arrived yet. He needed to get to her and explain it all, because the way this fucking school was, she'd no doubt heard already about this bullshit.
He didn’t want her to get the wrong idea, but shit, the pictures looked bad. What in the hell would she think if she thought he’d been all over some other girl then was intimate with her?
Christ.
A sick feeling spread through him. “I need to find Keira.”
“Hey, girl.”
Just hearing Lindy's voice had the hairs on Keira’s neck standing on end and her stomach churning in disgust. Keira turned around; the false sweetness in Lindy’s voice, coupled with the fake smile on her face, told her whatever was about to happen wasn’t good.
Lindy wore her cheerleading outfit, her bitch squad right behind her, all of them wearing the same sickening smile. Before Keira could say anything, Lindy was talking again.
“You hear the gossip?” Lindy stood a foot from her and arched a perfectly manicured eyebrow.
“I don't follow the rumor mill, Lindy. I have enough toxic crap to surround me.”
“You didn’t hear about your boy-toy?”
Keira shook her head, exasperated. “I don’t have time for this.” She went to turn, but Lindy’s next comment stopped her.
“You didn’t hear what Reese was doing at the party he beat Sully’s ass at?”
Keira didn’t say anything, didn't even show any emotion. That’s what Lindy wanted, to get under her skin and piss her off.
“I understand you’re upset because Reese doesn’t want you, but playing dumb really doesn’t suit you.”
Keira couldn't hide the surprise she felt move across her face. And Lindy, being a fucking piranha, smelled that unease and grinned wider.
“What in the hell are you talking about?”
“Oh, honey, you didn’t hear?” She feigned like she felt bad. “Reese doesn't want you. You’re not special to him, not when he all but felt up and made out with a girl at that party.”
Keira’s pulse instantly started racing, and she felt her cheeks heat.
“You’re mistaken.” Her voice was whisper-thin, and she cleared her throat, wanting to seem stronger, like Lindy’s words didn’t affect her.
“Honey, I’m not.” She said that with a bite in her voice. “No doubt he wanted to break that virginal thing you have going on. Now that he has,” Lindy said with a smirk, “you’re damaged goods. He’ll come to the real thing now.” She smoothed her hands over her cheerleading outfit, emphasizing she meant herself.
Before Keira could walk away and talk to Reese, clear this whole thing up, Lindy held out her phone. The image on the screen had Keira’s heart stopping momentarily.
Lindy’s grin was malicious. “Thought maybe you’d like to really get a look at what your boy has been up to when you’re not with him.”
Lindy started sliding her finger across the screen, showing her more photos. Some were of Reese fighting, but the others were of what looked like Reese and some girl in an embrace. The angle was weird, and it definitely looked like he was making out with her with how the girl’s head tilted.
“I’m done here, Lindy.” Fire licked through Keira’s blood. She felt dizzy, like she was dreaming. She kept thinking about her night with Reese, how he’d made her feel, how she’d given herself to him. She loved him.
She was in love with him.
And as much as she wanted to push this away, talk to him and see if this was a misunderstanding, she didn’t want to face him and see the truth in his eyes when she confronted
