“What happened?” I ask, distracted by my goal in the face of this little nugget of gossip.
I knew Hayden and Colt were friends, but I’m surprised to hear Nate was part of their group. Now I need to know just how deep all of this goes.
“Nothing really,” he says, looking away, “just a girl.”
Of course, it’s over a girl. Do all these dicks think with their damn dicks?
“Please tell me it wasn’t Sarah,” I say dryly.
He chuckles and shakes his head, “No, in the eighth grade. Portia Landry. She was hot, for an eighth-grader anyway.”
Chuckling stupidly, I urge him to continue. Despite everything, the thought of Colt fighting over another girl that isn’t me stings. Gah.
“Well, it’s stupid, really. But we were all best friends, including P. Until we all decided we liked her and made her choose. She didn’t like that much. At first, she refused, but eventually, she settled on Colt, and everything exploded.”
“What happened after that?”
He shrugs and glances across the fire, “Nothing, we hated each other, and Colt got the girl. They broke up freshman year.”
“Hm, how come I’ve never heard of this chick? Did she transfer?”
I’m not gonna lie - knowing he dated the bitch makes a kernel of hate grow in my heart for her. Which is stupid, but we’ve established that I need help, for god’s sake.
“Nope, she disappeared,” he says simply.
“Wh-what?” My heart stutters in my chest. What the fuck?
“Yeah, over the summer before sophomore year. It was a huge deal, search parties, and stuff.”
“Wow, that’s terrible,” I breathe.
“I gotta piss,” he mutters, and I watch him walk away, startled by his abrupt departure. Maybe he liked Portia more than he’s letting on. Does Colt?
Swinging my head back his way, I find he’s still staring at me intently until he switches his glare to Nate as he walks by, and for the first time, I wonder if his interest in me isn’t in direct relation to Hayden and Nate and some unhealthy competition.
Fuck.
They supposedly fought over Portia. I’ve seen Sarah with both Hayden and Colt. Is it coincidental that all three of them have approached me in one way or another?
Moving away from the fire, I spy George and sidle up to him, gratified when he beams a smile at me.
“Hey Finn, what’s up?”
“Nothing. Hey George, how long have you known Colt?”
“Uh oh,” he chuckles uncomfortably. “What’s this about?”
“I don’t know, did you know Portia?”
George pales and looks away, as Colt conveniently steps up behind us and says, “If you have questions, why don’t you ask me, Princess?”
“Maybe because I have nothing to say to you,” I say dryly.
His brow lifts in amusement, but the grim line to his mouth belies his expression. He doesn’t like my line of questioning any more than Nate did. So, what does it mean?
“If you’re going to ask about me, you should get it straight from the source.”
George moves away, uncomfortably, and I sigh, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Okay fine. What’s the deal with Portia?”
“What about her?”
“Well, for starters,” I retort, annoyed by his demeanor, “is she the reason you attack Nate every time we’re together?”
“No,” he says through clenched teeth leaning into my face. “I beat his fucking face because he’s touching what’s mine.”
Scoffing, I back up a step, my heart pounding in my chest. Colt’s angry about what I don’t know. The specter of Portia? Or me?
“Whatever. What’s your problem now?” I demand.
“You’re my fucking problem,” he barks before walking away.
Bewildered, I stare after him, confusion swirling painfully in my chest.
*****
The remainder of the party yields nothing but a bunch of drunks making assholes of themselves. Hayden’s busy fucking some girl. Nate avoids me after revealing his story, and Colt watches me broodily from afar.
I’m sulking by the fire, glancing around at all the students, pondering who I can hit up next when Ramie appears and sits beside me.
Glancing at her in surprise, I raise my brows, but she ignores my expression. Although we’ve managed to coexist peacefully, she’s still the bitch who sides with Colt in the games. Did he send her in for recon?
“Hey,” she mutters, staring into the flames.
Grunting, I glance around suspiciously, but Colt is nowhere in sight.
We sit in awkward silence for a while before she finally speaks. “I know you don’t believe me, but I am sorry. And I don’t plan to do anything more.”
Chuffing, I mutter, “What about when king Colt decrees it?”
Casting me a glare, she frowns and says, “I don’t answer to Colt.”
“Then, why?” I ask bewildered.
“Because Ben expected it, and he didn’t exactly allow me to say no,” she says grimly.
“Oh.” I don’t know what to say, but I know how hard it is to be defiant in the face of the threat of violence.
“Listen, I’m not a bad person. I just took a wrong turn.”
Nodding, I eye her speculatively and say, “Okay, prove it. I need info.”
She eyes me warily but agrees. “What do you want to know?”
“Okay, um. Sarah. How close was Colt with her?”
“Well,” she says slowly, “they were exclusive for a while. He seemed happy enough with her, but then something happened. I don’t know more than that he knew she slept with Hayden Franks,” she says sourly.
“So, he was into her? And he didn’t drop her until she betrayed him?” Although the news is painful to hear, it’s a mark against my hypothesis that the guys used us as competition.
“Yeah, why are you asking?”
“Well,” I say, chewing on my lip, “there’s Portia, who the guys fought over. And Sarah, who they slept with and now me. It makes me wonder…”
“Finn, regardless of how he felt or even acted with Sarah, it’s clear she doesn’t hold a candle to you. Colt can’t take his eyes off you. He’s a moody asshole when you’re fighting and jealous of everyone.”
“So? He was probably that way with Sarah too,” I grumble, ignoring the spark of delight in my chest.
She huffs out a laugh, “Colt never acted that way around
