The surprise on his face had also been touched by sadness. There were little touches all over the place that were hers. Fuck Maddy Curtis. Frankie should have gotten to know this guy while she was growing up.
Then again...
If he'd been in her life, maybe we wouldn't have been, and every cell in my body rejected that idea.
Fuck that.
"Jake." The hint of impatience in Frankie's voice tugged me back to the present, and I grinned at her.
"Someone else you want me to beat up for you, Baby Girl?" Couldn't wait to find the walking dead man whose ass my girl wanted kicked.
She snorted, but curled her finger. "No, they want us to line up by rank."
Right. We were ahead of all the losers. I gave them a smirk as I caught her hand, but Rachel was a step ahead and moving with us.
"Yeah, yeah," Archie grunted. "Fuck off."
I snickered.
Honestly, none of us cared where we placed in the ranks beyond being in the top percentage to get the scholarships and admission. We were in at NYU, and that path was decided. Everything else we'd figure out as we went.
Together.
I was a couple of spots ahead of Frankie and Rachel was three ahead of me. She was in the top five, her wink and adjustment of her cap with her middle finger made me laugh again.
It wasn't long before we were heading inside, I kept one eye on Frankie, though I needn't have worried. She handled those heels on the uneven pavement like she'd been walking in them forever.
The march inside had the cool air conditioning hitting us as we followed in single file toward the stadium. The music had begun to play, the school song followed by Pomp and Circumstance for us to head to our seats. As soon as I cleared the first doorway, I glanced toward the arena seating we'd secured for our families. We'd traded tickets around until we'd gotten a block for all of them together.
I half-stumbled when I saw Dad there in his uniform, a broad grin on his face, and the girls squealing and cheering next to him. Even Mom looked happy. Klara was sitting with them and she winked when she caught me looking.
Fuck. Me.
He came.
They both did.
Bubba's dad stood right behind mine and he wore the broadest smile. Somehow, Joe had a hand in this. He and my dad had been friends for too long. There was Coop's mom and dad. We had friends there too. Marsha from the diner had come. I thought that might be Lyssa from the club sitting with them, but would Bubba and Frankie have invited her?
Archie's grandfather stood clapping with Jeremy and, ugh, Archie's mother was there as well as his father. Poor guy. I mean, I guess it was good they showed up, but still.
As promised, Frankie's dad was right there with them. He wore the strangest expression though, his smile proud but strained and when my gaze skipped past him, I realized why.
My dad wasn't the only surprise guest. There was an older couple also seated there and from the photos, I recognized Frankie's grandparents.
But they weren't who made my blood boil.
Maddy "fucking" Curtis was there too.
Goddammit.
Chapter Four
Don’t Let me Be Misunderstood
Frankie
All through the speeches, the accolades and the calling out of special achievements—even when they called my name—I remained intensely aware of the fact Maddy had shown up.
She'd shown up here.
At my graduation.
Where the guys were.
Where their families were.
Where Hank was.
That was the part that infuriated me the most. Hank had come all this way on the chance he could see me graduate. A child he'd never known about, while Maddy, the woman who had raised me—that whole phrase was fucking laughable— couldn't even be bothered to tell him about me or vice versa. A woman who only wanted what she wanted when she wanted it and fuck everyone else.
Hating her probably wasn't healthy, but Erin told me I needed to be honest about my feelings. Right now, I really fucking hated her. The only saving grace was all of the guys' families were between Hank and Maddy.
That was something. I hadn't noticed whether she was sitting with Eddie or not. Fuck, poor Archie. The last people he wanted to see here were his parents. My stomach roiled, and I focused on keeping my head up. The speeches droned on, but I couldn't focus on them. None of the guys were sitting close enough to touch and even Rachel was one row ahead not far from Jake.
When they started calling out the names, I exhaled a huge sigh of relief. I wanted so badly for this whole thing to be over. It was like all the giddiness from earlier had deflated from my day. The first row rose and lined up so they could cross the stage. We'd rehearsed it, and when they got to the halfway mark, I rose with my whole row and we trundled into place.
Thankfully, I didn't trip over my heels and I didn't turn my head or look back. I had my eyes on the stage when they called Rachel's name. Her family let out a huge burst of sound in the center. They were noisy as hell and she made a face at them before she tugged her tassel over to the opposite side and accepted the folder from the superintendent. When it was Jake's turn, there was another burst of sound, and I put two fingers to my lips and let out a shrieking whistle for him.
Fuck the rules.
Okay, maybe I should calm down, but my heart hammered and Jake's almost feral grin when he glanced at me as he left the stage
