Page 13 of King of Hearts

Once she cleared the spoon, she set it back in my cup before scooting her chair back. The metal grated along the floor.

“Where are you going?” I stood with her, watching as she slid her book into her bag and grabbed her cell.

She canted her head toward the door. “To bed…it’s late.”

Right—it is late, so why is she out here? She’s never done this before.

I walked over to the garbage can, tossed my cup inside, and opened the door for her.

I had no idea where she’d ended up living, but I’d have been lying if I said I didn’t want to know.

She walked ahead of me while pushing her bag up her shoulder.

“You don’t do this often, right?” Just as I asked it, a gunmetal grey car rolled by us, going slow. The windows were heavily tinted. I lifted my hand to wave, hoping they’d see the tattoos on the upper side of my arm and keep driving. Their red brake lights lit up for only a second before tires screeched and they gunned it down the street.

Taylor shrugged, completely oblivious to what had just happened. She could have been abducted, raped…fucking list was endless, and she had no idea.

“Can you do me a favor and not come out here, this late at night alone, please?” I walked next to her, seeing her car parked up ahead.

The streetlight accentuated her bare shoulder, the leather strap of her bag, and the small wisps of hair that kept falling out of her bun. “Sure. I’ll make sure I bring someone next time.”

This girl pissed me off a thousand fucking different ways. I gritted my teeth while she unlocked her car.

“Whatever, just don’t be out here alone.”

She signed off with two fingers to her forehead, then she ducked inside her car and started it up.

As she pulled away from the curb, I watched her taillights for longer than I probably should have. Taylor was a dead end. We were too volatile, and she was pure venom. If I ever surrendered to her, she’d dice me up, and any hope at having her at all would be ruined.

So instead of spending another second thinking of her, I turned toward my car and headed home.

* * *

“This house is insane, man.”

Hector walked through, keeping his eyes up along the ceiling. There was an entire mural painted on it, like the house was a cathedral or some shit.

“It’s a little over the top,” I said, dicing up an avocado and throwing it in the salad I’d prepped.

“Like your cooking—have you heard of Hungry Man meals?” My cousin held his hand toward my salad, shaking his head. He was right, but I loved cooking. It came naturally to me and actually helped me to work out any extra stress I was carrying. I could get lost in a recipe and not think about the fact that I hadn’t seen Taylor for a week or heard from her in any capacity. I could have texted her, but I hated being the one to reach out to her. It made me seem desperate. It wasn’t like I needed to insert myself into her life again…we’d gone months without talking, and we didn’t need to start back up.

I moved on to a yellow bell pepper, mulling over why she hadn’t been around and where she had ended up living.

“So…there’s this chick who keeps coming around the restaurant, looking for you.” Hector grabbed a piece of avocado and tossed it in his mouth.

“I heard. Your mom actually told me Angela keeps coming by.” I chopped, then moved on to a tomato. Had Taylor ended up shacking up with Holden? I had thought I heard he was living in a fraternity house and had maybe even started with the new baseball team. After my best friend Mallory’s story hit the world, outing the strange-as-fuck secret society Devils team, they’d been investigated by police and shut down.

The school board was rearranged, and several faculty members were fired and replaced. There was now a new team operating, but they hadn’t disclosed if they’d continue on as the Devils or get a new team name.

“If she keeps it up, there are going to be some assumptions made,” my cousin hedged, walking over to the massive fridge and sticking his head inside.

I paused working on my salad and looked up. “I’m not in.”

“I know…but you’re still Manny’s son. You’re still you. They will always look to you.”

I laughed, shaking my head. This was fucking nuts. “So, what? They’re assuming she’s mine?”

“The guys are nervous to touch someone who belongs to you.” Hector pulled the tab on his soda with a loud click.

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