Page 54 of Locke 2

I passed Kayla, the receptionist. Her stare felt particularly heavy. She watched me leave, and I could hear her fidgeting. Did she know I was an alleged bird arsonist? She was going to love this drama.

Here we go again, I told myself right before I left the school.

Twenty-Five

Kali

Self-soothing ended abruptly when I exited the school and found Jem leaning back against the wall beside the entrance doors. He was eating an ice cream. Those delicious drumsticks with the chocolate sprinkles on top. He was rotating the cone, his tongue lapping the chocolate when his eyes darted to mine. I stilled, staring at him, at his leather jacket and loose jeans, his brown hair wild, his eyes especially bright under the morning sun. Jem was ridiculously good looking. Not as beautiful as Locke, but he was like the rough boy that didn’t give a shit about himself and yet still naturally looked boyishly handsome.

From what I heard about him, he always struck me as a cruel guy who didn’t flirt or get soft with anyone, but he managed to convince Patsy I was an endangered bird arsonist.

Jem paused mid-lick, watching me curiously. Did he expect me to lose it? I didn’t, but my glare intensified.

“Where is he then?” I asked through clenched teeth.

“Who?” he returned, innocently.

I rolled my eyes and began to walk, my eyes scanning the streets now. Cars were filling up. The school bell was going to ring any minute now and kids flocked to the playgrounds. Jem followed closely behind me.

“You know who, Jem.”

“I can’t tell you that,” Jem said easily. “Isn’t it my job to keep the suspense up?”

I looked at him in disbelief. “He sent you to have me fired, and why are you eating ice cream at almost nine in the morning?”

“The receptionist handed it to me.”

“Kaylagave that to you?” I raised a brow. “What did you tell her?”

“I was simply waiting in the office.”

“Jem.”

“She offered me coffee first, and I politely declined.”

Kayla wasn’t a friendly receptionist, and I couldn’t imagine Jem being polite about anything. “So, her second offer was ice cream?”

“You’re really interested in how I got this drumstick.”

“Because Kayla has never even said good morning to me.”

“Yeah, she wasn’t very fond of you.”

I paused in my step. “You spoke to her about me?”

He leaned closer, correcting me. “I spoke on your behalf.”

“What did you tell her?”

He winced. “Let’s just say you can’t go back to that school.”

After what Patsy accused me of, it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine the school believed I was also an infamous orangutan strangler.

“If Locke didn’t want me to go to work, I could have handed in my resignation,” I said. “None of this destruction of future prospects in a small town where word goes around.”

“But Locke likes a bit of drama…and destruction.”

I narrowed my eyes on him. “He does, or you do?”

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