Page 36 of Rebel

Athena scoffed. “Looking like that? Give me a break, Storm. You want to bring Rebel to his knees, and you know it.”

“Well it’s about time somebody does. Lord knows that man has been a player with an attitude problem for long enough. All the power to you, Storm.” Codie rolled off the bed where she’d been lounging. “I’m going to my room to find something to wear. Let me know when you guys are ready to leave.”

While Codie got dressed, I listened to Ripley and Athena discuss the Venom guys in comparison to the Graveyard Kings. There was something about a bad boy that really lured the women. It made me feel a little better that I wasn’t the only one under their spell.

“All right, so maybe Noah is unavailable due to circumstances, but I wouldn’t say no to bending over for Damon Price. I mean, have you seen him with his shirt off? Goddamn.” Ripley pretended to fan herself.

The rest of us laughed at her dramatics. Athena shook her head. “He’s not bad, but I kind of love the whole strong, silent type vibe Casper has going. I bet he’s a good listener. That’s important in a man. Although Stray seems to be the best choice for a solid one night stand.”

Luna wrinkled her nose, shaking her head. “Ew no. He gets around too much. I’m all for getting your freak on, but Stray takes it to the next level.”

“Exactly. He’s got to be crazy good in bed.” Athena turned to me, a mischievous grin on her face. “What about Rebel? He must know his way around a woman’s body if you’re wearing a skirt that short to his party. Do you even have panties on under that?”

Feeling my face warm, I threw a pillow from the bed at her. “Stop it. Of course I do. And I choose not to comment about Rebel’s sexual prowess. I don’t need it getting back to him and inflating his giant ego more than it already is.”

Athena nodded knowingly. “That’s what I thought.”

We arrived at the graveyard on the edge of town shortly after ten. Cars were lined up down the road. The graveyard itself was packed with people. The little ramshackle church was no different.

There were no houses in the vicinity. We were outside the town limits. I saw why this place appealed to so many. The back of the graveyard gave way to a forest that stretched for miles. Rebel and his friends ran their crime business out here. That made sense. No witnesses.

Tonight it was all about the party. A bunch of frat guys surrounded a keg. They were loud and obnoxious in their drunkenness. Right away I spotted two of Rebel’s friends. My stomach clenched tight. He had to be here somewhere.

Athena took one look at my pale face and snapped into action. “Shit, Storm, you look like you’ve seen a ghost. We need to get some drinks in you.”

Taking my hand, she led me through the headstones to a bench beneath an overhanging tree. Pulling a bottle of white rum from her bag, she poured a large amount into two half full bottles of pineapple juice.

She pressed a bottle into my hand. “Here. Drink up. Is that your brother? I didn’t think he hung out at places like this.”

Accepting the drink, I took a long swallow, following her gaze. Chase and two other guys stood about twenty feet away, drinking beer and smoking a joint. I did my best not to end up at the same parties as my brother. We rarely ran in the same circles. This was less than ideal.

“He doesn’t usually. Hopefully we can avoid each other. He doesn’t know how far things have gone with Rebel, and I would like to keep it that way.”

Athena mimed zipping her lips shut and throwing away the key. “He won’t hear about it from me.”

I noticed my brother checking out Luna as she passed by with the other girls. Absolutely not. My brother was not dating anybody in my friend group. He seemed to feel my scowl upon him because he looked up then, making eye contact.

A frown stole over his face. Excusing himself from his friends, he headed right for us. Oh great.

“What are you doing here?” His frown deepened as he took in my attire. “Not prowling for campus idiots I hope.”

“That’s really none of your damn business. Since when do you come to places like this? Aren’t you usually more of the sports bar type?” Behind Chase, I caught sight of River. I’d worked hard to avoid him as well. So much for that.

Chase chugged back the rest of his beer and let out a revolting burp. “Usually. I’d much rather shoot pool and drink beer all night than watch these fucking idiots do keg stands and fight. The guys wanted to check it out, so here we are.”

“Gross, Chase. Get out of here if you’re going to be like that. We’re trying to have some girl time, so beat it.” I pretended not to notice the way he checked out Athena.

He lingered a moment longer before saying, “Fine, but stay out of trouble.”

He rejoined his friends, and the three of them disappeared inside the church. Thankfully, there was plenty of space here for all of us. I should be able to avoid him for the rest of the night.

“What a party crasher,” Athena remarked. “He’s lucky I didn’t poke him in the eye for checking out my tits. I’m like a sister to him.”

“Forget about him,” I said. “We’re here to party. He’s not ruining that for us.”

Athena nodded subtly toward the church. Rebel had just exited the building. He stood on the broken steps, surveying the party in the graveyard. I waited for the moment his gaze would land on me.

Our eyes locked and my heart stuttered. Did he have to be so damn hot? He’d occupied my thoughts all week. I’d started to wonder if maybe he’d changed his mind about me. Until he started across the grass right for me.

---