Page 10 of Savage Truth

She nodded. That was the thing about us—we didn’t play by the rules, so my breaking into the school didn’t faze her. But it seemed something had as she turned to face me with the weight of her stare.

“I don’t know what’s going on between you and Lucas’s boys, but please, Riles, it’s not just me who needs this. We both do.”

What about what I need?I didn’t voice it, but I wish she would’ve asked. Because living there wasn’t what I’d wanted to happen.How does she not see the writing on the wall?Cole may have wanted me, but he also hated me or what I represented. And when he found out about our past, and Lucas did too—because I highly doubted that Mom had told him everything—would we escape in time? Somehow, I wasn’t so sure.

I didn’t respond but grabbed my bag and slammed out of the house. I expected her to follow, but by the time I got my car started and backed down the driveway, it was clear that I was wrong. It wasn’t the first time she’d chosen Lucas over me, and I suspected it wouldn’t be the last.

When I got to school, it was late, and I knew it would be empty except for the janitorial staff. I just had to avoid them, which wasn’t difficult. I parked by the entrance closest to the pool. The lighting was dim around the building. I swept the area, checking for hidden threats because it was never a good idea to expect someplace to be safe. Dad’s goons could be anywhere, according to Uncle Ronan. He and Mom had taught me to be aware at all times, and it stuck. Even though she thought this was a haven for us, I had a hard time believing it and knew a part of her was skeptical, too, because I’d caught her scanning the restaurant parking lot.

I tried the key in the lock, and a sense of victory flooded me when it turned. I grinned at the prospect of keeping the key for myself. I could hide it somewhere in the house. He’d expect to find it in my room, where it would not be.

In the locker room, I shed my clothes and shoved them into my bag before pulling out my towel and taking everything into the pool area. I’d put my bathing suit on under my clothes, not wanting to deal with changing.

The humidity was a balm to my stressed-out senses. I dropped my bag then went immediately to the high-dive ladder. The rungs dug into my bare feet. I hadn’t bothered to do anything with my hair, and it hung down my back. No one was there to reprimand me.

I toed the edge of the board, letting the stillness of the space envelop me as I pictured the dive in my mind, mapping each twist and turn. I pushed off the board and savored that brief pause in the air where I floated for a tiny second before gravity took over. I moved my body through the twists and turns, in complete control, then straightened so that I was a strong line from pointed toes to fingertips as I pierced the water, finding another haven below the surface. I couldn’t get enough. I dove deep, enjoying the solitude.

When my lungs screamed for air, I kicked for the surface then swam to the side. Hauling myself out of the pool, I salivated for more. Diving was addictive. It saved me from the stress of life, of constantly moving and changing our appearances, providing an escape from the danger that surrounded us.

A door slammed, and I held my breath, darting my gaze to every hidden corner. It sounded close. I sprang into motion, moving for my bag on the slippery floor.

“I saw your dive.”

Shit. The diving coach.I looked over my shoulder, and recognition trickled in, slowly taking the edge off the adrenaline rush but leaving a tingling sensation in my fingertips.This isn’t good.He could get me suspended for being here after hours and without permission or a coach present.

“I’m not going to ask how you got in here,” Coach Thompson said. “After that dive, I expect you here tomorrow at six a.m. for practice. This is your one exception.” He started to turn away then clearly thought better of it. “And don’t let me catch you here after hours again.”

“Yes, sir.” I threw on the sweatshirt I’d brought, shoved my feet into my shoes, then raced out the door.

He wants me on the team. A secret part of me was thrilled. I’d never joined one before. It wasn’t possible. I paused at my car, but Mom said I could join this time. I got behind the wheel, started the engine, then pulled out of the lot, deciding to commit for the first time to something I wanted more than my next breath.

I’m going to do it.

CHAPTER FOUR

COLE

Water beat down on me, washing the blood away. A light-pink swirl went down the drain. That fight had been a tough one. My body ached, and I couldn’t wait to fall into bed. Screw the party. I wasn’t in the mood to hook up with Eliana when all I could think about was how Riley was probably asleep in the room across the hall from mine.

My neck cracked when I turned my head, easing a sharp pain into a dull ache. I wasn’t sure if it was from the football game or the fight. I’d taken a beating but given one, too, and won. The bruises on my chin, chest, and shin were all worth it. I was sitting at eleven to one. Undefeated would have been better, but I’d take it.

Steam billowed from the shower, fogging the mirror. I stepped out and grabbed my towel from the warming rack. After a quick rubdown to get the excess water off, I wrapped the towel around my waist and walked into my room.

Riley?Exhausted, I had to blink a few times to make sure what I saw was real. Yep, Riley was lying on my bed, looking like a wet dream. That was a horrible idea.

I could hear Dad and Damon talking in the hall. It wasn’t likely that my dad would come up here, but if he did… it could cost me more than I was willing to give. Because of that botched game the other day, which he couldn’t stop rehashing, I felt the noose around my neck with the possible loss of my scholarship—I hadn’t signed anything yet. Everything was up in the air. If that went away and he refused to pay for college, my chances of being drafted into the NFL would drop.

She crossed one leg over the other at the ankles on my bed, and it was all I could do to remain where I was and not fall on her. Goddammit, I wanted her to stay like I needed my next breath. I needed to stop thinking with my dick. “You need to get out.”

She rolled to her knees, a sexy little smirk curving her mouth, and reached for the towel. “You should climb into bed with me.”

Blood roared through my body with the graze of her fingers over my chest, and I moved to my door and kicked it shut. Then I turned to her and closed the distance between us, stopping mere inches from kissing her. “This is a bad look on you, all this desperation.” Total bullshit. She was beautiful, soft, and so sexy. The desperation was all me.

“I’m not the one looking desperate right now.” She pursed her lips and looked pointedly to where my dick was straining against the towel.

“Listen, Baby Girl.” She was off-limits, and it was driving me crazy. “You’re nothing but a prick tease.” I wanted to goad her into letting me have another taste.

Her warm brown eyes darkened, and the air charged between us. All I had to do was push her a little more… “Let me give you some examples: in my room—twice now. After the game. At the restaurant—”

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