Page 93 of Furious
Betting my entire trust fund is risky, even because I can’t really touch it until I turn twenty-one. But it’s the only way to be free from under Cal’s thumb. All I have to do is win and everything will be fine.
I text Wren from Lev’s car.
Thankfully, both Lev and Chance seem lost in their own thoughts and don’t look over my shoulder.
I wave them goodbye as they drop me off in front of Heather’s house. Getting ready to go to the hockey game withHeather is just what I need to take my mind off what I’m planning to do tonight.
After losing last week, my odds will be very rewarding in case of victory and that will give me leverage with Cal. But if I lose? I’m going to be in a lot of trouble.
Chapter 24
Furious
CHANCE
“Dude, pull yourself together.” Lev hisses as we skate back to the bench at the end of our shift. “Before Coach decides that betting on us was a mistake.”
He’s right. I’ve missed every assist, I’ve been out of sync, slightly late for every play so far tonight.
The entire game is like a flash in front of my eyes while I have an internal meltdown about Ares’s parting words earlier today.
He hinted at something Lev and I have been keeping from Zara. Something he thinks would be a deal breaker if she found out. There’s no way he knows about the races, right?
I mean, if he did, the abandoned road at the end of campus would have been swarmed by police last week. But what else could it be?
For a second, I think he knows about my one mistake with Heather. But I don’t think it’s that. Maybe I should tell Zara about it, but I’m afraid of how she would react since she’s become good friends with Heather. It happened only once, way before I had any idea that she would be back in my life. I’ve been carrying a lot of guilt about channeling my grief by sleeping with my late brother’s girlfriend. There were no romantic feelingsinvolved there. It was just a way to feel closer to Atlas, but all it did was to make me feel worse. What if I tell her and Zara decides she doesn’t want to be with me anymore out of some sense of loyalty to her new friend? It would be totally pointless, since Heather and I have agreed that we’re much better as friends.
I don’t think Ares knows about it, anyway. I never told anyone about it, not even Lev, and I doubt Heather told him since she and Ares are like oil and water.
Besides, Ares talked about something both Lev and I are supposedly keeping secret from Zara. It can only be the races.
The game is over in the blink of an eye. We lose.
Coach doesn’t even come to chew our heads off in the locker room. I’m relieved, but all my teammates think it’s a bad sign. Whenever Coach Harrison doesn’t yell after a loss due to a sub par performance, it’s because he’s planning some cruel and unusual punishment.
I’m not even worried about that. Whatever Coach wants to do to us, I definitely deserve it for being too distracted to give a decent performance on the ice tonight.
“Did you see Zara’s text?” Lev asks, showing me the latest text in our thread with Zara. “She’s not feeling well, and she’s skipping the party tonight.”
I saw that. “She said it isn’t anything serious, ‘girl problems’. Maybe we should skip the party too and bring her some chocolate and some extra supplies in case she’s running low?”
As her stepbrother buying her tampons and snuggling with her under a blanket to keep a heating pad on her stomach would probably be weird; but as her boyfriend, it’s exactly what I should do.
Lev knows too. “I wish we could. There’s nothing I would like more than to put on a rom-com for her and spend the night pampering her and making sure she feels better. But you knowwe can’t do that. Of all nights, tonight is the one time we can’t skip.”
He’s right. We made a deal with Mason and a deal with a Morelli isn’t to be underestimated; at least judging by the reputation that family has in town.
“I know.” I sigh. “It’s our one opportunity to get out of this mess once and for all. But I don’t want Zara to think we don’t care about her.”
Lev agrees with me. “Yeah. Let me text Heather and see if she can deliver some stuff to Zara from us. Maybe she can keep her company until we’re back.”
The party at the Gamma house is in full swing by the time we get there. Everyone is still shaking our hands and slapping our backs despite the disastrous game. Star Cove is an amazing college, not only because of the top-notch education it offers. Our school spirit is unparalleled, and that’s especially true when it comes to how much everyone loves the hockey team.
“What did Heather say?” I ask Lev, grabbing a can of soda from a cooler in the kitchen.
“My message was delivered, but she didn’t read it. She’s probably here somewhere with her Zeta sisters and not even looking at her phone.”
I bet he’s right. “I don’t like the idea of Zara being home alone when she isn’t feeling well. Dad and Kelly are at a fundraiser tonight,” I muse. The only thing that was good about playing like shit tonight was that Dad wasn’t there to see it. “And that stuff usually drags on and on, but Ares has the week off from work. Do you think we should ask him to go check on Zara?”
