Page 46 of Fight for Me
“I think so,” he said. He glanced over to where his great-grandmother sat patiently.
“Well, then this is the hardest part,” she said. “Now, you wait.”
9
Lexie spent Sundaymorning watching the messages roll in.
Colt:I love you. Can we talk about this?
Colt:You know I didn’t mean it. You shouldn’t have pushed me.
Missed call from Colt Derricks.
Colt:You brought this on yourself. Grow up and take responsibility for your mess.
Colt:I know you’re reading these!
Missed call from Colt Derricks.
Colt:It’s been two days, Lexie. Let’s be adults about this and move on.
Missed call from Colt Derricks.
Missed call from Colt Derricks.
Colt:Lexie! Answer your phone and stop being a child!
As juvenile as it was, she felt a surge of satisfaction every time she hit “ignore,” imagining Colt’s face contorting in fury as his calls were sent to voicemail again and again. He was used to getting everything he wanted, but she was tired of giving it to him.
It was nearly noon, and she still hadn’t gotten out of bed. The warm cocoon she’d created was soft and safe, and she saw no reason to venture into the ugly world beyond. Saturday, she’d immersed herself in work. Midterm exams were coming up fast, and for a while, that had been enough to distract her from the daytime soap opera her life had somehow become.
But Sunday was pity party day—table for one.
She silenced her phone, tossed it onto her nightstand and snuggled deeper into the blankets, only to be disturbed a moment later by a knock on her bedroom door.
“Lex? Can I come in? I have snacks,” Olivia called from the hallway, and Lexie’s stomach growled as if on command. If it had been anyone else, she would have played dead.
“Yeah, come in,” she said, not bothering to sit up as her best friend slipped into the room.
Lexie peered out through a gap in her blanket fortress and watched Olivia look around, undoubtedly taking in the piles of textbooks, open notepads and stray scraps of paper that littered the room. She pushed aside a collection of highlighters on Lexie’s bedside table to make room for a mug of something topped with whipped cream. Then, she sank carefully onto the bed, balancing a giant bowl of popcorn in her lap.
“So,” Olivia started as she tossed a piece into her mouth, “what’s the plan? Are we committing murder or arson? Because I’m down for either.”
An unexpected bark of laughter burst from Lexie’s mouth as she considered her friend’s expressionless face.
“Olivia Nicole, you are truly scary sometimes,” she said.
But Olivia only shrugged. “Look, you treat my best friend the way he did and see how it works out for you. My dad is Special Forces, and both my brothers are marines. I bet they know people.”
Lexie snorted again, pushing herself up to sit against her upholstered headboard. She reached for the mug Olivia had set on the bedside table and smelled rich hot chocolate wafting from beneath the column of curled whipped cream. After taking a small sip, she licked the cream off her upper lip before swiping her finger through the column and eating that, too.
“I wasn’t sure what you’d be in the mood for, so I also have four pints of ice cream—various flavors, of course—brownie bites, Cheetos, Pringles, chocolate pretzels, gumdrops, jelly beans and a monster bag of Pixy Stix, just in case,” Olivia said, ticking the items off on her fingers as she spoke.
“What did you do, raid a gas station?” Lexie asked.
“It’s important to have energy before committing a felony. Everyone knows that.”
Lexie grinned and took another long slurp of her hot chocolate before stealing a handful of popcorn from Olivia’sbowl. She crunched in thoughtful silence, savoring the perfect combination of warm sweetness and buttery salt.
