Forgotten Rules (Rules 4)

Back pressed to my locker, his foot up against the steel.

Shit.

As long as he wasn’t going out of his way to see me, avoiding him was within the realm of possibility, but I definitely wasn’t prepared for him showing up at my locker. Time to face it—I’m stuck. I have art last period, and even if I did manage to dodge him now, I can’t skip this class forever.

His features come to life when he spots me. He flashes a pleading smile, his gaze saying “Please, hear me out.” The puppy eyes, that razor-sharp jaw, the dark circles displaying his lack of sleep.

That’s all it takes.

It hits me like a truck.

I was wrong.

Dead wrong.

I don’t just like him.

I love him.

I’m in love with him.

And I’m the dumbest girl in the whole wide world.

I fell so quickly it’s embarrassing. For the guy who doesn’t believe in relationships, not to mention my brother’s best friend, as if it weren’t bad enough. And seeing him again for the first time since the night I gave myself over to him is brutally murdering my heart right now.

I halt my strides so abruptly someone almost trips behind me. I just found out the girl I considered my sister never once cared about me, never once respected me. That she slept with my ex throughout our entire relationship, and while I know kicking her out of my life was—is—the right thing to do, it still hurts like a bitch. Thirteen years. Down the drain. Just like that.

Nope. I can’t do this.

This is too much for one day.

Will frowns at my immobility, but I don’t give him a single thought, spinning on my heels and streaking in the opposite direction.

“Kass!” He calls as I push through the crowd. I play deaf, counting down the seconds to my freedom. I don’t have it in me to listen to him tell me he wants to be friends again.

Two steps out of the building, I spot Zoey climbing out of a blue car. Callie’s car—well, it sure didn’t take her long to replace me. She’s laughing at something Callie said, looking like a million bucks. Her makeup is flawless, her outfit color coordinated. You’d never guess she became close friends with a Starbucks drink an hour ago.

“Are you okay?” someone asks.

I whip my head around.

Luke.

“No, I… I…” Tears course down my face.

“Kass, what happened?”

“It’s.” Sniffle. “It’s Zoey.”

I watch Zoey and Callie saunter toward the school in the distance, a mix of panic, pain, and rage stirring in my chest.

Luke places a hand on my arm. “Do you want to get out of here?”

“What? You mean…

skip school?”

He nods. “Just say the word.”