New town. New school. Same routine-until Charlotte Galloway catches the attention of Lucas Andrews and Aiden Woods, two of Brookhaven High's most notorious bad boys.
She never expected to be caught in the middle of their game. She definitely never e...
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As Lucy and I walked into the house, the familiar quiet of home wrapped around us. It was the complete opposite of the chaos we’d just left at the beach. The muffled sound of the TV in the living room confirmed our parents were still up. The light from the screen flickered faintly under the door, but no one came out to greet us.
Lucy trailed behind me, kicking off her sandals by the door. “Well, that was... interesting,” she said, her voice carrying that teasing lilt she always got when she had something on her mind.
I sighed, running a hand through my hair as I dropped my keys on the counter. “You’re going to analyze every second of it, aren’t you?”
“Obviously.” She grinned, leaning against the wall and folding her arms. “But first, let’s talk about you. What was that with Charlotte tonight?”
I shot her a look. “What are you talking about?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on, Lucas. You were practically glued to her the entire party. And don’t think I didn’t notice that kiss during truth or dare.”
“It was a dare, Lucy,” I said, grabbing a glass from the cupboard and filling it with water. “It didn’t mean anything.”
She tilted her head, studying me like she didn’t believe a word I was saying. “Didn’t mean anything, huh? Then why did you look like you’d been hit by a truck afterward?”
I frowned, taking a long sip of water to avoid answering. “You’re imagining things.”
“Am I?” she asked, arching an eyebrow. “Because it sure seemed like Charlotte’s got you all twisted up. Which is... weird, by the way. You don’t usually get like this about anyone.”
“I’m not ‘twisted up,’” I muttered, setting the glass down a little harder than I meant to. “She’s just... different.”
Lucy’s smirk widened. “Different how?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, running a hand through my hair again. “She doesn’t fall for the usual stuff. She’s not like the other girls.”
“Oh, so she’s immune to your so-called charm?” Lucy teased. “That must be killing you.”
I glared at her, but she just laughed, brushing past me to head upstairs. “Goodnight, Lucas. Try not to lose too much sleep over her.”
“Don’t you have something better to do than get in my business?” I called after her, but she just waved me off, disappearing into her room.
I stood there for a moment, the house silent around me. Lucy wasn’t wrong—Charlotte was different. And yeah, maybe it was messing with my head. But I wasn’t about to admit that to her—or anyone else, for that matter.
After turning off the kitchen light, I headed upstairs to my room. The faint scent of salt and smoke still clung to my clothes as I tossed my shirt onto a chair and fell back onto my bed. My phone buzzed on the nightstand, but I ignored it, letting my thoughts wander instead.
