“Ihear you yelled at Luther to shut up in math,” Anna said, as I joined her in the dining hall and placed my plate down on the table. It was piled high with food. The nerves that prevented me from eating much earlier in the day were now being overridden by a serious need for comfort food. Math had been an ordeal to say the least. Luther was so distracting, I’d missed half of what the teacher said, and now I was going to have to spend extra time studying tonight to go over the lesson.
“How did you hear that?” I groaned.
Anna shrugged. “Everyone hears everything at Weybridge. They’re all talking about how you were sitting with Luther and Kaden, and no one can believe you told Luther to shut up.”
“Well, he’s annoying.”
Anna laughed. “You’ve got that right.”
“He seems to think we’re going to be friends, but after one class with him I’m pretty sure that’s not going to happen. He literally didn’t stop talking all class. It’s so distracting.”
“He’s like that in most classes,” Anna said, shaking her head. “It’s really a crime that someone so hot is also so irritating.”
I nodded my head firmly in agreement. “He’s like the annoying brother I never asked for.”
“Well, you’re probably the only girl in this school who’s ever compared him to a brother.”
“Annoying cousin then?”
She laughed again. “I just meant that not many girls friend-zone Luther. I can’t stand him, and even I’ve nearly kissed the guy.”
I scrunched up my nose at the thought. “I definitely don’t want to kiss him.”
“Which is probably why he wants to be your friend,” Anna said with a smile.
“That and apparently he wants to uncover all my secrets.”
Anna tilted her head and looked at me. “What do you mean?”
“He kept saying he’s on an undercover mission to uncover all my secrets.”
“Did he now? Why would he be doing that?”
“Beats me.” I shrugged. “Probably just wants to know who the new kid is.”
“Yeah, maybe,” she agreed. “So, what did you think of Kaden?”
“He seems nice. He didn’t say much though. Luther was doing all the talking.”
“Yeah, he’s pretty quiet. Cress used to have the biggest crush on him.”
“Who did I have a crush on, Anna?” Cress asked as she arrived at the table.
“Kaden.”
“Oh, yeah.” Cress gave a dreamy sigh as she slumped into the nearest chair. “It was forever ago, but I was totally hopeless for him when we first started at Weybridge. I think it was the glasses. I find them so sexy.”
“It wasn’t just the glasses,” Anna said. “You really started swooning over him when he spoke French to you in class.”
“Who wouldn’t?” Cress sighed again before turning to me. “We got paired together for an assignment, and he’d spent the summer in France with his family, so he could do the accent perfectly. I turn to absolute putty when a guy has an accent.”
“Did you guys ever get together?” I asked.
“No.” Cress pouted. “I crushed on him for our entire freshman year, but I was too nervous to make a move. I started dating my ex that summer, and the rest is history.”
“But you’re single now…” Anna’s voice was thick with suggestion.
“I am single now,” Cress agreed. “But there’s no way Kaden would be interested in me. He’s always been too busy concentrating on school to have a girlfriend.”
“Who said anything about being his girlfriend? I just think you guys should be bone buddies.”
“Bone buddies?” I laughed.
“Yeah, buddies who bone…” Anna looked so serious that I laughed again. She said it like it was the most normal thing in the world.
Meanwhile, Cress’s cheeks had flushed bright pink. “I’m not becoming anyone’s bone buddy.”
“Your loss,” Anna replied with a shrug. “I think Kaden got extra hot over the summer.”
Cress carefully looked over her shoulder and scanned the room for Kaden. He was sitting at the same table he’d been at for breakfast with Luther and Noah. My focus wasn’t on Kaden. My gaze drifted of its own accord to Noah. His expression was muted, and even though he sat with his best friends, he seemed distant. Luther and Kaden were both joking around and laughing at his side, and yet he only seemed to show a mild interest. There was definitely no hint of a smile.
“You really think he’s hotter?” Cress asked. “He seems just as hot as always to me…”
Anna slammed her hand down on the table, jolting me with surprise. “And that is why you should be bone buddies. You’ve always thought he was hot even when all the other idiots at our school didn’t realize.”
“I told you that was a million years ago.” Cress had turned back to face our table. “I don’t see him that way anymore”
“Uh-huh.” Anna clearly didn’t believe her, and I wasn’t convinced either. There had been a hint of longing in Cress’s eyes when she’d looked over at Kaden, and perhaps her crush wasn’t as ancient as she claimed.
“No one ever seems to go over to their table,” I said, glancing back at them once more. “Noah, Luther, and Kaden’s, that is.”
Cress shrugged. “It’s always just kind of been their table.”
“But why would that make people avoid it?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never really questioned it,” Cress said.
“That’s because you’re Noah’s cousin,” Anna said, rolling her eyes before she leaned in close to answer me. “When the three of them are together, people tend to tread carefully. Those boys are heirs to the biggest fortunes in this school, and they wield a crazy amount of power because of it. They make most of the kids at Weybridge look poor, which is kind of mind-blowing when you consider who’s at this school.”
“But why would that make people avoid them?”
“It’s not that people avoid them. It’s more that people don’t want to piss them off. There’s almost like some unwritten rule to leave them alone in here. Plus, everyone’s terrified after Vance tried to sit with them last year, and Luther told him to disappear or he’d make him.”
“He was obviously joking,” Cress said.
“Was he?” Anna replied. “Because if those boys wanted to make you disappear, they totally could…”
Cress scoffed. “They’re not that powerful.”
“I swear, Cress, sometimes it’s like you’ve got your blinders on when it comes to your cousin…”
“Well, because Noah is my cousin, I happen to know he doesn’t have a hit man on speed dial.”
Anna scoffed. “Yeah, because he’d totally tell you about it.”
“He would!”
Anna shook her head and focused back on me. “Okay, so maybe they’re not going to set a hit man on you. But everyone here wants to suck up to them,” she explained. “Success at this school is more about the connections you make than what you study, and you’d be crazy not to want close ties with one of those boys.”
“I guess that’s true,” Cress said. “That’s why they’re not close to anyone outside their little trio. Everyone here wants to get close to them for the wrong reasons.” She sighed as she spoke, and I almost felt sorry for the guys. I couldn’t imagine going through life questioning the motives of everyone around me. It sounded like that’s exactly what they had to do though.
“If they’re so guarded, why would Luther ask me to sit with him in class today?”
“I’m not sure,” Anna said. “It’s pretty unusual.”
“Yeah, he wouldn’t normally do that with a new student.” Cress nodded in agreement. “Maybe he’s just trying to figure you out. I bet the fact you didn’t leap at the chance to have Noah help you this morning is making his little head implode.”
“Because that’s not normal?” I guessed.
“Not in this place,” Anna replied. “I might not be totally enamored by Noah, like most girls here, but even I would have taken him up on his offer to carry me back to school. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be cradled against his naked chest? Yum.”
I scrunched up my face at the thought. That didn’t sound even slightly delicious. If Noah had carried me back to school today I would have been too mortified to ever show my face again.
Anna burst out laughing when she saw my reaction. “Yeah, Luther definitely sat next to you because of that. You’ve obviously caught his attention, and I imagine he’ll keep you around once he realizes you’re not all that interested in the politics of this school. It’s very refreshing.”
Much to my relief, the attention on me shifted as Sawyer and Wes joined us at the table.
“Have you guys seen the new Spanish teacher?” Sawyer asked. “Because her ass is muy bueno—”
“Sawyer!” Anna and Cress both shouted.
“What? She’s my future wife, I can talk about her ass.”
“Good luck with that,” Anna said. “There’s no way she’d even consider dating you, let alone marrying you.”
“Uh, hello, hotel heir sitting right here,” Sawyer fanned his hands in front of his face. “Who wouldn’t be interested?”
“Anyone who’s ever talked to you,” Anna fired back.
“Ha ha, very funny.” Sawyer had only just sat down but he suddenly leaped to his feet. “Now I’m going to have to spend lunch proving you wrong.” With that, he left the table and headed over to a group of girls. Within moments he had one cornered, and she was soon giggling as he flirted with her.
“Your brother’s a bit of a player, isn’t he?” I asked Wes.
“You could say that,” he agreed, with a shake of his head. “Thankfully, we’re not really alike in that respect.”
“So you don’t go round breaking girl’s hearts?”
“It’s not really my style.” His expression was genuine and I felt like he was telling the truth. Wes was definitely the sweeter of the twins.
“How was your first morning of classes?” he asked.
“Good, although I think I’ve got my work cut out for me in math this year.”
“I know the feeling,” he agreed. “If you ever need someone to study with, let me know.”
I’d always studied alone, but before I could tell him that, something about the sweet smile on his face caused me to nod in response. “Sure, that would be great.” I felt a twinge of guilt in my stomach, as I doubted I would take him up on the offer.
“Should we take bets on whether Sawyer nails, fails, or bails with that junior?” Anna asked, still watching him flirt with the girl across the room.
“Bails,” Cress immediately responded. “He’s all talk. There’s no way he’s going to keep this up and actually go on a date just to prove a point.”
“I think you underestimate him,” Wes said. “He can be pretty determined when he wants to be. I say nails. He’s definitely coming back with a date.”
They turned to me and I shrugged. I’d only just met the guy so I echoed Wes’ guess. I figured he would know his brother best.
“He’s definitely going to fail,” Anna said. “That girl might be laughing at his jokes, but this is Sawyer we’re talking about. No self-respecting girl would actually go on a date with him.”
When Sawyer returned to the table, it was with an inflated ego and a date for the weekend. Anna and Cress both groaned, disappointed they had guessed wrong. That only seemed to boost Sawyer’s mood further though. Apparently, he loved nothing more than proving people wrong. He spent the rest of lunch pondering if his Spanish teacher would be jealous, and Anna spent the rest of lunch throwing fries at his face whenever he said something obnoxious. Her plate was empty within minutes.
I left lunch before the bell rang so I could slowly make my way to the next class. I hadn’t iced my ankle in hours, and it was starting to throb again. I really should have spent my lunch break hunting down the nurse’s office so I could get the crutch she’d offered me, but I’d been so distracted I’d forgotten to go.
I found my next classroom easily enough, which meant I was early for my business management lesson. No one else had arrived yet, and I grabbed a seat toward the back of the room. I’d barely gotten comfortable when I heard movement at the door. My gaze naturally drifted upward, and my stomach dipped as I saw who was entering the room—Noah.
He stopped just inside the doorway, and as our eyes met my heart seemed to flicker. I rubbed a hand across the spot on my chest, uncomfortable with the reaction. All the guy had done was help me back to my dorm this morning. I wasn’t interested in him, and yet I was doing a terrible job of forgetting just how good he smelled and how my body had tingled when he wrapped his arm around me.
I ripped my gaze away from him and pulled my laptop out of my bag. The hairs on my arms stood on end as I felt him approach. Why was I so aware of his every movement? I didn’t think he’d acknowledge me, so I was surprised when he stopped next to my desk.
“You didn’t tell everyone,” he said.
I slowly lifted my eyes to his. A hint of confusion had created a pucker at his brow.
“Tell everyone what?”
“About your ankle this morning. I haven’t heard any rumors flying about the school, so I can only assume you didn’t tell everyone I was there.”
“Should I have?”
He shrugged. “I’m just surprised. Not many people in this world surprise me.”
“Okay…”
He searched my gaze, like I was some kind of puzzle he was yet to solve. I didn’t want him putting all the pieces of me together though—not when I knew he wouldn’t like the finished product.
“Thank you for sending the nurse this morning,” I said, desperate to break the silence. I didn’t like the way he studied me during the pauses in conversation, and I especially disliked how my body seemed more responsive to him when we were quiet. It was hard uttering my gratitude when I was still suspicious of his motives, but whatever his reasons for getting the nurse this morning it had still been helpful.
“I guess this self-absorbed, egotistical man-child knew you’d be too stubborn to seek her out yourself.” So he had heard my insult this morning. I opened my mouth to object, but he kept talking before I got a chance. “How’s your ankle feeling now?”
I blew out a breath and ignored the way my ankle throbbed in response to his question. “It’s fine.”
“The way you’ve been limping all day says otherwise.”
“Well, it will be fine,” I clarified.
“You say that word a lot, you know. Fine.”
“Well, it does a fine job of describing things.”
A small smile tempted the corner of his lips. “I guess it does.” He’d gotten closer as we talked, and even though there was nothing unusual about the distance that separated us, it felt so intimate when his eyes locked on to mine and danced with amusement like they did now.
Laughter from the door drew my attention away from him. It felt like someone had popped the bubble surrounding Noah and me as other students entered the classroom. He stepped away as people began moving down the aisle between us. He didn’t go far though, choosing to sit right behind me.
The room was filled with empty seats, and I was surprised he’d picked one so close to me. My skin buzzed at his proximity, and I could practically feel his eyes on the back of my neck. When I glanced over my shoulder, Noah was concentrating on his laptop, so I must have imagined it.
As I turned away, a guy who had taken the seat beside Noah pulled him into a conversation. “Noah, my man, how was your summer break?”
“It was fine.”
I struggled not to smile. I desperately wanted to look over my shoulder again to see if Noah was smiling too. There was an edge of humor to his voice that suggested he might be. I didn’t look though. I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing I was listening in.
“It’s a shame we couldn’t catch up,” the guy continued. “Would have been great to see you at our summer party in the Hampton’s. Perhaps next year?”
“Perhaps,” Noah replied. He sounded less interested in the conversation now, and I had to wonder if this was an example of what Cress and Anna had been talking about. Noah hated people cozying up to him and trying to use him. It sounded like this guy was sucking up big-time, and as he continued to talk, I felt the urge to stuff a sock in his mouth.
“Father bought me a new yacht for my birthday,” the guy continued. “I’m taking it out next time we all have a free weekend. You must come.”
“I’m afraid I’m busy,” Noah replied.
“I didn’t say what weekend…”
“You didn’t have to.”
That seemed to shut the guy up. Noah wasn’t even slightly subtle when it came to shooting him down. And I didn’t blame him. Yacht-boy sounded like he needed a little grounding.
“Hey, Isobel, did you drop this?”
I glanced up and found a familiar face looking down at me. I was so relieved to see Lily it took me a moment to realize she was holding a pen in her outstretched hand. It was nice to know she was in this class too.
“Thanks, it must have fallen out of my bag.” I took the pen from Lily before she went to sit at the desk next to me.
“How was the rest of your night?” I asked. I’d helped Lily get Amber to their dorm room after we got back from the party, but Amber perked up as I was leaving. I’d had a bad feeling it was going to be a while before she went to sleep.
“Ugh, it was terrible,” Lily said. “Amber decided she wanted to be a pirate and sang sea shanties for hours. I couldn’t go to sleep because she kept trying to escape our room so she could go search for mermaids in the lake.”
“Oh no,” I cringed. “How’s she feeling this morning?”
“Not so great. She was throwing up when I left for breakfast, and I haven’t seen her since.”
“Poor girl.”
“I definitely don’t envy her,” Lily agreed. “How’s your first day going?”
“Uh…” My voice trailed off as I remembered Noah was right behind me. I could have sworn I felt his attention prickling against my skin. “It’s feeling like the longest day of my life.”
If I was being honest, it was just my time in this class that had felt like an eternity. The minutes had a way of stretching in Noah’s presence, like everything was happening in slow motion, and I had to wonder if he had a secret super human ability to control time. It definitely seemed to come to a screeching halt whenever he looked me in the eyes.
Lily giggled. “Yeah, the first day back at school is always like that. It doesn’t help that I stayed up way too late with Amber.”
“I hope she appreciates that you looked after her.”
“Oh, I’m sure she will once she’s feeling a bit better.”
I glanced at the clock to check the time. The teacher was already running five minutes late for class. I wasn’t about to complain though. Matthew had chosen this subject for me and I wasn’t particularly excited about it.
“So, we didn’t get a chance to finish our conversation last night,” Lily said. “You were telling me about your ex-boyfriend…”
I scrunched up my face at the question. Levi was the last thing I wanted to talk about now, especially when I was almost certain Noah was listening in behind me. “There’s not much more to tell. We broke up at the end of last year because he cheated on me.”
“Oh, that sucks. I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Yeah, it wasn’t great.” Lily didn’t even know all the gory details. “How about you? Are you dating anyone?”
“No. I’ve never really clicked with anyone here.”
“No?”
“I guess I’m just very different from the people here.” Her voice was soft, and her shoulders fell a little as she spoke. I understood what she meant. I’d only just arrived at this school, and I could already tell I wasn’t like the other students here. It wasn’t a good sign that Lily had been at the school for a while and was still feeling like an outsider.
“Yeah, I don’t think the guys here are really my type either,” I agreed. The urge to glance over my shoulder and see Noah’s reaction was almost overpowering.
“Really?” she asked. “What kind of guy do you usually go for?”
I paused as I considered my answer. I had thought Levi was my type, but clearly, he was the wrong choice for me. I now knew to steer clear of the popular guy, and to avoid any guy that basked in attention and adoration. I knew exactly what kind of guy I didn’t want to date, but I had no idea what I was looking for. It was especially hard to come up with an answer when I could feel Noah’s eyes still laser focused on the back of my neck.
“I guess a guy that’s normal would be a good start,” I finally answered. I’d hoped to come up with something witty—something that might get under Noah’s skin and teach him a lesson for listening in on our conversation like I knew he was. Instead, I’d settled for the boring truth. I was never going to like most of the guys in this school. From what I’d seen so far, they spent more time in front of the mirror in the morning perfecting their hair than I did.
Lily laughed and nodded in agreement. “A lot of the guys here are pretty extra.”
The teacher finally entered the classroom, and conversations hushed as he started the lesson. I let myself get drawn into the work. It was amazing how easy it was to concentrate when you weren’t being constantly prodded in the arm.
When the bell rang, signaling the end of class, I was surprised by how quickly the time had gone. I’d been worried a business class would be dull, but so far, it sounded interesting. I was actually looking forward to what the teacher had in store for us this term.
Most of the students filed out of class quickly. It was like they’d packed up five minutes before the lesson had ended and were out the door before the teacher finished speaking. I waited until we were dismissed and was a little slower to gather my things.
Lily waited for me, but as I stood from my desk, her gaze flicked over my shoulder. A small frown creased her brow, but she quickly ironed it out and smiled at me. “I’ll see you later, Isobel.”
She darted away before I could reply.
I knew exactly what had prompted her to move so fast as I felt his presence behind me. I slowly turned and found Noah had stepped away from his desk and edged toward me. I wasn’t sure why he felt the need to stand so close, and I took a small step away from him.
“I’m curious,” he said. “What exactly does a guy have to do to be considered normal?”
So, he had been listening.
“I’m not sure you’d understand if I told you.” I started to walk toward the door, but Noah hurried to catch up with me.
“You won’t give me a clue?”
“Nope.”
“Not even a little one?”
I let out a sigh and stopped as I approached the classroom door. “Why do you want to know?” I asked, turning to face him.
“Why don’t you want to tell me?”
“Perhaps I don’t want to tell you because I wasn’t actually talking to you when I said that.”
“I’m aware. That doesn’t stop me being curious though…”
I let out another heavy breath. “I’m not sure why you’re so curious. It’s not like you’ll ever be normal.”
He slowly started to smile. “Are you saying I’m special?”
“No. I’m definitely not saying that.” He already thought it enough for the both of us.
His eyes seemed to sparkle in response. “I think you might be, Crash.”
“Ugh, don’t call me that.” This boy was giving me whiplash. One moment he was dark and brooding, and the next he was taunting me with the barest hints of a smile. “Maybe you should stop worrying about my definition of normal, and start worrying about why you want to know.”
I turned and walked off down the corridor before he could respond. It wasn’t the most majestic exit because my ankle was still causing a slight hobble, and I wasn’t feeling all that triumphant after our interaction.
Why was Noah so curious?
And, more importantly, why did I care?
