The Rake (Boston Belles #4) by L.J. Shen

Devon didn’t even turn his head to look at me.

His eyes remained focused on his food.

“Night, Emmabelle.”

Emmabelle. Not Sweven.

“Thanks, Dev. I can look out the fucking window.”

“Delightful,” Louisa muttered. “How’re you feeling, Emmabelle? You should come home earlier. Give the baby some rest.”

“I hadn’t realized you were a doctor,” I said cordially.

“Oh, I’m not,” Louisa smiled.

I smiled right back, in a way that said, so why don’t you shut up?

“Just trying to be helpful!” She leaned her shoulder against Devon’s. I noticed that he didn’t push her away or even look mildly uncomfortable.

God, this was awful. I was going to die of jealousy, wasn’t I? The first person in the world to be deceased from the feeling.

“We have some asparagus and steak left. I made you a plate. It’s in the fridge,” Louisa noted.

Wow. Her Understanding Trophy Wife game was strong. Not only had she cooked for him, she also somehow managed to make me the side piece in a few easy steps.

“Fantastic. Well, don’t mind me on your way to negotiating the whitest marriage in the history of the world, complete with likely-inbred kids and definite infidelities down the road,” I chirped, making my way to my guestroom. “Enjoy the rest of your night!”

When I flung myself on the bed, I took out the card the officer gave me and blinked at it in fury.

The police weren’t going to help me.

My story didn’t even make any sense.

I tore the card to pieces.

I’d be my own protector.





Fourteen Years Old.



Dawn breaks across the sky in brilliant pinks and blues.

Coach Locken and I are the only people in Castle Rock reservoir.

“Thought you’d work on your times without the other harriers. I’ve been weeding out the good track and field camps for you for the summer,” he says.

I feel myself turn a brilliant shade of pink, at least five times darker than the dawn above our heads.

Coach Locken looks particularly good this morning. Clean-shaven with gray sweatpants that highlight his strong legs and a blue hoodie that clings to his muscles. I saw that creepy geography teacher on TV, and I’m sorry, but you just can’t compare them. I can think of at least fifty girls at school who would disappear with Coach Locken in the wrestling room and open their legs for him. That other teacher was old and gross.

“Not gonna let you down, Coach.”

Then I’m off.

Running in the woods is my favorite. I like the cool temperature, the fresh air. The unfamiliar sounds.

I run a two-thousand-meter loop. Three rounds. Coach starts his stopwatch. He is standing on the edge of the loop, and when I look back before I disappear into the thick blanket of trees, I notice his eyes linger on my legs.

I’m not going to lie, I’m wearing super short shorts. It’s not accidental. Lately, my daydreams about kissing Coach Locken leak into the nights. I always wake up sweaty and damp between my legs. I try calming myself down with cold showers and watching movies with other hot guys, but it’s not working. He’s the only boy (well, man, really), I truly like.

All my other friends are already kissing and making out. I’m the only one who hasn’t yet. But even if I did want to get a boyfriend to kiss, I know it’s not going to feel as nice, as good as Coach’s fingers on my knees and thighs, so what’s the point?

It’s just a fixation, I tell myself as I round the first loop and see him in the distance. Once you kiss him, you’re not going to be obsessed anymore.

And then I start making excuses for myself again. So what if he’s married? That his wife is pregnant? What she doesn’t know won’t be able to hurt her.

One kiss is not going to mean anything. He is probably going to do me a favor and never think about it again. And I’ll be able to move on and meet someone my age.

But then I think about what my dad said about that geography teacher, and my stomach knots so many times over it becomes heavy with dread. I think about Dad kissing another woman who is not Mom, and I want to throw up. It’s wrong.

I don’t want to be that person, the person who makes someone’s life … wrong.

But if Coach Locken decides to cheat on his wife, then things between them are not that good. You can’t destroy a good relationship, can you?

The second loop is a breeze. I’m so deep inside my head, on autopilot, my legs carry me at the speed of light. I don’t even have to regulate my breathing. It’s on the third loop that my knee starts giving in. It’s more than a dull, persistent pain. This time there’s a sharp zing in my foot too. The cramp is unbearable. I limp the rest of the way to him.

“What happened?” I hear Coach Locken before I see him as I descend the hilly loop. “You were about to break your record before that last loop.”

“My foot is cramping,” I shout back.

“All right. Let’s see.”

He offers me his arm when I get to him, and I lean against it as we scurry toward his car. It’s the only car parked on the edge of the reservoir. Dad drops me off for practice before he goes to work—not before making sure other kids and Coach are there—and I normally get a ride back to school with one of the harrier’s parents.