Good Boy by Megan Lowe
Chapter 12
Pulling into school the next day, I forgo the space I previously occupied, opting for one in the middle row, in between a BMW and a Mercedes.
Jase chuckles. “I’m pretty sure if someone wanted to get to your car, they’d still be able to find it here.”
“Maybe I’m trying to be more humble and not flash around my goods.”
This time he actually snorts. “Uh-huh, sure.”
By this stage Chloe has walked up.
“Why are you parking all the way back here?” she asks.
“He’s hiding,” Jase answers as we both get out.
“I am not,” I argue.
“Sure looks like it.”
“Can we just leave it?” I ask. “It’s a fucking parking space; it doesn’t mean shit.” I start walking toward the school building as Cav pulls in, slowing down as he drives past me, not breaking eye contact until he absolutely has to.
“Shit, that was hot,” Chloe says, coming up beside me.
“Huh?”
“You, Cav, that little standoff you guys just had.” The “duh” is implied.
“He’s just trying to intimidate me,” I say.
“Probably. And at risk of getting you all hot and bothered, I think you’re getting to him.”
“I don’t want to get to him.”
“Really?”
“Of course I don’t. You saw what he did to my car.”
“That is true. Why did he do that, again?”
“Because he’s a psycho, like you’ve been telling me all along.”
“Hmm, yeah, that sounds about right.”
“But seriously,” I say as I stop. “What is with that guy? I’ve done nothing to him and he attacks my car? Like, what the fuck? I don’t even care how good-looking he is, he’s insane.”
“You don’t care… Oh my God,” she says. “You seriously like him.”
“What?” I ask, my cheeks flushing.
“You, Connor Siddell, like Cavanaugh McLaughlin. I thought it was one of those silly little girl crushes, but you seriously like him. You want him.”
“Be real,” I tell her.
“Oh, I am.”
“I do not like Cavanaugh McLaughlin. He’s an ass.”
“He has a fine ass,” she corrects. “Bet it would be nice and tight for you to push into.”
“Stop it,” I tell her, trying my hardest not to imagine doing the very thing she described.
“You’re imagining it, aren’t you? How tight, how firm, how muscular he’d be. How he’d be able to manhandle you and fight to show you who’s boss.”
I try, unsuccessfully, to subtly adjust myself to hide my semi.
Chloe chuckles. “Yeah, you’re not thinking about it at all. But seriously,” she says as we watch Thomas greet Cav, “do we need to talk about this?”
“No.” I sigh. “It’s stupid, I know this. I guess it’s just been a while since I’ve had some action that wasn’t by my own hand. I hear deprivation can make you crazy.”
She rolls her eyes. “There’s always EJ if you’re desperate.”
I shove her gently. “I’m sure she’s more your type than she is mine.”
She grimaces. “I mean, she’s hot but she’s also a total space cadet. I’m not even sure if I went for her, she’d understand what was happening.”
I laugh and sling an arm around her shoulders. “Looks like we’re both shit out of luck then, aren’t we?”
I know Cav is watching us as we walk into the building, but this is enough for now.
Chloe isn’t in English. She’s been called to the guidance counselor, so she texts me to let me know and ask if I can take notes for her. Given this, it’s a surprise when someone slides into her seat. His scent, rich, woodsy with a hint of engine oil, surrounds me.
“What’s the deal with you and Caldwell?” he asks.
I lean back and turn to face him. “What’s it to you?” I hit back.
“Just wondering how it works, that’s all.”
“Ah, I see, you need tips on how to get the hot girls.” The words are out of my mouth before I realize what I’ve said. But it’s not like this hasn’t been a long time coming. Cav’s here and I want answers.
“Ha! If, and that’s a big fucking if, I did need tips, why the fuck would I come to you?”
“You mean the resident gay guy?” I ask, putting it front and center. He may have a problem with my sexuality, but I sure as shit don’t.
“Is it a ploy? For either you or Fontana to plow Caldwell? Is that it? You’re pretending to be straight, then one night she has one too many drinks, you get her where you want her, and then you and Fontana swap, is that it? A bait and switch.”
I clench my fists. “Don’t confuse me with one of your goons,” I tell him. “That may be how they get girls in bed, but it’s definitely not the way Chloe goes about things.”
“My goons?” he asks. “What do they have to do with this?”
“I’m sure more than one of them has tried, unsuccessfully, to get into Chloe’s pants. Probably EJ’s as well.”
“So you’re hoping the guys will be ripe for the picking after the girls reject them, is that it?”
“First off, I don’t know what EJ wants. She came up to me yesterday, we had a chat, and then we went our separate ways. If Chloe is interested in her, I’m sure she can get her without my help. I don’t need any help either. I might be gay but that doesn’t make me some sexual predator, poised to take advantage of every guy Chloe rejects. But it would be nice if you could tell your friends that she’s not some object to be obtained or a game to be played.”
“I don’t tell my friends shit.”
“I know, it shows.”
He growls, literally growls at me.
I shake my head. “For fuck’s sake, man, have some balls. You know what your reputation is here. How about for once, just for once, you use it to do some good? But then, that would require being a decent human being, wouldn’t it? I guess it’s a good thing she’s got balls of her own and doesn’t need you or anyone.”
“She doesn’t need balls, although maybe they’d come in handy when she’s trying to seduce all the straight girls around here. Maybe you’d like them too.”
I laugh. “If Chloe had balls, I would indeed like her better. At least that’s something you got right.”
“You need to stay away from me,” he chokes out.
“I wasn’t the one who sat down next to me. That was all you. Since the first day I got here I’ve been wanting to keep a low profile. I’m just here with my friend and that’s it. I haven’t done anything to you, haven’t said anything to you, I’ve just been me.”
“I told you, you’re in my way.”
“And I’ve told you I don’t know what way I’m in, but it definitely isn’t yours. You’re the one who keeps coming back, who keeps coming after me. Why is that?”
He pushes his chair back with a screech.
I shake my head. “You say this, whatever this is, is all me? I think it’s all you. You’re the one with the problem, not me.”
He clenches his jaw and fists as he stands up. “Don’t talk to me.”
I throw my hands up. “I didn’t do anything. I never do anything. You’re the one who sat down here. I was just minding my own business.”
He shoves the chair out of his way as he walks past.
While I can’t say these… interactions with Cav are entirely pleasant, I also can’t deny that I’m growing to like them. There something with Cav, something that keeps him coming back at me. And I’m determined to find out what it is.