Prologue
EMMETT
It’s barely seven in the morning but Bluebonnet Creek, Texas, didn’t get the memo that summer is almost over and fall is on its way, with school starting in less than a week.
Sweat is dripping off my face, and there is no solace in the light breeze, which is so hot that it makes it ten times worse.
Looking up, I blink the sweat away.
That’s when I see her.
I stop in my tracks, completely stupefied. I’m not really sure who she is, which is saying something since Bluebonnet Creek is so tiny you have to know where to look on the zoomed-in map to actually be able to find it, but something about her demands my attention. Dressed in a simple white tee, a pair of jean shorts showing her tanned legs, and red chucks, she passes by the football field with determination a sergeant would be proud of, her thick, dark ponytail swaying from side to side with every step she takes.
“Yo, Emmett,” Miguel, my best friend, calls out to me, but I’m too stunned to answer him, my mind still reeling with thoughts of her.
Who the hell is that?
But before I can ask, or go after her to find out, something smacks me over the head. Hard. Fucking hard. A zap of pain spreads through my scalp, my hand flying up to cover my throbbing head, but even that doesn’t prevent me from following her with my gaze.
Who is that girl?
“You listening?”
I don’t bother answering. Instead, I tip my chin in the direction the girl disappeared, asking the question that really interests me. “Who is that?”
Miguel looks up, but the girl’s already too far away for him to see her face clearly.
“No idea.” He tilts his head to the side. “But she has a nice ass.”
This time it’s me who’s smacking him over the head.
“Hey!” Miguel moans in protest. He rubs the back of his head and turns to glare at me. “What was that for?”
“Watch your tongue, asshole,” I hiss at him.
It’s irrational. This surge of anger I feel because my best friend is watching a girl I don’t even know. A girl I have never met. I never minded it before, but something about this girl…
I shake my head, trying to clear my mind.
“What, you know her?”
I want to roll my eyes at him, but instead, I turn around, watching the little dot that was a girl disappear out of view. “No, but I plan to find out.”
“Santiago! Fernandez!” Coach turns and glares in our direction. “You two better start moving your asses, or I’ll make you run drills until you puke your guts out.”
Chapter One
EMMETT
“So I told her, I’ll decide whenever the hell I feel like I’m ready to decide, you know?” Miguel grumbles as we walk through the busy school hallways on the first day of school.
“Mm-hmm…” I mutter, hoping I sound like I’m at least attempting to listen. In reality, I’m scanning the space in hopes of finding the mystery girl from last week.
I hadn’t seen her since that morning when I caught a glimpse of her during practice. Not for lack of trying, either. Every time my family needed something from town, either for the house or the ranch, I volunteered to go and get it so that I could peruse the streets and stores for my mystery girl.
“You’re not even listening to me,” Miguel grumbles, elbowing me in the gut.
People greet us as we go to our lockers. I nod at some, fist-bump the others, making sure never to linger too long in one place.
She has to be here somewhere.
Why the hell would she come by the school that day if she’s not going to Bluebonnet? It just makes no sense.
“Sorry, I’m just—”
“Emmett!” A sugary sweet voice interrupts me before I get to finish. Miguel coughs pointedly but tries to cover it with his hand. Just then, one of our teammates calls out his name, and Miguel joins him, leaving me all on my own.
Asshat.
I turn around just in time to see Rose Hathaway stride toward me in all her charming southern glory. Her dress sways around her long legs as she walks toward me, a big smile on her pink lips. She wraps her fingers around my biceps, plastering herself to my side. “That was some party last weekend.”
“Yeah, it was okay,” I mutter, not really paying her much attention. My whole focus is on spotting that brown ponytail somewhere in the hallway.
Like most of the people in our class, I’ve known Rose since we were in kindergarten. She’s one of the prettiest and most popular girls in our school, and that’s saying something since we’re only juniors—but it’s not her that has my attention.
Seriously, can somebody get lost in this crowd?
I didn’t think it was possible since our school has less than six hundred students. It shouldn’t be so hard to find somebody.
“I mean, it’s so cool of your family to let us use the pond on your ranch so we can have these parties,” Rose continues excitedly, not noticing my distraction. “If they were anyone else’s parents, they’d probably freak out or lurk around all the time, but not your parents.”
“They’re cool,” I agree absentmindedly.
Rose chats away, and I listen to her with half an ear, not in the least interested in what she’s talking about as we walk down the hallway to our lockers.
Juniors and seniors have their lockers in the west wing, while freshmen and sophomores are in the east. Calling it a “wing” always cracks me up. It’s basically just left or right hallway from the entrance, but somebody thought they’d make us sound more sophisticated if we used “wing” instead.
I obviously don’t hide the fact that I’m not paying attention very well because the next thing I know, Rose’s fingers dig into my skin as she pulls me to a halt. She turns, so she’s facing me, placing her palms on my chest.
“Are you even listening to me?” Rose giggles, but the sound comes out forced and unnatural. She’s trying to pretend everything’s okay, and she’s all cheery when in reality, she’s quietly freaking out.
Before I can answer her, a movement catches my attention.
The swing of a ponytail.
I suck in a breath. My heart speeds up in excitement, but when I look closer, I realize it’s not the new girl but somebody else.
Rose traces her fingers over my jaw, forcing me to turn my head and look at her. “Are you okay, Emmett? You seem completely out of it.”
“I’m fine.” I sigh and look down at her.
Those big brown eyes watch me expectantly. They’re filled with hope and adoration, making me want to run in the other direction.
Fuck, this is about to get ugly.
“You seem distracted. Was it practice?”
I run my fingers through my hair and take a step back. “Practice was okay.”
“Then what is it?” The cheery, giggling girl is gone. Instead, her eyes narrow at me, hard and calculating.
“You’re a nice girl, Rose. You know that, right?”
My words sound condescending even to my own ears. There is nothing more cliché than the whole it’s not you, it’s me explanation, but there isn’t another way to do it. It is me.