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“Albany U is interested,” Kye said. “Coach thinks Nix has a real shot at getting a full ride but he’s being… difficult about it.”
“Is that true?” She sat up and turned fully around to me. “They want you?”
“Maybe,” I said, barely meeting her eyes. “It’s not a big deal.”
“Nix,” she breathed. “It’s a huge deal. This is a good thing. A great thing.” Her voice dropped to a whisper.
“I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
Confusion flickered in her eyes. “But—”
“Leave it, yeah?”
Harleigh turned back to the fire and guilt rolled through me. I was being a dick. But the truth was, I couldn’t talk about it. Not here. Not surrounded by our friends.
I’d gotten her back. Harleigh was here. She was mine. And there was a ton of shit just waiting to try and separate us again. I didn’t want to add a scholarship that may or may not happen to that list.
I didn’t want to think beyond the here and now. Because this—her—it was all I needed.
For now, it was enough.
I slipped my arm around her waist and pulled her back against my chest. “I’m sorry,” I said quietly, breathing her in. “I didn’t mean to snap.”
Harleigh slid her hand over mine. “It’s okay.”
It wasn’t, but I’d take it.
Zane caught my eye, silently asking me if I was okay. Lips pressed together in a thin line, I nodded.
Harleigh was here. She was here and she was okay. Everything else would figure itself out. Because no matter what happened, I would never leave her side again.
“You know, she’s kind of cool.” Kye flicked his head over to where Celeste, Chloe, and Harleigh were talking.
It was time to go, and I could already feel anger bubbling inside my veins. I didn’t want to leave her, not again. And I sure as fuck didn’t want her going back to his house. But this was our reality for now, and I had to find a way to live with that.
“Celeste is cool,” I said, knowing that I owed her for bringing Harleigh here today.
“She’s annoying,” Zane grunted.
Kye chuckled. “You would say that.”
“Fuck off.”
Zane uncapped a bottle of water and doused the fire until it was nothing more than a pile of ash and embers. “Do we have a plan for the game?”
“A plan?” Kye’s ears perked up.
“Harleigh’s gonna be there, right? No way Denby won’t try to use that to his advantage.”
“Yeah.” My eyes slid over to where she was standing, smiling at her sister and Chloe. Fuck, that smile. I wanted more of that. More of her smiles and laughter and her happiness. But I knew better. Because life was hard. It was messy and fucked up. And few kids from The Row ever made it out.
“Come on,” I said, taking off toward the girls.
My girl.
My chest swelled. But an icy sensation washed over me as I heard Chloe say, “Oh shit, have you told Nix?”
They hadn’t noticed me yet. But their heads soon whipped around when I said, “Told me what?”
