“I don’t want to talk about it,” I warned, tossing the book into the glove compartment—which I always did for good luck—and then climbing out of the car.
“Okay.” He nodded, stuffing his hands into his gray cargo shorts. “But if I see you sleeping with your books, I’m staging an intervention.” He jerked his chin to the backseat, littered with all of my texts for school.
I shot him a look and walked around the back of my car to attach the GoPro Jax had given me. “I got behind on my summer reading because of my shifts at the hospital,” I explained, bending down to affix the camera, “and I want to get through these footnotes by the time school starts.”
“You’re reading the books in the footnotes?” He looked at me like I was wearing head-to-toe orange.
I stood up, placing my hands on my hips. “Considering you’re studying to be a lawyer, it might be a good idea for you to dive deeper into your reading lists as well.”
He went wide-eyed. “We have reading lists?”
My eyes rounded, but then he laughed, clearly joking. At least I hoped he was joking. “Well, you’re not going into surgery tomorrow,” he argued. “So take a breath already.”
“I can’t.” I brushed him off, walking back to my door. “I’m just—”
“Worried you’ll start thinking about him?” he finished, and I halted.
I let out a sigh, gritting my teeth. “Not now, okay? Don’t you have better things to do? Like your mission to start a soccer team in the Caruthers household as soon as college ended?”
But he ignored me. Before I knew what was happening, Madoc darted into my backseat and started gathering my books and backpack.
“Madoc,” I scolded, trying to grab my shit. “Give me my books.”
He jerked away from me. “I’ve got them.”
“Now!” I whisper-yelled.
“Not tonight.” He smiled, shaking his head.
“Why not tonight?” I inquired as if I didn’t know where this was going.
But then a husky voice roared over the loudspeaker, and Madoc and I looked up.
“Tate!” My name echoed across the track. “Are you here?”
I grinned and cocked a mischievous eyebrow at Madoc. “Excuse me for a moment,” I said sweetly.
“Oh, of course,” he cooed, bowing his head in reverence with laughter in his eyes.
I rounded the front of my car, hopped on the hood, and stood tall. “Here!” I shouted, feeling the weight of a hundred pairs of eyes fall on me from the surrounding crowds.
Cheers rang out in the night air as people—men and women—howled and clapped, whistled and chanted my name, and I caught sight of Fallon and Juliet over by the bleachers holding up their drinks and screaming their support.
Zack Hager, the announcer, stood up in the viewing stand with Jax, clearly figuring out the evening’s schedule. They only took attendance when someone had canceled. Seeing as how we all had set times before the day of the race, they needed to figure out who was here, so they could push up racers in the line-up.
I jumped back down and eyed Madoc, finishing our conversation. “All of you knew he was coming home and no one told me,” I pointed out. “I’m not mad, but I’m not indulging whatever scheme you’ve worked out. I’m a grownup.”
He pinched his eyebrows together and dropped my back pack. “Puh-lease,” he grumbled.
And the next thing I knew he grabbed me, hooked an arm round my neck—putting me in a headlock—and scrubbed my scalp hard with his knuckles.
“Madoc!” I screamed, planting one hand against his back and one against his bicep as I tried to pull my head out of his hold. “You are not giving me a noogie!”
“Noogie?” he argued. “No, grownups don’t give noogies. And we’re grownups, right?” He carried on, his assault burning my scalp.
“Madoc!” I growled, my voice deep and labored with the short breaths. “Let me go!” I stomped my foot, finally twisting out of his hold.
He backed off, and I straightened, trying to catch my breath as he laughed.
“You’re a jerk!” I pushed hair out of my face that had been tugged free of my ponytail.
“Yes.” Fallon joined in, walking up with Juliet. “You’re just now learning that?” she teased, winking at her husband.
I huffed, yanking my rubber band out of my hair, because it was a lost cause now.
“Ah, that’s better.” Madoc smiled his approval at my hair hanging loose. I just scowled.
But then something else caught our attention as the crowd around us grew louder, and we all turned toward the track to see what the commotion was.
People moved to the side to clear a path, and I caught sight of Jared as onlookers cheered and screamed.
He was riding his motorcycle from high school—the same one Jax kept in his garage now that Jared had better bikes for racing—and he veered off to the side and backed up into a parking space. It took no time at all before he was swarmed with people: old friends, fangirls, and even fanboys.
I watched as he slipped off his helmet and swung his leg off the bike, flashing a smile to his old friend Zack, and my stomach tightened when I saw a young woman climb off the motorcycle behind him.
I didn’t recognize her, and I ignored the pang of jealousy that she might be someone he brought with him from California.
Everyone was trying to get his attention, and once again, he was the center of everything.
Madoc snapped his fingers in front of my face, reeling me back in. “Are you pissed off?” he asked.
I pursed my lips. “No.”
“Well, you should be,” he shot back. “That’s not his crowd. It’s yours,” he continued. “You’re the one they came to see.”
I inhaled a sharp breath. “I don’t care—”
“Now, some of them have long memories,” he cut me off, “and maybe they’re interested in seeing what crowbars will fly with you two in the same space, but nevertheless, he doesn’t get to steal the spotlight in your show tonight.”
I got in his face. “I couldn’t care less about the—”
But he grabbed my arms, and I was stunned silent when he shook me.