He shut the door and walked slowly to the driver’s side. He stood at his door for a full minute. When he finally sat in his seat and switched on the ignition, he had to speak up over the roaring of the Chevy’s glass packs. “So am I.”

Chapter Five

“Can I talk to you for a minute? Like . . . not through this window?” Weston was pleading with his big emerald eyes. He’d been looking at me that way off and on for a week, in the hallway and in the classes we shared. I knew he wanted to say something to me, but things had been awkward between us since he dropped me off at my house several nights before.

I looked to Frankie. She pursed her lips and motioned for me to go to the back door.

“Yeah . . . yeah, you can uh . . . meet me in the back.”

I turned on my heels and made my way to the back, every muscle in my body tense from my face to my toes. I pushed open the door, and Weston stepped inside. We stood alone in the storage room, with harsh fluorescent lighting making me look as horrible as possible, surrounded by boxes of syrup and toppings, and the weird smell from the drain wafting in the air. He didn’t say anything at first, and my eyes drifted, targeting everything in the room except him, while I waited for him to speak.

“I’m a dick,” he said, his eyebrows pulling in.

“What?”

“I’m worse than a dick. I’m a coward. I should have said something a long time ago. When you stood up to Erin, it just … gave me my balls back I guess. They’re so damn mean, and I didn’t want any of that directed at me, but . . . they’re girls. They’re teenage girls, and I’m ashamed that I’ve been too intimidated to say anything. Especially to Brady. What kind of asshole lets an asshole like that speak to a woman the way he speaks to you? I hated it. I’ve hated it for years, and I just tried to ignore it.”

I shook my head. Brady, Brendan, and the Erins had said a few things to me that week, but nothing out of the ordinary. I wasn’t sure what had Weston so riled up. “It’s okay. I don’t expect you to . . .”

“I know you don’t. I’ve been thinking about this all week. All month. I’m not going to let them, or anyone else, treat you like that anymore.” I wasn’t sure what look I had on my face, but Weston suddenly seemed nervous. “What?”

“I don’t know . . . I mean . . . you still haven’t said why?”

He sighed. “I know. We’re two months away from grad, and they’ve been torturing you since grade school. I can’t go back, but I can make it up to you.”

“That’s it? That’s your reason? You suddenly grew a conscience?”