Melody's Crush

Chapter 27

Morning couldn't come fast enough.

Packed and ready to go, I opened my door only to come face to face with Max poised ready to knock.

I guess I shocked him because he actually looked startled.

"Hey," he smiled as he shifted his stance. "We're waiting for you for breakfast."

"Oh," I said uneasily. "I don't eat breakfast... here." I winced.

Max grabbed my book bag and hoisted it to his shoulder, reached for my wrist and started pulling. "Well ya do today," he said.

For a second, a smile tugged at my lips. Jake would act like this.

Then I shook my head and dug my heels in causing him to come up short. "No really, I need to go."

He turned toward me tilting his head as if trying to read my thoughts.

Did they all have this superpower in this family?

His lips flattened as he nodded. "Fine. Then I will walk you to your car. I'll carry this," he said as he readjusted the strap of my bag over his shoulder.

My chin jerked back a millimeter.

Snobby rich kid wants to carry my bag? To my car?

The horror!

Reaching the car door, I slid in as Max deposited my book bag on the passenger car seat and I dropped my duffle bag to the floorboard.

Freedom was just an ignition button away.

He bent over leaning his forearm against the roof of the car as he dipped his head in to look around.

"Sweet car," he said approvingly.

"Yeah, I know." I sent him a smile full of pride.

He chuckled and I was all too reminded of Kyle which sobered me immediately.

"You know. Lia thinks she's Kyle's girlfriend. But it was my mom who paired them up since he was fourteen."

I shook my head no.

"Did he ever tell you why he goes to a public school?"

I shook my head no again.

He looked around the courtyard as if to see if anyone could hear him before his eyes settled back to mine. "He punched a guy repeatedly in the face sending him to the hospital."

My eyes widened in shock. "He... hurt someone? On purpose?" That didn't sound like the Kyle I knew at all.

"Oh trust me," Max put up a hand. "The guy deserved it in my opinion. He got caught trying to ra..." he swallowed. "He did things that were legally inappropriate to a girl in school that Kyle had a crush on."

"Oh," my throat tightened. "That's horrible."

 "The scary thing is rumor has it, Lia was the one who talked the guy into ruining the girl's reputation so Kyle would stop liking the girl and pay more attention to her."

Bile rose to my throat as I pushed real hard to get it back down before chucking.

My mind raced.

"So why does he keep a picture of her in his room?" I asked, my lips tugging in disgust.

His eyebrows rose in surprise. "What were you doing in Kyle's room?" he asked teasing.

I dipped my chin. "I had to turn on the monitor you moron," I said narrowing my eyes at his gutter mind.