TWISTED FATE (Twisted Path Book 1)

Chapter 2

Becca

"What are you doing here?" I step aside, granting my two best friends entrance into my tiny one-room apartment.

"We came to see you, silly," Felicia squeals in that high-pitched voice that aligns with her bubbly personality.

"And I live here, remember?" Jocelyn adds as she makes herself at home, collapsing onto the small hand-me-down love seat her mom gave me when she agreed to rent me the efficiency apartment over their garage.

"What I meant is, how did you know I'd be home?"

"Tommy," Felicia smiles in that dreamy way she does whenever she speaks of her boyfriend. "He texted to let us know he and Parker would catch a ride over with Shane, and that Joss and I should wait here for them."

"That's just great," I huff under my breath and shut the door behind them.

I can't believe this. As If the crappy day I had wasn't bad enough, it looks like I'm missing out on an entire night of tips to entertain Shane and his friends. Wasn't the whole point of me taking the night off so he could come over to talk about my course load? Frustrated, I walk over to the stove without sparing them another glance.

"Oooh, fajitas!" Felicia comes to stand next to me, enthusiastically eyeing the skillet as I stir. "Why didn't you tell us it was fajita night?"

"Probably because she's not cooking for us." Though Jocelyn has moved to sit at the kitchen island behind us, I don't need to see her face to recognize the teasing grin interlaced in her voice. "So this thing with Shane, tell us, is it serious?"

"You know darn well it's not like that." Afraid they'll mistake the heat in my cheeks as anything other than the effect of me standing over a hot stove, I keep my eyes on the simmering chicken and vegetable mixture.

"Why not?" Felicia bounces on the balls of her feet, and I don't need to look at her to know she's elated by the prospect. "You dating Shane would be so perfect. Think about it, my Tommy is the quarterback, and then you and Joss dating the two star receivers of Ruby Creek High... wouldn't that be awesome?"

"No, it would not." Why in the world she would think that is beyond me? I'll never understand the appeal of a bunch of sweaty guys tackling each other to the ground as they chase after a stupid ball.

"Why not? What's wrong with Shane? Is it because of Lucas? Are you still in love with him?" She fires back question after question, without taking a second to breathe.

At the mention of Lucas, my heart constricts. It's been six months since we split up, but the pain of losing him still lingers, especially with what happened to him after the breakup. Though I'm fairly certain I'm over him, you can't go ten months loving someone and not feel completely shattered when their entire world suddenly falls to pieces. Lucas lost not only his home but both of his parents in that fire, and that he didn't reach out to me for help before running away hurt more than I care to admit. Had he called there's nothing I wouldn't have done to help him.

"It has nothing to do with Lucas." I turn down the heat of the burner and put the lid back on the skillet. Grabbing a pot holder, I open the oven, leaning down to take out the homemade flour tortillas. "Shane is my peer advisor, nothing more, and if not for Mr. Blair forcing us together, I wouldn't be working with him at all."

"We know," Jocelyn cuts in. "But don't you think it's a bit more than that? I mean, think about it, the guy goes out of his way to sit in a booth at the diner every Wednesday night after practice just to see you..."

"To talk about school," I interrupt.

"When he's around, he can't take his eyes off of you..."

"Because he's a player, who in case you've forgotten, has been in some weird on-again-off-again relationship with Amanda Kline since middle school," I cut in, curling my lip in disgust at the mention of my arch-nemesis, and apparent half-sister—though I'm not supposed to know about that, and chances are she doesn't either. Amanda Kline is the legitimate daughter of my mother's rapist.