Page 58 of I'm Gonna Get You Back
“She probably has it hidden back there to make a sex tape,” Heather said.
Everyone exploded into laughter. Reid and I exchanged a glance, and he rolled his eyes in a way that told me to ignore them. Easier said than done.
“Please don’t put that image in my head,” Mitchell said, shuddering again.
Logan laughed, which made Mitchell turn bright pink. Turning toward Reid, Logan asked, “Ready for track this year?”
“Sure.” Reid shrugged.
“This guy,” Logan said to the same junior he’d been talking to before. “I can never fucking catch him in the fifteen hundred.” Logan chuckled and slapped a congenial hand on Reid’s shoulder.
I wasn’t the only one who caught the flare of jealousy in Mitchell’s eye. Kenji pulled Mitchell by the elbow away from the conversation and said something low that made him laugh. Logan pretended not to notice, but I saw his jaw jump in response.
“You got close a few times,” Reid said, being generous. Logan was nowhere near Reid’s level, but Reid was sensitive to Logan living in the shadow of his older brother, Noah. He never wanted Mitchell to feel that way. “How’s your preseason going?”
Logan laughed again. “You mean you don’t follow my stats?”
Reid’s nostrils flared, but his tone was more playfully annoyed than angry. “I don’t follow what isn’t relevant to me winning.”
Hank laughed along with Mitchell and Kenji, and my chest sparked with pride. I’m not sure what it said about me that I found the competitive part of Reid incredibly hot.
Josh, who had been silently watching us, rolled his eyes. “The guy’s going to Stanford, so he suddenly thinks he’s better than everyone.”
I blinked.Stanford?He’d decided?
Reid’s voice was sharp. “How did you know about that?”
Josh sneered, his lip curling up. “I haven’t heard the fucking end of it since your dad told mine.”
“I feel like Reid’s dad would’ve really likedGossip Girl,” Mitchell chuckled, trying to clear the anger that had taken over Reid’s expression.
Reid didn’t laugh. He wouldn’t meet my eyes, either.
Stanford. Holy shit. I knew it was an option, but… I didn’t know it was thechoice. Why wouldn’t he tell me something like that?
Not long after, the sky darkened as the threatening clouds finally moved overhead. A plunking rain picked up to a steady, heavy rhythm. Everyone shrieked and scattered as we pulled ourselves out of the springs and gathered our clothes and shoes.
I wasn’t as familiar with the narrow path back down the mountain. The rest of the team passed us as I descended slowly, Reid right in front, guiding me down the muddy trail.
Just as we got to level ground, the sky fully opened into a downpour.
“C’mon!” He grabbed my hand, and we ran, laughing, to the near-empty parking lot.
We landed inside the cab of his truck just in time. In a matter of seconds, it turned into a full deluge. The wind howled through the trees, blowing the rain sideways and rocking the truck a little.
“We should stay here until it calms down,” Reid said, watching the swaying branches through the windshield. He had a point; the drive back to town was windy and steep, with a sharp cliff drop on one side.
We were completely soaked. His dark eyelashes spiked with water, his hair a wet mess across his forehead. We were still in our swimsuits, and he grabbed a dry towel from behind his seat. We dried off as best we could, and he wrapped the towel around my shoulders.
The truck was already warm, but Reid still cranked the knob on the dashboard, turning the heat up higher. He brought my hands to his lips, and his breath grazed my knuckles when he said, “I should’ve told you about Stanford.”
I shook my head quickly. “It’s fine.” The needle of hurt I felt wasn’t fair. We weren’t serious. He didn’t owe me anything.
“I wasn’t keeping it from you, it’s just not a done deal. But I do think I want to stay in California.” He flicked a glance at me, then back down at our hands. “To be close.”
California Film Academy was in the Bay Area—not far from Stanford. Did he mean…?
“Close to what?”
