Chapter 5
SADIE
My heart is still beating like a mad drum a minute after Mr. Too Hot to Handle stormed off.
“That was intense,” Vanessa says. “I’ve never seen Danny so angry like that before.”
“He’s never met me before. I have a reputation. I can aggravate the most patient people in the world.”
She cocks her head to the side and watches me closely. “Are you saying you’re like the bee that stung Ferdinand?”
“You can’t possibly be implying that the huge football player is a peaceful flower-sniffing bull.”
“How did you know Danny was a football player? I thought you just landed and didn’t have a chance to learn anything about our school.”
Shame makes my cheeks warm. I’m glad it’s dim here. I wasn’t completely honest with Vanessa about why I didn’t check her emails. She knows I got hurt, but she doesn’t know how, and I’d like to keep it that way.
“Just a hunch. He has the physique.” I shrug.
“Danny is one of the good guys. Super chill and humble. Actually, most of the guys on the football team are nice, even the cockiest ones like Andy Rossi.”
No surprise there. Dad wouldn’t tolerate rubbish from his players. I don’t make a comment though. Vanessa knows who my father is, but I don’t want to remind her.
“If you’d arrived earlier, you’d have had the displeasure of meeting Nick Fowler, the captain of the men’s soccer team. He’s a dick with a capital D. Obnoxious and a perv.”
“So basically a total creep.”
“Yep. I don’t hate a lot of people, but he’s one of them. Fucking asshole.” She takes a large sip of her drink and then continues. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so candid about my opinion of him.”
I shake my head. “Don’t apologize about that. If you have a list of wankers I should avoid, send it my way.”
“You betcha. I’m glad you could make it tonight despite the drama.”
“Me too. I shouldn’t have driven my roommate’s car. I’m not a good driver, and I’m not ashamed to admit it.”
She snorts. “I’m glad we don’t need your talents behind a steering wheel. We want you for your skills on the field. You’re good to play again, right?”
I grimace. “Yeah. I’ve been cleared to practice. It wasn’t a big deal, just a superficial wound,” I lie.
My new coach is the only one who knows the extent of my knife injury and how I got it. I don’t want anyone else on the team to know I was attacked.
“That’s good to hear. You probably need to work extra hard to compensate for the time you were recovering. I’m sure Coach Lauda already talked to you about that, but as the captain, it’s my job to reinforce the message. We worked fucking hard to get where we are.”
Whoa. Straight to business. I’m not mad though, just surprised.
“Sorry if I’m being too blunt,” she continues.
“No, don’t apologize. I appreciate your honesty. I abhor people who beat around the bush. Your directness is refreshing. And don’t worry, I have no intention of being a deadweight to the team. I don’t do anything half-arsed. No time for losers and all that.”
She smirks. “Nice Queen reference.”
“Queen songs make the soundtrack of my life.”
Vanessa laughs and then asks, “Where’s your roommate, anyway?”
I glance around me, and sure as shit, Katrina is not in the vicinity.
“I’d better go look for her. She said she’d been drinking since God knows when.”
“Good luck.”
The moment I’m alone in a sea of strangers, I rehash the argument I had with Danny.
I came across like a jerk, even though I didn’t mean to.
And I was in the wrong to begin with. I did smash his car.
But he put me on the spot and accused me of being a liar.
It triggered my self-defense mechanism, and the bitch came out.
Of course, the altercation had to happen in front of Vanessa.
I can’t have the captain of the team thinking I’m a liability.
I’m an acquired taste—I have enough self-awareness to know that.
So I have to be extra careful, let them get to know me slowly.
Unleashing the full Sadie Clarkson hurricane on them too soon will only blow up in my face.