Circle of Lies (Red Ridge Pack) by Sara Dailey, Staci Weber Page A

drive myself insane. There just didn’t seem to be any way around that.
    How was I going to make it through the day, though? I couldn’t even think straight.
    The first period bell rang just as I slid into my seat, and I was getting out my class notes when Alli leaned over and whispered, “Hey, is everything okay? I saw you run off this morning. What did Aiden want?”
    Great. Now I had Alli reminding me what an ass-tard I was. I flipped through my spiral and responded, “Nothing really.”
    “Nothing? Really? ”
    I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t tell her the truth: Oh, I don’t know what he wanted because I was a total bitch and he took off without telling me. I’m getting really good at avoiding him, though, don’t ya think?
    Alli just sat there waiting for me to say something. I silently cussed Ms. Wallace for choosing now to let the class sit and talk while she finished checking her email, put down my spiral and admitted, “Well…I’m not sure what he wanted. He didn’t really say.”
    “What do you mean?” She obviously wasn’t letting this go.
    “Really, I don’t know. He just caught up with me, and I asked him what he wanted, then he just said never mind.”
    Alli stared. I couldn’t read her. Finally, I said, “What?”
    “Teagan, just give the poor guy a chance.”
    I could barely wrap my brain around the fact that he even wanted a chance, which was what his sister’s words seemed to confirm beyond all doubt, but before I could ask her to elaborate our teacher decided to start class.
    Lovely. Perfect timing. School’s always like that.
    *****
    After what seemed like an eternity and a half, the last bell of the day rang. I gathered my things and headed to my locker, and lo and behold Aiden Wright was standing there waiting for me. After the way I’d acted, it really seemed crazy that he was being so persistent.
    I pasted a smile on my face, steeling myself to walk right up to him and be friendly. Yes, friendly, Teagan, I told myself. I know it seems a foreign concept for you lately, but you can do this. Don’t run him off again .
    As I approached, he smiled that perfect crooked smile and said, “Hi again.”
    “Hi,” I replied. Lame. So lame. But how was I supposed to not melt like ice cream on a hot summer day around this guy? It was either that or bite off his head, and I’d sworn not to bite off his head this time.
    He moved aside so that I could open my locker, and I welcomed the distraction of swapping out books. Then he leaned forward , and I was suddenly overwhelmed by his closeness. Trying not to swoon, I continued messing around in my locker and hoped he would speak before me and my stupid mouth blurted something I’d surely regret.
    Shifting from foot to foot, he finally spoke. “So…I was thinking that maybe—”
    Out of nowhere, Becca appeared at his side. “Hey, baby, I’ve been looking for you all over. Thought I could drive you home.”
    Aiden froze. Unable to control myself, I rolled my eyes and went back to fumbling inside my locker, even though there was nothing else that I needed. I wanted to see how he would handle this—assuming I could handle the way my heart was pounding. I wanted to take Becca and throw her out a window.
    Before anything happened, Sean ambled our way. He stopped next to me, opposite of Aiden and Becca, and said, “Hey, Teagan. You busy this afternoon? Think you could help me study?”
    Becca and Aiden were standing only inches away, and it was clear Sean was snubbing them. Great. He’d chosen that moment to start a war between the brave and the beautiful.
    “Come on, Aiden. Let’s get out of here,” Becca said.
    Sean asked again: “Well? Are you busy, Teagan?”
    Holy Mother of God, this was awkward. I looked to Aiden, trying to gauge what he was thinking. Was I busy or not? I sure wanted to be.
    Aiden turned to Becca. “Maybe another time. I was just about to see if Teagan wanted to hang out.”
    Becca shrugged and strolled