“Ollie, shut up.”
His grin matched mine, and I tried so hard to fight it. Usually, I was much better at this. I could shove away my feelings and really dig into that small piece of me that wanted to hate him, but I was struggling right now. It may have been the grin, or the hood of his sweatshirt that made him look a little bit like a bad boy. Either way, Ollie was making my heart feel a little fluttery tonight—even more so than normal.
“But seriously…” Ollie’s grin began to fade. The shadows surrounding his features began to darken with the fire dying down. “I don’t want you at the races tomorrow.”
“What?” I yelled, completely taken aback.
Ollie’s jaw ticked as he dipped his head down to mine. “Shhh!” I grabbed onto the railing so I didn’t sway on my feet with him so close to my face. I zeroed right in on his lips. “I don’t want you there, Piper.”
Is he serious? “Well, I don’t really care. I’m coming.” I kept my voice hushed. “I have to! Tank is expecting me.”
Plus, what if Jason is there? I can at least make sure my brother is okay.
“I’ll deal with Tank. I took on the responsibility to work out a deal with him in exchange for paying off what your brother owes. This has nothing to do with you anymore.”
Anger flashed throughout. I felt my face get hot. I almost stomped my foot. “This has everything to do with me!” I lowered my voice as I glanced down at our friends. Thankfully, they were all still gathered around the fire. “Jason is my brother! How can you say this has nothing to do with me?”
Ollie’s voice was soft but stern. “You’re not going.”
“I am!”
“Piper, goddamnit!” Ollie’s face was an inch away from mine, and here we were again, sparring off. At least, now, if Hayley and Christian were to look up at us, they’d see that everything was as it seemed. We were still at each other's throats, but damnit, I just couldn’t help but stare at his mouth. “I don’t want you there because I’ll fucking worry about you the entire time! I won’t be able to focus.”
I stepped back a hair. “Ollie, I’ll be fine. I’ll bring Co—"
“I swear to God, if you say you’ll bring Cole to keep you safe, I will lose my shit.”
My mouth smashed shut as Ollie towered over me. His jaw was clenched tightly, the small muscles dancing along his temples. “Piper, let me handle this for you. Okay? I’ve got it under control. It’s no different than any other Saturday night. I’ll race, I’ll leave, and I’ll come here. Except, this time, I won't be leaving with any money. Which is fucking fine by me.”
I wanted to protest. I wanted to stomp my foot and throw my arms up like a child, but it would have done no good.
Ollie was set in his ways, determination present in his icy tone. He said he’d be worried about me if I went, but didn’t he understand that I was worried about him?
In the end, I finally submitted. “Fine.”
His cheek lifted, and he backed away slowly, lowering that stupid hood on his head, thinking he’d won.
But he didn’t. I’d be at the race; he just wouldn’t know it.
Chapter Sixteen
Ollie
I read the sign hanging crookedly above my head, Pike Valley Soup Kitchen, and I realized right away that I'd been here before. To the naked eye—or to my naive, ten-year-old self—it looked like my mom was trying to teach Christian and me a lesson by bringing us here. Teaching us to volunteer our time to feed the poor. Teaching us the importance of giving to others. But now that I was standing here, I knew that wasn’t the case.
My mom came here to buy drugs.
The exchange would happen on an early Saturday morning, right here at this exact soup kitchen. My mom dragged Christian and me here once a month to help feed the poor. We hated coming. She’d drag us out of our warm beds at eight in the morning on the third Saturday of every month, and we’d hand out food to all sorts of people while she disappeared. I hadn’t thought anything of it at the time, always buying into her sweet lies, but as I stood here, looking down the alleyway behind the building that was lined with homeless people, I knew. I’d watched the exchange. I saw her with my own two eyes; I was just too young to understand.
But now that my naivety was gone, it stung. The memory was ruthless, taking my breath away as it came. I tried my hardest to remember the good memories of my mother, her bright smile, the blonde strands of her hair that stood out under the golden sun, but lately, I was having a really fucking hard time holding onto those memories. It seemed all the good memories were being overshadowed by the bad ones.
“What are you doing here?” Piper asked, clearly agitated. I quickly turned on my heel and locked onto her heart-shaped face. Piper’s face was a mask of confusion but still as pretty as the day I first laid eyes on her. The bright-pink cheeks under the glow of the morning sun. The shine of her hair all but blinding me. Her green eyes were narrowed. “Hellooo? What the heck are you doing here?”
Oh, right. I cleared my throat, tearing my eyes away for a moment. “Ya know…” I brushed off the memory of my mom and put on my best smile. “I just felt the need to feed the homeless.”
The gravel under Piper’s white Converse crunched. Hayley must have talked her into buying those. “That’s a lie. I’ve been volunteering here for the last year and a half. I’ve never ever seen you before. What are you doing here?”
I eyed more people jumping into the line wrapping around the building—most with crying babies, some other randos, a few in wheelchairs that looked as if they’d seen better days. “I’m serious. I’m here to help.”