Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 117363 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117363 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
“If you say you deserved it, I’ll trip you,” Jeremy warned him.
“You wouldn’t,” Jean returned.
“Maybe not,” Jeremy allowed. “But I’ll think about it really hard.”
They caught up with Laila and Cat at a lifeguard tower that was striped like a rainbow. Jean stared at the tower so he wouldn’t have to watch as the three of them peeled off their extra clothes. They’d brought a shopping bag to carry it all in, though Cat dug out a bottle of sunscreen before stuffing everyone’s clothes inside. The lotion was cold in Jean’s palm and greasy on his skin, with a too-fake fruity scent that had his nose crinkling in distaste as he worked it into his arms and legs.
“Neck,” Jeremy advised him, as Cat and Laila did each other’s faces and scalps.
Jean sighed and did as he was told. Why Jeremy had to watch him, Jean didn’t know; he kept his gaze on Cat’s back as a safer focal point. He hadn’t realized until today that she had tattoos, but the string back of her bikini put the vibrant flowers along her upper back and spine on full display. Jean wanted to ask why she was allowed to mark herself so thoroughly, but Jeremy beat him to speaking with:
“Missed a couple spots. Need a hand?”
Jean was saved from having to respond when someone called out, “Jeremy!”
Jean offered silent thanks as Jeremy was immediately distracted from him.
Cody was shorter than Jean had expected, but broad-shouldered and stocky as befit a backliner. Red hair was shaved close to their skull, and Jean was startled by how many piercings they’d managed to fit on their ears and face. He had to believe those came out for game nights, because if someone checked Cody hard enough their lips were done for. Jean almost demanded an explanation for such recklessness, but then Lucas moved up alongside Cody and Jean forgot everything he was going to say.
Lucas Johnson looked so much like Grayson that Jean’s blood went cold. He wasn’t quite as large, and he bore the sun-bleached hair and bronzed skin of a man who spent far too much time outdoors, but everything from his eyes to his jawline to the way he held himself was a perfect match. Jean had had years to learn all of Grayson’s tics; he’d had to learn Grayson inside and out so he could keep Zane two steps ahead of him.
Jean wondered what, if anything, Grayson had told him. Jeremy had warned Jean weeks ago that the Trojans were keeping tabs on the rumors surrounding him and the Ravens. Jean had been waiting for them to confront him about which ones were truth and which ones were unfounded slander, but they’d yet to bring them up with any detail. The look on Lucas’s face made him think he was out of time.
Jeremy took a step like he was going to meet them halfway, but Laila snagged him by his hair so she could smear lotion on his back. Jeremy went still and waited for the new arrivals to reach them.
“Cody and Lucas,” he said, with a glance at Jean. “This is Jean.”
“Hell yeah,” Cody said. “He’s tall.”
Cat laughed. “That’s what I said. Someone’s got to balance you out.”
“I did what I could with what I was given,” Cody said with an exaggerated shrug. “You’ve seen my mom; I was screwed from the get-go. Jeremy! The hair, man. Looks good.”
“Thanks!” Jeremy said, lighting up.
“Hey, kiddo,” Cat said, giving Lucas’ hair a tweak. “How’re you holding up?”
Lucas dragged his stare away from Jean with obvious effort. “I don’t know,” he admitted, and then asked point-blank, “How are you? You’re living with one of them, too.”
“I have more teeth than you do, if you haven’t noticed,” Cat said. Her tone was light, and she was smiling, but even Jean heard the rebuke in it. Lucas glared at her, and Jean had to look away from that too-familiar expression. He was dimly aware of Laila watching him, but he refused to return her calm stare. Cat eased up a bit and said, “He’s a little rough around the edges, and I assume he’ll be worse once we can finally get him on a court, but I like him.”
“We’ll see,” Lucas said, with a furtive look Jean’s way.
“Excited to see what you can bring to the line,” Cody said to Jean. “Provided you can behave, and all.”
“I am only required to behave in public and during games,” Jean reminded them.
“And what makes you think we should listen to anything you have to say?” Lucas asked.
“You’ve seen his stats,” Cat reminded him. “We all have.”
“Yeah,” Lucas said, “but we’ve also heard how he made starting line-up.”
Cody grimaced. “Stow that, Lucas. We talked about this.”
“We agreed we were going to take the rumors with a grain of salt,” Lucas sent back. “But Grayson is saying it, too. That’s not the kind of drama we need on our line-up right now. People are already talking shit about us for stealing Jean halfway through championships and then giving our win to the Foxes for no good reason. We need a spotless year if we’re going to redeem ourselves.”