Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 131789 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 659(@200wpm)___ 527(@250wpm)___ 439(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131789 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 659(@200wpm)___ 527(@250wpm)___ 439(@300wpm)
“Oh my God,” Gwen whimpers.
I peer up at her and my grin springs loose. She’s biting hard on her lip, her face flushed with lust.
Welcome to the modern American marriage, Mrs. G.
Chapter 43
Sloane
“She’ll say I never call her and then she doesn’t answer the phone.”
It’s Monday, and Silas and I meet up for a run before school. He’s the only person I know who takes training as seriously as I do. And can function before eight without propping himself up with at least three double espressos. RJ might say he likes to run, but, as I pointed out last night after he shot down my morning run offer with “LOL,” he clearly lacks the dedication.
“What sense does that make? It’s making the problem worse to spite me.”
We set a moderate pace, jogging the narrow dirt path embedded with rocks and protruding tree roots. Already I’m drenched in sweat. The overnight temperature never dipped below seventy and it’s even hotter this morning. By noon the sun can practically bake the shirt off your back.
“Amy’s mad at me that we don’t spend enough time together, but then she skips my swim meet to go shopping with her friends. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”
I love Silas, but it’s too early in the morning for another episode of the unending low-stakes drama that is his relationship with Amy. It’s like watching a shopping cart slowly crawl toward a car’s rear bumper. No one expects any lasting damage, and it seems like more effort than it’s worth to get involved.
“I’ve got class till two, practice till six, then dinner and homework until at least ten every night. How am I the asshole?”
I don’t know what else to tell him that he hasn’t heard a hundred times since sophomore year. This same argument is practically a seasonal occurrence. If he wants to keep Amy, he might figure out a way to treat her better. Otherwise, cut her loose and spare everyone the headache.
“How am I supposed to make time for her if she’s ignoring me?”
Amy’s a sweet, funny, caring girl who’s fully obsessed with him. And for some stupid reason, I think that’s a major turn-off for Silas. For the life of me, I’ve never managed to nail down why they don’t work except that he’s not that into the relationship despite his absolute refusal to do anything about it. It’s like he’s in an arranged marriage of his own creation and the sole tenet of his religion is thou shalt not divorce.
“Sloane?”
“Huh?” Shaken from my runner’s trance, I stumble over a fallen branch and nearly take a header into the dirt. “Sorry, what?”
“You haven’t said anything for over a mile.”
“What do you want me to say?” I shrug at him. “Sounds like she’s sick of your shit.”
“Thanks.”
The rising sun peers through the trees to create an opaque yellow fog when the light catches the clouds of dust where our footfalls disturb the ground. Long shadows streak across our path, tall grass and shrubs busy with morning scavengers. I want to make a solid five miles before class, so I push our pace.
“What’s up?” Silas breathes harder as he matches my steps.
We take the shortcut across the east lawn, where the old freshman dorms stood before storms in the sixties brought a flood that opened a sinkhole under the building and swallowed the west end overnight.
“Nothing.”
“You’re somewhere else.”
“No, I’m listening. Amy hates you and you’re kind of a dick about it.”
“Is that your real assessment or you just guessing?”
“Like sixty-forty?”
“Seriously, though.” Silas has incredible endurance, but even he sounds like he’s sucking wind through a straw trying to maintain my pace. “What should I do about all this?”
“You know exactly what to do. You just refuse to do it.”
He makes an aggravated noise. Then he almost takes a header too, only his near fall is due to his shoelace coming untied. “One sec.”
I stop, but keep jogging in place as I wait for him. My watch has been flashing for the past fifteen minutes, so I take this opportunity to check my messages. RJ says good morning and wants to know if I’m still meeting him at our spot later. And then there’s three messages from Duke.
Irritation flickers through me. Since the soccer game, Duke’s kicked up his calling and texting another notch. He claims he has something important to say to me, but I don’t believe that for a second. Seeing me with RJ that night punctured his ego, and now he’s going to pull out all the stops to prove to me he’s the better man.
“Ugh, he’s so obnoxious,” I grumble.
“Who?” Silas tightens his laces and rises to his full height. The sweat on his white T-shirt makes the material almost transparent, showing off the chiseled abs beneath it.
“Duke. He’s been constantly texting since I ran into him at the soccer game at Ballard.” I give Silas a dark look. “Which, by the way, you bailed on.”