Page 12 of Mistaken Prejudice

I knew Shay-Lee and how possessive he could get when I was involved. Like that one time he made my date shit his pants just because I blew him off for dinner with the guy. Ugh, it was smelly. Shay-Lee’s ability to process his emotions was nonexistent, and with his short temper, the last thing I wanted was for him to meet Andrei.

If things went the way I wanted them to go, they would eventually meet. But that was a big if. And in this case, later was better than sooner. Technically, they had met already. But I was talking about a meeting that wouldn’t be followed by detention.

Rolling my eyes at Shay-Lee’s pout, I pulled out my phone and started typing a message. Ignoring the gut-twisting feeling in my stomach, I reminded myself that it was for Andrei’s sake.

Me: I’m sorry, but something came up. How about a rain check?

Even though I felt half-hearted about ditching our lunch, I knew it was better than showing up with Shay-Lee attached to my hip. And make no doubt, he’d attach himself if he could.

I waited for his reply the whole time we ate at Eddie’s. Still not getting one, I assumed Andrei was probably busy and that he’d get to it later. By dinnertime, there was still no reply, so I knew I wouldn’t get one.

Chapter 5

Andrei

“Turn that shit off!” Diesel barked in a raspy voice from his bed, right across from mine. With his head buried under the pillow and his long legs stretched over the mattress, he was in no way getting up soon. I reached for my phone, and with one eye half open, looked at the bright screen.

After turning off the alarm, I dragged myself from the comforts of my warm sheets. Waking up before sunrise on a Saturday is a crime. And I knew a thing or two about crimes.

“We need to be at work in less than an hour,” I pointed out to Diesel as I got up. All I got in response was snoring. Too tired to care, I walked out of the room and down the hall to the bathroom we shared with the others, then took a quick shower.

Unwanted weight sat on my shoulders as I washed my body and forced myself to remember the rejection I felt when I first read Miles’s text.

I’m sorry, but something came up.

The few days that passed did nothing to make me feel better about being blown off. “Forget about him,” I told myself with a heavy breath before getting out of the shower.

There were three bedrooms in the house. Diesel and I shared one, and so did Levi and Jess. Well, they enjoyed the perks of sharing a bedroom, given the whole dating each other thing. I wasn’t bothered by sharing my room either. For starters, until I met Chief, I never had a bed of my own. So having my own bed in a shared room was a big upgrade.

I was also used to sharing a space with Diesel considering we used to be cellmates in juvie. Besides that, Diesel mostly preferred to sleep on the roof, so most nights, I had the space all to myself.

Before going downstairs, I attempted to wake the sleeping dead one last time by taking his blanket away. It didn’t work. Diesel curled up into himself and swore a bit before telling me to fuck off. What a ray of sunshine he is.

It was ten past six by the time I made it to the kitchen. Our shift at the club started at seven. Therefore, I had enough time for a quick breakfast.

“Hey, kid.” Chief’s familiar voice came from the porch. Taking the coffee I’d just made for myself, I opened the sliding door and stepped outside, inhaling the ocean breeze. Nothing, and I mean nothing, felt as good as the salty breeze hitting my face. It was the definition of freedom. A word I didn’t know until I turned fourteen.

Chief was sitting on his rocking chair with a mug of coffee, a newspaper, and three large pit bulls. I bent down and petted each one before looking up at him. By the look of it, he’d just returned from his morning surf. The jerk should have woken me up to join.

His dark hair was still wet, and his wetsuit was pulled down to his waist, showing off his long torso and sculpted chest. He often made me question my attraction to boys my age and wonder if I should dip in the thirtysomething guys’ pool. Perhaps one day.

“Hey.” I sat beside him and stretched my legs.

“Going to work?” He examined me with his captivating jade eyes before taking another sip from his mug.

“Yeah. If Diesel will get up.”

He chuckled and took another sip from his coffee as the sounds of the crashing waves surrounded us.

“Are you still upset about that boy?” Chief broke the silence, and I was surprised. He wasn’t one to talk much, not because he was shy or anything. He just felt comfortable with silence. When he needed to, he spoke. But even without words, this man radiated confidence and calm.

I told Chief about what happened the first day at school. I also told him about Miles. The part where he stood me up? Yeah, I mentioned that as well. Canceling on me at the last minute was a shitty thing to do. Sure, it wasn’t a proper date, but it was still something.

I was so excited that day, so when he ditched me, I felt like a complete fool. I wasn’t about to develop an inferiority complex over some rich guy who thought he was better. Yep, no matter how gorgeous that guy is.

“Remember what I told you,” Chief started saying with his eyes set on me. “Never cross an ocean for someone who won’t cross it for you.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t.”