Read an Excerpt
Bitter Betrayal
By Amanda M. Thrasher, Jody Amato Progressive Rising Phoenix Press, LLC
Copyright © 2017 Amanda M. Thrasher
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-946329-28-8
CHAPTER 1
Cover for Me
"They say there are two sides to every story and somewhere in the middle lies the truth; there's no exception to this one. But whose truth will you believe ... his or hers?"
DTB CU there!
(Don't text back see you there)
The message flashed across her phone, and that's all it took. Not even a whole sentence and suddenly all she could think about was getting out of class. As her fingers frantically tapped away on her phone, Payton didn't hear a single word from the kid speaking nervously in front of the class. Looking back, what was she thinking?!?!
Payton: Cover for me
Aubrey: Seriously?
Payton: Problem?
Aubrey: Yah
Payton: Really? :)
Aubrey: Nah
Payton: K
Aubrey: BTW 182
Payton: U don't hate me :) Luv u
Five, four, three, two, and the bell finally rang. Payton shot out the door. Aubrey, her best friend since sixth grade, shoved the books Payton had left behind in her own backpack. Payton's behavior, though frustrating at times, wasn't surprising. She was head crazy about that boy, Reece Townsend, and it helped that Aubrey liked him as well.
With less than ten minutes to freshen up, get across campus to her car, and make it to the dam in time to meet Reece, Payton didn't have time for small talk with anyone. Dodging in and out of students, she avoided eye contact with as many people as she possibly could. The boy's football coach, Coach Duncan, was headed her way. His voice, undeniably recognizable, bounced off the walls and echoed through the corridor before he was physically present. When finally in view, she purposely looked at her feet and rushed past him. No way did she want him stopping her and stalling her with questions about her brother and his playing time at college.
"Whoa girl, where's the fire?"
Coach grabbed her arm as she tried to rush past him and her whole body swung around, forcing her to face him. Arm still in his grasp, he shook his head.
"Slow it down, girl! If only my boys had moved half as fast this morning."
Managing a slight smile, she pointed toward the bathroom. Coach raised his hands in the air and shook them back and forth, stopping her from saying another single word. He wanted no part of what could pop out of that girl's mouth. She was liable to say something for the shock value alone. He didn't need to know, want to know, or care to know, for that matter. He let her on her way, no questions asked. A healthy spritz of perfume, lip gloss, duck-lip practice, and Payton climbed into her car. She must have sped, because she made it in record time.
"What took you so long?" he asked.
The love of Payton's life, well, at least to a sixteen-year-old, love-struck teen. One look at his smile and she melted. It was bad enough that they attended different schools, but he was a senior, in the process of narrowing down his college options, which meant she'd be stuck there without him. The thought of it made her cringe. On a daily basis she obsessed about him leaving, even when he asked her not to, but she couldn't help it. Not today, she told herself, pushing the thoughts out of her head.
The best part of his day was right then, as he watched her walk toward him. He was sitting on the back of his tailgate, swinging his legs back and forth, waiting for her to join him. He tapped the cool metal, her cue to jump up next to him. She grinned. So freaking hot! He always looked that way to her, and all she wanted to do was kiss that face of his! Her grin turned into a giggle.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"Nothing."
"Whatever!" A cute smirk crossed his face. "Something, or you wouldn't be laughing."
She grabbed his face in her hands, laughed out loud, and kissed him before hopping up next to him on the tailgate. Right before she jumped up, Reece playfully pulled her back toward him instead. Now face-to-face, she brushed his sandy-brown hair to one side, revealing his green eyes. She could get lost in them; they were that pretty.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing," Payton giggled. "You grabbed me, remember?"
"I did. But why are you staring at me like that?"
His breath hit her face. Truth be told, all she wanted at that moment was for him to kiss her, really kiss her. Move, Payton. Move now, she thought as she stepped back and took a deep breath.
"I'm just looking at you, that's all. You're kinda cute like that."
He rolled his eyes. But Payton could tell by the boyish grin on his face that her comment had pleased him. She loved that look on his face. He looked a few years younger, like a real kid. It was sweet. She stared a second too long, capturing that face a moment longer in her mind.
"You know I'm supposed to say that kinda stuff," he said as seriously as he could, but it wasn't working.
He tapped the tailgate again and held out his hand. So thoughtful! Payton thought, and this time she jumped up and joined him. The long cotton skirt she'd chosen to wear that day wrapped around her legs as she swung them back and forth off the back of the truck. Sandals, painted toes, and a T-shirt completed her outfit. Her long dark hair, with a delicate headband complimenting her outfit, finished off her look.
"You look hot. But I know you know that, so I'm not going to tell you!" He laughed. "Just kidding. You look amazing. Beautiful as usual!"
Payton's face lit up. She leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips. Funny thing, though, she thought Reece was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. They'd actually argued about that statement once. Guys aren't beautiful, he'd stated. They could be handsome. Good looking, sexy, dope, hot, or even cute, but not beautiful! Men were not beautiful. But it didn't matter what he thought. To Payton he was, and she could look at him all day long.
"Hey, you never did answer my question," he said.
"What question was that?"
"Why were you late?"
"You idiot!" She nudged him playfully. "I'm not late; you're early, and for the record, I'm the one who's usually waiting for you!"
He held her by the elbows, leaned in, and kissed her quickly on the lips. She would have kissed him back, but he'd already pulled away. Just as well, she wouldn't have wanted to stop, and that wouldn't have been good, since time wasn't on their side.
"Aubrey covering for you?" he asked as he rummaged through a sack next to him.
"Yep. Advisory. Shouldn't be too hard."
She was always late getting back when they met for lunch, but there was no way she was going to tell him that. He'd cut their time short for sure. Payton had never struggled with confidence before Reece, but he unknowingly made her question herself. She didn't need to worry, though; she was popular, a good student, considered hot, and well liked.
"Whole or half?" he asked, holding a sandwich in his hand.
"Half," she answered, knowing she couldn't eat in front of him anyway.
The breeze was cool but not cold, a perfect day for a picnic on the back of her boyfriend's truck. Why did they have to go back to school?
Reece's phone buzzed. She didn't glance at it, but she wanted to. It buzzed again. He didn't read the text, but did check the time. Pointing at the sandwich she hadn't touched, he nudged her to take a bite. She didn't think he'd noticed she hadn't eaten, but he had.
"We're going to be late if you don't hurry up. Eat."
She leaned into his arm. It felt good just being close to him. The feeling of closeness made her want to kiss him, and she had no idea if he knew that. It was so stupid and irritating that she felt this way every time they were together. Not to mention when it was time to head back to school. It made leaving incredibly difficult. Payton missed him before they'd even left. Surely this was normal for a teen like her, wasn't it? She looked at her sandwich just as Reece took a bite of his.
"I'm not really hungry." She hesitated for a second, opened up her mouth to speak, but closed it again.
"What is it?" he asked, knowing she wanted to say something.
The words unexpectedly flew out of her mouth, surprising even her.
"We could cut class."
Reece's eyes darted toward her.
"Stay here and hang out a bit longer," she added.
Payton Phillips suggesting they cut class. Sweet! He wasn't sure if he was shocked, but he was definitely impressed that it was her idea. They'd been together nearly two years, but she'd never once insinuated they should cut class before. Grinning, he shook his head.
"I can't. I've got a test this afternoon. No pass, no play, remember?"
Even though she knew he was right, her heart sank.
"But I can't believe you just suggested that — it's something I might think of, might, but I didn't think you would." Reese took a drink of his Coke. "Um. OK then. I think you just kinda got yourself in a bind. I might hold you to it later!"
She didn't care. Hell, Advisory or Reece?
Seriously ... was that a real question? Worth the trouble if she got caught? Hell yeah! Reece jumped off the tailgate of his white dodge and stood in front of her. One arm wrapped around her neck, one around her waist, he kissed her, a real kiss, and she kissed him back. An incoming text interrupted them. Flushed cheeks, heart racing, and although Payton wouldn't have agreed in that moment, it was for the best that the text came in. They may not have left that spot for a while longer, and then they both would have been late. Not to mention Aubrey couldn't cover for that long. After all, Aubrey wasn't a miracle worker. Covering for lunch and half of sixth period, Advisory, was no problem, but more than that rose the red flags. Reece's phone buzzed again; this time he answered the text.
Reece: K CUS – DTB
(OK See you soon, don't text back)
"Hey, can I ask you a question?"
Reece shrugged his shoulders. "Sure."
"How come when you text me sometimes, and apparently others." Her raised eyebrows indicated she'd read his response.
"Yeah," he said hesitantly.
"You don't let me text you back?"
He looked puzzled.
"What are you talking about?"
"What's with the DTB, don't text back?" she asked.
Reece shoved his phone into his back pocket and packed up the trash. Payton waited for his response.
"What? Seriously?" He laughed. "That's your question?"
She nodded. "Yeah. That's it," she said, moving her foot in tiny circles in the dirt. "Like, if you text me first, why can't I text you a response back?"
He grabbed his phone and pointed to her texts. Now she wished she hadn't asked such a stupid question. It felt like she was invading his privacy or something, but a simple explanation hadn't seemed too much to ask for a second ago.
"Really, you want to know why?" He didn't wait for a response. "It's simple. Sometimes I'm in class. Sometimes I can't talk for various reasons. Like right now, I'm here with you, and dip-wad Walker is looking for me. Or sometimes I'm driving, at practice, whatever."
He glanced at his phone to check the time. "But right now I've gotta go, and so do you."
DTB. A way to communicate without communicating. Cute, wasn't it? Was it? Why was she suddenly questioning it?
CHAPTER 2
Sweet as Sugar, Bitter as Poison
Picking a college wasn't turning out to be as easy as Reece had hoped. The school he wanted to attend was out of state and hadn't made him any kind of offer yet. His coach had written letters of recommendation. His grades were good, game films highlighting his plays were in the hands of several recruiters, and services that assisted students and parents were working on his behalf. But the waiting part was no fun. His parents wanted him to stay in Texas, but agreed not to stand in his way if a school he liked came knocking.
Reece wanted two things: to attend a D1 school and receive an out-of-state offer. Truthfully, he hadn't thought too much about Payton or what she thought. There were 347 D1 schools that he was aware of, scattered across forty-nine different states. Some colleges were smaller, private schools and some larger universities, but the odds of Reece receiving a full scholarship were excellent. Coach had said a full ride was more than a realistic possibility; it was a probability, especially riding on his brother's reputation. Reece idolized his brother and wanted to follow in his footsteps, not easy to do, but he never once felt jealous or envious of his brother's success. Coach always bragged about Royce and Reece. Proud to have coached them both in their high school years.
"Just like Royce, son. You are capable of playing for a D1 program," Coach Duncan would say. "You know, those programs can generate millions of dollars in revenue annually for the schools. And like your brother, you could handle the pressure of performing and the expectations of winning."
Reece believed Coach and worked hard at proving him right. Payton cringed when Reece talked about the schools he wanted to attend, because she knew it meant the inevitable — he'd be leaving. He'd get so excited. His eyes would light up and he'd get animated as he talked. She was happy for him, but sad for herself. Despite the heaviness she felt weighing on her heart and in her head because she missed him already, she tried her best to encourage him. He called her to tell her about an email Coach had received asking about his eligibility. He could tell she was down by how quiet she got on the other end of the phone. Now he knew why he hated to call. He'd rather send her a text than talk.
"You know we'll stay in touch every day and hang out when I come home."
"Well, yeah," she replied, kinda shocked that he had to actually state it. Surely that was understood. Wasn't it?
"Just checking. You sound down or something."
Payton shook her head, and then realized she needed to answer. He couldn't see her through the phone.
"Sorry. I'm fine."
"I'm almost there. Are you ready?"
"I will be by the time you get here," she said. "If you let me off the phone!"
When Payton climbed in, Reece raised the console divider in the front seat so she could sit next to him. He'd crank the aux and she'd lay her hand on his leg, unless he was holding hers in his. She loved Friday nights, even more than Saturdays. It was the excitement of spending real time with him after being in school all week. They were going to the movies with Reece's friends. Aubrey didn't have a date and even though she could have joined them, she opted out. Payton didn't mind. All of her attention was on Reece anyway.
"You smell good," Reece said as soon as Payton climbed into the truck and turned to give him their customary kiss hello.
She knew the perfume she'd sprayed all over her clothes and neck was his favorite perfume; smiling coyly, she kissed him again.
"Trevor might bring some girl," Reece stated nonchalantly.
Payton laughed. "Like just some random girl, seriously?"
Reese shook his head. "Right! I didn't ask. He said he might bring some girl. I don't care who." He took a sip of Coke. "But I think her name begins with an S. Samantha, Sydney, Sophie, something like that. Chase is coming as well, but I doubt he'll bring anyone; no one will date that loser."
As they turned onto Trevor's street, they saw Trevor outside, leaning against his car with a pretty girl standing next to him. She was tall, slim, and blond. Payton didn't recall seeing her before, but gave her a quick once-over as they walked toward the truck.
"This is Stacie," Trevor announced as they climbed into the back.
"Stacie," Reece repeated, glancing at Payton.
"Hi, Stacie, nice to meet you." Payton made the introductions for everyone.
Reece looked at Trevor as the girl climbed into the truck and gave him a nod of approval. How did Trevor score a date with that? Trevor looked as if he hadn't quite figured it out either; he seemed to know exactly what Reece meant as he grinned big, shrugged his shoulders, and threw up his hands. No complaints from him. They had met during one of his classes. She was a transfer. Totally used to rejection, Trevor was bold enough to ask her to go out with them that night. Shockingly she had said yes, and here they were. She was undeniably hot and he wasn't. Weird.
"You never know if you don't ask, bro," Trevor muttered as he patted Reece on the back.
Payton leaned over the back of the seat and spoke to the girl.
"You'll get used to it. They talk to each other as if we're not here, and they do a lot of things in groups." She laughed out loud. "They say girls are bad about doing everything together. OMG! These guys. Stick around, you'll see."
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Bitter Betrayal by Amanda M. Thrasher, Jody Amato. Copyright © 2017 Amanda M. Thrasher. Excerpted by permission of Progressive Rising Phoenix Press, LLC.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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