“I know.” I didn’t care about that. I wanted to know what she was thinking when she looked at my brother like that. Studying Logan, I knew he was telling the truth. He was clueless, but that made me wonder even more. Did she have something planned to hurt him? Hurt Logan. Hurt Sam. Hurt the ones around me?

I didn’t know. Yet.

Logan added, “She thinks that if she destroys Sam, you’ll go back to her. Doesn’t she?”

“Yeah.”

Logan started laughing again. “New definition to the phrase ‘dumb bitch’.”

My gaze lingered on the door, even after it closed behind them. Logan thought this was going to be fun, but he had no idea. It was going to get ugly. I knew it, and I was ready for it.

As soon as I was through the doors, Heather linked her arm with mine and pulled me close. Dressed in faded jeans and a loose black shirt, I had to grin when the V-neck dipped low. She didn’t mean to, but she oozed sexuality. I had a feeling Heather Jax would look provocative in a grocery bag and she had no idea. Her eyes weren’t clueless. They were sharp and focused as she asked, “What was that about?”

“Your ex-bestie.”

She froze in mid-step, but was jostled from someone passing by and jerked me to the side for a split second. “Sorry.” She patted me, withdrawing her arm at the same time. “Tate was out there?”

“She gave Logan googly-eyes.”

Heather grimaced, side stepping a group of freshmen girls before swinging back to my side. “And let me guess, Mason didn’t like that, did he?”

“No.”

She rolled her eyes. “Tate’s a bitch. I side with your boyfriend on this one. If she’s already looking at Logan, who knows what she’ll be capable of doing later.”

“You make her sound like a villain.”

“She is.” Stopping at a locker, Heather wheeled the lock and opened it. Putting her books inside, she added, “Whatever Tate is saying, don’t believe her. We didn’t really talk about her before, but there’s more to the story then whatever Mason told you.”

That didn’t sound good. “He told me that she dated Logan and, two years into their relationship she hit on him. There’s more than that?”

A hollow laugh came from her. “Oh, a hell of a lot more. Things that Mason and Logan don’t even know about.”

I narrowed my eyes and moved closer. The hallway was packed. A lot of people were watching us, or me. A sudden wave of nervousness came over me. I had pushed aside the normal first-day-of-school-jitters with seeing Tate in the parking lot, but they were back now. They came back hard, but when I grinned at a few girls, they rolled their eyes and turned their backs to me. If that wasn’t subtle, I didn’t know what was. I was not welcome here. Glancing at a few others, they stared right back. I tried smiling at a few more, but I got varying responses. None welcoming. A few others continued to stare back as if I hadn’t smiled at them, while a couple narrowed their eyes at me. The ones who turned away, bent forward to whisper with their friends. I had a feeling this was my welcome to Fallen Crest Public. I’d have to get used to it.

Heather took out a textbook and a notebook. Shutting her locker, a tired expression came over her as she faced me, but then it was gone in the blink of an eye and replaced with caution. Her eyes locked on something behind me, and I turned, my gut already knowing who it was going to be. Heather was tough and spunky, but only a few things or people could affect her like that.

And I was right. The Tomboy Princesses had arrived.

Kate was leading the pack with the three others close behind.

“I really hate those girls,” Heather murmured to me.

Me too, I thought as I locked eyes with Kate. Me too.

All four of the Tomboy Princesses stood there. Each wore tight, ripped faded jeans. They weren’t designer brands like the girls at Fallen Crest Academy wore, but they clung like a second-skin, and definitely gave off a sexy vibe. Their shirts were a variation of the same. Kate’s was plain white that was snug against her tight abdominals, and it was evident she was wearing a pink bra under the sheer material. Her dark hair was swept up into a waterfall braid with the ends curled. They had a healthy glow as they fell past her shoulders. Parker glared at me, her dark eyes were hostile, and her lips were pressed together in a snarl. Unlike their leader, her black hair fell loose. It matched her black sleeveless top that rested an inch above her jeans, showing off a good amount of midriff.

Natalie and Jasmine brought up the last of their group, and they were the two that I was the least familiar with. They had similar black hair. Natalie’s was a little lighter with caramel highlights showing through. She was the only one wearing a Fallen Crest Public jersey. It was red with black lettering and had the number eight on the back, the bottom of it tied around her tiny waist. Jasmine was the girliest of the group. Her black hair was pulled into a ponytail that rested high on her head, bouncing back and forth as she followed her friends. Pink lipstick, glitter on her cheeks and pink eye shadow matched her pink sweater that looked like soft cashmere and had a low neckline. Her cle**age was right there, saying hello to anyone who wanted to view the girls.

Heather cursed under her breath when the group stopped before us. She leaned against her locker as I waited. Kate said she’d make our lives hell. First day jitters and surviving my mother’s recent attempt at destroying Mason’s future had combined together. I was angry. I was ready to fight back. I was more than ready for whatever Kate had in store.

“Last chance, Jax.” That was Kate’s greeting. “You can back out now and everyone and everything you hold dear will be left alone.”

“Shut up, Kate,” Heather retorted, shoving off from her locker. She took two steps, sticking her face right up in hers. An inch separated them while her followers surrounded us. As a hush fell over the hallway, I knew all eyes were on us.

Still.

“I don’t like when people threaten me or my friends.”

“She shouldn’t be your friend. She’s a liability,” Kate hissed back at her, breaking their stare-off to glower at me. She smirked. “What’s with you and having bodyguards? Mason. Logan. Now Jax? Don’t you have balls of your own?”

I smirked back. Balls? She wanted balls? I opened my mouth, ready to show her some balls when an amused voice broke into the group, “Kate, are you serious? You’re still doing the bullying thing?”