The Wild Mustang & The Dancing Fairy: A Gorgeous Villain Prequel Novella by Saffron Kent (ereader for textbooks .txt) 📗

“It’s okay. He has a lot of girlfriends. Oops. Not girlfriends. Girls. My brother doesn’t do girlfriends.”

“Oh yeah, I know.”

Tempest stares at me for a few seconds. It’s not long but it’s enough to make me slightly uncomfortable and self-conscious. “But that doesn’t mean that he won’t ever have a girlfriend. You know, when the right girl comes along. He’s just being an idiot right now.”

“O-kay.” I nod. “That’s good to know.”

“Is it?”

“What?”

Tempest completely turns to me then. “I like you. I think you’re cool. And I think…” She lowers her voice. “You have a major crush on my brother. And –”

“Oh my God. Stop.”

I look around to make sure no one’s listening in on our conversation.

Although the stadium is so loud and people are so engrossed in the game, I highly doubt anyone could eavesdrop even if they wanted to.

But still.

I can’t take any chances. If someone so much as got a whiff of the fact that I was talking about him, that Ledger and Conrad’s sister was talking about having a crush on the enemy, I don’t even know what would happen.

Ledger would definitely kill Reed. Definitely.

And then he’d lock me up somewhere for who knows how long for betraying him, and I wouldn’t even blame him.

Because it is a betrayal, isn’t it?

“What?” Tempest asks confused.

“Don’t even talk about it.”

“Why not?”

“Because you can’t. And because I can’t.”

“You can’t what?”

I look around again. I even go so far as to lean in toward her and lower my voice. “I can’t like your brother.”

She leans in as well. “What? Why can’t you?”

“Because I can’t.”

“Yeah, you said that. But what does that mean?”

“It means that I can’t. I’m not…” I look for a suitable word. “Allowed.”

“You’re not allowed?”

“Nope.”

“Well, who is it that’s not allowing you?”

I stare at her a beat before saying, “Look, you don’t live here so you don’t know.”

“What don’t I know?”

“There’s bad blood between my brother and yours.” She frowns and I explain, “My brother hates your brother and the feeling is mutual, okay? So don’t even talk about these things.”

Her confusion has only grown. “What? Why?”

I go to explain the whole thing to her but turns out I don’t have to.

When I can show her.

Because what happens at every game is already happening on the field. The two star players of Bardstown High are facing off against each other.

You’d think that ever since Ledger became the captain, he would try to steer clear of all kinds of fights and arguments. At least on the field. But no.

Because Reed doesn’t let him.

Ever since Ledger became the captain, Reed’s aggressiveness on the field has only grown.

I’m not sure what brought on the current argument but they’re standing toe to toe.

I can’t see their expressions from here so all I have to go on is their body language and it is not looking good.

There are tense shoulders, rigid backs. Wide, battle-ready stances and folded arms.

I can read my brother like a book and I know he’s angry. I know that the vein on his temple must be pulsing as he says something, or rather, snaps it at Reed.

Who, on the other hand, appears completely relaxed.

Reed looks like he doesn’t care that Ledger is almost up in his face. He doesn’t care that Ledger looks like he might hit Reed at any point.

But I think it’s all for show.

It’s all to provoke Ledger, to show him that he can’t get to Reed, to mess with his head.

Reed’s successful too because in the next second, Ledger shoots his hand out and pushes Reed back.

Oh God.

And finally, we have a reaction.

It pulses through Reed like a current, obliterating his relaxed persona, making him rigid and unforgiving. And when Reed takes a threatening step closer to Ledger, Ledger does the same, bringing them back to standing toe to toe, their bodies sweaty, their heads bent toward each other as if they’re exchanging confidences rather than threats.

The two beasts, the Mustang and the Thorn.

Just when I think that they’re going to start punching each other, someone steps in.

My oldest brother and their coach, Conrad.

He absolutely hates this rivalry. Hates. He hates Ledger’s anger. He hates Reed’s recklessness.

He hates the fact that every high school team in the entire freaking state knows about this. About how the two star players of Bardstown High can’t quit measuring their dicks on the field — his words, not mine — and they always take advantage of it.

My oldest brother gets between his two players, plants one palm on each of their chests and pushes them away.

When he’s managed to break the two heavily panting, angry-looking guys apart, Conrad wraps his large hands around the backs of their necks and pulls them in again, giving them a piece of his mind.

When he’s done Conrad straightens up and pins them with his hard gaze for a few seconds before letting them go. And just like that the game resumes.

“So that’s my brother,” I tell her, repeating her words. “The one who was clearly trying to beat your brother up. Ledger. And the one who got between them? The coach? That’s my brother too, Conrad.”

“Oh wow,” Tempest breathes out.

“Yeah.” I nod. “See? You can’t even joke about it. Not in Bardstown.”

She keeps staring at the field for a few seconds before turning to me. “So… I don’t think you’re gonna like what I’m going to say next.”

“What?”

“That I think I have a huge crush on your brother.” Her gray eyes — so unmistakably like Reed’s — pop wide. “I’ve never seen someone stand up to my brother like that. Ledger.”

She breathes out his name in a dreamy voice.

“I don’t –”

“Oh, and you’re coming with me,” she speaks over me.

“Coming with you where?”

“To the party.”

“What party?”

“The aftergame party that Reed always throws.”

I’m going to a party.

But that’s not important.

That’s not even on the list of top three important things.

It’s not as if I haven’t been to parties before. I have. A few times.

But between school and my dance