"So how's it going with Karma? You screw it up yet?" 

I shut my locker and spun the combination before turning to my best friend. There was a wry smile on his face as he waited for my answer. "It's going good." It was going fantastic, actually. "And no, I haven't fucked up." 

"Yet." 

Stepping past Nick, I started walking towards my English class, my friend falling in step beside me. "Why are you busting my balls. Think I'm actually gonna risk fucking this up?" 

"Of course not. I'm just making sure that you know what you got. You can't lose her, Nate." 

He was so damn right about that. Ever since my little revelation about my feelings for Karma two weeks ago when we slept together, I haven't been able to think about anything else. I wanted to tell her how I felt. But at the same time, I was scared shitless. As much as I loved feeling like this and living in this euphoria, I wasn't a moron. I knew that saying those three little words would make me vulnerable. Well, more vulnerable.

It was like the phrase 'I love you' came with a knife and a road map of my heart, showing her just where to cut to ruin me. Not that I thought Karma would do anything to hurt me, but that's what love was, wasn't it? It upped your chances of getting the shit kicked out of you. If I lost this girl, it was going to absolutely destroy me. 

"Tell me something I don't know," I said dryly. 

"Okay. I went on a date yesterday."

That stopped be dead in my tracks in the middle of the quad. Staring at Nick, I sputtered before saying, "Excuse me? What did you say?" 

He shook his head and laughed. "You know, that was the same reaction I had when you told me about Karma." 

"Come on, Nick, seriously. You went on a date? With who?" I groaned. "It wasn't Trish was it?" 

Nick shuttered in disgust. "Not if she and I were the last two people on planet Earth, man. Don't get me wrong, she's a nice girl and all, but that ain't for me." 

I rolled my eyes at that. "So are you going to tell me or not? Who is she?" 

With a side smile Nick took a few steps back. "I'm late for class already. Why don't we meet later at LOST and I'll tell you all about it." 

"Okay. Sounds good." 

Waving bye to Nick, I turned and started walking towards my class. But I didn't get far. I barely made it two steps before someone ran into me intentionally. Déjà vu wasn't just a feeling when I saw it was the same asshole that did it at that party a few weeks ago. 

"What's your problem, Brian? Forget what I said at the party?" I splayed my arms wide. "If so, I have no problem reminding you." 

The tenseness of his body and the hostility in his expression told me that he was looking for a fight. Normally, I wouldn't waste my time with bullshit like this. But I didn't forget a certain someone's name he said under his breath at that party. If he started talking shit about my girl again then his was going to get ugly.

Brian sneered, looking me up and down. "You must think you're something special, huh? All the girls you would pick up and fuck. Then just toss them aside and forget about them."

"The fuck are you talking about?" I know I had a reputation here for hooking up with a lot of girls, but I never led them on or made them think I was interested in anything more than a hookup. 

"Do you even remember their names, Nate? Or do you just keep a tally in a notebook or some shit?" 

Okay, what the fuck was this? "Brian, we were friends. Why are you getting all pissy with me? And if I remember correctly, you fucked some of those same girls." 

It was a little blunt, but it was the fucking truth. He wasn't a goddamn saint. He was right there with me at those parties, getting hammered and hooking up with as many girls as he could. Still did that, from what I've heard from our teammates. 

Brian's eyes darkened with fury. "Im pissy because you did this shit to Trish." 

Okayyyyyyyy. Now I was even more confused. "Why the fuck do you care about Trish? You into her or something?" 

"No, asshole. She's my sister." 

Talk about a goddamn bombshell. At least, that's what my brain felt like as it tried to process what I just heard. My head literally felt like it was going to explode. I've known Brian since junior year, and he never talked about a sister. And as far as I can remember, Trish—

"Trying to figure out how that's possible?" He asked. "She transferred here at the end of the semester because she was living with our dad and moved here. She told me about you over summer break. How you would take her out to get some cheap ass food then fuck her and drop her back off. No calls, no nothing. Like she's trash." 

Nick must have heard us arguing, because he was suddenly standing next to me, arm braced across my chest to hold me back. If Brian started talking about Karma again, Nick's arm wasn't going to do shit. 

Staring Brian down I said, "Trish knew what was up from the beginning. She knew I didn't want a relationship and she knew it was nothing more than what it was: a hookup. She agreed to it, Brian. Sorry, but that's the truth." 

"That's a fucking lie," he shot back. "She was into you. Still is. And if you didn't want a relationship, then why are you in one now with that little—"

"Shut up, Bri," Nick warned. "Stop talking right fucking now."

Brian's eyes flicked to my best friend. "And you. I thought we were friends. Defending this asshole with what he did?"

Nick shook his head slowly. "I've been friends with Nate for almost two decades, Bri. He's telling the truth. Trish even asked for my number after our first game. It's not like Nate's the only guy she's been interested in."

"You calling my sister a whore?" 

"No," Nick answered. "But you need to stop this shit. If your sister got feelings for Nate, that's not his fault. He was upfront with her from the beginning." 

I was fuming. I was so fucking pissed. And thank God that Nick was holding me back, because I was two seconds away from punching this asshole in the face. It didn't help that almost the whole school was around us watching. Great. Just fucking great. At least Karma wasn't—

"Nathan? What's going on?"

The sound of her voice had my head snapping to the side. Karma was standing next to Mike. Her face was full of confusion and concern. His too. Lanie and Harper were standing behind them. Shit. This was the last thing I wanted right now. I didn't want to punch this guy in front of Karma. And I most definitely didn't want her to hear whatever bullshit he was going to say about her. 

"Baby," I whispered, my tone pleading. "Go wait inside with Mike and the girls.  I'll be right behind you." 

With a frown, she walked up to me. "I'm not going anywhere. What's going on here?" 

Brian chuckled darkly. "Yeah, Nate. Why don't you tell her what exactly is going on here." 

Since I knew she wouldn't leave, I took Karma's hand before leaning down to Nick and whispering, "Don't let him follow us." 

As I tugged Karma beside me, I didn't lead her to class. Instead, I took her to my jeep. Like she knew I was on a short fuse, she didn't press me as we walked. Thank God. I knew it wasn't going to last, but I needed to calm the fuck down. 

Once we got to the jeep, I leaned back against it before bending down and resting my hands on my knees. Jeez, I was shaking with how pissed I was. The main reason I was so worked up was because I always kinda knew they type of guy Brian was. We were friends, yeah, but not close. There was always something off about him.

And something told me that this wasn't over. 

Karma placed both hands on my cheeks, causing me to stand up and meet her gaze.

"Hey," she whispered. 

"Hey." 

"What was that about, Nathan? Please tell me." 

I exhaled the deep breath I didn't realize I was holding. She had a right to know, but I didn't want to talk about it here. "Can we talk about this later, baby?"

"But I—"

"Please?" Reaching for her waist, I pulled her against me, burying my face in her neck as I hugged her. 

Relaxing against me, I felt her nod. "Okay. Will you come over tonight? I'll leave my window unlocked." 

I pulled back enough to give her a deep kiss. "It's a date, gorgeous."