Never Ever (East Raven Academy Book 2) Read online

  “History of being friends,” I say. “That’s it. Trust me; I am not interested in him.”

  “That doesn’t mean he’s not interested in you,” Emma says. “I’m so jealous. A guy like Sander is exactly what I need to get over Bryce.”

  “If you want him, have at it,” I say, turning towards the door. “I am so done with this conversation.”

  I walk out of the bathroom without waiting for a response because I really don’t want to hear how hot they think my bodyguard is. And I really don’t want to hear how lucky I am that he’s my supposed best friend, who came all this way because he’s in love with me. I just wish I could tell them the truth. And the truth is Sander is a complete stranger to me, and I kind of wish he’d go back to wherever he came from.

  When I get to the table, I take my seat between Estaine and Sander.

  “Have a nice chat?” Sander asks, smirking at me.

  “Yeah. I made sure my friends know that you’re single. Don’t be surprised if half the girls in the school have asked you out by the end of the night,” I say.

  He leans closer. “Well, don’t be surprised if I tell half of the girls in the school that I’m interested in a certain unattainable brunette and that they don’t stand a chance.”

  Why is this happening to me?

  “You’d better not,” I say.

  “Try me,” he says.

  I turn to Estaine. “Help.”

  “Sorry,” Estaine says. “I’m kind of with Sander on this one. He can’t exactly be dating other girls if he’s supposed to protect you.”

  I know, I know. Sander is here to keep me safe. And I can’t just be telling girls to go for it when it comes to him. He’s not here to date. And I’ve probably just made everything worse for myself by telling Teagan and Emma that he’s single.

  The two of them both come and sit down at the table, both smiling at Sander.

  What have I done?

  This entire situation has been an absolute nightmare, and I think I just made it ten times worse.

  Cupcake.

  After curfew, Emma, Teagan, and I sneak out of our dorms to hang out with Ian, Jason, and Estaine.

  It’s really nice now that Emma and Bryce have broken up. Again, I’m not sure how long they will be broken up, but from what I understand, Emma has never made out with another guy since she and Bryce broke up. The fact that she and Ian have been spending so much time together is a big deal. Ian treats her really well, and I’m hoping that she can see how good life can be when a man treats you right.

  After dinner, we all pretty much went to our dorms. I think Sander was scared that a bunch of teenaged girls were going to try to ask him out. I haven’t asked him his age, but I’m pretty sure he’s old enough that he doesn’t want high school girls to be chasing him. I haven’t talked to him since then. I wonder what he does when he’s not being forced to babysit me. He’s probably asleep right now. I hope he won’t be mad I snuck off, but he’ll probably never know I did.

  Once the six of us are at the docks, I sit with Estaine at the end of the docks. Emma and Teagan both scatter off. I’m glad for this time alone with Estaine. I feel like he is the only person I can be honest with. He’s the only one who knows the real me.

  “No bodyguard,” Estaine says.

  “Nope,” I say, smiling. “Nice, right?”

  “Very,” he says. “Not that I mind Sander. He seems pretty cool. He’s very serious about protecting you. It’s just nice to finally be alone with my girlfriend. Like, really alone, with nobody standing outside the door. I feel like he’s listening to our conversations from the door.”

  “Exactly,” I say, leaning against him. I look up at the sky. “The stars are so beautiful here.”

  “This is what I love about East Raven,” he says. “We get away from the city and get to be out here, in the middle of nowhere.”

  I smile. “Yeah. It is nice.”

  “Do you miss Malibu?”

  I sit up and look at him. “Yes. A lot. And it hurts my heart to know that the house I grew up in isn’t there anymore. I mean, I know we will get another beach house, but still... and I miss the ocean. And I miss Charlie. I would give anything for him to be here. I mean, he tried to convince his dad to let him come, but it just wasn’t safe.”

  “Is it really safe in Malibu?” Estaine asks. “I mean, look what happened.”

  “I know,” I say, sighing. “I don’t even know where Charlie and my mom and stepdad are. It’s strange, not being able to talk to them. I mean, if I could, I would be texting Charlie every single day. Even when we lived in the same house we still texted every day.”

  “Sounds like me and River,” Estaine says.

  My heart breaks for Estaine. I can’t imagine ever losing Charlie the way he did his sister.

  “Thank you... for being so understanding about all of this,” I say. “I know it’s super inconvenient to always have other people around, watching us. I hope I would be as patient and understanding as you are in this situation, but it’s got to be hard.”

  “Being with you is an easy choice.”

  I hear footsteps on the dock and I turn around expecting to see Teagan, Emma or one of the guys, but instead I see a very angry looking Sander coming towards us. My heart races, hoping nothing is wrong. Why else would he be out here.

  “Is something wrong?” I ask, quickly standing to my feet.

  “Are you an idiot?” Sander asks.

  “What?” I ask.

  “I was worried sick about you,” he says. “You can’t just leave without telling me. Do you not get it? You’re not safe. It’s my job to protect you. You can’t just run off without me.”

  “I’m sorry,” Estaine says. “I didn’t realize we couldn’t come here...”

  “Why do you think I was sent here?” Sander asks.

  “I didn’t think, okay?” I say. “I thought this was okay because I’m still on campus.”

  “We’re going back,” he says. “Estaine, I trust you can make it to your dorm okay?”

  “Yeah,” Estaine says, giving me a sad look. “I guess I’ll see you at breakfast.”

  “She’ll see you at lunch,” Sander says, then grabs my arm and starts pulling me. I know better than to fight or protest. Plus, there is literally no way I could take him on in a fight, even if I wanted to.

  Oh, and I want to. I am fuming mad. But Sander is right. I just wasn’t thinking when I came out here tonight. It was such a normal thing to do that I didn’t think twice about it. I’m lucky that Sander found me and not somebody else.

  Sander and I don’t stop walking until we get to the road. There is a car there. Sander opens the passenger side door and I get in. He slams the door once I’m inside and then walks around the car.

  Yikes.

  He’s very angry.

  “I’m sorry,” I say, when he gets in the car. “Really, I am. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “Do you realize how easy it would’ve been for somebody to kill you?” he asks. “I could’ve snuck up behind you and you would never have known.”

  “No, I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Stop saying you’re sorry,” he says. He still hasn’t put a hand on the steering wheel or put the car in drive. “Your life is important, Phoenix. It’s so important. I came here for you. I’m going to do all I can to protect you. But for me to do my job, you can’t run away from me. You have to tell me where you are at all times. And I have to be with you. If you don’t listen, I’m going to be forced to be in a room with you at all times—even in the dorm rooms. Don’t make me do that.”

  I nod. “Okay. I won’t. I promise I won’t go anywhere without you again.”

  “Good.”

  “It’s just... it’s been crazy. Since the beginning of summer, right when I first got kidnapped, and then coming here and just... everything. I mean, why me? I’m just Phoenix Black. I’m not even special,” I say. “I just wanted to spend time with Estaine, too. Like, we haven’t even been dating a
week yet, and I’m scared that all of this is going to make him not want to be with me. He’s my first boyfriend, you know?”

  “That boy is crazy about you,” Sander says. “But if he breaks up with you, then one, he is stupid. And two, trust me, you’ll get another boyfriend. You’re only... what? Seventeen?”

  “Sixteen,” I say.

  “You’re sixteen?”

  I nod. “How old are you?”

  He smiles. “If I tell you, will you promise not to treat me any differently?”

  “Why would I treat you differently?”

  “Because I’m eighteen years old,” Sander says. “And I know I might not seem like I’m that much older than you, but I have been training my entire life. I’ve trained more than Matt or Jake. And I can protect you better than anybody on the planet, I promise.”

  “I believe you,” I say.

  But, seriously? He’s 18?

  “So, you went to some kind of high school for spies?” I ask.

  He laughs. “Something like that.”

  Seriously?

  Before I can question him, he continues.

  “You’re staying at the house tonight because I don’t want you to get in trouble for sneaking back into your dorm, plus, I want to keep an eye on you,” Sander says, putting the car in drive.

  “But Uncle Matty is going to yell.”

  “Good. You need to get yelled at.”

  Uh...

  Not cool.

  Not cool at all.

  “You are practically my age,” I say. “Can’t you take my side, like, once?”

  “Never over this,” he says. “Your safety isn’t something I’m going to waver or compromise on. Ever.”

  I frown, but he’s right.

  “What is spy school like?” I ask, as we pull onto the short road that leads to the house.

  “Hard,” he answers.

  I have a feeling that’s all I’m going to get out of him.

  “Do you have a spy girlfriend?” I ask.

  Sander laughs. “No.”

  “Are there not girl spies or something?”

  “Of course there are,” he says. “Thirty nine percent of the school is girls, which is the highest girl enrollment we’ve ever had.”

  “Can I be a spy? ’Cause that would be awesome,” I say.

  “I really can’t tell you anything, you realize that, right?”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s part of the rules,” Sander says.

  “Is there anything I could sign or something, so you can tell me?” I ask. “Like a gag order or something?”

  “A marriage certificate.”

  I choke. “What?”

  “It’s part of the rules. You can only tell somebody once you’re engaged.”

  “Oh,” I say. “That sucks. Guess I’ll never know.”

  “You got it, Cupcake.”

  “Cupcake is worse than sweetheart,” I say.

  He just laughs.

  Gah, this boy is going to get on my nerves.

  Friday, September 8

  I’m so failing this class.

  When I walk into my poetry class on Friday morning, Mr. Anderson is giving me an evil look. I mean, he always does, so I guess it’s not anything out of the ordinary. I swear this guy has it out for me. All of my teachers like me except for him. And I literally have no idea what I’ve done to make him so mad, all I know is that he despises me.

  “Miss Underwood, nice of you to actually come to class today,” he says, once the class begins.

  Mr. Anderson is walking towards my desk looking right at me.

  “Who?” I ask.

  Miss Underwood? Who has the last name Underwood?

  Then it hits me.

  Oh, my gosh.

  I am Phoenix Underwood here. Kind of. I mean, it’s my cover name.

  “I mean... um... yeah... sorry,” I say.

  I hear Sander snicker.

  I mean, come on, dude. It’s not funny. I could’ve totally just blown my cover and he’s laughing about it.

  “You have been absent during nine separate days of my class. Congratulations, you’ve by far exceeded the amount of skips by any student I’ve ever had in one semester and it's only September,” he says.

  “Well, it wasn’t my fault,” I say, going into defensive mode. Which might be the wrong thing to do, considering the vein on his neck is now popping out. But if I could’ve been here, I would’ve been here for every single class. And I do, technically, have an excuse for every time I was absent.

  “Are you aware that you are failing my class?” he asks.

  “How?” I ask. “I’ve gotten an A on every single test and I’ve made up for every single piece of class work that I’ve missed, aside from the tests that you wouldn’t let me re-take.”

  “Excuse me, sir,” Sander says. “But isn’t it inappropriate to be discussing her grade in front of the entire class? Maybe you should make an appointment.”

  Mr. Anderson turns to look at Sander. “Did I give you permission to speak in my class?”

  “I’m just saying,” Sander replies.

  Well, at least he is sticking up for me.

  Mr. Anderson turns his attention back to me. “You’re failing because you haven’t been to class.”

  “Excuse me, sir,” Sander says. “But Phoenix has every single absence excused by the dean. Maybe you should take it up with him if you have a problem, but I don’t think harassing your student in class is the way to handle this.”

  Mr. Anderson looks furious. But at least he’s glaring at Sander and not at me. “I will talk with the dean, and I will make sure the both of you are expelled before the night is over.”

  Which makes me laugh.

  I didn’t mean to laugh, it just slipped out.

  I mean, I won’t get expelled. First, because I did nothing wrong. Second, I’m pretty sure the CIA and Secret Service takes authority over the dean here. But when I laugh, the vein in Mr. Anderson’s neck makes a reappearance and his face turns red.

  Yikes.

  I am so failing this class.

  How do you convince your best friends that you’re not in love with your bodyguard?

  There is a football game against West Raven Academy tonight, which means I am most definitely going to be forced to talk with Brooks. But before I can even leave for the football game, I am cornered in my dorm room by Emma and Teagan.

  Geez, these two have been very annoying lately. Maybe a good annoying though. Emma seems a lot happier without Bryce, and this is the longest I have ever seen them broken up. I like single-Emma a lot.

  “Girl, you won’t believe what Emma heard,” Teagan says.

  “Seriously, it’s crazy,” Emma says.

  “What did you hear?” I ask, knowing it’s best to just give in to them.

  I stand there, waiting to hear some juicy piece of gossip, because what else would she be about to tell me? But there is a long dramatic pause and they are both looking at me like they’re about to change my life or something.

  “I overheard Rachel asking Sander out on a date,” Emma says.

  “Good for her,” I say, wondering why they are telling me. I don’t care if Rachel is interested in Sander.

  “His response is the good part,” she says. “He told her no, because he’s been in love with you since the day he met you, and he’s holding out hope that the two of you will someday get together. Then he told her to make sure all her friends knew that he wasn’t interested.”

  I laugh.

  Hard.

  So hard that I nearly choke on my own spit.

  Okay, well, he did tell me that he was going to convince people he was in love with me; since I told all my friends that he was single. And I kind of can’t blame him for getting revenge.

  “Why are you laughing?” Teagan asks. “Isn’t that so sweet?”

  “Yeah, totally sweet,” I say, waving a hand. “Now, can we please go to the game?”

  “That’s it? Let’s
go to the game? You have nothing to say about what Emma heard?”

  I shake my head.

  “I mean... what about Estaine?” Teagan asks. “He’s going to be totally jealous. I mean, Sander is your best friend. You guys hang out, like, all the time. Don’t you think that’s gonna have to stop if you’re staying with Estaine? I mean, are you? Are you going to break up with him?”

  “I’m not breaking up with Estaine,” I say. “And Sander was joking. He’s not in love with me. He’s basically getting revenge on me for telling you guys that he’s single. He already told me he was going to convince all the girls that he’s in love with me. Trust me, he’s not.”

  I mean, we just met yesterday. And I’m his job. Plus, I’m pretty sure I annoy him. And he definitely annoys me, so...

  But they don’t know that. They think we’ve been friends since kindergarten or something. And I need them to continue thinking that. But I also need them to see that there really isn't anything between us.

  “Why would he want to get revenge for you telling us he’s single?” Emma asks.

  “He doesn’t want to date anybody. I knew that,” I say. “And I was being a little mischievous when I told you he was single.”

  “Oh. So, he’s not single?” Teagan asks.

  “No, he’s single,” I say.

  “Then why doesn’t he want to date anybody?” Emma asks. “I mean, unless he really is in love with you, and he’s just isn’t telling you.”

  “Trust me, that is not the reason he doesn’t want to date anybody,” I say.

  “I think we’re on to something here,” Teagan says, ignoring me. “He’s in love with you and you just don’t want to admit it. But you’re going to have to. You could ignore it when you were single, but you’re dating Estaine. He will eventually notice, and he will get jealous.”

  “Whatever you say,” I say, walking towards the door. “I am out of here, you guys. I am inevitably going to have to talk to Brooks tonight and I’d like to save all my energy for that conversation.”

  “Brooks isn’t over you yet?” Teagan asks; she and Emma following behind me.

  “Uh, no, he is,” I say.

  I think anyway.