Playing With Fire (Sweet Secrets #3) Read Online Free Page B

two dating,” Amaya added. Riley and Avery nodded in agreement.
    I frowned, glancing between them, and then to Trinity. “Rumors?”
    “You haven’t heard them?” Amaya asked. When I shook my head, she murmured, “ Awkward .”
    Riley furrowed her eyebrows and examined my face for a moment. Then she said, “Wait, are you not dating Shane?”
    I bit my lip, not knowing how to answer that. “It’s complicated,” I said after a moment.
    Riley, Avery, and Amaya all nodded slowly, taking in my words.
    “How did you even become his friend ? That’s the real question,” Riley said, her eyes wide as she regarded me. She looked like a little kid who’d just asked her parents why the sky was blue.
    Trinity spoke up before I even had a chance to open my mouth. “Her older sister is dating Carter,” she answered as she continued to dig through her salad, seeming slightly bored with the conversation. I’d already talked her ear off about Shane enough.
    Riley’s mouth dropped open.
    Avery leaned forward in her seat and widened her eyes.
    Amaya shook her head slowly. “Some people get all the luck.”
    Trinity and I laughed, meeting each other’s gaze. Then Trinity looked away from me and her smile grew wider. She tucked her dark, curly hair behind her ear and smirked. “Speak of the Devil,” she mumbled.
    I followed her gaze to the entrance of the cafeteria, seeing Carter and Shane walk in with the group of girls who hung out with them. Paige, Chloe, and Christa weren’t so bad, but April Miller was the worst. She hated Lena, and therefore her hatred just extended to me. I didn’t mind, because I didn’t particularly like her either. Whenever she was around, I made sure to keep an eye on her for Lena. She flirted with Carter any chance she got, but to my satisfaction he paid her no mind. She was just a bothersome fly to him.
    As the group headed toward a large booth near the windows on the opposite side of the cafeteria, nearly everyone in the cafeteria began to watch them. It was obvious who the popular kids were. They were the attractive people who made heads turn. I was sure that was no different from how it was at any high school. Sexuality always seemed to beat intelligence. It was an unfair rivalry. Guys stared at the girls in Shane’s group like they were pieces of meat, and girls stared at Shane and Carter like they were Greek gods. Despite my status as his rumored girlfriend, even I found myself staring at Shane in awe.
    It was as if he felt my stare, because he turned his head to the side and caught my eye, giving me an adorable smile. He didn’t even say anything to his friends; he just turned and headed across the cafeteria in my direction.
    Riley, Avery, and Amaya nearly passed out.
    “He’s coming over here.”
    “ Oh my God , he’s coming to our table!”
    “What do you think he’s going to say?”
    Trinity rolled her eyes at her friends and then smiled at me. She was unfazed by Shane and Carter, or any other attractive person for that matter. She herself was stunning, and her boyfriend, Brandon, told her that multiple times a day.
    “Hey,” I said as Shane approached the table, smiling down at me.
    He pulled out the empty chair on the other side of me and slid into it. “Hey. How’s your day going?” he questioned.
    “It’s been annoying,” I answered with a forced smile, earning a light laugh from Trinity. I answered the same way as I had when she asked me. “I’m surprised you came over here. You never come and say hi to me during lunch.” Normally he headed to his table and ate with his friends. The only time we ever really talked in school was in the hallways when we saw each other. Sometimes he walked me to class.
    Shane placed his hand on my knee and squeezed it gently. “I know. That’s why I came to ask if you wanted to come eat lunch with us today.”
    I glanced around the table, ignoring Trinity’s obscure nod. When I looked back at Shane, I scrunched my nose up as I