29. Zepp

TWENTY-NINE

zepp

"Hand me that wrench."

When Hendrix scooted out from underneath the car, I tossed the tool to him, then went back to the engine. Working on cars brought me some sort of peace, a way to lose my thoughts in hand motions, the way drawing did.

"Shit. Hey, Zepp. Incoming!" Wolf shouted from the back porch just before the door banged shut.

I glanced around the hood at Monroe barreling off the porch, face red and fists clenched at her side. Holy shit. She was pissed. What the hell could I have done to piss her off within the hour since she had left? Swiping the sweat from my brow, I stepped around the front of the car.

"Was it you?" she shouted when she passed the birdbath.

"Was it me what?"

"Did you go after Jerry?"

I hoped Dizzy had beat the shit out of him. "Jerry?" I grabbed a screwdriver from the grass and went back to the car.

"One request." She paced beside the car, shaking her head and rambling to herself. "Don't go after him."

"Roe!" I glanced over the hood. "You've been with me the past three days…" And what a fucking alibi.

She stopped mid-step to look at me, her teeth working over her lip. "Well, someone beat his ass, and he's pissed."

He was a drug dealer. A roughneck. Like he hadn't had a beating or two in his life.

I almost snorted while I tightened a lug nut. "Ass beatings are part of the business."

"Not for Jerry," she mumbled.

I tucked the socket wrench into the back of my jeans, then slammed the hood. I couldn't figure out why she was pissed; the shithead beat on her; she should be gloating that someone handed his ass to him. "Why do you even give a shit, Monroe?"

"Because he's practically digging a hole in the damn woods for whoever did it already."

Good luck killing Dizzy. Jerry didn't stand a chance against him. "Again, why do you care?"

She punched me in the chest. "Why do you think, asshole? I swear if you had anything to do with this, Zepp…"

I fought a smile. She was worried about me. "Like I said, Roe. I've been with you for the past three days."

"Doesn't mean shit. You're a shady fuck, you know it?"

I grabbed her by the hips and yanked her against me. "Good to know." Then I kissed her.

Something whacked me on the side of the head. "Sick-ass fuckers," Hendrix mumbled, pushing up from the ground and dusting his hands on his jeans. "I thought you were going home, Red? I need a break."

"Changed my mind." Monroe flipped him the bird. "I'm staying."

"So I gotta listen to you two bumping uglies? Again." Hendrix groaned. "I can't deal with it. You sound like a hyena when you get off."

She glared at him. "Like you aren't trying to take out your bedroom wall with some random skank most nights."

I grabbed the glove Hendrix had hit me with and whacked him in the face. "Shut up." Then I snagged Monroe by the waist and led her toward the house. Those two would keep going at each other until they were separated. "Come on, my little hyena. I'mma make you howl."

Laughing, she elbowed me in the ribs. "God, your brother is a dick."

The next day I got sent to the principal's office at the end of last period for breaking some dickhead's nose for calling Monroe a slut. Two days of detention. Brown was going soft as shit.

I skirted down the hallway just as Monroe slammed her locker closed. She glanced over her shoulder at me, and I proudly held up the pink piece of paper. "Got detention defending your honor."

"That would be sweet if you weren't in detention most days anyway."

"Don't try to downplay my chivalry, Roe." I wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and we started toward the exit. Sun heated my skin as we crossed the parking lot teeming with students. "Wanna order Chinese tonight?"

"Sure." She placed a hand on my stomach before slamming a kiss to my mouth. The kind of kiss that usually meant she was about to drop to her knees for me. Her tongue swiped my lips; she pressed her tits against my stomach. Roe didn't do stuff like this in the school parking lot… I pulled away from her, brow cocked with suspicion.

"But I have to go study first. With Chase." That last bit came out fast and quick, like she was spitting out fire.

I hated that shithead. They may have been friends back when she didn't have tits, but there was no way that guy didn't grab a bottle of Jergen's lotion and rub one out to the thought of her.

"Yeah?" I asked, tempering the flame of jealousy begging to combust in my chest.

"Remember? The social studies project…"

How could I forget? "Yeah. So, you going to the library?" We stopped beside my bike, and I tossed her the helmet.

"Uh, not exactly. The computers keep crashing, but Chase's dad has one."

His house. Of course the little shit would invite her to his house. I bet he'd even have some refreshments and fucking candles for her too. I gave a curt nod before swinging my leg over the seat. "I'll take you."

"Really? This is very...rational." She climbed on behind me and pressed her lips to my neck.

Then I cranked the engine and pulled out of the parking lot.

It was very rational of me.

I stopped in front of the mailbox with Matthews painted in sloppy, white letters along the side. An Alabama football flag flew from the front porch, right below the American flag, and the lawn was actually cut, flowers in the bed by the front steps. The house looked completely out of place nestled amongst the dilapidated houses that covered the rest of the block. No wonder he felt entitled. Prick.

Monroe hopped off the back of my bike and handed me the helmet. It looked like she was about to lean in for a kiss when I cut the engine and climbed off myself. Her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing?"

On a smile, I started up the sidewalk to the front porch. By the time she caught up, I had already rung the doorbell.

"Zepp…" She gave me a stern look right before Chase opened the door.

His gaze pinged between Monroe and me. "Hey, Moe." A crease formed between his brows. Damn right, dickhead, I'm here.

"Hey. Zepp was just dropping me off." She gave me a quick kiss before crossing the threshold. When dickwad went to close the door, I grabbed it and shouldered my way inside.

"What the hell, Hunt?" Chase stood at the open entrance like he expected me to leave.

I shot him a smile, then pushed the door closed for him. Annoyance radiated from him like a hydrogen bomb when I placed a hand on Monroe's waist. "Don't mind me, Matthews."

"Whatever." He led Monroe and me to the eat-in kitchen, pausing by the mail-covered table. "I just have to go get my books," he said on his way to the stairs at the far side of the room.

Monroe fell into a chair at the end of the table, glaring at me. Before she could open her mouth, I was looming over her.

"His books were in his fucking room." I pointed toward the steps. "Guys take girls into their room for one thing and one thing only." Heat bled over my face. I debated ramming Chase's face into the stainless-steel fridge.

"I was here all the time when we were kids." She swatted a few envelopes across the tabletop and huffed. "I've been in his room, and before you say it, we were playing Candyland, and we were twelve."

I pulled out a chair, flipped it around, and straddled the seat while staring at her. How in the hell was my girl this damn na?ve with guys? "And doctor?" I asked. "You play that too?"

"No." She rolled her eyes. "We were best friends. That's it."

"The girl I used to play board games with was the girl I lost my v-card to when I was fourteen, so don't act like being childhood friends makes a guy immune to a pair of titties."

She swiped a hand down her face on a groan. "Not all guys are as perverted as you, Zepp."

"Really?" I folded my forearms over the chair back. "It's not perverted, Roe; it's called having a dick and using it."

Her lips pressed together. I could just imagine she was trying to figure out something else to try to prove her point, but Chase came back into the room. He dropped books and a laptop onto the junked-up table and sat next to Monroe, scooting his chair closer to her.

I drummed my fingers over the table while he booted up the laptop. "Planning to study in your room?" I asked.

Chase's hostel gaze met mine. "Moe's been in my room plenty of times."

I grabbed the roll of paper towels sitting in front of me and squeezed. Snarky son of a bitch. "And yet, you still haven't gotten what you want." I shrugged a shoulder. "Not all of us can, I guess." I really, really wanted to slam his head against that freezer now.

"Ooookay." Monroe pointed at me. "Stop." Then shoved the laptop in front of Chase. "Focus. Type."

I threw up both hands in surrender. "I'm just trying to have a conversation."

She ignored me, snatching one of the books from the stack and flipping to a page. "We only have two more topics we have to put in. One is, what are the pros and cons of social media in a modern society versus thirty years ago?"

What kind of bullshit was this? I tossed the paper towels back to the table.

Chase cleared his throat like he had some grand revelation he was about to vomit out. "Well, I think one of the biggest downfalls of social media is the way it places value on people or the opinions of people who really don't matter. Instead of placing that value on real, long-standing friendships that are far more important." He looked at me like a proud little dipshit. "It promotes false relationships with no real foundation."

Oh, I supposed that was meant to be some dig. "You realize society has always placed value on the opinions of people who don't really matter?" I said. "That's not some new phenomena that happened due to social media, you dumbass."

Chase glared at me.

"Thanks for your input, babe." Monroe gave me a stern look before turning her attention to Chase. "He does have a point, though."

Of course I did. Dipshit typed something for a few minutes while Monroe looked through her notes. Every time he tried to make some comment that he thought made him sound smart, I debunked it. After half an hour, steam was swirling from the top of his head. He grabbed his backpack from the floor and hauled it into his lap, rummaging through it and pulling out a joint.

Monroe tapped her pen over the open book in front of her. "Your mom's gonna kill you if you smoke that in here."

"She's working night shift tonight." Chase lit the joint and took a puff. "So is Dad."

That dickhead had every intention of trying to screw her. I knew he had. On a smirk, he blew a cloud of smoke into the air before offering it to Monroe. She shook her head.

"Hey, Moe, remember that time we went up on the billboard and got so stoned we slept up there?"

He stared me down like he wanted me to think something had happened between them.

"Yeah, your dad said I was a bad influence. Now look at you, smoking in the house." She flashed a condescending smile.

That little asshole wanted to try and show me how special he was to Monroe? Fuck him. "Hey, Roe. Remember that time I fingered you so good and got you off on top of the billboard?" My jaw clenched, my stare aimed at Chase.

"Okay." Monroe choked on a nervous cough. "You know, I think you can just write this section, Chase. I'll write the next. It'll be fine." She pushed to her feet so fast the chair teetered on its back legs for a second. "Zepp," she said through gritted teeth, spinning on her heels, then leaving the room.

I slowly rose, looming over him. "She may think this is all innocent. But I know it's fucking bullshit." I jabbed a finger at his forehead. "Don't make me kill you, Matthews." I shoved his head back before storming out of the room.

Monroe ignored me until we got home, where I begged her to forgive me by face planting between her thighs.