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Chapter Eight: Steven

“Just go get her, for fuck’s sake,” Lucas said

Callie’sto Carlene about colours, of all things, like they were in fucking kindergarten or so, so Lucas was entirely focused on ht noas Lucas buggingon doing

“What ao harass her until she decides to open up her pants for me?”

One corner of Lucas’s mouth lifted

“Don’t even fucking go there” I didn’t even like it when Lucas joked about shit like that I guess we all have different tolerances for that sort of thing, but forwith Cal

lie that messed with her so , I’d just fucking kill him

He’d probably laugh at me if I ever told him that, of course And he’d think it was even funnier if he knew about Julia Playing by her rules had been good for so, at least

Carlene said soh, a sort of half-hysterical noise like she knew she shouldn’t but hadn’t been able to help herself That was the thing: I didn’t really want to bring Ta around like a proper girlfriend She wouldn’t fit in nearly as well as Callie to begin with, she was too much like a stirrer… but then I couldn’t risk it, either Once she was in like that she’d be able to start building connections, telling people sneaky things on the side I couldn’t get ahead of

I didn’t like how underhand this was all beco It put a literal bad taste inwould take away But if it was both of us collaborating on the deal, that had to be ht

Lucas refolded his legs “Trustup wherever she likes,about her”

I feltup of its own accord “Is that your advice forto be doing this afternoon? Her car is staying at your parents’ place permanently these days, isn’t it?”

“It’s just because it’s not safe to have it in her neighbourhood,” said Lucas “Arsehole”

I punched him

Tamara found me, as I’d expected, when I was on my way out of a class where I didn’t have any friends to hook up with straight away I would have expected nothing less from my little stalker