Mine : You Can't Help Who You Fall In Love With... (The Winterburg Series Book 1) Read online

  Mine

  Linzvonc

  Copyright © 2020 Linzvonc

  All rights reserved

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  For my husband, for loving me exactly the way I am. CC

  For my children, for understanding why Mum is always hunched over the laptop. Love you babies.

  For Sam, for always having my back. You're amazing.

  For you, the reader. This story is for you. Your support is beyond appreciated, thank you.

  Chapter One

  GRETCHEN

  “Miss Red? I don’t suppose you could tear yourself away from your phone to take part in class, could you?”

  I lifted my eyes to meet those of my teacher, Mrs. Saxton, who glared at me from the front of the classroom.

  “Uh, I’m sorry...it was my mom...” My cheeks flushed as I lied, cramming the phone in my bag.

  “Of course it was,” she made a face, shaking her head as she carried on speaking to the rest of the class. “So, I will need you all to write an essay on whether romantic movies are damaging to real-life relationships. You may find you can speak to your parents and family for insight.”

  A few cackles came from the class as my phone vibrated against my leg. I decided not to bother upsetting my teacher further by retrieving it, but the bell rang anyway.

  I grabbed my phone, the envelope icon showing I had a text message from Luke, my boyfriend.

  LUKE:

  Babes gotta put tonight on ice. Big dinner at home- no phone zone- family shit. Love you.

  I sighed, shoving my phone back into my bag.

  “Girl, that’s a sigh, what’s wrong?”

  My best friend Rosie peered at me with concern.

  I picked my bag up and followed Rosie out of the classroom door and into the carnage that was the school corridor. Bodies filled every available space, and I groaned. I glanced at Rosie, who was waiting for an explanation.

  “Luke has just cancelled our date. He has ‘family shit’ apparently.”

  Rosie lifted a perfectly arched brow.

  “Oh. Why don’t you come with me and Sienna to The Lounge? she grinned, knowing I had no other plans.

  “Yeah, why not?” I agreed, feeling a little brighter.

  Just then a loud crash came from the end of the corridor, distracting us from our conversation.

  “Look where you are going, dickhead!”

  I craned my neck round to see what all the commotion was about and saw Finn- a friend of Luke’s- squaring up to a boy I had not seen before in school.

  “Who’s that, Rose?” I whispered, studying the boy.

  “Ah, the new guy…” Rosie said. “I heard Clara and Krystal talking about him earlier. He’s Clara’s cousin. Cute hmm? Good for us single girls!” she cackled, sticking her tongue out at me.

  I scrutinized him, trying not to stare. His dirty blond hair covered his face, yet the black t-shirt that clung to his broad body showed he was more than capable of handling himself with Finn.

  “Fuck you. You’re the dickhead, dickhead,” the new guy muttered.

  Finn stepped forward; his fists clenched. Finn wouldn’t think twice about socking this guy in the jaw, and something told me that would be one hell of a fight. I sighed with relief as Mr Whetton strode down the hallway towards the boys.

  “Ah, Cal. I see you’ve met Finn, quite the star around here, aren’t you?”

  Even his name was heavenly. Cal.

  Finn scowled at Cal.

  “Whatever, man. Welcome to the school, Cal.”

  He kept eye contact with Cal as he walked away, his face set in a firm line. Cal leaned against the locker, watching Finn with amusement. Sweet perfume filled the air as Clara walked down from the cafeteria towards us. Clara was my boyfriend’s cousin, and the Queen Bee of the school. As she walked, she cut her eyes at those that dared to look at her, ensuring their gazes moved away. I detested Clara and her clique, made up of Krystal and Savannah, the popular girls in school.

  “Cal,” she called, flicking her platinum blond curls over her shoulder. “I’ve been dying to introduce you to my friends. Especially Krystal...”

  Krystal followed Clara, dressed in a tight denim skirt, high heels and a revealing top- someone needed to remind her we were at school, not a strip joint.

  “With all due respect, Clara, I couldn’t give less of a fuck. I’ll catch you later,” he turned and walked towards the exit, leaving Clara and Krystal standing open-mouthed after him.

  Rosie and I exchanged a look of surprise as Clara narrowed her eyes at Cal.

  “Well. He is rude, Clara,” Krystal stood, hand on her hips as she followed him with her eyes. “Hot, though...” she added with a smirk.

  Could it be that Cal is immune to the charms of Krystal Denning?

  As he turned the corner, my stomach fluttered.

  I sure hope so.

  Suppressing a smile, I turned to follow Rosie into class.

  Later that evening, I met up with my friends at The Lounge. Rosie was there, along with our other best friend, Sienna. We had been friends for years, and I was eternally grateful that I had not one, but two best friends. Sienna was busy chatting to her boyfriend Ethan, and I sipped on my caramel latte, discussing with Rosie how the new guy, Cal, had dissed Clara and Krystal earlier.

  “Finn said he’s a prick,” Ethan said, brushing his floppy chestnut hair out of his eyes.

  “Well, that’s it then,” joked Sienna, “The mighty Finn has spoken...” she smacked his arm and threw her crimson hair over one shoulder.

  Ethan laughed, scanning her face with adoration. Ethan, Finn and Luke had been tight for as long as us girls had, yet Finn was the alpha male of them all. It bugged me how Ethan and Luke agreed with Finn about anything, as though they didn’t have their own opinions.

  “Nah, babe, Finn is sound. You don’t start a new school and pick a fight with the golden boy, do you? Anyway, I am not gonna argue with you in that dress...” he leered, kissing her neck, much to our dismay. Despite being together for years, they still behaved like they’d just met.

  Sickening.

  ‘Ew, get a room guys,’ Rosie said, rolling her eyes as Sienna pulled Ethan in for a kiss.

  Ethan stood up, detangling himself from Sienna.

  “Right, baby. Gotta go, do you wanna ride home? Or you can stay at mine....” he said, staring at her chest whilst she stretched and yawned.

  No prizes for guessing his motive…

  “Yeah, I’ll come to yours, I just need to grab up my stuff on the way,” Sienna stood and laced her fingers through Ethan’s. “Later, girls,” she smiled, blowing us both kisses. Ethan gave a brief wave as they made their way to the door.

  “Well,” I declared. “I’m just going to nip to the little girl’s room.”

  I slid out of the booth, heading to the restrooms. My hair became loose from its messy bun, so I flicked my head forward, gathering it using my fingers as a brush. This was the problem when you had such thick hair- it was unruly. I lifted my head back, colliding with someone. Releasing my hair, I rubbed my head, looking up to find Cal standing in front of me.

  “Shit, I’m so sorry,” my voice quivered beneath his pen
etrating gaze.

  Boy is he scary.

  He shook his head, his lips curling into a sneer as he pushed past me, muttering under his breath, “It’s not like there’s not enough room in this shitty town.”

  Jeez. What crawled up his ass and died?

  I stared after him as he walked out of The Lounge; the door slamming shut behind him. My veins hummed with adrenaline as Rosie hurried over to me.

  “Babes,” she gasped, “Are you okay? What did he say?”

  My head ached from hitting him, so I shrugged and said I just wanted to go home. Rosie linked arms with me as she chuckled.

  “How was the physical contact, though? He’s a guy I wouldn’t mind butting heads with,” she giggled as I swatted her arm.

  “Don’t be a knob, Rose.”

  I made it home in one piece, falling onto my bed fully clothed. Suddenly my phone vibrated in my pocket.

  LUKE:

  Sorry, babe. I just got back, and I’m wiped. See you tomorrow?

  I was so annoyed I didn’t reply. I closed his message and slipped into my comfy pyjamas, falling into my bed gratefully. My mind drifted back to Cal, as my stomach tightened with excitement. What was his deal? I couldn’t imagine it had been easy for him, transferring in his senior year. Especially to Winterburg, where nothing interesting ever happened. I drifted off to sleep, his deep green eyes following me every step of the way.

  Chapter Two

  GRETCHEN

  The next day I considered what to wear. It wasn’t like it mattered; I always wore the same things. I settled on my skinny jeans, knee-high boots and a long black t-shirt, slicking on some lip gloss and mascara. Cold frosted my bedroom window, so I pulled on my coat and slipped my phone into my bag. As I walked the fifteen minutes to school, I felt relieved that I didn’t live too far away; in warmer weather, it was a refreshing walk.

  When I reached my locker, a pair of hands covering my eyes blocked my vision.

  “Guess who?” A husky voice murmurs in my ear as I whipped around, striking blue eyes inches away from mine.

  “Luke,” I said flatly, putting my hands onto his chest, moving him away from me so I could see him better. He wore a football jersey, his toned body visible through it. His helmet was in one hand as he ran the other through his jet-black hair, whilst he gazed at me.

  I turned back to my locker and continued to put my things away, whilst Luke leaned on the locker next to me, frowning at my reaction.

  “Am I in trouble? I’m sorry about last night. My cousins just moved here, and my parents insisted on having them over for dinner.”

  He frowned, blowing the hair out of his eyes.

  “Fucking pointless — one of them upped and left halfway through—apparently he needed a smoke. But then he never came back,” he rolled his eyes before focusing on me. “Anyway, do you forgive me?”

  He gave me that puppy dog look that worked so well with me.

  “Yes, but you can make it up to me later,” I dropped a chaste kiss on his lips as his eyes lit up.

  “That’s a deal, right there. Gotta run babe, I’ll see you at lunch yeah?”

  He winked at me as he walked in the gym’s direction. I grabbed my drink from my locker and opened it for a quick sip before class. I forgot to open it slowly so orange soda exploded all over me. Luckily, the hallway was quiet with everyone in class, so I made my way to the restroom to clean up as best as I could.

  Is there anything worse than being covered in sticky orange soda?

  Grimacing, I left the restroom, still brushing my clothes down with the paper towels. If I hurried, I wouldn’t be too late for class. I checked behind me to make sure I hadn’t made too much of a mess near the locker; the janitor was a freak, and I wouldn’t want to give him a reason to speak to me if I could avoid it. I turned back, walking straight into a hard chest.

  “Shit!” I muttered as I looked up in horror to see Cal gazing at me.

  “Are you trying to make a habit of this, Raven?”

  His lazy voice had a Brooklyn accent, ever so faintly, but it was there. He smirked when I lost my footing, scrunching the paper towels in my hands as I balanced myself on the wall beside me.

  A slow, sexy smile filled his mouth as he moved towards me, closing the distance between us. The heat from his body combined with the faint whiff of cigarettes made me light-headed, and I forcibly took a step backward, shaking myself mentally.

  “Raven?” I scoffed. “My name is Gretchen,” I stepped back, feeling more in control the further away from him I got.

  He held his hands up in mock surrender as he chuckled, my skin tingling in response.

  “Yeah, okay, doll. Either way, that’s the second time you’ve thrown yourself at me. It’s getting a little embarrassing; for you, not me,” he smirked as he glanced down the corridor.

  What?

  I was furious.

  “Excuse me? I have not thrown myself at you, you jerk!”

  I picked up my bag and stormed past him, hearing him laugh as I walked away, his delicious scent enveloping the surrounding air.

  “Hey Raven, where’s the gym?” he called after me.

  I turned to face him, trying to ignore the butterflies fluttering through my stomach like a tornado.

  “Down there,” I pointed with my finger, before adding through gritted teeth, “and it’s Gretchen.”

  He wasn’t paying attention as he spun on his heel, and turned the corner without a word.

  Why did I even respond to Raven?!

  I groaned, trying to avoid the way my heart was racing.

  By lunch, I was drained. I slumped into my seat beside Rosie, whilst Ethan and Sienna watched me unwrap my turkey sandwich with interest.

  “What?” I frowned as they exchanged a strange look Sienna then cleared her throat, nodding over to the corner of the cafeteria.

  “Looks like someone isn’t happy,” Sienna said, my eyes following her gaze to where Krystal was having a heated conversation with Luke. She was showing her phone to him and he had his hands up as he seemed to say he was sorry.

  As she left Luke grabbed her arm and went after her. I swallowed down my sandwich, before dusting my hands off on my skirt. I followed them as Rosie called out after me.

  “G? You want me to come with you?”

  “No, babes, I’m cool. Back in a minute,” I said, sending her a grateful smile.

  I pushed the cafeteria doors open to find Krystal and Luke beside the lockers.

  “Is everything okay?” I asked, tilting my head in Luke’s direction.

  What is going on here?

  My gut told me something was off about this.

  Krystal rolled her heavily made-up eyes in my direction, annoying me further.

  “Off to Mommy, baby boy,” she said in a sing-song voice, before she stormed through the double doors.

  Luke turned to face me; his blue eyes clouded with annoyance. He smiled, reaching out for my hand.

  “Hey baby, sorry about that.”

  He looks super cute today, but that isn’t the point.

  “She isn’t happy that she didn’t get captain of the cheerleading team. She seemed to think I could do something about it,” Luke explained, tugging me closer to him.

  Luke was the captain of the football team and therefore the cheerleaders seemed to believe he was theirs to order about and make demands of.

  I leaned forward, pulling him towards me to kiss him. He slid his arms around me as our kiss deepened, his tongue exploring my mouth as I ran my fingers down his back. I pulled away, kissing him again as he groaned.

  “Babe, you’re divine. Shall we skip the rest of school and go somewhere a little more discreet?”

  He winked at me suggestively as I swatted his arm.

  “Are you free on Saturday? Another family meal, I’m afraid. Only this time they invited you.”

  He pulled me back towards him, kissing my neck as he did. I closed my eyes, all thoughts of Krystal pushed away as Luke mumbled in my ea
r.

  “You can stay in my room all night…”

  Chapter Three

  GRETCHEN

  I stared at my closet, as though if I waited long enough, a new outfit would appear.

  I’d only been dating Luke for a little over a year and I knew his family well; I had grown up with him, but part of me still wanted to impress them.

  I settled on a black roll neck with tight jeans, sweeping my curls into a loose clip. I applied my usual mascara and lip gloss, aiming for a casual look I packed a bag with a few things in case Luke got lucky and I stayed over: a toothbrush, deodorant and some clean clothes.

  I pouted at myself in the mirror and decided I would do, skipping downstairs where my parents were drinking wine and playing scrabble.

  How idyllic.

  "You look good honey, where are you going?" My dad drawled, sipping his wine as he smiled at me. He was a silver fox, with deep green eyes framed with long lashes I had inherited from him. My mom was the typical Californian blonde: waist-length hair, sparkling blue eyes and tanned skin. We shared the same full mouth, naturally cherry red. She was often mistaken for my sister-although I wasn’t sure that was too much of a compliment for me...

  "I’m off to Luke’s. Remember the dinner I told you about? I may stay at his house after- in the spare room, obviously..." My voice trailed off as I blushed under my dad’s amused gaze.

  "Honey, it’s fine. You are eighteen now. If you tell us where you are going to be, we trust you. Just be good and keep us informed. Oh, and Gretchen? It will always be the spare room, capiche?"

  My dad raised an eyebrow at me as I cringed. I blew kisses at them both, slipping on my trusty black boots when I heard Luke’s car beeping its familiar horn. I called goodbye and left.

  Luke whistled as I got in his car. "All this effort for me, babe?" he winked.

  He wore a deep blue shirt that brought out the colour in his eyes, his trousers ironed to perfection as though we were attending a wedding or something.

  "Am I okay in this?" I asked, looking pointedly at his clothes, then waving a hand over mine.