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anyone loved school. I was going to get her talking about her past and why she was back, but I needed to trick her into it.
    â€œLooks like you love school just fine.” She sounded snide as she pulled a frozen glass mug out of the freezer, then filled it with milk. I’d forgotten that Ms. Ames froze her milk glasses. That always made the milk taste better somehow.
    â€œAre you being a smart-ass again?” I asked, torn between watching the icy cold milk with anticipation and the way her body looked in that outfit.
    â€œStating a fact isn’t being a smart-ass,” she replied as she turned to bring my milk and cookies over to me. I liked the way her voice had that raspy tone in it. Her drawl wasn’t as thick as it had once been, but it was there.
    Lingering.

I Just Want Out of Here
CHAPTER 8
    WILLA
    Inviting Gunner in was probably stupid. His mother would hate it if she found out. Nonna would be furious. And Gunner wasn’t exactly friend material anymore. He was everything a wealthy, spoiled, good-looking guy turned out to be.
    But I’d let him in. Because I was lonely maybe. Because I needed company from someone who didn’t look at me with disappointment. Because for now I didn’t want to think about what I’d done wrong, or the correctional hell I’d lived through. Or the fact my mother hated me.
    So here I was with Gunner Lawton in my nonna’s kitchen, eating cookies and pound cake and drinking milk,when I knew he should be at his family dinner with the all-important Grandmother Lawton. The boy I used to know, however, wasn’t one to upset his mother. He tried to make his dad happy. I poured myself a glass of milk too and joined him at the table.
    â€œWhen did you decide to become a rebel and piss off the folks? Is this a new thing, or have you been at it awhile now?” I asked, truly curious.
    Gunner looked at me over the frosty glass he was taking a drink out of. I could see anger flash there, then a coldness. He was different all right. I wasn’t the only one who had changed. I guess we all did that with age and time.
    â€œStopped giving a shit what they wanted a few years back” was the only response I got.
    â€œNo more cotillion events then?” I asked, not even trying to hide my smirk. He had hated the cotillion his mother made him attend back when we were younger. He’d even begged her to let him take me once so he wouldn’t have to dance with one of those country club girls in their long white dresses and fancy hats.
    â€œFuck no. God those were terrible,” he said with a grin tugging at his lips. He had really good lips.
    â€œLittle Gunner Lawton always tried to please his momma and did all he could to get his dad’s approval. Guess I didn’t expect that to change with puberty.” I waspushing him. But I liked thinking about his past instead of mine.
    Gunner finished off his lemon pound cake before looking back up at me. I could see the indecision in his eyes. There was something there. He wanted to tell me, but he wasn’t sure if he should. His expression had always been so telling. Lying when we were younger was never his thing. Brady had been able to call him out on his shit with ease. As had I.
    â€œI don’t want to be my parents. I don’t want their life. Maybe Rhett does. I just want out of here” was what he finally said. But it wasn’t what he was hiding. That was still there in his eyes. I wasn’t going to push though. If he tried to find out why I was here, he wouldn’t get that answer either. I understood secrets and his need to have his own.
    â€œWhy are you back?” His question wasn’t even hesitant.
    I knew this was coming. I expected it.
    â€œMade some stupid choices and Mom kicked me out.” That was as honest as I was going to be.
    Gunner leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest as he studied me. He thought he knew me well. He had no