Faking it with Tyler Holt

3

CHAPTER 3.

~LUCY’S POINT OF VIEW~

The car lurches forward, grumbling so loud before it finally comes to a halt.

I swallow hard, my eyes fixed on the side mirror. I don’t know much about cars, but I know this one has just stopped without permission.

Slowly, I turn to Finn. He’s silent—silent like a dead rat, silent like he didn’t just realize that his car suddenly gave up on life.

I want to yell and snap at him to do something, but I hold myself back. I wait to see his next line of action.

But minutes pass, and he’s still seated in his chair. No dramatic reaction that it stopped. No, “Don’t worry—I’ve got this.”

No jumping out to check the engine. He just sits there, staring at the fuel gauge.

That’s the last thing he should be looking at right now. He stopped at the gas station,I’m sure he bought gas.

My eye twitches, I want to tell him to get back to his senses and do something.Maybe call someone,text someone or Go check the engine of the car.

However, I force myself to stay calm. I can’t lose my cool with him. I have to be on my best behavior with him. He’s not the reason for my predicament.

Owen is……Actually, it’s Ivy…that cheating parasite.

With that, I pull out my phone and open the map. The blue dot barely moves, and my stomach drops. The arena still looks far away.

I zoom in and zoom out.No difference. Still the same distance. I stare at the screen in horror, anger flooding my veins at the thought of Tyler Holt getting there before me.

Gosh, can this spoiled brat just check his car and see what the hell is wrong with it?

I look back at Finn, and he’s still sitting comfortably.

“What happened?” My voice comes out very soft—quite the opposite of what I really feel.

He doesn’t answer. Instead,he pulls out his phone, and for a moment, I feel relieved that he’s about to make calls.

Finn is Owen’s friend,just very similar. Both are from filthy rich families.

He stares at his phone for a moment, then lets out a deep sigh that startles me. I wait a few more moments before I finally turn to him.

“Aren’t you planning to get out and check?”

His shoulders tense slightly. He reaches for his ugly-a*s ski mask, starting to pull it off. For a moment, I get hopeful he’s about to do something but the moment the mask comes off, I freeze.

My throat suddenly goes dry. I stop breathing and the world practically stops rotating.

I stare at the figure in front of me, and it’s Tyler Holt.

Tyler..freaking…Holt!

My jaw nearly falls off. I stare at him, catching the glimpse of the gold necklace with the diamond pendant on his neck.

It looks simple, but I know it costs more than my four years of tuition.

He’s the hockey captain—every girl on campus swoons around him. Actually, he’s slept with almost everything under a skirt.

He’s Owen’s enemy, and also mine by default.

Now he’s taken off his ski mask, and I see his perfect face up close for the first time in my life.

Then I notice the renowned, sexy eyes everyone fawns over. His eyes aren’t black—they’re a little brownish, warm, and charming.

Scratch that. They’re not sexy. I think it’s a defect.

“The gas is finished,” he says slowly, staring at me with those eyes. “We’re twenty miles away from the next gas station.”

“I—okay,” I manage, with a slow nod like I didn't just get the shock of my life.

I tilt my head, trying to ask him what we do next, but I don’t have enough courage to form a sentence.

I still can’t believe it’s Tyler Holt. How did I end up with Tyler? It’s supposed to be Finn.

Gosh. I can’t breathe. It feels like my chest is restricting, like someone grabbed my lungs and squeezed.

He heard it all. I'm sure he did. He heard all the rubbish I've been saying about him.

I glance at him, wondering if he’s wearing earbuds or if the music was too loud for him to hear me. But I doubt it…

God, please. God, please. He couldn’t have heard all of that.

I steal another glance at him, hoping he didn’t hear anything. If he did he would be asking me questions now. So I believe he didn't.

I swallow hard, trying to breathe, but it still feels impossible, like my body can’t catch up.

Then he turns to me, and my soul slowly leaves my body.

Tyler watches me with an unreadable expression.

“We can’t get gas right now,” he says. “And I doubt we can get any cab from here.”

“Do you have any personal cab you can call?”

I shake my head too fast. “No. No, I don’t.”

He leans back against his chair and huffs. I look away, exhaling.

Then suddenly,lightning strikes, and my heart jumps into my throat. I nearly launch myself off the roof.

A chuckle escapes him.The sound catches me off guard. I wasn’t aware Tyler Holt possessed human emotions. I thought he survived exclusively on arrogance and womanizing.

The sky explodes again, and a violent clap of thunder shakes the entire car.

“We need to find somewhere to stay,” Tyler says, one of his legs out of the car. “It’s about to rain.”

“What about getting to the arena? The finals is tomorrow.”

He pauses, staring at me like I said something I shouldn’t, then he slams the door shut.

I hesitate for a moment before I follow suit, joining him outside.

Raindrops start, drenching me as I rush toward him. He whirls around, and a mocking smirk appears.

That jerk. I know that kind of triumph smirks.

I trudge toward him, my hair sticking to my face,my sneakers squish with every step.

I stop beside him, trying not to look directly at him. “So what’s next? Where are we going?”

“There’s a hotel about quarter a mile from here,” he explains, but I cut him off.

“A hotel?”

“Yes.” He says it like it’s nothing.

I sulk and take a deep breath, suddenly remembering who I’m with– Tyler Holt the womanizer. Staying at a hotel must be regular for him.

“We have no choice,” he says. “It’s about to rain. We need to save time and head down there….the map says it’s there.”

I hesitate before finally nodding. I hate that he’s making sense.

The rain is dropping harder, and there’ll be a heavy downpour very soon. The only sensible thing is to go to the hotel with him.

So I go. Thankfully, we get there in a few minutes. He quickly approaches the receptionist, but I grab the hem of his expensive jacket, yanking him back.

He turns to me, his brown eyes widening at my guts.

But right now, I don’t care.

Once he’s close, I let go of his jacket. “W-what are you trying to do?”

He stares at me for a moment, his lips curving into a smirk. “What do they do at a motel?”

“I—I don’t know,” I face down. “You should know better than anyone.”

“C’mon, Lucy.” His voice softens just a little, like he’s trying not to laugh. “We have to lodge here for the night. We can’t get to the games today. It’s six—almost seven. We spend the night here, and then we leave very early.”

I swallow, my head spinning. He has a valid point… but it’s still absurd.

“Now can I go…”

“Two rooms!” I cut him sharply. “I’m not staying in the same room with you.”

He smirks. “Sure,Bunny ... .Two rooms it is.”

That smirk annoys me so bad, but I stand still. I don’t say another word, Instead I follow him to the receptionist table while the sound of the heavy downpour on the ceiling fills the air.

I walk, and my mind keeps racing with different thoughts. I’m getting in a hotel with Tyler. Like Tyler f*****g Holt.

I gulp down hard. This has to stay a secret—no one from my friend group must know.

Seconds later, it’s our turn and Tyler steps forward. I sidestep the next person so I can hear what Tyler says to them….I don’t trust him.

The receptionist flashes a warm, welcoming smile at him.“Good evening, sir. Welcome. What do you want?”

Tyler exhales, resting one elbow on the counter like he owns the place.“We need to stay here for the night. Something comfy away from the cold outside.”

The lady starts to type. “How many rooms, sir?”

“Two rooms,” I quickly cut in before he can say anything.

The receptionist types for a few seconds, then her smile fades.

“I’m sorry,” she raise her head up, “We only have one room left.”