Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107561 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“Are you sure?”
I nod. The lie leaves a bitter taste on my tongue, but for some reason, that still feels better than the truth.
James doesn’t seem convinced, but he is also not pushing the subject. “All right then, why don’t you go get some rest? I’ll see you at breakfast.”
“Okay. Thank you.” I force a smile, wondering if I just made the biggest mistake of my life.
CHAPTER 9
Last night feels like a bad dream. I wish it was. I wish there was nothing more to it than something my subconscious cooked up while I was asleep.
No such luck. And even a hot, soapy shower isn’t enough to wash away the shame. I know I did nothing wrong and that I had no choice. That doesn’t mean I don’t feel dirty, used. And conflicted since there’s no forgetting the way my body reacted despite my disgust and rage.
It’s something I’m still struggling with after I’m dressed, as I go to the door while steeling myself for whatever is about to happen downstairs at breakfast.
“You have got to be kidding me!” The knob won’t turn. One of them locked me in again. I can’t believe this. When will it ever end?
“Hey!” I don’t care about avoiding trouble since it’s obvious there’s no difference either way. I can keep my head down, keep to myself, and not say a word to either of them. They will always find a way to ruin things, like they’re determined to hurt me. So why bother trying to play nice?
“Open this door! This is bullshit!” I pound against the door with both fists and wish it was their faces instead.
The clicking of the lock is both a blessing and a curse. I back away quickly, prepared to fight, and the sight of Nix makes me bare my teeth in a snarl. “I knew it was you doing this. What is your problem? Why are you doing this to me? I never did anything to you!”
“Do yourself a favor, love bug,” he mutters before looking over his shoulder down the hall. “Don’t start shit around here.”
“I didn’t start anything! You are the ones who won’t leave me alone.”
“Damn right. You stay where we tell you to, for as long as we tell you to. And if I ever catch you out of your room at night?” An ugly smile twists his features, making him just as disgusting on the outside as he is on the inside. “Then you’ll pay. I’ll see to it.”
After last night, I can’t even take that as an empty threat. I know what he’s capable of.
“Why are you doing this?” I didn’t want it to come out sounding so pitiful, but it’s how I feel. Small and inconsequential and pitiful. “Why do you hate me? I’ve never done anything to you—and if I have, I wish you would tell me because I wasn’t aware of it. I never intended for any of this.”
“Why? You want to know why?” He takes one slow, menacing step toward me, then another. I have no choice but to back away until I bump up against my desk. Even then, he leans down, and I lean back until my head touches the wall. “Why does there have to be a reason? I hate you. I always have. I hate you and everything about you. I’ve hated you since the first time I set eyes on you. Back when you were strutting around like hot shit, like you were somebody special. You’re not so special now, are you?”
So that’s it? He hates me because I was popular once? All because of what I could do, not because of who I was. It’s not like I asked for any of it. “But things have changed now. And I didn’t do anything—”
“Just shut up. The sound of your voice makes me sick.” His eyes dart over my face, his nose wrinkling like he smells something nasty. “You are a disease. You’re a cancer buried deep, and there’s no cutting you out.”
I knew he hated me, but I didn’t know it was like this. So nasty and vile, deep-seated. All I can do is stare at him in mixed surprise and horror, still wondering what I did to earn it.
“So if I can’t get rid of you,” he continues, “then I’m going to make your life miserable. We both are, Colt and me. Just because he isn’t here to agree doesn’t mean he feels any differently about you than I do. You need to go. And if we need to make it so you have no choice but to leave, that’s what we’ll do.”
“And if I say anything to your father?”
His eyes narrow into slits. “Go ahead. Give it a try. See what happens. Because if you think last night was rough, you’re in for a big surprise.” He runs a hand down my side, and I squirm away, making him laugh. “Oh, Leni, it will get so much worse.”