Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 88563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88563 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 443(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
The moment I step inside the office, the older woman glances up and a friendly smile breaks out across her face. She’s probably the only person at Hawthorne Prep who is genuinely happy we’re here.
“Summer!” she exclaims, “I haven’t seen you in a while.”
Her warmth is infectious, and I find myself returning the easy greeting. “Hi, Mrs. B.” I set the packet on the long stretch of counter that separates us. “Ms. Pettijohn asked me to deliver this.”
“Wonderful!” She rises from her chair and wattles over to the counter before picking up the envelope. “You’ve saved me a trip.”
“No problem.” I point toward the door. “I should probably go before the bell rings. I need to stop at my locker before second hour.”
I almost make it to the frosted glass door when her voice halts me in my tracks. “Summer?”
With raised brows, I pivot to face her again.
“I’m sorry about your father.” The wattage of her natural cheerfulness dims. “I know there’s a long history in this town with the Hawthornes, but your father was never part of that.”
A prick of sadness explodes inside me. Barely am I able to force out a response. “Thank you.”
“If there’s anything you or your family needs, please don’t hesitate to ask. Hawthorne Prep is so much more than a school, we’re a tight-knit family.”
A gurgle of disbelief rises in my throat, but I keep the sound buried deep inside. Unlike the majority of people here, Mrs. Baxter’s sentiments are genuine, and I know she means well. Perhaps she even sees it that way.
“I appreciate that, Mrs. B. I’ll let you know if anything comes up.”
She nods. “Have a good day, Summer.”
Yeah, that’s doubtful. It pretty much tanked the moment I cracked my eyes open this morning.
“Thanks, I will.” I give her a slight wave before pushing out of the office and into the empty corridor.
Once the door closes behind me with an audible click, I inhale a deep breath before forcing it out again. There are moments, little slivers of time, when I forget Dad is gone. When I fail to remember that my world has been blown to smithereens and will never be pieced back together again the same way. Then something happens, or someone makes an innocuous comment, and I’m jarred back to the harsh reality of our situation.
I’m startled out of those thoughts when strong fingers wrap around my upper arms and spin me around until I’m flattened against the paneled wall outside the office. A dark presence looms over me and sends my heart racing.
“Kingsley.” His name is a gasp on my lips.
Silently, he buries his face against the crook of my neck before inhaling a big breath of me. His mouth drifts across the delicate hollow below my ear. No matter how tense my muscles become, it doesn’t take long for my self-control to crumble and then I’m melting beneath the hard lines of his body. When he’s shielding me like this, it’s difficult not to feel protected from everything in the world. I’m the first to admit that it doesn’t make a damn bit of sense. Kingsley is the last person I should feel safe with. He’s the one intent on inflicting pain.
But this morning has brought a shift to our relationship. One I’m unsure how to process.
Silence rains down on us as our harsh breathing echoes off the vacant corridors. A million questions explode in my brain and sit perched on the tip of my tongue. Not a single one escapes from my lips. For whatever reason, I’m loath to ruin the fleeting closeness we’ve managed to discover. If I had my way, I’d stop time and stay in his arms forever.
When the bell rings, the fragile peace shatters. It’s there and gone in the blink of an eye, almost as if it were nothing more than a figment of my imagination. He pulls away, disappearing through the hallway before I can think of a way to detain him. Loneliness and despair rush in, threatening to swallow me whole.
And this time, it’s so much worse than before.
Chapter Thirty-One
“Need a ride home?” Everly asks, sidling up beside me as I grab a couple of books from my locker.
Homework is piling up and I need to get my head in the game before I blow my chances of getting into college. “Yeah, that would be—”
“There’s no need for a ride,” Kingsley cuts in, interrupting our conversation for a second time that day, “but thanks for the offer.”
A fresh burst of nerves skitter across my spine. Spending time alone with him requires me to be in a certain mindset with my walls locked firmly in place. After the closeness we shared in the hallway this morning, I haven’t had a chance to erect them again. If I’m being completely honest, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the way he touched me.