“Enjoy the view from your ivory tower, princess.” A ghost of a look passes across Cole’s face. “Rent is free, but the amenities are on lease.”
An empty feeling settles in my stomach.
He drops his arm. My face a blank canvas as I pass. I wouldn’t allow him or anyone else more gratification.
Nothing is ever free.Everyonehad a cost.
nine
Rory
Icouldfalltomy knees when the final bell rings. Today stringing out longer than most.
The outside atmosphere different than the excited chatter inside the building’s hallways. These conversations hushed and singular. Jittery almost.
A stillness settling in the quad.
I jolt as I’m attempting to leave for the day in the wake of a loud noise. A deep grunting sound. More intimidating than a yell would have been.
“Who is it?”
The question hovers in the air with the faint whispers. Nosy faces looking everywhere, curious for answers. Soul-sucking piranhas. Every last one of them. Looking for blood in the water.
It is pathetic.
Finn’s shoulders swell, charging a student. “Was it you?” He moves to another. “You?” Voice rising.
Singling out several more in hopes of finding the answer but coming up short every time.
A tingling sensation from being watched furrows my brows. Looking, I follow the feeling. Cole’s ankles cross, leaning against a silver Ferrari F12, grim and broody.
Uncrossing his arms, his mouth pulls down. The truth in his cold, dead eyes sending shivers to my toes. He knows.
His emotions veiled, saying nothing. It flips something in my chest, disappointment maybe? Cole never shy in the past for reparation.
The pair were equally ruthless growing up. Both overconfident but in different ways. Finn’s over-the-top antics gain your attention while Cole’s quietly consumes you. Sucking the life from every room he enters.
Intense and piercing. Their attitudes reign supreme.
Finn is a one-man warpath looking for answers. Not appreciating the new additions to his car. A glob of bright purple paint, running down the windshield and sleek black hood.
Eventually, like Cole, he finds me in the crowd, and the truth dawns. His body tenses, going rigid.
I almost pity him for taking so long to figure it out. Even though in reality it was less than five minutes.
I can feel the anger radiating off him, even from here. His face like a tomato. Red and ready to pop. Seething while I stay resolute.
My pride outweighing everything.
This school I’ve come to learn is trusting with its students. Too naive, in their egotized prestige, leaving an unattended, unlocked supply closet in an empty hallway.
They make it too easy.
A reserved smile tugs at my lips. Finn’s nostrils flare and my expression grows. Chest swelling in delight. Finn giving me the reaction my twisted brain had hoped for.
He charges, panting like a bull in a too-small cage but someone pulls him back before he can make a full step. Exhaling sharply from the impact.
Eli’s hold is strong, forcing him back, while Cole whispers something indecipherable in his ear.