“Oh, wow, you guys,” Bishop says as he waves the page around. He chuckles and shakes his head, pulling words out of his ass, “I can’t stop thinking about you, my sweet, handsome prince. My heart beats for you alone. Ever since I first saw your midnight eyes and your silken locks. I hope you’ll return my feelings, and make my dreams come true. Take me to prom?”
The others crack up, leaning on each other for support and cooing at me meanly.
Humiliation burns under my skin.
Bishop dumps the essay back on Devlin’s desk and shoots me a wink.
My teeth grind as I lock my jaw. “Listen—”
Devlin clicks his tongue, wagging his finger at me. “I don’t like the way you look at my dick. It’s not sexy to think you might bite it off because you mistook it for a hotdog.”
“Oh, damn,” Bishop chokes into his fist to muffle his laughter. “Bro. That mental image. My eyes!”
A low growl rips from my lungs. I take a step toward Devlin, but the look he flashes me halts my attack. My stomach clenches.
What if he ends our deal right now and calls the cops?
This is bullshit! I just want my money. It was stupid of me, not realizing that Devlin’s games are only fun for him. When you think you’re winning? You’re actually losing.
Gritting my teeth, I remain their punching bag to toy with, enduring their taunting laughter.
“Whatever. You’re disgusting.”
Resisting the urge to kick the hell out of his chair, I take my seat.
“Oh, come on, sticky fingers,” Devlin croons with his chin propped in his hand. The vicious curve of his mouth is so punchable. “I’ve heard you get up to way worse for anyone willing to pay. But not me. I don’t pay for it, and I sure as fuck am not touching you with a ten-foot pole. There aren’t enough condoms in the world to double up before I let your mouth or your cunt near me.”
I glare at him, seething. The titters of our other classmates grate on my ears.
“Devlin, you’re so bad.” A giggling blonde girl named Nina drapes herself over Devlin’s back, looping her arms around his neck.
He hums and preens under her attention. She leans her breasts into his back and nuzzles against his neck. He plays with her hair and draws her close enough to kiss. He speaks against her lips, but his words are for me.
“It’s better for trash to know where it belongs. Can’t have it thinking it has a chance of climbing out of the dumpster.” His eyes cut to me as his lips graze across the mouth of the sighing girl he’s turning to putty. “She needs to understand I’m not her Prince Charming. I’m not here to save her.”
Devlin leans away from Nina. It’s subtle, but I catch the flash of hardness in his eyes and the way he nudges her away. He pushes his black fringe back from his forehead and sighs at me like I’m causing him a huge inconvenience.
“I don’t want this. It’s pathetic.”
Devlin picks up the essay and shreds it right in front of me. He tosses the torn pieces across the aisle. I stare at him as they flutter to the floor between us. People all around us cheer and clap and howl like coyotes because these animals consider themselves one with our school mascot.
My gaze falls to the ruined essay. He just…ripped it up and threw it away. Am I still getting paid?
Devlin covers an evil grin with his splayed hand when my eyes fly back to him. Another sheet of paper sits on his desk, the essay topic in bold print at the top of the page. He didn???t need my essay. I came to school early for no reason, except to sate the whims of a total dick.
My nostrils flare. If this is how he wants to play, I can take it. His words mean nothing to me as long as he fucking pays me.
I knew I was a fool to trust this asshole.
“Are you still going to—”
“You shouldn’t treat people like that.”
Both of us turn to Thea Kennedy, twisted around in her seat in front of Bishop’s. Her cheeks are pink, and she looks a little surprised she intervened, but she holds her ground, gripping the back of her seat with white knuckles.
“It’s not right.” Thea licks her lips, taking a breath. Her eyes dart to Bishop before swinging back to us. “So please stop.”
Thea is a quiet, nerdy girl in our grade with kind eyes and wild auburn hair. Today it’s tamed into a braid with several fly away curls escaping. Her uniform is on the frumpier side, even more than my oversized shirt, and she’s usually wrapped in some kind of shapeless knitwear.