I HIT IGNORE on my phone for the tenth time already that morning as I hid out in my usual corner of the library. I’d positioned myself so I could see any unexpected asshole “princes” that walked through the front door, but I hoped that wouldn’t happen.
I didn’t want to see West. I didn’t want to talk to him. And I sure as hell didn’t want to think about him, though that one was a little harder to make happen.
All I could think about was how stupid I’d been. Of course West had an ulterior motive. He’d slid in beside me in a class he didn’t belong in just to meet me. That should’ve sent up massive red flags from the get-go, but I hadn’t been able to see past the alluring exterior he wanted me to see.
The whole thing made me want to vomit.
My phone buzzed with a message, and I looked down to see it was from “Piece of Shit.”
I’d changed West to something more suitable in my phone. He’d gone from Stalker to Boyfriend to Piece of Shit. What an evolution.
PIECE OF SHIT:
I just got to Astor. Can we talk? Five minutes.
Why, so he could try to justify being an asshole? I could just see him now, walking through the courtyard with his gang of dicks laughing about how he’d fucked the dean’s son for a bet. Who did something like that? I knew my mom didn’t like those guys, but I’d given West and his friends the benefit of the doubt, and look where it’d gotten me.
The worst part about it all, though? That I’d opened up and started to fall for someone who never had any intentions of being with me.
Not even Elise moving across the country had hurt this bad.
Gripping the back of my neck, I sighed and forced myself to look over my notes for my next class. I hadn’t managed to get shit done after running out of West’s place yesterday. I knew I’d met up with my dad for lunch, but that and everything after was just a blur of avoiding calls and feeling numb.
PIECE OF SHIT:
Where are you?
I picked up my phone, hit the button to clear the screen, and slammed it down on the table with a little more force than necessary.
“Whoa, take the beatdown outside.” Amusement laced Caleb’s voice as he pulled out the chair across from me. “Where’ve you been? I haven’t seen you around for a—” His words cut off as he took a look at my face. His smile dimmed. “Everything okay, man?”
“Fucking perfect. You?”
“All good here.” He cocked his head. “You wanna talk about it?”
“About being fucking perfect?”
“If the sarcasm didn’t tip me off, your face would. You look like shit.”
“Wow, you’re really great at this cheering-up stuff.”
“I would be if I knew what I was cheering you up from.”
My phone buzzed again, and as the name of the messenger flashed on the screen, Caleb’s brows shot up.
“Well, that explains it. What did West do?”
“Who’s that?”
“Oh, sorry, what did the piece of shit do?”
The fact that he knew straight off exactly who my hurt and anger was focused on only confirmed what he and my mom had tried to warn me about. Why the hell hadn’t I listened? All the excuses I made for someone I assumed was just being friendly… What an idiot.
I sighed and looked up at Caleb. “You mean you didn’t hear?”
“Hear what?”
“That I was a bet.”
I expected more of a reaction than a slow blink and the pursing of his lips. But maybe that was worse. Because Caleb didn’t seem at all surprised.
“A bet, huh? Would it make you feel better to know I expected worse?”
“What could be worse than those assholes all sitting around waiting for an update on whether or not King Dick fuck—”
Caleb’s eyes widened as I bit off my words. “Look, I don’t need all the gory details, but if you want to talk to someone about it—”
“I don’t.” I glared over his shoulder, humiliated all over again. How long would it take for news of my “corruption” to spread through Astor? Even worse, how long until it reached my mom? Talk about mortifying.
What a gullible moron I’d turned out to be, to believe that someone like West—oh, my bad, Weston LaRue—would be interested in me. I was nothing like him. Nothing like the guys he no doubt fucked on rotation, and here I’d been all hearts in my eyes, thinking he was falling for me.
“I gotta be honest, I’m not at all upset by that murderous gleam in your eye right now,” Caleb said. “You need someone to help you hide a body?”
I shook my head. “Don’t tempt me.”
“Come on, you can’t let these guys win. That’s what they thrive on.”
“Yeah, I kind of got that from the delighted sneer on East’s face when he informed me of the exact reason West had ever bothered with me.”
“Pompous fucking prick. Someone needs to take him down a peg or two.” Caleb leaned back in his seat, tapping his finger on the table. “That whole group is bad news.”
“You keep saying that, but not telling me how you know,” I snapped, knowing my anger was misdirected but unable to control it.
“It doesn’t matter how I know—”
“Really? That’s what you’re going with?”
“Yeah, it is. It’s water under the bridge, and let’s just say I’d rather not jump in and drown.”
I couldn’t fault him for that. Not when that was exactly how I was feeling. It was like West had swept me up in a riptide and pulled me way off course, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get my head back above water. I’d been drifting, flailing around, ever since I heard him admit to the disgusting challenge, and I couldn’t seem to work out how to save myself.
“Guess I learned my fucking lesson, then, didn’t I?”
“Wouldn’t have been my choice on how you found out about them. But it’s better to learn their true colors now so you can start fresh and forget about them the rest of your time here.”
I wasn’t sure how easy it was going to be to forget West or what he’d done to me, not when it was all I could seem to focus on at the moment. But I could see Caleb was trying to help, and the last thing I wanted was to lose the only friend I had left in this stupid place.
“I should’ve known JT was hanging around you this morning…”
West’s achingly familiar voice had my entire body stiffening. Caleb glanced over my shoulder, and his lips twisted with contempt.
“And why’s that? Because he finally got a clue and ghosted your sorry ass? Fuck off, LaRue. No one here wants to talk to you.”
Thank you, Caleb.
I closed my eyes and did my best not to breathe in West’s intoxicating scent, more than aware that something over the past month had woven a spell over me, and I was scared to fall under it again.
“I’m not going anywhere,” West said, clearly not about to do anything he didn’t want to. Why would now be any different? “Do you speak for JT now?”
“Pretty sure I speak for anyone that has a brain and knows the best way to deal with you is to not.”
I could feel my anger vibrating through me the longer West lingered, and when a hand touched my shoulder, it was like something exploded inside of me.
I shot to my feet and whirled around on him. “Don’t touch me.”
West jerked back a step. “JT, come on.”
“Come on? You have a lot of fucking nerve.”
“I just want to talk to you.”
“I’ve made it clear I don’t want to talk to you. I don’t want anything to do with you.”
A few shushing sounds came from those seated around us, and I quickly apologized before grabbing my phone and my bag and shoving past the piece of shit. I stormed off out of the library, not caring where I went as I crossed the courtyard, only that it was far away from the guy calling out my name behind me.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” I heard Caleb say seconds before West grabbed my elbow and spun me around to face him.
“I said don’t touch me.” Glaring, I ripped my arm out of his hold.
He held his hands up but didn’t back away. “Look, I know you’re angry, and I get it. If I’d walked in on you saying what I did, I’d be pissed. But I can explain.”
I could only stare at him, the guy I’d once thought was so attractive and charming, but now could only see for what he was. Repulsive.
“Explain how you went after me to win a bet? I don’t think that needs an explanation.”
Was I aware of the crowd gathering around us, listening to what was going down? Yes. Did I plan to censor myself? No. They would all find out anyway, if they didn’t know already. I’d suffer through the humiliation, though, if everyone could see once and for all what motherfucking assholes their beloved Park Avenue Princes were.
“I was going to tell you about it—” West started, but I burst out into a scathing laugh.
“Wow, really? How sweet of you to want to give me a heads-up. But see, Weston, that’s one of the many differences between us. I don’t make bets about sleeping with people. Only the lowest of shitheads would do something like that.”
West sighed, running a hand through his waves that I noticed weren’t as perfectly styled today as usual. “It may have started out that way, but I swear all of it was real once I got to know you.”
“But I never got to know you. Not the real you. Not the one laughing behind my back with all your friends about how to fuck over the dean’s son. I don’t know why you did it, and I don’t care. You took advantage of me. Made me believe you were someone else entirely. But this guy?” I motioned toward him, my fists clenched tight. “I don’t know him, and I sure as hell don’t want to.”
I went to turn away, but West grabbed for me again, and this time I’d had enough. I shoved him with every ounce of strength I had, sending him stumbling back into a couple of bystanders.
“Leave me the fuck alone.” My shout came out raw, and I hated the way my voice broke a little at the end. I didn’t want to be upset about this. I wanted to keep the rage inside longer, so that the look of hurt and guilt on West’s face didn’t affect me at all.
My chest heaved with adrenaline, and as I looked around at all the faces watching us, many of whom I didn’t even recognize, I felt another surge of anger.
“Go ahead,” I said, addressing them all. “Bow down to your fucking prince.”
Mouths dropped, gasps of surprise met my ears, but I didn’t care. They wanted to hold these fuckers up to a different standard, then they should know what the hell they were worshipping.
I looked at West, ignoring the apology written all over his face.
“I hope whatever you won, it was worth it.”
I picked my bag up, and as I stalked away, Caleb joined me, the awe in his voice clear when he said, “You are my fucking hero.”
