38. Parker
PARKER
“I fucking told you to stay away from her,” I spit, my knuckles tingling for another shot at him. Lex, Soren, and Orion all stand behind me, but none of them speaks. Sable lies naked and drugged on the bed, and Hadrian stands there with his fucking dick out, dripping cum on her floor.
“Why the fuck did you punch me?” he shouts, spitting blood alongside it, and Sable is so out of it she doesn’t even flinch.
“Because you haven’t even been here a full forty-eight hours, and you’ve got your cock out.
” I ball up my fist to do it again. He should already know he doesn’t belong here, especially not in her room and inside her.
I haven’t even fucked her cunt yet. How dare he?
White-hot rage shoots through me at the thought that Hadrian of all people was inside her cunt before me.
I’ll fucking kill him. I take a step forward, ready to wring his neck.
“Going to put your cock away, or are you two fighting with dicks out?” Lex asks with a dry tone, breaking the tension long enough to make me rethink the second punch.
I sigh in frustration. I’d really rather not fight him with his dick out.
Hadrian shoots us each a death glare as he quickly stuffs himself away.
I want to make a joke about his cock, but I’m too jealous of the fact that he’s coated in Sable.
This dumb bastard left everything we stand to inherit to play classical music, not even a rock star.
He’s always been the whiniest of us, the most spoiled, so obsessed with his own goddamn talent that he makes the rest of us look downright selfless.
He does not get to come back here and take what he threw away.
“She’s the Offering,” Hadrian says, wiping the blood off his cheek. “I’m a Vale, and I have every right to her.”
“Every right?” My laugh is dark and cold.
This entitlement isn’t some recent revelation of his personality.
When we were five years old, the opportunistic little bastard stole my favorite toy and broke it, then lied.
I’ve hated him ever since, and he hasn’t changed much, always willing to cut in line and put himself first, no matter what.
Not even Lex or Orion are as selfish as his pretentious ass.
He never fooled me, though. I knew who he was from the start, and I’ve been glad to have him out of the way. Of course, he had to ruin that, too.
“My family pays just like yours. You can’t keep her from me.” That arrogance is even thicker now than when we were children.
Whatever was left of my good humor fades as I say, “Fuck you and your family. I’ll buy you out.”
“Buy me out?” He laughs.
“Pay your end and get you out of our fucking lives for good.” It seems like a good option.
It’s enough that I’d have to ask my father to come up with it, but I’m sure he’d oblige me if I can promise him a high enough win ratio this season.
He’s given me everything else I’ve wanted so far in exchange for that.
“I wish I could. But you’re stuck with me, and so is she.” I didn’t think he had the power to piss me off more, but I was wrong.
“You won’t get anything from her or us, Hadrian. You really might as well leave.”
“I can’t, you moron. Don’t you get that if it were my choice, I never would have come back?”
The sound I make is very near a growl, too fucking angry for words. Worst of all, I don’t think he’s lying. His family would push him as hard as they needed to get him back here.
“Live anywhere else in this school, then, live in any of the dorms.” If he won’t leave Bellthorn, I can make sure I never see him. I can keep him away from her.
“You think you’re so special, Parker. You’ve always been the golden boy, but you don’t get to fuck with tradition just because you can throw a ball. I’ll be exactly where I’m supposed to be, on the other side of that door.”
“I’ll throw my balls while everyone cheers, and you can play your instruments alone in your room because you don’t get to sit on the stage anymore, do you?” That’s the right nerve and excitement that lights me up as he lunges toward me.
“Guys, calm down,” Soren says, stepping between us.
Of course, he’s the one to keep the peace.
He’s my best friend now, and that’s another thing Hadrian won’t take back.
Even with Soren between us, he’s close enough for his gaze to burn and to smell her on his skin.
His eyes tighten, and I’m certain at that moment that he’s hiding something more from us.
“If you have another reason for being here, I will figure it out.”
“Problem is, you’ve spent so long playing dumb that no one will believe you if you do.”
“Fuck you.” My hands ball into fists. The one that already struck him throbs, but it’s still begging me to hit him again. Standing between us, Soren is the only thing stopping me from killing him.
“You shouldn’t cross me, Parker. I don’t give a fuck about you or this place.
I’m going to fuck everything up if you get between me and what I want.
I don’t have anything left to entertain myself but fucking with you, and you have far too many secrets to be so fucking careless with people who know them.
” He leans past Soren to get closer to me, and while Soren tries to prevent it, we all just wind up pressed against one another.
A flash of real fear shoots through me, not because I think he might physically hurt me, but there’s one secret none of them can know.
Hadrian can’t possibly know, can he? If he did, he would have real leverage, a way to ruin me, and I can’t have that.
Rather than crumble under the pressure, I assure myself of what is most likely true: no one knows, except all the people who helped.
Pretending I wasn’t scared shitless a moment before, I puff my chest and pull my shoulders back.
I’m only two inches taller than Hadrian, but he needs to understand that whatever physical disparity lies between us, I will use it against him.
“You’re threatening me?” I push Soren aside, and he stumbles back, not having the courage of his convictions to really stop a fight between us.
“She’s mine as much as yours, and you’re not going to get me to move into some fucking dorm.”
“You’re not touching her.”
“I already did, and I’ll do it again right now.” He turns like he’s going to touch her.
My whole body acts before my brain can catch up.
Launching on top of him, I wrap my hands around his throat as I shove him backward into the wall.
Soren stands between us one minute, and then he’s behind us the next.
The shelves rattle and my hands clench as I do my best to fucking kill him.
He swings on me, fist colliding with my face, and I’m so angry his strikes may as well be nothing.
I couldn’t even tell you where his punches land.
Before we can murder one another, three sets of hands do their best to pry us apart.
There’s so much rage and testosterone coursing between us, a feral need to draw blood, that despite outnumbering us, they struggle to pry us apart.
Finally, someone manages to bend my pinky finger back, and they get my hands off his neck.
As the fight de-escalates, I flex my hand, pretty sure they broke my fucking finger.
My face starts to swell, and I realize he landed a few more shots than I thought.
“Shit, Parker,” someone says, but I can’t tell who at the moment. Hadrian coughs and gasps, hand rubbing at his throat.
“What?” I ask the voice, but then blood drips into my mouth from my nose, and I can figure out the issue on my own.
“You’re seriously going to try to kill me?” Hadrian says, still not catching his breath fully.
“You might have a door to her room, Hadrian, but you’re not one of us.”
“Good. Who the fuck would want to be?”