Chapter 13
I WILL RUIN YOU
Killian
Alexis Vega and Killian Davenport. Those names rang through the classroom like poisoned arrows fired at my chest. Out of all the students stuffed in this auditorium, Lexi and I got paired together? What sins had I committed to warrant such a horrendous punishment?
Maybe it was all the lying and pretending to be the perfect Davenport when I was really a scarred, screwed-up and angry monster inside. Or maybe it was retribution for that night—when I stood over my real father as he choked on his own vomit, waiting for him to die.
The professor’s clap snapped me from the whirlwind of memories threatening to suffocate me.
“Find your partners,” he called out. “You can download your study packets online.”
Lexi stared at me across the room, pale and ready to puke. At least she was as sickened by the thought of working together as I was.
Axel leaned toward me. “Lucky bastard. You get to go on a trip with that smokin’ hot new chick while I’m stuck with the soccer snob Chuck Townsend.”
As those words fell from my roommate’s mouth, flames burst to life in my chest, sending lava through my bloodstream. My fingers curled into fists on the desk, and the urge to slam them into his face and break a few bones dragged over my muscles.
This wasn’t the first time he’d referred to Lexi as hot. Did he make it a habit of staring at her? Did he dream about her? Fantasize about her? Fantasize about skimming his fingers over her smooth thighs, between her legs, and inside her warm—
“You okay, Kill?” Axel asked as he stood, one eyebrow arched as he scrutinized me. “You’re looking a little murderous. And I kind of get the feeling it’s directed at me.”
“Yeah. Fine.” The words shot out between gritted teeth.
He slung his bag over his shoulder and hesitated. “Is it something I said? About the new girl?”
Yes!
“No.” I forced my hands to unfurl and flatten against the desk. “I’m just in a shitty mood.”
Axel’s mouth parted, but instead of speaking, he gave a quick nod and trudged down the aisle to find his partner.
It would seem he did have some sense of self-preservation after all.
What the hell was wrong with me? I’d been on the verge of knocking my best friend’s head off—over her.
I gripped the edge of the desk, like holding on to the wood would stop me from spiraling. I had to go on a trip with Lexi. Alone.
As panic descended over me, I shot to my feet and barreled down the aisle toward the professor’s desk, a dribble of cold sweat running down my nape. “I need to switch partners.”
Professor Kennedy, who perched on the edge of his desk, slowly lifted his head. “And why is that, Mr. Davenport?”
“We can’t work together.” I wiped my clammy hands on my jeans, swallowing the spit collecting in the back of my throat.
He peered at Lexi still sitting in her seat and clutching her notebook to her chest. “Unless there are extenuating circumstances I am unaware of, or that you’d like to share, I see no reason why you and Ms. Vega can’t work together.”
I’d loved the girl since we were kids, and one screwed-up afternoon, she ripped my heart to pieces, permanently maiming it. How was that for extenuating circumstances?
“You know this building is named after my family, right?” My stomach churned for pulling the Davenport card—such a Bass thing to do—but the professor gave me no choice.
Professor Kennedy arched one dark eyebrow and stood from his desk. “You’re better than that, Killian. You don’t need to flash that name to get what you want. Unlike some of your family members, you can earn it all on your own.”
The bastard thought I was an upstanding guy when I was probably worse than all of them, just in a different way.
“There are times when you must work with people you don’t like, or even despise, but learning to do that now will give you a leg up.
You can’t always rely on your name.” He rested his hand on my shoulder, his thick gray mustache quivering as he spoke.
“Your father will be proud that you didn’t take the easy route. ”
My real father wouldn’t give a shit. But maybe Stan would be impressed that I didn’t use my advantage to escape a jam like my stepbrother always did.
“Fine,” I gritted out. “I’ll work with her, but I can’t promise our project won’t suffer.”
Professor Kennedy tsked. “I doubt that. You’ll make sure it’s damn near perfect.”
I grimaced and marched back to my seat.
Of course. Perfect fucking Killian.
Lexi glared at me as I collapsed back into my seat.
If she wanted to discuss this stupid bullshit, she could bring her little ass over here.
As if reading my mind, her nostrils flared and anger streaked through those blue eyes, but she stood and strode down the aisle from the opposite side of the room, where she’d sat with Cordelia.
I busied myself with pulling out my MacBook while watching her from beneath my lashes. Her simple jeans and long sleeve, white knit shirt molded over her curves and was a million times sexier than the slutty dresses Lorelei and the rest of the Zetas wore.
Why the fuck did Lexi have to get so hot?
My dick twitched, and I shifted in my seat as my pants became uncomfortably tight, something that never happened in the middle of a damn class.
It was just like her to give me a raging hard-on even while I hated her guts.
Lexi dropped into the seat next to mine and opened her laptop. “I’ve already downloaded the work packet.” She flicked her long auburn locks over her shoulder, and my fingers tingled with the urge to run through those strands. “Where do you want to start?”
Even though she put on a tough facade, a slight tremble coated her voice and her hands shook.
“Where’d you get that laptop? A museum?” I was being dramatic. It probably came from a used computer store.
Heat flamed her cheeks, brightening her blue eyes. “Not everyone can afford a new computer every six months.” She anxiously tapped the keys, trying to force it to load faster. “We can’t all have rich stepdaddies.”
An invisible knife slashed at my chest, and I absentmindedly rubbed the tattoo over my heart.
Memories of that day tried to burst through the cage I’d buried them in.
I never understood how my sweet Lexi could have been so evil and cruel, but jealousy did strange things to people. And she showed her true colors then.
I would never trust the kindness in her angelic blue eyes ever again. Of course, there was only disgust in them now. Good. That made hating her easier.
Having already downloaded the work packet while her computer was still wheezing to life, I flicked through the pages. “Where do you want to go?”
“Not halfway across the world,” she muttered, frowning at the screen.
I snorted. “Afraid I’ll leave you stranded in some other country?”
“You would.”
“California it is.” I couldn’t care less where we went as long as we got this project over with quickly and efficiently.
Lexi nibbled her bottom lip as she twisted a lock of hair around her finger. “Uh, California... That’s still so far away.”
And then it hit me, and a laugh burst out. “You can’t afford to go ten miles from here, let alone across the country.”
She dropped her hair and folded her arms across her chest. “It’s an unforeseen expense, but I’ll manage.”
Lexi admitted she was on scholarship, and a school like Stonewall didn’t consider those factors when creating the curriculum. Most students who attended could easily afford dozens of yearly trips across the world.
A wicked smile pulled my mouth apart, and I lazily reclined in my seat. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll pay your half and let you work it off. How does cleaning my toilet, doing my laundry, and polishing my shoes sound?” I winked. “Maybe I’ll let you clean my car, too.”
She gripped the edges of her computer so hard her knuckles turned white. “I would rather sell my soul than do anything for a Davenport.”
I gave a casual shrug. “Suit yourself. Maybe we skip the trip and just flunk.”
The color drained from her face, and her whole body drooped as if an invisible weight pushed on her shoulders. “I can’t fail this class. I’ll lose my scholarship.”
“Not my problem.” I couldn’t fail either. My stepfather would disown me if I screwed up, but Lexi didn’t need to know that.
A storm of emotions whipped through her expression, finally settling on determination. My threat hadn’t cracked her defenses. It might have fortified them instead.
“You screw with me, Killian, and I’ll screw with you.
” Lexi leaned forward. “You pretend to be this rich, perfect Davenport heir, but I know where you really came from. You grew up in the same shitty town as me, had the same struggles as I did, and experienced the constant threat of being evicted or going hungry.”
Her words cut me to the bone. In an instant, I was back to the time in my life when I wore second-hand clothes, worried if the electricity or water would be disconnected when I got home, went to bed hungry some nights, and hid in my closet as my father screamed at my mom. And hit her.
My closest friends knew I hadn’t come from money, but everyone else accepted me simply because of my new last name. They had no idea I’d curled up in the corners of a crumbling house to hide from my alcoholic father.
“I still have pictures of us when we were kids, Killian.” The smile that curved those luscious lips sent ice through my veins. “I’ll make sure everyone knows who you are under that expensive disguise.”
We didn’t speak for the rest of class as my rage built, prodding the monster I kept chained up. If we weren’t surrounded by a crowd, I would’ve let Lexi know she’d fucked with the wrong guy.
She’d find out soon enough.
Once Professor Kennedy dismissed us, Lexi bolted from the room as if she sensed the darkness coiling around me.
I trailed her, ignoring Axel and everyone else, keeping my target in my crosshairs.
When we approached a small alcove, I snatched her arm, slamming her against the wall and pinning her with my body.
A shrill screech burst out of her, but I slapped my palm over her mouth before she could release a full scream.
“You really think you can come into my town—into my school—and threaten me?” I leaned forward, crowding her space. “I will ruin you, Lexi Vega.”
She licked my hand, and I dropped it out of revulsion. “And you think you can bully me because of your name?” Angry tears welled in her eyes, but she stopped them from brimming over.
A sharp pang slashed at my chest, the place where my heart used to reside. There was a time when Lexi would have come to me for a shoulder to cry on.
Instead, I was the one hurting her now.
“I will do what I have to,” she continued without noticing the cracks in my anger or the sadness bleeding through. “I will graduate from Stonewall, become a doctor, and save as many people as possible. Not even you will stand in my way.”
The fire in her eyes had me in a chokehold. It was a far cry from the vapid debutantes and heiresses I’d been around for the past five years.
My lungs constricted, unable to suck in a full breath. No other girl had dragged out so many reactions from me, so many damn emotions. I’d fucking missed her.
And I hated it.
Hated her even more.
But it didn't strip away the heat crashing inside me. My anger burned alongside lust until I couldn’t tell them apart.
My dick was suddenly rock hard, and before my brain could stop me, I rolled my hips into hers.
Lexi’s little gasp sent my head spinning. A blush spread across her chest, up her throat, and over her face as her breaths became erratic pants. There was no way in hell she didn’t feel my erection rubbing against her.
What the fuck am I doing?
Trying to regain control, I wrapped my fingers around her throat, my thumb stroking the center. “Make any more threats against me, Vega, and I’ll make sure you lose that scholarship faster than an heiress drops her panties for me.”
“You disgust me, Killian.” Her lips quivered, and fuck if that didn’t make me want to bite them. “You’re nothing like the person you used to be.”
An invisible blade slid right between my ribs, the truth in her words cutting me deep. That guy had long been dead and buried. This world of secret societies, money, and corruption made sure of it.
That Killian wouldn’t have survived it.
“Don’t pretend to be the same sweet girl I grew up with either. Or maybe that version of you was all a lie.” I pushed off her, my body going into shock at the loss of hers, and I stormed down the corridor.
What was wrong with me? Instead of messing around with Lexi, I should have been focused on finding my mystery girl before Bass did. He’d break her into a million pieces and ruin her beyond repair. I couldn’t let that happen.
Eyes burned the side of my face as Lorelei stood in a classroom doorway, her hard gaze ricocheting between me and the alcove I’d emerged from.
A string of curses ran through my mind, knowing how jealous Lorelei could be, even though we weren’t together, and outside of a few hookups, we never had been.
This could be a problem.
Then again, maybe it would only be a problem for Lexi.