Chapter Fourteen
NIGHT HAD FALLEN AND MJ could not concentrate, which was bad. She had exams tomorrow, and worse, she could feel Helios looking at her every so often. His face didn’t give anything away, but she instinctively knew that Helios was aware something was wrong.
The club had its own study hall, and it was open for use to both bikers and volunteers. It had rows of seats and tables next to each other similar to those in libraries, and MJ was seated at one end while Helios was across the room, standing quietly next to the windows.
His presence in the study hall was rare, making most of the girls titter in excitement. It didn’t matter to them that he was dating MJ. He was Helios Andreadis, and girls would always pant after him.
The thought of what could happen if Helios found out about her secret made MJ’s hands shake, and her book slid out of her grasp. She bent down to pick it up and accidentally bumped into Mercy, the girl seated next to her, who then lost hold of her Starbucks coffee, which she accidentally spilled onto Girlie, who shrieked as hot liquid burned her skin, jumping to her feet and accidentally elbowing Bernice out of her seat.
All four girls turned to MJ with furious expressions.
“Sorry,” she said in a small voice as she slowly lifted her book up to cover her entire face. She was tempted to laugh hysterically. Something was wrong? Heck no. Everything was wrong, and there seemed no way for her to solve it.
Her conversation this afternoon with Yuri played over and over in her mind, and there was no escaping it. There was no escaping her past, and bleakly, she wondered why she ever thought it was possible to escape in the first place.
“SOMEONE BAILED YOUR dad out from jail.”
It was not pleasant news, but MJ told herself it was not the worst news either. “Will you tell Helios about me? About...him?”
Yuri looked at her levelly. “It’s your story to tell. But you also have to know...word’s out on the street that your father is looking for you.”
MJ whitened. “I don’t understand. He...he doesn’t really care for me. And...there’s a restraining order...why would he want to look for me when it would mean he could go back to jail?”
Grimly, Yuri said, “I don’t know. I went to your hometown to check on loose ends. Keeping trouble out of the club is one of my responsibilities, and I take my responsibilities seriously. This club is my family – the only family I have. I know you don’t mean any of us harm. I know you love Helios even if you’ve not admitted it to yourself, but I also know something bad will happen if you do not confess—”
She shook her head wildly. “Confess what? That I have an alcoholic for a father? That I was once jailed for petty theft? That I have a record as a juvenile delinquent a mile long?” When she looked at Yuri, she didn’t bother to hide the terror she felt. The terror over losing Helios.
“I don’t know if I really love him like you say I do, Yuri, and that’s the honest truth. But what I do know is that he matters to me. I don’t want...I can’t tell you why he matters to me so much. But he changed my life. He’s...everything. And I don’t know where I’d be if I lost him.”
She grabbed Yuri’s hand and pressed it to her heart. “If I lose him, Yuri,” she whispered, “you might as well cut out my heart.”
THAT ONE MOMENT HAD convinced Yuri to keep his discovery to himself even if he had never been the one to lie to his friends. No matter what MJ said, he knew that MJ loved Helios.
It was ironic then that witnessing the same moment had convinced Helios of the opposite.
Dressing himself swiftly, Helios headed to his private study in the club and accessed the CCTV network to pinpoint her location.
When he saw her meeting Yuri in secret, he had told himself that it could be anything.
But when he saw her hold Yuri’s hand to her heart, his own had turned into stone.
History was indeed repeating itself.
Now, gazing at MJ with her shoulders slouched, looking so miserable and unable to hide it, Helios wondered bitterly how the fuck he had gotten it so wrong.
Why had she even bothered hooking up with him if she wanted Yuri all along? Was it because he had been too aggressive and had not given her a chance to refuse? Or was it because she was an ambitious bitch who also happened to be such a good actress that she had fooled all of them into thinking she was entirely innocent?
Bitterness nearly drowned him, but it was not as powerful as his desire for vengeance. He motioned to one of the volunteers dusting the windows. “Jenny.”
The third-year brunette hurried towards him. “Yes, President?”
“Contact Astrid and have her come over first thing tomorrow morning.” He ignored the way MJ’s head snapped up at his words.
When Jenny excused herself from the room and Helios still didn’t look at her, MJ tried not to sound hurt and confused as she asked, “Wh-why are you calling Astrid?” The photo shoot was over. There was no need for Astrid to be here. Right?
When Helios’ gaze met hers, the coldness in it had her sucking her breath in.
“There’s something I have to practice with her, a bike stunt, and I can’t exactly do that with you, right?’ After all, you only know how to ride a man’s body and that’s it.” The words were laced with rigid contempt, Helios having no trouble remembering the sight of MJ and Yuri close to each other, the other man’s hand on her chest. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Awkward silence fell over the room, and MJ realized sickly that everyone had heard their exchange.
Helios stared at her unflinchingly, and it was obvious in his stance that he was not going to take it back.
Her fingers curled and uncurled as she tried to make sense of Helios’ sudden cold treatment. Surely Yuri hadn’t gone back on his word? She forced a smile on her lips and said brightly, “I’m just happy I’m good at that.”
Helios’ upper lip curled. “Did I say you were good? I simply said you knew what to do.” The moment he spoke the words, he knew he had gone too far. But even with the stricken look on her face, he couldn’t take it back.
With a silent curse, Helios stalked out of the study hall, leaving another bout of painfully awkward silence in his wake.
MJ bowed her head.
SWISH.
She tightened her hold on her book with shaking hands, feeling like Helios had managed to do what her dad had never been able to achieve. With just a few words, he had crushed her completely.