Chapter 38
THIRTY-EIGHT
LANA
“ F uck. No,” I snap once Dare has finished speaking.
The asshole had me pulled out of class again. I’ve spent the day being given sideways glances because of the state of my face, and he had to go ahead and make it worse by bringing even more attention to me.
To make matters worse, I stormed into his office like a woman on a mission—a mission to tear him a new one—and found none other than Cole fucking Aston sitting opposite him.
They’ve both lost it if they really think this plan of theirs is a good idea.
“It’s a good plan, Lana,” Cole interjects, and it takes everything in me not to grab the garrote that’s in my back pocket and kill him.
Insane.
They’re both fucking insane.
“I’m sorry, I’m not sure I understand clearly. You both think it would be a good idea for me to move in with him —” I wave towards Cole “—and his three asshole friends? In what fucking world is that a good idea? I have a perfectly good dorm, thank you very much.”
“A,” Dare warns. “The dorms are fine and all, but we can have better security put in on the old staff cottage than we can in the dorms. We can control who enters and leaves. We can?—”
“I literally broke in there not long ago and nobody noticed until Cole woke up and I was sitting on top of him. In what world is a partially secluded cottage a better idea than a crowded dorm building?”
Dare shivers. “I don’t need to know about the shit you two are into, but I do know that while the current security is bullshit, I can have it upgraded within a matter of hours.”
Cole raises his hand like he’s in elementary school and wants the teacher’s attention. “I have some things to say.”
Dare nods for Cole to continue, and he does.
“Firstly, that’s two days in a row someone’s called you A.
If we’re moving in together, I think I deserve to know your real name, baby,” he says with a raised brow before he keeps going.
“And secondly, when you’re putting all of these new security measures in place, can we please put a tracker in her?
” he whines, and I lightly slap him on the back of his head.
If either one of us is getting a tracker, it’ll be him.
“Jesus Christ, I keep forgetting that you two are actually children,” Dare says, and I gasp, offended.
I’m definitely more mature than most of the guys that were years above me in training.
Though Cole isn’t helping this situation by acting like a child who wants to keep track of his toys.
Oh God, am I his toy?
Stop the freaking world. I want to jump off.
“No, Alana here won’t be fitted with a tracker, but it might be a good idea to get her one that she can wear with an emergency call button on it so she can reach me if she’s in danger.”
Cole’s eyes widen at the mention of my name. “Alana? Your name is Alana?” He looks me over and shakes his head. “Nope, it doesn’t suit you. We’re sticking with Lana.”
“Okay, firstly, thank you so much for allowing me to keep going by Lana. I’m so grateful for you thinking you have any say in the matter at all,” I say to Cole before turning to Dare.
“And no, I will not wear one of those damn alarms that old people wear for when they fall and break a hip. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself. Thirdly, if—and I mean if— I go along with this hair-brained plan of yours, what exactly are we going to tell the three dickheads that live with him?”
Dare rubs his jaw with a contemplative look on his face. “The truth?”
I throw my hands up. “Why are we suddenly telling everyone everything?”
“You’re the one who spilled your guts to Cole in the first place,” he shoots back.
“I didn’t have much of a choice! The idiot killed a man for me. What was I supposed to do? Say ‘Thank you, have a good night?’”
“Wait… he killed someone? Did you leave the campus when I told you not to?”
“Yeah… Virtus is after me,” I say with a cringe, and his face pales. He, like me, knows exactly what his means.
He gulps audibly, and the room goes silent.
“So, we tell my friends that something is wrong with your room, and when you went to administration, they said there was nothing they could do, so I graciously offered to let you stay with us while it gets fixed. That should stop them from asking questions for a little bit, at least. As for this Virtus thing or whatever, which I’m assuming is the place you were before this all went down, then they can’t get to you here, and I’d like to keep it that way.
But we also need to make a plan to get you out of this shit, because you can’t hide forever,” Cole says, taking control of the situation, and fuck me, it’s hot.
“We?” I ask.
He nods assuredly. “We.”
“ A re you sure this is everything?” Cole asks as we approach the steps to his cottage. I have two bags, that’s all. All of my belongings fit into two bags, and he can’t grasp the fact that I don’t have three suitcases full of shit I don’t need.
“It’s everything,” I grunt and look around, trying to spot whatever Dare had put in while everyone was out of the house.
Cole unlocks the door, and we both head inside. He takes the bag I was carrying from me and puts them in his room.
“You have a guestroom. I’ll stay in there,” I say from behind him as I follow.
“Sorry, no can do. That room is reserved for Gracie in case she ever needs it.”
“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”
He shrugs. “Them’s the rules, little menace. Or should I say… roomie ,” he says with a wicked smirk, and I glower at him.
“Okay,” he says, heading back towards the front door. “I have class. You gonna be okay here on your own?”
Oh, fuck me.
“Gee, this whole cottage to myself? God help me,” I say dramatically and shove him out the door, locking it behind him.
Finally, I might get some peace.
I’ve only been lying on the sofa in the theater room for around ten minutes when that peace comes to an end. I sense someone enter the room, but I don’t take my attention off the TV until a throat clears, and I look up to see Logan hovering over me from behind the sofa.
“Why are you here?” he asks.
“Me? Why wouldn’t I be here? I live here,” I deadpan, and his jaw tics before he rounds the sofa and sits on the table in front of me.
“Explain.”
“Water leak. The place is fucked until they can get it fixed, and the admin said there’s nowhere for me to go, so Cole offered to let me stay here.”
He stares at me, his deep brown eyes drilling into me before his lips twitch. “You’re lying,” he states.
Damn, he’s good.
I pop a shoulder. “Maybe I am, maybe I’m not.”
“There’s more to you than meets the eye.”
I tap a finger against my chin. “When did you figure that out? When you had your hand wrapped around my wrist a couple of weeks ago as you backed me up against a tree, or this morning at breakfast?”
“I never would have hurt you, you know.”
I chuckle. “I wouldn’t have blamed you if you did. But just know…” I sit up, swinging my legs around so I’m facing him head on, and lean forward. “If you ever pull that shit again, I’ll tie you to a chair and waterboard you, okay?”
“Sure thing,” he grunts, and I think the conversation is over, since I know Logan isn’t known to be chatty, but he surprises me with what he says next.
“I know Cole didn’t do that to you, and I know you said that you took care of the problem, but if you ever need any… help , you know where to find me.”
And with that, he stands and leaves the room, leaving me to wonder what the fuck just happened.
Did I just make a friend?