Chapter 7 #2
I eventually settled on my favorite pair of ripped black skinny jeans and a crop top with a band name I’ve never heard of across the front.
It’s cute, but not over the top enough to seem out of place.
I pull my hair out of its messy bun that I threw it in when I was in the gym earlier and look myself over in the mirror.
One look at the clock lets me know I don’t really have time to do anything with it.
I brush my fingers through it a few times and decide it’s good enough.
I head for the door in a rush, remembering to grab a sweater at the last minute and throwing it on as I leave my room, shutting the door behind me.
My phone beeps as I pull it down over my head. I pull it out as I head down the stairs and find a message from Trent letting me know he’ll be at the gates in less than five minutes.
I put a little pep in my step, not exactly in a rush, but I also don’t want to make him sit and wait for me forever when he’s doing me a favor.
Before I head out the door, I stop.
Should I tell them I’m leaving?
Usually, I’d say yes, and honestly, I know I probably should anyway, but I don’t think I want to. They’ve been avoiding me so hard that I doubt they’ll even notice.
With a shrug, I open the door and head out into the crisp night air. It’s still early fall, but the night air has a bite to it. I love it, though I’m glad I grabbed a sweater now. I would be freezing without it.
This far from the city, everything’s beautiful.
A quick glance up lets me see that even though it hasn’t been dark long, the stars are already starting to poke out.
The air is fresh in a way I’ve never experienced before being here.
No matter whose ownership I was under, we were always in the city surrounded by things that they thought showed their status.
Cutting across the huge open driveway, I head down the paved path that will lead me to the gates.
Just before I start onto the path that’s surrounded by trees, I pause, looking back at the house.
It really is beautiful. With its dark gothic style, it seems like it could have come right out of a movie or off the pages of a book.
Little things make it seem less old and lived in, not as spooky as I’m sure it had been when it was abandoned.
I shove my hands in my sweater pockets, turning away to start the long walk to the gate. The fresh air might be nice, but man, is it cold, and my fingers are already feeling the effects.
I only make it maybe twenty feet before I hear something. Another perk of being this secluded is that everything’s quiet. The most you might hear out here is a distant owl or some other wildlife, but most of it stays away, which means whatever I’m hearing isn’t an animal.
Stopping, I take a few steps off the paved path and into the tree line, not totally out of sight, but enough that I won’t get hit if someone were to come speeding through here, either.
I don’t have to wait long. Not even a minute later, a car comes around the corner, slowly creeping its way down the path. My hand goes to my boot for my knife on instinct, but before I grab it, logic takes over, and I pull back.
This car is coming from the house, not from the road, which means it has to be one of the guys. More specifically, Roderick or Spencer, seeing as Zander isn’t home right now.
Whoever it is must not see me as they slowly creep past where I stand in the tree line.
I let them all but pass me before I step back onto the path.
I walk with the car for a moment, just long enough to see that it’s Spencer behind the wheel, before I pound on the back window.
He slams on the brakes, turning around to glare at me.
I walk up to the passenger door and get in, slamming it closed behind me.
We sit looking at each other for a moment without a word. I’m so done with all his back-and-forth shit that I’m ready to sit here all night if I have to.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, reminding me that Trent’s coming to get me. A quick glance at the clock on the dash lets me know he’s probably already here. Fuck. I guess Spencer can just take this one because I don’t really have the time to waste on him right now.
“Why are you following me?” I ask, trying and failing to keep the annoyance out of my tone. They know I don’t actually need babysitters, never did. So why are they following me around now if they can hardly stand me when I’m in the house? It doesn’t make sense.
He says nothing, pulling my attention from the clock to look at him once again; I raise a brow in question.
“Well?” I urge him to answer, and still nothing.
“Ugh.” Groaning in frustration, I push the door open again, ready to hop out and continue my walk to Trent. Clearly, this conversation isn’t going anywhere, but I need to be.
Before I can even get both feet on the ground, Spencer’s hand wraps around my arm, holding me in place.
I could easily break free, but I don’t, instead turning to look at him over my shoulder.
I can count on one hand the number of times Spencer’s touched me, and most of them weren’t in such willing situations.
“Where are you going?” He finally asks instead of answering my question. I can’t suppress the eye roll I give him in response.
“Out, obviously.” I gesture to the open door like he’s an idiot.
He’s not, not really. Spencer might be one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met, but right now, he’s clearly a little behind.
“Why?” he asks me yet another question without so much as acknowledging that I asked him one first, that he just skipped right over.
I huff a sigh and pull my arm from his grip. His fingers tighten for a moment as if he intends to keep his hold, but then he releases me, letting his arm drop to the console between us.
“To see Hazel,” I tell him because I don’t have time to argue with him right now, and I’d really like to be done here.
He doesn’t respond, and once again, we sit staring at one another.
The silence isn’t uncomfortable exactly, but it feels forced, like both of us are seconds from screaming at each other, and I find I would prefer that.
At least if he were screaming at me, I’d know where we stand.
It was so much easier when I knew he just hated me.
He nods before turning back to face forward. “Close the door, I’ll drive you,” he says, and it’s not a question. My hackles rise in defiance.
“No thanks. Trent should be at the gate waiting for me by now,” I tell him with disdain dripping from every word, but I can’t help it, and honestly, I don’t want to.
“Jade,” he says my name with a sigh, as if he’s tired or defeated, and it makes me pause.
Spencer hardly ever uses my name, and when he does, he has a way of making it sound like an insult or a bad word, but that’s not the case this time.
“Just let me drive you to the damn gate,” he says, and I watch as he scrubs his hand down his face from the corner of my eye.
I’m not sure why, but I give in. Sitting back and pulling the door closed once again with a little more force than necessary as I fold my arms over my chest, hoping to show him that while I’m complying, I’m not happy about it.
The moment the door closes, he’s driving without so much as looking my way.
It doesn’t take long to get to the gate by car, maybe three minutes, but it feels like forever right now.
With nothing else to do, I pull my phone from my pocket to check it and find a message from Trent asking where I am.
I quickly type back a response, letting him know I’ll be at the gate in just a minute and apologizing for making him wait.
I don’t bother telling him about Spencer because it doesn’t feel worth it, and I don’t really want to whine to Trent about how much Spencer is driving me insane.
His reply is quick enough that I don’t even get to put my phone away before another notification lights the screen back up.
I can’t help but smile as I read his message that lets me know he’s fine to wait and was just checking that I was all good. Trent is so sweet he could give someone a cavity, and I love it while hating it at the same time.
“Why didn’t you just ask for a ride down to the gate?” Spencer’s voice makes my smile drop from my face as I remember where I am.
“Why do you care? And why were you following me?” I answer his question with my own because he still didn’t answer me earlier, and he’s out of his mind if he thinks I’ll just keep answering him.
He sighs but doesn’t respond, and it’s like I can actually feel my patience drain from my body.
I open my mouth to say something, not even sure what it will be, but feeling the need to bite into him when we come to a stop.
My eyes go to the windshield, and I see the gate in front of us.
Headlights shine through the iron bars on the other side, and while I can’t make out the car through the blinding lights, it’s probably safe to assume it’s Trent.
Taking a deep breath, I attempt to calm myself down. Having it out with Spencer can wait. Right now, I just need to get out of this car and on with my night.
Stick to the plan, Jade.
“I don’t trust you.” Spencer's voice carries to me as I swing the door open, and I have to choke down a laugh at his choice of response.
“No shit,” I say as I lose my fight and chuckle because, honestly, does he think I’m an idiot? If I know nothing else in life, I know Spencer doesn’t trust me. Not only has he told me that a million times now, but he’s shown me repeatedly.
I step out of the car, slamming the door shut behind me without giving him a chance to respond. There’s nothing to be said, and anything he could say will only be more of the same.
A waste of time and energy.