71. Thea
71
Thea
I f those two idiots didn’t shut up soon, I’d bash them over the head with a thesaurus I’d spotted resting on a nearby table. It looked like a hefty book. Leather bound and guaranteed to inflict a headache.
Not lethal, but definitely a lesson learned. Namely, Thea does not like being disturbed when reading a smutty romance . Especially when the asshole MMC was about to rail the FMC in a graveyard. In a coffin, no less, while another member of their harem secretly watched from the trees.
It was riveting stuff. How the college thought this kind of novel was acceptable reading material was a mystery, but I suspected at least one librarian had a taste for spicy romances. The other day, I’d spotted the old dear with the gray hair and penchant for pink sweaters reading a dragon shifter romance while she thought nobody was watching.
The two idiots continued to bicker while I turned a page. It was hilarious. Did they think I was so unaware of my surroundings that I hadn’t spotted them? I almost rolled my eyes.
Torrance had drilled that lesson into me more times than I could count. Always know what’s around you, or you die.
The fifth time he’d ambushed me and dragged me down into the cellar, I’d figured it out. It had been a painful lesson.
Milo often spied on me from the shadows. I liked him watching me; it made me feel protected while on campus.
Cassian’s presence was less agreeable. He’d messaged me repeatedly in the last few days, trying to arrange a time when we could start work on our joint project. Naturally, I’d ignored him.
The last thing I felt like doing was stupid college work. It was bad enough that we had an exam in the morning. On contract law. Ugh . How boring.
I half-watched through my eyelashes while scanning the scene. Milo muttered something about cake and my ears pricked up.
Then Cassian disappeared, and I sighed with disappointment. OK, so he didn’t have any cake. Ah well. At least I could finish my book in peace now.
Just as I finished the chapter, Cassian reappeared. This time, instead of whispering to Milo, he strode in my direction and dropped a small plate with a slice of cake and a paper cup containing liquid that smelled a lot like hot chocolate onto the window ledge next to me.
“Peace offering,” he explained, while I stared at him with surprise.
“Have you done something bad?” Him feeding me cake made no sense. Landon gave me cakes. Cassian mostly gave me a headache.
He bristled with annoyance. “No, but I need you to cooperate on this joint project, Thea.” As I watched, he sucked in a breath and closed his eyes for a moment, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.
I smirked, which he caught when he opened his eyes.
“It’s not funny. This grade is important.” His jaw ticked, and I felt guilty for being such a bitch.
Knowing what an abusive asshole his father was, it made sense he kept Cassian on a tight leash with regard to school. No doubt Lucian had lots of plans for him. I mean, I’d seen the way he treated Cassian, so I had no doubt the man would take great delight in punishing his only son if he flunked a stupid college course.
“What do you need me to do?” With a heartfelt sigh, I closed my book. The latest chapter had ended on a cliffhanger, and the thought of not finding out what happened next until later grated on me,
“I need you to sit with me so I can outline my ideas and we can put together a framework for what we do next.”
He relaxed when I shrugged and replied, “Sure.” I had no clue what we were doing, so I hoped he had a lot of ideas. There was zero chance of me contributing anything useful to the discussion.
But since he’d brought me cake and hot chocolate as a peace offering, I’d do my best.
Two hours later, Milo had vanished and I was more than ready to punch Cassian in the nuts.
“You’re daydreaming again,” he growled while running his fingers through his hair. I suspected he was ready to kill me too but couldn’t summon enough energy to care.
“We’re going around in circles,” I pointed out with an eye roll. “The company Professor Asshat assigned us is doomed. Even I can see that, and I know fuck all.”
“Remind me again why you chose to major in business?” he asked in a silky voice. “It’s clear you don’t have any background knowledge of the topic.”
I glared at him.
“Maybe accounts and contract law turn me on?”
Cassian huffed with annoyance and shoved his laptop away. “Don’t distract me,” he muttered.
“Distract you?” I picked up my pencil and started doodling again. This stupid exercise was a waste of time. Based on the data provided, the company could not be turned into a profitable endeavor without a significant cash injection.
The product was niche, expensive, and very few people would want to buy it.
It was a mystery to me why the professor had assigned us such an impossible task, but whatever.
“Yes, distract me.” The man talked in riddles sometimes, so I ignored him. He was the expert in our little partnership. His father was a business mogul. If he didn’t know how to get this pretend company off the ground, then how was I supposed to come up with any amazing ideas?
From the way Cassian ground his teeth, he was on the verge of a mental breakdown. I inwardly sighed and attempted to focus on the task at hand.
“We need more money to get the product to market, yes?” I drew a stick man jumping off a cliff and splatting on rocks below. Cassian glanced over at my pad and his jaw clenched with annoyance, but he didn’t comment on my artwork.
“Yes, that’s one of our problems.”
“And these stupid purses made from the hide of an endangered creature are disgusting, so marketing them is a nightmare.”
“Yes, Thea, thank you for summing up the two main issues.”
“Then why can’t we pivot and use a cheaper, less morally repugnant material, so we don’t kill our brand? That way, PETA won’t target us; nor will all the woke celebs. But the product still looks high end. Plus, as part of the marketing campaign, we can donate a percentage of the profit to the charity that protects the endangered Flumflot. It could be our brand message: Looks like a Flumflot, Feels like a Flumflot, but No Flumflots Died Making This Purse.”
Honestly, I was talking out of my ass, but Cassian hadn’t shot me down in flames, so I took it as a win.
“Did you really come up with that all on your own?” He sounded surprised. Impressed even. Or was he taking the piss?
My eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Yes. And also, if we approach some fashion influencers who also love animals, we can build an online buzz.”
Now he looked thoughtful.
“Thea, that’s actually—” His phone went off, the ring tone making me jump. We both looked at the screen as it buzzed like an angry wasp trapped in a glass.
Cassian snatched the phone and disappeared into the stacks to have a private conversation while I pulled my phone out to check if I’d missed any messages.
Eden still wasn’t back at college. Aside from one message thanking me for helping her, she’d not been in contact. I was a bit worried. Had her cousin whisked her away to Ireland and locked her in a castle on the pretext of keeping her safe?
That kind of shit was common in my world. Women had very little agency and men made all the decisions. If her cousin believed she was in danger from his rivals, there was a real chance he might decide it was too dangerous for her on campus.
I hoped not.
I’d miss her if she left for good.
Michael would too, I suspected. He’d collared me in the cafeteria this morning, asking if I knew where she was. The poor sap looked like he’d not slept for a few days. I told him I’d not heard from her and walked away.
If Eden wanted to talk to him, she had his number. It wasn’t my place to discuss her business.
By the time Cassian returned to our table, he looked pissed off. I half expected him to collect his shit and leave. It was getting late, and we were the last ones left in here. Any minute now, the lone librarian would start making noises about closing the library, like she usually did around 10 PM.
Poor woman. I hope the college paid her overtime for working so late.
I eyed my smutty novel longingly. If this study session was over, I could head back to my tower room and read a few more chapters.
I also needed to check in with Verity. Although it was a bit late to be calling her.
We’d spoken a few days ago, but she’d been upset. Mrs Gia said she was missing me. I’d tried to tell her Christmas was only a few weeks away and that I’d be back soon, but she wanted to see me now, not in a few weeks. Our call had ended on a sour note and I felt bad about being away for so long.
Not that it was my fault, but my sister probably thought I was living my best life while she faded away in the attic like a Victorian spinster.
“Let’s get out of here,” Cassian barked after pushing his phone into his jacket pocket.
I bristled with annoyance but resisted the urge to snarl at him. “I was just leaving, actually.” My notebook and pen were in my bag already, so I picked up my novel and stood.
He reached out and grabbed my arm when I made a move to pass him. He caught me off guard and I shoved him away, annoyed at being manhandled like that.
“Thea, I’m… sorry.” His apology caught me off-guard.
“Look, we’ve made progress tonight, so how about a nightcap?”
“You want to have a drink with me?” That was a first. I didn’t think the mighty Cassian Forsyth would lower himself to drink with the likes of me.
He shoved his laptop in his messenger bag and half-smiled.
“Yes, Thea. With you.”
“Why?” Had he suffered an aneurysm in the stacks? Maybe he’d been body snatched by aliens with nasty little anal probes. It was the only explanation.
“Because I need a stiff drink and your company is acceptable.”
I scoffed. There he was. Lord Asshole, born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
“OK.” Why I’d just agreed to spend even more time with Cassian was a mystery, but whatever.
Father kept telling me to get closer to him, find out what Lucian was up to, so this was my chance. The class project didn’t count, as there were few opportunities to discuss anything not related to the stupid business idea, but maybe if we sat down together with alcohol in the mix, Mister stick-up-his-ass might loosen up a bit?