CHAPTER THREE
Blair
For the first time in a long time, I had trouble sleeping. My night was plagued by the nightmares of that day in the locker room, and I woke up at the crack of dawn, covered in sweat and filled with all the suffocating feelings I thought I’d dealt with.
The nightmares had only cemented my decision last night to talk to Zach today.
After Lana and Aurora left, I had a lot to think about, and I concluded that I had to try to apologize and explain myself to him.
Maybe if he saw how much I regretted what I’d done to him, he would change his mind about his revenge.
Perhaps he would even find it in him to forgive me.
I showered, paying extra attention to my hair, and did my morning skin routine, deciding to leave my hair down and let it dry naturally. I always skipped blow-drying when I could to minimize damage to my hair. It was one of my assets, and I had to take extra care to keep it shiny and healthy.
I had just finished my makeup when knocks sounded at my door, and a blast of purple filled the doorway as my sister Melody all but jumped into my room.
“Gooood morning!”
I rolled my eyes at her. “It doesn’t make sense to knock if you’re going to barge in a second later.”
She rolled her eyes back at me. “It’s not like you’re doing stuff with someone.”
I chuckled, shaking my head. “You know I don’t ever bring guys to our house. And ‘doing stuff’? You’re not twelve, sis.” Though she often sounded like it even though she was seventeen.
Melody lacked experience with boys—or people in general—but it wasn’t surprising, seeing as she was homeschooled.
She’d been sickly her whole life, so not sending her to school was an obvious choice to my parents.
Most of her socializing experience was when she talked to her tutors and household staff members.
She perched herself on the edge of the bed and tucked her legs under her. “So where do you do stuff then?” She stuck her tongue out at me.
“Not talking about that with you.”
“Oh, come on. I heard you talk about sex and guys with Lana and Aurora yesterday.”
I angled my head, giving her a look under my lashes. “You eavesdropped again?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “You can’t blame me for being curious.”
She was right. I couldn’t. Melody was a virgin, and as of recently, she was starting to get more and more curious about boys and sex.
Though if I had any say in the matter, I’d have her wait for at least a few years.
She was too naive and sweet for the kind of guys who orbited our world. They would eat her for breakfast.
“Mom will arrive tomorrow morning,” she said.
I entered my closet, and she followed me inside. “So soon?”
She dropped down on the round sofa chair by the door, her braids shifting with the move. “She said she has to come back for a meeting tomorrow.”
I rolled my eyes, taking out a pair of white Armani shorts and a white Ferragamo sleeveless top, then chuckled at my choice. I could imagine Mom’s reaction. She was strictly against mixing brands.
“Of course she has a meeting. When does she not?”
She studied her pink acrylic nails. They matched the pink ends of her light brown hair. “Can we really blame her? Her organization is everything to her.”
Our mom didn’t have to work. In addition to our family being old money, our dad owned his own real estate development company, which generated enough income to support the next several generations.
Mom came from another prestigious family that owned several car dealerships around the country.
She never had to work if that was what she wanted.
But that wasn’t Mom. She was a businesswoman through and through, thriving when she was making deals and bringing in money for her charity projects.
“Plus, she wants to check in with our new gardener before the meeting. She has to make sure everything is to her specifications, which, by the way, I’m not sure this guy will meet. He’s too young.”
I whipped my gaze at her over my shoulder. “You met him?”
“Yeah. I saw him earlier.”
Melody didn’t know Zach. Nor did she know what I’d done to him in that locker room or our history prior to that incident, and this right here was another reason it was good she didn’t know. It would only cause more trouble if she could guess what his agenda was here.
“Turn around.” I shrugged off my bathrobe when she did and pulled out a white satin bralette from my dresser, pairing it with matching panties. “Okay, you can turn back now.” I reached for my shorts. “What do you think about him?”
She tilted her head, playing with the end of one of her braids. “He’s very friendly. But will he stick here? I’m not sure.” He was friendly with her? “Also, he’s hot.”
My stomach jumped, and possessiveness gripped my chest, which was ridiculous because I didn’t have anything to be possessive about.
“Don’t even try it. He’s too old for you.”
She tilted her head. “Relax. Working-class guys are not my type. How old is he anyway?”
I ignored her comment about working-class guys although it didn’t sit well with me.
Just like me, Melody was taught to aim for only the wealthiest guys.
Anything less wasn’t even worth our time or consideration.
“He’s twen—” I wanted to say twenty, but then I remembered the lie he’d spun for our dad.
“He’s twenty-three. So don’t even think about it. ”
She gave me an amused look. “I told you, he’s not my type. So don’t worry.”
It was impossible for me not to worry. I didn’t want her entangled in this situation with Zach in any way, which was, now that I thought about it, all the more reason for me to talk to him.
I finished dressing and made my way to the kitchen to have breakfast before I looked for him while Melody went back to her room. I wasn’t sure where I could find him, but I decided to check the grounds first because he was starting work today.
After I finished eating, I made my way around the house, finding him by a row of trees across from the pool.
He was edging flower beds near the bases of the trees, a wheelbarrow full of mulch and a shovel waiting next to him.
My heart rate quickened, and I took my time approaching him, feeling surreal that he was here.
I stopped behind him, but I didn’t announce my presence just yet as I watched him work.
I was perplexed at how skillful he appeared.
It didn’t look like he was winging it. It looked like he knew exactly what he was doing, pouring all his focus into it, and I felt uncomfortable just thinking he’d gone through all the hustle of learning gardening just to exact his revenge.
My gaze slid over him. The dark brown overalls he wore as a uniform suited him more than well, their color popping against the explosion of green around us.
Underneath it, he wore a white turtleneck T-shirt that exposed his ripped arms in all their glory, and I stared at his flexing biceps and the bunching muscles of his back for a moment too long, almost releasing a hum of appreciation.
He was so toned it was unreal. Every muscle was sculpted into perfection and calling for attention. The ends of his brown hair were wet with sweat, slightly curling and shifting on the wind, and I stared at them too. Everything about him was entrancing.
I cleared my throat. “Zach.”
He stopped what he was doing and looked at me over his shoulder. His gaze went down my body, and I almost stopped breathing, all too aware of my bare stomach and legs. Heat rushed to my face when he finally raised his eyes to meet mine.
He stood to his feet. “Isn’t this too early for you? I thought you usually slept until noon, being spoiled and all.”
I almost grimaced. “I need to talk to you.”
He smirked. “I’m sure you do. What do you want? Want to make sure I don’t ‘rip out your favorite flowers’?”
My eyes went wide. “You eavesdropped on my friends and me.”
His smirk widened. “It wasn’t that hard to hear you. You three didn’t really try to be quiet.”
Mortification settled deep inside me. Had he heard everything? Even the part where I said he looked gorgeous?
“I see you’re all still a tightly knit unit. Tell me, do you still gather to torture poor souls? Or did you find some new pastimes? Like conspiring to exploit rich guys to get more money? Sleeping with someone’s husband?”
My brows dipped. His assessment hurt even though he had every reason to feel that way. “You’re all wrong.”
“Ah, right. Sorry, my fault. You’re actually Good Samaritans working around the clock to make this world a less shitty place to live.”
My nails dug into my palms, and I almost snapped at him, but I’d come here to apologize. I reminded myself I’d hurt him, and he was lashing out.
“I wanted to apologize to you. How I treated you was horrible, and I’ve regretted it all this time. I’m sorry for everything. I really am.”
His smirk remained on his face, but I didn’t miss the muscle jumping in his jaw. “Of course you’re sorry now when you’re about to get what’s coming to you. But if you thought this little act would save you, you’re dead wrong.”
“That’s not true. My apology has nothing to do with that.”
His smirk transformed into a sneer, and he moved a few steps closer to me. “Now listen to me carefully, Blair. Nothing, and I repeat, nothing you say will save you from what I’m going to do to you. I’m never going to forgive you, and the only thing that will satisfy me is ruining you.”
My heart sank, and I felt like a huge chasm had just opened up between us. Was he really not going to even listen to me?
“Please, Zach. Don’t be like this. I know I hurt you a lot, but there has to be something I can do to make it right. Please, don’t let it go this far.”
He curled his lip at me, shadows slashing across his face in a stark display that made his eyes appear black as he narrowed his gaze at me. “‘Please’? It’s so strange hearing that word cross your lips. So you’re ready to swallow your pride if that’s what it takes to get what you want?”
My gaze dropped, shame filling me whole. “It’s not like that at all.”
“Sure, it’s not. I don’t remember you being this docile before.
It’s funny how everything changes once you don’t have the upper hand anymore.
But you keep ignoring what I say and trying to twist this situation in your favor.
Maybe I should be more convincing.” He grabbed the shovel, scooped up some mulch, and threw it all over me.
With a shriek, I jumped back, the mulch almost getting into my mouth from where it stuck to my face. The smell hit me, and I could barely open my eyes to inspect myself, flicking away the mulch from my forehead with both hands. My top and shorts were completely ruined.
Zach doubled up, his eyes cold and cruel as they brimmed with satisfaction. “What a sight. Wait, I need to take a picture of this.” He pulled his phone out of the back pocket.
“No, don’t do that!” I pounced on him to grab the phone, but I slipped on the mulch and dropped face-first on the ground, my palms scraping on impact.
His laugh intensified, followed by the sound of the camera shutter, and I’d never felt more humiliated in my life. My tears threatened to come out as I stared at the soil beneath me, the stench of the mulch engulfing me.
“I think I missed some spots.” He picked up another scoop of mulch, and before I could even think about dodging it, he dropped it right over my back. “There you go. Now your outside matches your inside.”
This time, there was no stopping my tears, and I hated myself for it as much as I hated him for bringing them out.
“Aw, you’re crying already? Come on, this is nothing. You’ve done way worse things to others! At least you’re covered in mulch and not shit. Oh wait, it is shit.”
He erupted into laughter again, and as I observed him, trembling from head to toe, I thought about what he’d told me about monsters breeding monsters. He’d really become one, and now I knew no words or pleas would make him change his mind. He’d said it himself. He would never forgive me.
I closed my eyes, forcing myself up to my feet. Time was over for pleas and gentle words. He was obviously now capable of the worst, and if I didn’t try to fight back, he would ruin me.
“Being abused doesn’t give you the pass to abuse me now. You’re an asshole, Zach.”
His smirk dropped, and the hate blasted in his eyes so fiercely as he eliminated the space between us that I almost drew a step back.
“Cunts like you don’t get to preach and act all mighty.
I don’t give a shit about what’s moral or not.
So save your pathetic words for someone who cares.
” He looked me up and down, then sniffed, scrunching up his nose.
“I think you should go take a shower. You stink.”
My whole face went red. I felt exasperated, wanting to say so much, but what would be the point? It would only serve to humiliate me more. I already lost this battle.
I turned around, already planning to take a long shower to get this dirt off me, but he called after me.
“Blair.”
I stopped and looked back at him over my shoulder with apprehension.
“What are your favorite flowers? So I’d know which ones to rip out.” He winked at me and burst out with laughter that haunted me long after I walked back into the house, leaving trails of mulch and broken hopes in my wake.