Chapter Four #2
“Ah, you’ll be fine,” Tilly says. “Give it a day or two and you’ll feel like you’ve never been anywhere else.”
I smile my thanks at her. She gives my arm a gentle squeeze.
“Have you seen Zander?” she asks Erin.
Erin shakes her head and Tilly rolls her eyes.
“How can a person hide so well at their own damned party?” she says.
“Maybe he is still licking his wounds,” Erin says. “Did you hear what happened this afternoon, at the Valens challenge?”
“Oh yes!” Tilly’s eyes go wide. I heard some latecomer girl whipped his ass and then turned down his offer to join Valens. She must be mad to say no to Zander. Maybe she would feel more at home with those “women” at Sappho House.” She raises an eyebrow suggestively.
“Oh Tilly, let me stop you there,” Laurel says quickly. “It was our Leona, here, that won the challenge this afternoon.”
Tilly looks at me with genuine shock in her eyes, and something else I can’t put my finger on; a calculating look that drills into my soul. But it’s only for a minute and then she smiles broadly and says, “Whoah! Well done. You stick it to the patriarchy, girl!” and then she flits away.
Laurel and Erin watch her disappear into the crowd and exchange a quick glance.
“She’s studying drama, the same as me,” Laurel says. “Except she normally is the drama. Don’t get too friendly with her would be my advice.”
“Noted,” I say. I thought she’d seemed nice, but anyone can act nice for a two-minute conversation. These girls knew her better than I did, so I’m determined to take their advice. I won’t be nasty to her, but I won’t let myself get too close.
“There’s Shawn,” Laurel says, nodding in the direction of the edge of the room.
Two guys are sitting on a large couch with another guy sitting opposite them on a chair.
The two on the couch are obviously identical twins.
Both of them have short haircuts and razor-sharp cheekbones.
They are both smoking hot, but they are both draped with women, all vying for their attention.
The one opposite has a girl in his lap as well.
“My brother,” Erin says. “Is the one sitting beneath that delightful blonde tramp.”
“That’s not his girlfriend, then?” I ask.
“No,” Erin laughs. “None of the Valens guys have girlfriends. They have hookups and that’s it. Let me give you the low down on these guys, so you’re not dumb enough to get mixed up with any of them. And yes, that includes Shawn.”
“Don’t get me wrong,” she continues. “Shawn is a nice guy, and I say that even though I am his sister.” She rolls her eyes and Laurel laughs. “But, if you cross him he snaps. Honestly, I’m surprised he hasn’t ended up in jail, but the others cover for him.”
She shrugs as if this is normal. Maybe it is normal at Valens House. I have heard about how powerful college frats can be, but I don’t want her to think I’m some sort of snob, so I nod along as I think that’s normal too.
“The twins are Damien on the left and Lucien on the right,” she says. “You probably can’t see from here, but Damien has a tiny birthmark on his neck. That’s the only way I can tell them apart physically, but personality-wise, they are total opposites.”
“Lucien has no interest in studying. He was always determined he was going to play professional football. He was good enough, apparently, but then he broke his leg and it didn’t recover enough for him to have that edge anymore.
But you know, he’s not worried. He has his trust fund.
He just can’t understand why everyone cares so much about studying or, well, anything really.
He’s so laid back he should be horizontal.
Moreover, he doesn’t give a fuck what anyone thinks of him.
Mind you, you can afford to be casual like that when you’re a Westing. It’s not as if they have any worries.”
“Wait, Westing as in Westing Enterprises?” I say, sure I am wrong.
“Yup,” Erin says. “The two billionaire heirs. Lucien will probably be some sort of silent board member. Damien is much more uptight than Lucien, but he is very business-minded. I have no doubt that when the time comes, he will take over running the enterprise. He takes everything seriously and he will do anything to get ahead. He will play games, but only those he knows he will win. Between me and you, I’m honestly surprised he hasn’t killed anyone yet. ”
I swallow hard and Erin laughs.
“Relax. Unless you’re secretly his business rival, you have nothing to worry about,” she says.
“Well, unless he also wants to be a sports writer, I don’t think we’ll cross paths much,” I say relieved.
At that moment Laurel comes back from the bar and hands us each a red cup filled with green liquid.
“What is it?” I ask.
“Some sort of punch?” she shrugs.
I taste the drink. It’s sweet but it is indeed punch, as in it packs a punch. I wince as it burns its way down. The second sip is better and by the third, I quite like it.
Erin and Laurel chat and I mostly listen although I do put in an odd comment and as I relax, I say more, and I make the girls laugh, which I like.
I’m in the middle of telling them a story about my best friend from home, Christian, and the time we got thrown out of the cinema, when a deathly hush falls over the room and without knowing the cause of it, I immediately stop talking and look around.
Standing in the doorway is a guy dressed in a black tailor-made suit and a stiff white linen shirt. He has two other guys on either side of him, both dressed the same. Everyone is watching as they step inside.
“Ooh it’s the Blues Brothers,” I quip softly to Erin but she hushes me with a serious look. Maybe I have had more of that punch than was wise, I think as I stifle a giggle. Out of the corner of my eye I notice that the twins and Shawn have stood up and I sense that there is going to be trouble.
“Who is that?” I hiss in Erin’s ear.
She brings her hand up to her face so she can whisper to me without anyone seeing.
“It’s Matthew Henderson. He and his boys run Hawks House. They’re similar to Valens, but they’re nowhere near as elite, although Matthew seems to think they are.”
I wonder if that’s her loyalty to her brother, Shawn, talking because these guys certainly don’t look second rate, and if there’s a fight, I wouldn’t like to bet on which side would win.
“Good evening,” Matthew says, clearly addressing the entire room. He has a certain charm about him and he isn’t bad looking. He seems to know how to work a room. He turns his focus to the twins and Shawn. “We’re not here for any trouble.”
“So why are you here?” Shawn asks, stepping closer to the three newcomers.
“For the party like everyone else,” he says. “Are we not welcome?”
The tension thickens as the whole room waits for Shawn’s answer.
When the answer comes, it’s not Shawn who speaks. A voice comes from behind me on the staircase.
“They can stay,” the voice says. “Will somebody please fetch our new guests some drinks.”
It’s a commanding voice, the kind that belongs to a man who knows what he wants and always gets it.
Well, almost always. Because as I glance up at the stairs, the figure, who has spoken, steps down from the shadows and I finally get a good look at him.
It is Zander Morrell and I feel as if the world has stopped turning.
I saw that he was handsome this afternoon, but then I had other things on my mind.
Now that I see him again, I realize he is absolutely gorgeous.
I have never seen anyone that good looking, not even in a movie.
He has light-brown skin, a buzz cut, and beautiful green eyes.
His face is sharp, square jaw under high cheekbones and a scar that runs through his right eyebrow.
For a second, his eyes meet mine and I can’t breathe.
The tension between us shimmers in the air.
Then, he looks away and the spell is broken. I gasp in a breath.
At Zander’s words, Shawn backs off and Matthew nods a thank you to the Valens leader. All around me, the party starts up again. A couple of guys bring Matthew and his friends drinks as requested.
Meanwhile Zander has come down the rest of the stairs and is standing in front of me.
“Hello again, new girl,” he says. “I was hoping I might see some more of you.”
The way he says it, and the way his eyes run up and down my body, makes me think he means more of me as in more of my flesh. I feel my heart pounding harder at the thought of his hands on me, his full lips on mine. His…
“Leona?” Erin says, as Zander wanders away from us.
I look at her, feeling my cheeks going pink.
“No,” she says.
“No what?” I say, feigning innocence.
“Do not get mixed up with Zander,” she says.
“I have no intention of doing any such thing,” I say. “Honestly though, you make him sound dangerous.”
“He is dangerous,” Erin says. “On the surface, he is popular and friendly. But watch his eyes when he talks to people. There’s no emotion there.
His smiles don’t reach his eyes. He uses people, makes them feel special until he’s gotten what he needs from them and then he casts them aside. He hurts people for fun.”
A strange thrill ripples through me.
But why? It isn’t fear. It’s something like… excitement, but that wouldn’t make any sense. Surely it’s not normal. It’s warm and…
“You sound like you know this first-hand,” I blurt out, just to say something. Anything to reroute my brain off that train of thought.
“God no,” Erin says, wrinkling her nose. “I have far too much self-respect to get mixed up with a Valens guy. It’s bad enough my brother is involved with them.”
I’m listening to Erin, but watching Zander.
My eyes wander from his face and swoop down his body.
Even clothed I can see his pecs and the hint of a six pack through his top.
I want to run my hands over his body, and feel his smooth skin.
I don’t know what’s come over me. I have never met anyone who has made me feel like this before. I hate that I’m so attracted to him.
“Oh God, I’m too late, aren’t I? You’re already smitten,” Erin says.
“I’m not smitten,” I say.
Besides, smitten is for Jane Austen novels. I don’t look away from Zander and when he catches my eye across the room, he makes me feel things I didn’t know someone could make me feel with just a look.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” Laurel announces. “Then I’m going to have a wander around. Catch you guys later on.”
I’m surprised that she is going off on her own at a party, but as I watch her chatting with people, I realize she knows almost everyone here, so it’s more like she’s mingling with friends.
I down the last of my drink and see that Erin’s cup has gone.
“Should we go and get another drink?” I ask.
However, she seems distracted. She’s watching Shawn, who is talking to one of the guys who turned up with Matthew.
“Erin?” I say, nudging her with my elbow.
“Sorry,” she says. “I just need to go and have a quick word with my brother, OK? You go and grab us some drinks and I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”
She doesn’t give me a chance to argue the point and so I start making my way through the crowd towards the kitchen.
The room is full but it’s not so full that I can’t make my way through easily enough.
Until someone steps in my path. I try to sidestep around the person but they sidestep too.
I look up to see who it is, and I find myself once more looking at Zander’s beautiful green eyes.
My stomach flutters and my pussy clenches as he holds my gaze.
He reaches out with one hand and cups my chin.
His thumb comes up and rubs roughly across my bottom lip, smearing my lipstick slightly.
The gesture is so intimate I’m momentarily shocked into silence.
I just stand there looking at him, my treacherous body thrumming with desire.
He removes his hand from my chin and I instantly miss his touch. I’m breathless and panting as though I have run over here. I can feel my chest heaving but no amount of me telling myself to calm down is making it stop.
“Come with me,” Zander says.
It’s a command, not an invitation. He’s already heading off in the direction I’ve just come from.
I ache to follow him.
My heels dig into the ground.
Remember who this is, Leona: he’s the guy they warned you about. A heartbreaker. A downright sociopath.
And yet, they were so wrong about his eyes…
I allow my foot one step before I dig it back into the ground.
No. I don’t follow orders. I’m not used to being commanded and ordered about. I am no one’s plaything.
No.
I get out my phone and pretend to check my flashcards, even though all of me is tensed with what I want, how much I want it.
Him pulling me back against those powerful arms.
When I finally lift my head from the phone, he’s gone.