Chapter 4 #2
Images flash through my mind of him walking me backward against a wall and pressing his lips against mine with brutal force.
I stifle the groan, threatening to escape.
He leans in a hairsbreadth closer and for a brief second I think he might actually do it.
Kiss me. If I puckered, I could brush my lips against his.
Why am I even thinking this? He’s done nothing but try to intimidate me since I arrived here.
My pulse flutters wildly as I blink rapidly as I wait for him to say or do something—anything.
This moment in limbo seems to go on forever, and I feel his warm breath tickle my face.
“Run, Riley.”
He lets me go with a shove and I stumble back, blinking up at him in confusion.
That is not what I was expecting! He barely brought his voice above a whisper, but he may as well screamed the words.
I take Ava’s arm and pull her with me, walking backwards to keep them in my line of sight, putting some much needed distance between us.
She looks to her brother for an explanation, clearly confused by what just happened between us, but he gives her a barely noticeable headshake.
If I wasn’t so tuned in to them right now, I may not have noticed it.
Never turn your back on an enemy. It gives them more reason to shoot you, but I don’t have a choice.
I need to see where I’m headed. Eventually, I turn and move as fast as my legs will carry me, with Ava in tow.
I see her out of the corner of my eye, brows drawn, and lips turned down in a frown.
The same look her brother gave me minutes ago.
“What?” I ask as I push open the doors to the cafeteria.
“Why did he tell you to run? Do you know him? You said you didn’t know anyone here.”
I shake my head. “I’ve never met him in my life, but apparently he has something against me.
Or maybe it’s against my father. I really haven’t got a clue.
My dad hasn’t always played nice, so it’s entirely possible something happened and now I’m the target.
” I told her a little about my dad and who is in our room, so she has a general understanding of the powerful position he’s in.
She drops it for now, but I know she has more questions. Questions I haven’t got a clue on how to answer. I don’t even know what’s going on. There’s no way I can even begin to explain it to her. We grab a tray and fill it with a little of everything.
Surprisingly, the food here is good, and they have a lot of options to choose from.
They offer a pasta station with various sauces, a salad bar with everything you could ever want, a stir-fry station, and even a main course option.
There is literally something for everyone.
I hope breakfast is just as good. After we eat, and both of us are full, Ava gives me a tour of campus like she’s been here for years and not just a first year herself.
She told me she helped Zander move in his first year here and wandered campus.
Plus, she’s studied the map and, according to her, knows this place inside and out.
Which will come in handy because I have no idea where I’m going.
I have until Monday to figure out where I’m going for my classes.
We get back to our room and I sit down on my freshly made bed. Ava had helped me unpack my bag and put everything away in my space. Since I brought nothing to decorate my side, she hung one of her artwork pieces over my bed to make it cozy. I’m already grateful to have her as my roommate.
I pull my schedule from my packet of information and study the list of my classes.
I didn’t have a choice in the matter the academy picked for me.
Some classes seem basic enough, not what I would have studied at Dartmouth, such as economics and business management.
But others are just unconventional for a school. Survival? Seriously?
What does survival mean? They aren’t going to use us as science experiments, are they? Or is this going to be the torture classes Ava confirmed aren’t just rumors? My head spins with worst-case scenarios, and I’m hoping what I come up with is a lot worse than what the class actually is.
“Riles, you okay? You look a little green over there.”
Nope. Not at all. I breathe through my nose and try to push the thoughts out of my head. “I think I’m okay. Do you know much about the survival class?”
She shakes her head; her face drops. “No. Zan doesn’t talk about his classes and no one asks at home.
My dad came here, but don’t talk about it.
He told me I’d find out soon enough, and there’s no point in dwelling on what I won’t be able to change.
That’s the only one I’ve been worried about, but they can’t kill students, so I figure it’ll be fine. ”
Well, if that isn’t a winning statement, I don’t know what is. Why is everything so nonchalant with Ava? Nothing seems to bother her.
“I think I want to walk around campus some more to get the lay of the land before the bonfire tonight. Want to come?”
“No. I want to take a little nap, and then get ready. Are you gonna be fine by yourself?”
I smile and nod. “Sure. See ya in a bit.” I wave as I walk out the door, taking my phone with me.
I need to write everything Ava has told me for Leah, but I don’t want it to seem too suspicious.
Hopefully, I can find a quiet spot and jot down a few bullet points, and then I can come back to it later for more details.
I’ve already taken a few pictures, including one of my schedule to send to her, but the campus photos are all online anyway, so that’s nothing new.
Day one and I’ve only uncovered the tip of the iceberg.
There is an enormous story here waiting for me to tell.
I know it. The thought has me spiraling.
I need a familiar and warm voice to ease the tension.
Without hesitation, I pull Leah’s name up on my phone and she answers on the second ring.
“Hey bestie, how goes it? Have you met the head of the mafia yet?”
I smile despite myself. “Not funny, and no. But this place is insane, Leah.” I keep my voice low and glance around to make sure no one’s within earshot.
“They really teach torture classes, and gun shooting, though. What the fuck? We may not be too far off thinking Pointebreak is some sort of training ground.”
Her gasp is answer enough. Neither of us believed the rumors and laughed about it, but I’m not laughing now.
Not when I have to take these classes. I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around what my life is going to be like and I’m going to have to live it for the next four years.
This is going to be…challenging. I’m so far out of my element.
Dartmouth was going to be easy. I knew exactly what was in store for me.
Mainly rich assholes who think they are better than the person next to them, with some tough classes thrown into the mix.
But, this. I don’t know if I can do this.
My only options are to try, or get left behind.
And I don’t think the school takes too kindly to students who don’t try.
“Where are you right now? Are you stuck in your uniform yet?”
“Walking around campus and no. I don’t have to wear it until Monday, and on weekends it’s not required.”
“How does it look?” she asks.
“Basically like Stonewall, but less blue and silver and more red and black. Probably to hide blood stains if they happen.” I scoff at my grim joke and groan.
“Leah, I don’t know if I can do this. My roommate is nice, but her brother and his friends…
I somehow pissed them off.” I take a deep breath in and push it out of my nose, shaking my head, trying to dislodge the negative thoughts taking up residence in my mind.
“What do you mean?” She asks wearily.
“I don’t know. I got to campus, and they were staring at me like I killed their puppy and they are going to go all John Wick on me. All I did was step out of the car.” I take a deep breath and release it. “I’m going to email you some stuff tonight. You remember the guy from the diner?”
“Mr. Sexy that I told you to tap?” She smiles through the phone and I can’t help doing the same, even though she can’t see me.
“He’s one of them.”
“Oh damn. Looks like you won’t be getting lucky with him.” She sucks in a sharp breath, “Or maybe you will and it will be some awesome hate sex!”
“What?” I laugh. “Maybe it’s you who needs to get laid, girl.”
“Yeah, that too. Battery operated toys aren’t doing it for me anymore.”
I snort and shake my head in disbelief. I don’t make it much further before I see Julien walk around a corner. Why is he lurking everywhere? Does he not have anything better to do with his time?
“Leah, I gotta go.” I don’t give her a chance to answer before hanging up.
My phone rings in my hand and I silence it, wishing I hadn’t turned the ringer up in the dorm.
I was secretly hoping dad would call, and I didn’t want to miss it.
Now I realize how stupid that was. If he even cared, he would have found time to bring me.
Or hell, checked in on me since arriving.
Campus isn’t that far from home. I assume James has been back for hours now and told him he safely dropped me off.
I turn on my heel, hoping he hasn’t seen me, and duck behind a building, my back pressed flat against the cool stone as I wait and listen.
Please, just go away. I don’t want to deal with him right now.
Once was enough, and I’m hoping I won’t have to see him again since he’s in his third year here.
Seeing any student shouldn't scare me. Not yet anyway. I thought I’d make some headway by introducing myself and showing them I’m nice and not the monster they’ve somehow imagined me to be, but clearly that didn’t work.
I take a deep breath and turn my head to peek around the corner when hands slam down on the stone wall on either side of my face.
I yelp and slam my head back, my hair getting caught in the rough siding as I take in a shuddering breath.
Fuck, that hurt. A headache worms its way through my skull and I hold in my groan of pain as I stare wide-eyed at him.
This god-forsaken school must teach ninja skills!
I flatten my back to make myself as flush with the wall as possible, but it doesn’t matter.
Julien collars his hand around my throat and I bring my hands up, holding tight to his wrist. I can’t help the sudden rush of heat that blooms in my belly.
I try to stand a little taller, hoping to get him to loosen his hold on me.
It’s not tight, I can breathe no problem, but it is dominating.
I know I’m not leaving until he deems it so.
My breathing is erratic as he slowly rubs his thumb up and down over my fluttering pulse.
He hums as he runs his nose along my jaw, inhaling me as he goes.
Oh Jesus, Joseph, and Mary.
“W-what do you want, Julien?” I stammer, my breath coming out in shallow pants.
I’ve never been so scared and turned on in my life.
He adds pressure to his hand against my throat and my back arches away from the wall at the contact.
I can still breathe, but there’s no way out of his grip.
Not without leaving some serious marks and getting scraped to hell from the stone at my back.
He has me pinned, and from the look in his eyes, he knows it.
I bite my lip to suppress the moan that wants to escape as I get a whiff of him.
He smells so good. Masculine and clean with a touch of citrus.
“Stay the fuck away from me, Princess.” His deep voice is rough in my ear.
I release the hold on his wrist and press my hands against his solid chest to push.
He doesn’t even register that I’ve touched him and presses himself flush against me instead.
His strong form molding to my soft curves.
The hard plains of his body under his jeans and shirt are difficult to ignore.
How much time does one have to spend at the gym to get as ripped as he feels?
I would be on my ass in five seconds flat if pitted against him in a fight.
I push my hips up toward him, trying to buck him off.
He groans, then covers it with a deep, menacing growl.
My eyes flutter closed, a thrill that I’ve made him lose his complete and utter cool courses through me, if only for a moment.
Then I snap them open again and narrow on him, remembering how he’s treated me since meeting me.
“I’m not the one who keeps finding you, asshole. ”
If I didn’t know any better, I could swear his lips twitch in amusement before he presses his groin against me one last time and pulls away.
Even without glancing down, I can feel his hardness.
Is he hard because this type of torment turns him on, or is he hard because I did that to him?
I try not to let my mind dwell on that little tidbit, though.
I cross my arms over my chest and stare at him as he backs away, his eyes firmly trained on me.
Pointebreak is going to be harder than I thought. Not only do I have to survive these crazy classes, I’ve made an enemy my first day and he will stop at nothing to destroy me.