Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
ELLA
By Monday morning, everything changed. Sonny passed me in the hallway without a second look in my direction like we hadn’t spent Saturday night into Sunday morning getting acquainted with each other’s bodies. He was surrounded by Marcello and a bunch of his football buddies. A few of the players snickered at me. One even called me a whore.
We were back to normal.
Ella, the nobody.
Ella, the freak.
Tears welled in my bottom lids as Sonny disappeared down the hallway, swept up by the masses. Walking faster, I rushed toward the bathroom, desperate to escape the taunting looks of my peers. Maybe I was paranoid, but I swore they all laughed and whispered about me. The stupid girl who thought she could have the hottest boy in school.
With each step I took toward painting class, the voices in the hallway grew louder. The loudest comments came from the jealous girls smirking and laughing at me.
“Did Sarah tell you about what happened on Saturday night?”
“I heard she was with Sonny and the new guy. You know, the hot one who looks like Ryan Phillipe.”
“What a slut?”
“I know, right? Total whore.”
“She’s such a loser.”
Unable to contain the tears spilling down my cheeks, I darted into the bathroom as a deep, male voice said my name. It sounded like Aiden, but over the cacophony of laughter, I couldn’t focus on anything else.
I pushed on the door to an open stall and stepped inside, my heart pounding like a drum. Girls gathered around the sink, fixing their hair and makeup. Leaning against the wall, I breathed through my nose to control my heartbeat.
“That’s her,” a blonde girl said to a busty brunette, her head tipped at the stall.
I could see them in the gap between the door and wanted to die. There wasn’t a single place at Astor Prep that was safe. Not with the entire school knowing my name… and for all the wrong reasons. Being invisible sounded like a good option at this moment.
Someone entered the bathroom, slamming the door into the wall, causing the girls to gasp.
“You’re not allowed in here,” the blonde said.
“Get the fuck out,” Aiden hissed, closing the distance between them. He hovered over the girl, teeth clenched. “Go!”
The girls grabbed their backpacks and scrambled out of the bathroom. After the door shut behind them, Aiden stood in front of my stall.
“Cinders, I know you’re in there.” He leaned against the door and sighed. “Those bitches are gone. Come out and talk to me.”
“You’re not mad at me?”
“What?” Aiden groaned. “Fuck, no. Why would you say that?”
“Because Sonny won’t even look at me,” I choked out, blotting at the tears wetting my cheeks. “His friends called me a whore, and so did other students.”
“Ella,” Aiden bit out in a sigh. “Just come out. Please.”
The second I opened the door, Aiden wrapped his arms around me, lifting my feet off the floor. His lips pressed against my neck as he inhaled my scent. “I’m sorry, baby. So fucking sorry it went down like this.”
“I knew it wouldn’t last. Our families have been at war for years. It was only a matter of time...”
“This isn’t your fault.” He walked us over to the sink and set me on the edge, moving between my thighs. “It’s Sonny’s. He threw our relationship in his dad’s face, and we’re paying the price for it.”
I cupped his face, staring into his pretty blue eyes. “Did he stop talking to you, too?”
He shook his head. “No, but getting his Black Card cut off was the wake-up call Sonny needed.”
“What about you?” I gripped his tie between my fingers and pulled him closer. “Is your grandfather pissed about us?”
Aiden shook his head. “He doesn’t know. As long as Sonny stays away from you, the situation won’t escalate.” He bent down and kissed my lips, parting them with his tongue. “I’m not walking away from you, Cinders.” Another peck. “I don’t care what kind of hell my grandfather rains down on me. I’m not like Sonny. I grew up poor and don’t need a yacht or a trust fund to survive.”
Hooking my arms around his neck, I kissed him again, a quick peck that left me breathless. “So where do we go from here?”
“We’ll sit at our table at lunch. Nothing changes between us.”
I nibbled on my lip, staring at the door, hoping we would have a few more seconds alone. “How do we see each other outside of school?”
“Alex,” he said as if that explained everything. When I narrowed my eyes, he added, “Use my sister as an excuse to get away from your house.”
“Right.” I nodded. “But where will we go?”
“Wellington Manor, I guess.” He shrugged. “The house is so big I get lost in it. No one will know you’re there.”
“Aiden,” I whispered, staring down at our joined hands. “We can’t keep sneaking around without getting caught.”
“Your dad won’t let you leave the house with a Wellington. He was only okay with Alex because she lied. You’re back to being caged once he finds out who she is. Might as well live while you can.”
He was right. Until I met him, I never felt free a single day.
Aiden grabbed my hips and helped me off the sink. “Time to go, beautiful. We’re going to be late for class.”
By the end of the week, I couldn't wait to be done with school. My overnight popularity as Sonny’s girl took me from an incredible high to an all-time low. It was nice to be one of the elite for a short time. But being the whore who fucked Sonny sucked.
People pointed and whispered about me. Some even had the nerve to say shit to my face. Thankfully, I had Aiden to keep me sane. He punched a football player for calling me a slut… and then walked over to Sonny’s table and spat in his face. Aiden sat with me at lunch and tried to cheer me up, but everything felt out of place, like something was missing.
After school on Friday, I got into the backseat of Thomas’ black Range Rover, dreading what awaited me at home. My mother’s one-year anniversary was on Saturday. The house had grown increasingly intense since her death. Most of the time, my father was out handling business… or sneaking around with one of his whores.
But he was home today.
“Your father wants to see you,” Thomas said as we drove off the school lot. “He’s waiting for you in his office.”
“Great,” I muttered, rolling my eyes.
The second I walked into the house, my father summoned me to his office, guided by two of his most trusted goons. Around the clock, we had twenty-four-hour surveillance. Ever since my mother’s murder, Dear Old Dad stepped up his security game. He spared no expense to ensure my safety.
“Bring her in here,” Dad yelled, his deep voice traveling down the hallway.
Sighing, I secured the bag over my shoulder and followed his men. Fear rolled down my arms in hot waves as I entered his office. My father was dangerous, cold, and unloving.
The Great and Powerful Cian Doyle sat behind an enormous mahogany desk. He pointed his finger at one of the chairs across from his desk. “Sit.”
No hello or a smile. Dad was never warm and cuddly, not even when I was a child. That role my mother filled. She was caring and sweet and always made me feel special.
I plopped into a chair and crossed my legs, tapping my fingers on my thigh to still my trembling limbs. An awkward silence filled the room momentarily, and it freaked me out.
Dad lifted a highball glass from the desk and sipped the bourbon, surveying me like one of his business associates. “This weekend, you will accompany me to the Beacon Bay Benefactors Ball.”
“But Dad… Mom’s death anniversary is this weekend. You promised we could visit her grave together.”
“This dinner is more important than standing over a pile of bones,” he said through clenched teeth.
A gasp slipped past my lips.
How could he say that about his wife?
My mother.
The ground was barely settled at her grave, and he had already forgotten about her. The decades-long feud between Sonny’s family and mine started over my mom. What was the point of a war with Declan O’Shea if he didn’t love her? If he couldn’t even mourn her properly?
“Then I’ll get Killian to take me,” I shot back.
Killian was the youngest of my three older brothers and always looked out for me. If I couldn’t get my dad to budge on something, I went to Killian for help convincing him.
“Your brother is coming to the dinner with us. So are Sully and Rowan.” He clenched his jaw at the same time as his fist. “Tomorrow night is a special occasion for our family. We all need to be in attendance. And you will sit with Kieran Donnelly at the party,” he said with a cruel smirk tipping up the right corner of his mouth.
My nose wrinkled in disgust as the image of Kieran popped into my head. “No, thanks. I’ll pass.”
He leaned forward, elbows on the desk, both hands now balled into angry fists. “It’s not up for discussion, Ella.”
I shook my head and sighed. “No way. He’s insane. When we were kids, he tried to force himself on me.”
“He did no such thing,” my dad said, and it was no surprise he believed a stranger over his daughter.
“This is not a negotiation. After what happened to your mother, we must maintain a healthy relationship with the Donnellys.”
A marriage between crime families was inevitable. My mother had prepared me for it my entire life. But I never foresaw meeting Aiden… and Sonny. Despite his attempts to ignore me at school, I didn’t hate him. I understood family obligations well and could relate.
“The Donnellys are just like us,” Dad said when I didn’t speak, refusing to look at him. “They make alliances to strengthen their connections. You will do as I say if you want to maintain your lifestyle. In this house, I am the boss. I make the rules. And you will follow them.”
“I graduate in a few months. I can move out.”
He sneered. “With what money?”
“I have money saved from working at The Ink Yard.”
“Is that so?” Dad laughed. “Sean is an old friend. He let you work there as a favor to me. It would only take one phone call for him to forget your name.”
I shot out of the chair as if it were on fire, tears stinging my eyes. “How can you do this to me? I’m your only daughter.”
He reached into his desk, removed an envelope, and tossed it at me. The Rhode Island School of Design logo was stamped on the front. A rush of nervous energy coursed through my veins, both excited and terrified of what was inside. This was my only hope of getting out of Beacon Bay and whatever marriage proposal awaited me.
The seal was already broken, and as I pulled out the single page, my dad smirked. Dread filled my insides. Before I read the letter, I knew what it would say.
I didn’t get into art school.
Fuck .
As I weighed my options, I realized I had none. So, I decided to play the role of the dutiful daughter. I would never be allowed to sleep at Aiden’s house if I didn’t comply.
Holding my head high, I plastered on a fake smile. “Fine. I’ll sit with Kieran at the dinner.”
He smirked. “I knew you would see it my way.”