43. Jolie
JOLIE
Ben closes his eyes, dipping his chin like he’s disappointed in my answer. “We need to do this properly. Inform the police and—”
“I can’t take this to the police! If he gets one whiff of what I’m up to, he could post all the videos online, and I won’t risk that.”
“All the videos?” His head pops up, his eyes bulging. “How many does he have?”
“I don’t know, but if two girls have left already because of him and I spent one wretched evening with him, then that’s at least three!” I squeeze my eyes shut, fisting my hair and whimpering, “Oh God, please let the cameras have been broken that night.”
Ben doesn’t say anything, and I open my eyes to check his expression.
It’s cold and blank, but I can sense the emotion raging around him.
So he’s one of those guys. Keeps his anger locked up tight.
My mom’s like that. It’s kind of scarier than my dad sometimes. When he’s mad, he yells and rants for a few minutes, and then it’s done. When mom’s mad, the entire house feels like an ice castle.
“Ben.” I reach for him, curling my fingers around his wrist. He gives me a tight smile, and I shake my head. “Don’t do that. You don’t have to smile right now. You don’t have to try and make me feel better. I’ve been crying since about ten o’clock this morning.”
His expression buckles. “You should have called me.”
“I know, but I needed to process everything. I needed to get to a place where I could actually think straight, be logical. And all I know for certain is that I can’t do nothing. He can’t get away with this anymore. We have to stop him.”
“We will.” He nods, slipping his hand into mine. “We’ll think of something legal. Like calling the police.”
I start shaking my head again, frustrated that he’s not listening to me. “Ben, no! I just told you why. We can’t let him know that we know!”
“We’ll tell the police to be subtle. We’ll warn them to investigate things quietly. They will have dealt with something like this before. Or if they haven’t, there’ll be another police department somewhere else that has.”
My face bunches, and I’m still shaking my head. “I just don’t know if I trust them to get it right. I really think it’ll be better if I go to them with proof. They don’t have to know how I got that proof, they just need to see it.”
“And what if he catches you trying to get that proof, huh? What then?”
I tut, turning my back to him and stiffening when he gently wraps his arms around me and rests his chin against my cheek.
“Baby, please. Don’t put yourself in danger. I can’t handle that. I need you to be safe.”
“I’m not safe if he’s able to post me losing my virginity online,” I grit out. “I can’t handle that.”
He squeezes me a little closer, his voice rough and edgy when he promises me, “We’re going to stop him. I will never let that happen to you. Just give me a day or two to really think this through and figure out how we can do this legally.”
I close my eyes, hating that suggestion but knowing he’s probably right.
Legal channels will mean proper convictions, right?
It’ll mean Kieran will actually be put away for doing this.
And I guess if he’s been doing this for months, possibly years, then a couple more days won’t change anything.
Gently spinning me to face him, Ben cups my cheeks, his brown gaze deep and intense. “I’m not going to let him hurt you.”
I sniff and try to smile. “I’m not going to let him hurt me either.”
He lets out a soft, mirthless laugh and leans down to kiss me. His lips are soft against mine, sealing our deal and reminding me to trust him.
To trust us.
We can fight Kieran together.
We can bring him down.
I just need to let Ben help me do it the right way.
Even though I’d much rather do it my way.