Chapter 6
Julian
My screen flickered to life, casting a pale glow over the dark room. Violet’s room was reflected in miniature on my monitor; every detail sharp, intimate, and mine to observe.
Her dark hair was damp at the ends, curling slightly where the heat of her skin met the cold air.
She must’ve showered when she returned from tonight’s partying.
I gritted my teeth, wishing that I’d installed a camera in her bathroom.
The thought of her standing there, steam rising around her, water sliding down the curve of her spine, disappearing beneath—
I cut the thought off with a sharp exhale.
Christ. Focus.
The mission came first. It always came first. Protecting the Club was paramount, and Violet Calloway was a threat that needed to be monitored, controlled, and neutralized if necessary. Not fantasized about like some obsessed teenager.
But then she moved across the room, and my discipline wavered like smoke. She had that innocent, distracted air about her again; the kind that made men underestimate her. Made them forget that softness could hide teeth.
I'd watched enough of her over the past week to know better. She was careful. Smart. Observant. Dangerous in ways she didn't even realize yet.
She bent to open her mini fridge, and I caught a flash of smooth thigh beneath her pajama shorts. My jaw locked tight.
I should’ve looked away.
I didn’t.
Instead, I watched as she pulled out a bag of Candy Snap grapes, settled cross-legged on the bed, and popped one into her mouth, fingers glistening faintly with condensation. I could almost feel her skin under mine, could almost taste the sweetness she didn’t even know she was offering.
But this wasn’t about my desire for her, as I had to remind myself once again. It was about what she might figure out if she looked too closely. What she might destroy.
She leaned forward to pull her laptop over to her. Seconds later, the keylogger flashed on my other monitor, preparing to record every keystroke she made. Her screen lit up blue, cursor blinking, and then she typed something that made my brows shoot up with surprise.
J-u-l-i-a-n V-a-l-c-o-u-r-t.
A dark thrill shot through my chest, sharp and electric, and I leaned forward, pulse quickening as I watched her hit enter.
So, the little mouse was curious about me.
Good.
Let her look for now. Let her dig. She wouldn't find anything under my name that the family hadn't carefully curated.
A few bland articles about philanthropic donations, some old society pages mentioning my father's business ventures, maybe a photograph or two from university events.
Nothing that would tell her what she really wanted to know.
Nothing that would tell her I'd been inside her dorm room three times already.
That I knew she kept a photo of her sister in a silver frame on her left nightstand.
That she slept on her left side, one hand curled under her pillow.
That she bit her bottom lip when she was concentrating, just like she was doing right now.
I leaned back again, fingers curling on the armrest as I watched her keep scrolling.
I knew I should tell Roman. Should report that Violet was already looking into us. It was my job to monitor and report, after all.
But something stopped me.
Maybe it was the way she worried her bottom lip between her teeth as she read. Maybe it was the small furrow between her brows that made her look more vulnerable. Maybe it was the fact that watching her felt less like surveillance and more like voyeurism.
Or maybe it was just that I wanted to see how far she'd go before I had to step in.
She scrolled, paused on something for a moment, then continued scrolling.
Curiosity gnawed at me. What was she looking for, exactly?
Evidence that I was in the Dionysus Club, which she probably suspected after eavesdropping on my conversation with Jeremiah Cavanagh five days ago?
Or was she just curious about me in general?
The thought sent heat coiling low in my gut.
My phone buzzed on the desk. Roman. Where are you? Voting on recruits starts at midnight, remember?
I didn’t reply. My attention remained fixed on Violet as she stood, paced to her window, and looked out at the darkened quad below.
Was she thinking about me? About what I might be? What I might do to her? Did she feel it too; that pull between us? That dangerous current that sparked the moment our eyes met?
If she was concerned for her safety, she would’ve run the second it happened. Transferred back to California and forgotten she ever came here.
But she wouldn't. I could see it in the set of her shoulders, the determined tilt of her chin even when she thought no one was watching.
She was going to keep digging. Keep pushing. Keep putting herself directly in my path. And God help me, part of me wanted her to.
My phone buzzed again. Roman, persistent as always. Julian, seriously, hurry the fuck up. Even Ralph Sinclair is here now, and he’s always late.
I typed back three words. On my way.
But I didn't move yet. Didn't leave my chair. Because the truth was, I didn't want to stop watching Violet.
And that was a problem.