14. Tristan
14
TRISTAN
A s opposed to Elle, I’m no stranger to finding rats indoors. Dead or otherwise. They often snuck into our house back when I was younger. But I still took three showers and washed my shirt twice after that little stunt Elle pulled today.
God damn, she actually threw them in my face. My face . I didn’t see that coming.
In fact, I’m shocked that she even retaliated at all. I thought she was just going to crumble. To sink down on the floor and bawl her eyes out. And then maybe to come and beg me to stop.
But instead, she got angry. She stormed across half of the residential area to throw the rats right back at me. Vermin belong with vermin .
A huff of amusement, and grudging approval, escapes my chest.
Because fucking hell, I can’t deny that I am a little impressed .
Up ahead, Elle finally comes out of the store she went into twenty minutes ago.
I washed my shirt to get any traces of rat off it, but she must have simply thrown her bed linen away, because when I snuck over to her dorm after my three showers, I found her striding towards a campus shop that sells sheets and things like that. Apparently, it took her twenty minutes to browse through the meager collection and make a decision. Which should have annoyed me. But instead, I’m grateful. It gave me the time I needed to get my head back on straight and make a plan.
Leaning against the wall in the shadows of a building across the street, I watch as Elle walks back out through the door and into the gloomy afternoon light with a colorful paper bag full of bed linen in her right hand. White clouds still cover the sky, painting the entire area in bleak hues, which makes that bag look ridiculously bright in comparison.
Elle glances up and down the street before she crosses it and then starts back towards her dorm. Or I presume so anyway, since she is walking back the same way she came. I study her for a few seconds.
She’s wearing a hoodie, of all things. In all the years I’ve known her, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her wear a hoodie out in public. But maybe she doesn’t care as much what she looks like right now. Not after she has no doubt spent the past two hours scrubbing red paint off her door and meticulously cleaning her room. Or maybe she was simply cold because the afternoon is growing late and the sun is blocked by the clouds.
Still, it’s an odd sight.
But it gave me a great idea. Originally, I had planned to just confront her and threaten her a little. But seeing her in that hoodie gave me an even better idea, which I thankfully had the time to properly plan while Elle spent twenty minutes picking out bedsheets.
Pushing off from the wall, I start back down the road that I came from so that I can circle around her. I’ve already decided on the perfect location. I just need to get there first.
I jog between the white stone buildings until I reach the narrow alley that Elle will need to pass through to get back to her dorm. Technically, she could simply walk around the cluster of buildings, which is what most people do, but she used this shortcut on the way to the shop, so I have gambled that she will do the same on the way back as well.
When I reach it, it’s empty. Gray light from the overcast sky barely reaches the alley now that the sun has started slanting towards the horizon. I draw myself up along the wall right outside the mouth of the alley. And then I wait.
After about two minutes, footsteps echo between the white stone walls. I steal a discreet glance into the alley.
Satisfaction pulses through me.
Elle is walking there between the tall buildings, coming straight towards me. I pull back again. Remaining there right outside, I listen to her footsteps get closer. She is walking briskly. Confidently. Which is another thing that surprises me. Usually, she moves with much more care. As if she is afraid that she will upset someone if she is too assertive when she walks. But not now.
I frown slightly in confusion. Apparently, painting ‘rat’ on her door and leaving dead rats in her room had the exact opposite effect on her than I thought it would.
Shaking my head, I push the confusion aside. It doesn’t matter that my stunt with the rats backfired, I have something much worse in store for her now .
Once her footsteps have almost reached the end, I push off from the wall and take a step right into the alley.
She jumps in surprise.
The colorful paper bag slips from her fingers and hits the asphalt with a thud. Tipping over, it lands sideways, making the contents slide out.
I nod towards the sheets and pillowcases and covers wrapped in plastic that are now lying halfway on the ground. “You threw away your old sheets, huh?”
The sound of my voice seems to snap her out of her stunned surprise, because she jerks back a little and blinks. Then she casts a quick look over her shoulder. It’s a long way to the other end of the alley, and there is no way that she can reach it before I can catch her.
She seems to realize that too, because she turns back and meets my gaze head on. A mask of cold fury settles on her beautiful features as she raises her chin and stares back at me.
“I burned them,” she announces.
Amusement ripples through me, and I let out a huff of laughter. “I see.”
She nods towards my chest. “And you threw away your shirt.”
“No. I just washed it like a normal person.” Cocking my head, I flash her a sharp smile. “Because I’m not a spoiled little rich girl like you.”
Lightning flashes in her eyes for a moment. But it’s quickly replaced by something that looks suspiciously like regret. The sight of it pulls at something in my heart. Which in turn makes me unreasonably angry. I don’t want her regret. I want her to suffer the way I did.
Blocking out those infuriating thoughts, I concentrate on my mission. I’m not here to make her feel bad. I’m here to ruin her.
She must have sensed the shift in my emotions, because she suddenly takes an instinctive step back. “Look, I, uhm…”
A smirk curls my lips as I take a step closer. “What? You think I’m here to hurt you?”
Her gaze darts towards the empty road behind my back, and then to the deserted alley behind her own, before her eyes meet mine again. She licks her lips. “Aren’t you?”
“No. I’m here to tell you that I’m impressed.”
She blinks, and my words apparently stun her enough that she forgets to keep moving backwards. I use that opportunity to quickly close the distance between us. Using my size, I make her twist slightly so that I can back her up against the wall.
Only when her back has hit the white stones behind her does she snap out of her surprise. But by then, it’s already too late. Planting my hands on the wall on either side of her head, I cage her in.
“I didn’t expect you to retaliate,” I tell her, which is the truth. “And I certainly didn’t expect you to be brave enough to storm over to my house and throw the rats back at me.”
She opens her mouth, but no sound makes it out. I discreetly study her face, trying to read her expression, but it’s impossible to tell what she’s feeling right now. I decide to press on anyway.
Taking one hand off the wall, I gently draw my fingers over her jaw. Her eyes flutter, and a shudder of pleasure rolls down her spine.
I have to suppress the urge to grin. Excellent . This is going exactly the way I was hoping it would.
While still holding her gaze, I slide my hand over her skin until I can place it on the side of her neck and jaw. Then I brush my thumb over her cheek. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re really fucking hot when you’re angry?”
Her breath hitches. Then she gives her head a short shake as if to clear it, and licks her lips again.
My cock hardens.
Fuck, I wish she would stop licking her lips like that. It’s really distracting. And I’m on a mission. I also hate her. Which is something I have to remind myself of two more times when she draws her gaze down my body before she locks eyes with me again.
“Tristan,” she begins. Her voice is uncertain. And a little breathless.
“Yes, sweetheart?”
“What are you doing?”
“Something I’ve been thinking about doing since you stormed up to my house with fire in your eyes.”
Then, before she can reply, I lean forward and kiss her.
She stiffens.
I suppress a grimace. Fuck . I thought she was going to?—
Her hands slide up my chest and lock behind the back of my neck. And then she’s kissing me back.
My heart does a backflip in my chest.
But not because my plan is working. No, my heart is beating like a battle drum against my ribs because of how her hands feel against my skin. Because of how her lips feel against mine. Because of how she’s kissing me. Furiously. Like she has secretly been wanting to do this for years.
Dropping my other hand from the wall, I slide both my hands into her hair while I nudge her mouth open with my tongue. Something like a moan escapes her throat as my tongue tangles with hers .
My knees almost give out.
Oh God, she tastes like summer.
With both hands in her hair, I tilt her head back and kiss her fiercely.
She slides her hands over my shoulders and then down my chest. Lightning shoots through my veins at her touch. She grips the fabric of my shirt, pulling me closer. I brace one knee against the wall between her legs as I dominate her mouth.
Another moan slips from her lips.
Releasing my grip on her head, I draw my hands down her sides. She trembles underneath my hands and clutches my shirt harder. I slip my hands underneath the fabric of her hoodie and slide them up her smooth stomach.
She whimpers and presses her thighs hard against my leg.
Blood pounds in my ears, my heart thunders in my chest, and my cock is straining painfully against my pants. Fuck, she feels so perfect. Tastes so perfect. I just want to?—
Cold clarity hits me like a lightning bolt.
What the fuck am I doing?
I’m on a mission. I’m not supposed to enjoy kissing her. It’s just a means to an end. Her end.
She bites my bottom lip slightly as she kisses me again, and fucking hell, my heart jerks so hard that my chest hurts. My entire body feels charged. Like it’s full of coursing electricity. And one spark from her will set me aflame.
I need to get out of here.
Now.
Right now.
I need to finish my mission and get the hell out of this disastrously dangerous situation.
Dropping one hand from her stomach, I slip it into the pocket of my pants while I continue kissing her as if nothing is wrong. As if my entire existence isn’t in danger right now. My heart pounds in my chest. I need to finish this and get the hell out.
She whimpers as I brush my fingers over her bare stomach.
I slip my other hand into the pocket of her hoodie.
Then I wrench myself away.
Elle gasps.
Her usually so perfect hair is now mussed from where my fingers have run through it, and her hoodie has ridden up her stomach. Still pressed against the wall, she stares up at me with bewildered brown eyes.
Reaching forward, I gently pull her hoodie back down so that it covers her stomach. Then I smooth out the fabric the way that I have seen her do to her clothes before.
She just stares at me, mouth slightly open.
Her lips are a little swollen from the furious kiss. My cock aches at the sight of it. Which makes me furious.
Clearing my throat, I take two steps back. “I’ll see you around.”
And then, without another word, I turn and stride away before I can do something really stupid.